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Author Topic: Hardware setup  (Read 1142 times)

Offline Enker

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Hardware setup
« on: February 20, 2009, 03:34:01 PM »
I am trying to help out a friend, as he wants to get a new computer for somewhere around $250(if he gets it, I plan on having him try out AH). Trying to be a helpful friend, I offered to give him my setup, so he can have something to base it on. What I wanted to know is if my setup is a good idea for both general purpose use, as well as use in PC gaming. I figure that because my computer is fairly old, the parts that I use should be fairly cheap.
The setup:
Manufacturer:     
powerspec4.1b
Processor:    
AMD Athlon(tm) 64 Processor 3200+, MMX, 3DNow, ~2.2GHz
Memory: 1024MB RAM
Hard Drive: 200 GB
Video Card:   RADEON X700 PRO
Monitor: Plug and Play Monitor
Sound Card: SB Audigy 2 ZS Audio [8800]
Speakers/Headphones: AKG K-44 Stereo Headphones
Mouse: Razer Diamondback
Operating System: Windows XP Home Edition

Now as to the motherboard, I have no idea, but I don't believe it is very important to know.

Thank you in advance,
Enker
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Quote from: BillyD topic=283300.msg3581799#msg3581799
... FOR TEH MUPPET$ TO PAD OUR SCO?E N to WIN TEH EPIC WAR OF TEH UNIVERSE We MUST VULTCHE DA RUNWAYZ N DROP UR GUYZ FIGHTERZ Bunkarz Then OUR SKWAD will Finarry Get TACTICAL NOOK for 25 KILL SCORE  STREAK>X

Offline Getback

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Re: Hardware setup
« Reply #1 on: February 20, 2009, 04:02:32 PM »
Can he reuse anything?
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Offline Fulmar

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Re: Hardware setup
« Reply #2 on: February 20, 2009, 05:05:55 PM »
I'm confused, are you giving him this computer for free to try out?  Are you giving him this computer for free and he's gonna spend $250 in upgrades?  Or is this the $250 he wants to spend on a computer, total?  That machine should be able to run AH easily, but not at the highest graphics settings.

As for figuring out the model number of your motherboard, you can either open the side of the case and see if you can find it printed on the motherboard.  Or use a program like CPU-Z to give you the model information.

If you are looking to upgrade that machine, an extra 1gb of RAM wouldn't hurt, maybe a faster processor (might be best to get used from ebay) if the motherboard supports one.  And a video card upgrade would see the best gaming performance boost.  But the video card upgrade is going to be determined by is the motherboard AGP or PCI-E, and how many watts/amps are on the computer power supply.
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Offline Enker

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Re: Hardware setup
« Reply #3 on: February 20, 2009, 06:15:55 PM »
Quote from: Fulmar on February 20, 2009, 05:05:55 PM
I'm confused, are you giving him this computer for free to try out?  Are you giving him this computer for free and he's gonna spend $250 in upgrades?  Or is this the $250 he wants to spend on a computer, total?  That machine should be able to run AH easily, but not at the highest graphics settings.

As for figuring out the model number of your motherboard, you can either open the side of the case and see if you can find it printed on the motherboard.  Or use a program like CPU-Z to give you the model information.

If you are looking to upgrade that machine, an extra 1gb of RAM wouldn't hurt, maybe a faster processor (might be best to get used from ebay) if the motherboard supports one.  And a video card upgrade would see the best gaming performance boost.  But the video card upgrade is going to be determined by is the motherboard AGP or PCI-E, and how many watts/amps are on the computer power supply.
I am giving him the specs on my computer because it's a sturdy lil' fellow. Still, I have money to burn so I think I will take your advice and pick up some more RAM and a nicer processor. It is the $250 he wants to spend on a computer of his own, he already has a desktop that is just a base computer straight from the shelves. Thank you Fulmar.

Quote from: Getback on February 20, 2009, 04:02:32 PM
Can he reuse anything?
He probably will, just to help keep costs down.
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Quote from: BillyD topic=283300.msg3581799#msg3581799
... FOR TEH MUPPET$ TO PAD OUR SCO?E N to WIN TEH EPIC WAR OF TEH UNIVERSE We MUST VULTCHE DA RUNWAYZ N DROP UR GUYZ FIGHTERZ Bunkarz Then OUR SKWAD will Finarry Get TACTICAL NOOK for 25 KILL SCORE  STREAK>X

Offline Fulmar

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Re: Hardware setup
« Reply #4 on: February 20, 2009, 06:46:21 PM »
He'll have to reuse stuff to keep the costs down.  Stuff he can reuse is the hard drive, dvd/cd drives, mouse/keyboard, monitor.

He may or may not be able to reuse the case.  It depends on the computer he has now.  We can probably tell you if you give us a model # of his off-the-shelf PC.  But he'll need the following parts more than likely.
- CPU ($50-$100 probably the best range)
- RAM ($20-$40, this is their 2gb or 4gb DDR2 memory)
- Video Card ($75-$100 for anything recommended by me, don't buy a $40 card)
- Power Supply (since off-the-shelf PC's PSU's are usually very low wattage and in short, are not suitable whatsoever for upgraded computers) (about $50 here)
- Computer Case ($30 ones will do just fine, look for Free shipping cases on Newegg, w/o it shipping can add $15-20 to the cost)
   + Also, HIGHLY recommend you do not buy a cheap case w/ a PSU in it.  They are low quality and you don't want a piece of junk frying your whole computer.  Many of us have seen the horrors of this.
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Offline BaldEagl

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Re: Hardware setup
« Reply #5 on: February 20, 2009, 06:54:46 PM »
Enker, I was playing around on newegg just a couple of nights ago trying to put togeher an extreem budget build.  I've posted the components of that build below.

If your friend can re-use his keyboard, monitor, mouse, hard drive(s), optical drive(s), operating system and soundcard (not included below... or use onboard sound) this is just under $250.  It's possible to trim a little off this too.  I was looking for relatively good quality components at budget prices.

I think this would run the game but possibly not at full graphic settings.  The only thing holding that back IMO is the video card.  It could be replaced with a 9500 GT for an additional $20 or, there's now a GDDR3 9500 GT at an additional $30.  XP Pro could be changed for XP Home for a $50 savings.  Anyway, you get the idea.  Here's the parts:

Update   GIGABYTE GZ-X5BPD-500 Black SECC Steel / ABS ATX Mid Tower Computer Case - Retail
Model #:GZ-X5BPD-500
Item #:N82E16811233039
Return Policy:Standard Return Policy

Save   Cancel   $39.99 -$5.00 Instant $34.99
   
Update   GIGABYTE GA-MA74GM-S2 AM2+/AM2 AMD 740G Micro ATX AMD Motherboard - Retail
Model #:GA-MA74GM-S2
Item #:N82E16813128342
Return Policy:30 Day Return Policy

Save   Cancel   $54.99   $54.99
   
Update   Galaxy 84GEE6HDFEXN GeForce 8400 GS 256MB 64-bit GDDR2 PCI Express x16 Low Profile Video Card - Retail
Model #:84GEE6HDFEXN
Item #:N82E16814162026
Return Policy:Standard Return Policy

Save   Cancel   $39.99 -$10.00 Instant $29.99
   
Update   Rosewill Stallion Series RD400-2-SB 400W ATX V2.2 Power Supply - Retail
Model #:RD400-2-SB
Item #:N82E16817182074
Return Policy:Standard Return Policy

Save   Cancel   $36.99 -$3.00 Instant $33.99
   
Update   AMD Athlon 64 LE-1640 Orleans 2.6GHz Socket AM2 45W Single-Core Processor Model ADH1640DHBOX - Retail
Model #:ADH1640DHBOX
Item #:N82E16819103239
Return Policy:Processors (CPUs) Return Policy

Save   Cancel   $38.99   $38.99
   
Update   Kingston ValueRAM 2GB (2 x 1GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 (PC2 6400) Dual Channel Kit Desktop Memory Model KVR800D2N5K2/2G - Retail
Model #:KVR800D2N5K2/2G
Item #:N82E16820134117
Return Policy:Limited Non-Refundable 30-Day Return Policy

Save   Cancel   $23.99   $23.99
   
Update   SAMSUNG Black 1.44MB 3.5" Internal Floppy Drive Windows 98SE/ ME/ 2000/ XP - OEM
Model #:SFD321B/LFBL1
Item #:N82E16821103203
Return Policy:30 Day Return Policy

Save   Cancel   $7.49   $7.49
   
Update   Seagate Barracuda 7200.10 ST380815AS 80GB 7200 RPM SATA 3.0Gb/s Hard Drive - OEM
Model #:ST380815AS
Item #:N82E16822148231
Return Policy:30 Day Return Policy

Save   Cancel   $34.99   $34.99
   
Update   LG 20X DVD±R DVD Burner w/ SecurDisc Tech Black SATA Model GH20NS15 - OEM
Model #:GH20NS15
Item #:N82E16827136149
Return Policy:30 Day Return Policy

Save   Cancel   $21.99   $21.99
   
Update   Microsoft Windows XP Professional SP3 for System Builders - OEM
Model #:E85-05683
Item #:N82E16832116515
Return Policy:Software Return Policy

Save   Cancel   $139.99   $139.99
Subtotal: $421.40
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Offline Fulmar

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Re: Hardware setup
« Reply #6 on: February 20, 2009, 06:58:55 PM »
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811110001
GMC R-2 Toast AZT-GMCR2-BL Black Steel / Plastic ATX Mid Tower Computer Case - Retail
$44.99 - $15 MIR = $29.99 + Free Shipping
Ugly case but you get the idea

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819103298
 AMD Athlon 64 X2 5050e Brisbane 2.6GHz 2 x 512KB L2 Cache Socket AM2 45W Dual-Core Processor - Retail
$59.99 + Free shipping

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813157147
 ASRock N61P-S AM2+/AM2 NVIDIA GeForce 6150SE Micro ATX AMD Motherboard - Retail
$47.99

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820146526
 Crucial 2GB (2 x 1GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 667 (PC2 5300) Dual Channel Kit Desktop Memory - Retail
$22.99 + Free Shipping

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814161262
 HIS Hightech H465FS512P Radeon HD 4650 512MB 128-bit DDR2 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready Video Card - Retail
$54.99 - $10 MIR = $44.99 + Free Shipping

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817703015
 PC Power & Cooling Silencer PPCS500 500W ATX12V / EPS12V SLI Ready CrossFire Ready 80 PLUS Certified Active PFC Power Supply - Retail
$74.99 - $15 MIR = $59.99 + Free Shipping


TOTAL AFTER MAIL IN REBATES: $265.94
Total before Rebates: $305.94 + S/H from motherboard ($10) ~= $315.94

NOTE: This does not include a copy of Windows, this assumes you have a copy.  If you don't, add $90 for Windows XP HOME, $130 XP Pro, $Wasted money for Vista
« Last Edit: February 20, 2009, 07:02:31 PM by Fulmar »
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Offline 1701E

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Re: Hardware setup
« Reply #7 on: February 20, 2009, 07:14:21 PM »
Fulmar, that case says it only supports ATX, yet you have a Micro-ATX Motherboard.  Was this just a "get the idea" list, or an accident in listing?
Knowing me I read something wrong. :)
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Offline Fulmar

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Re: Hardware setup
« Reply #8 on: February 20, 2009, 07:20:55 PM »
Quote from: 1701E on February 20, 2009, 07:14:21 PM
Fulmar, that case says it only supports ATX, yet you have a Micro-ATX Motherboard.  Was this just a "get the idea" list, or an accident in listing?
Knowing me I read something wrong. :)
Good catch.  There's a RaidMax I saw on there that was similarly priced.

Seriously, what kind of company doesn't just drill 6 more holes in the motherboard tray?
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Offline Enker

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Re: Hardware setup
« Reply #9 on: February 21, 2009, 09:09:56 PM »
Thank you guys, we spent a while at a used part warehouse downtown, and we found a good graphics card in one of the computers they were going to scrap, so that part should be taken care of. I sent this list on to him, and all he has to do is raise an extra 20 bucks, and he will have enough to get it. Again, thanks and <S>!
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Quote from: BillyD topic=283300.msg3581799#msg3581799
... FOR TEH MUPPET$ TO PAD OUR SCO?E N to WIN TEH EPIC WAR OF TEH UNIVERSE We MUST VULTCHE DA RUNWAYZ N DROP UR GUYZ FIGHTERZ Bunkarz Then OUR SKWAD will Finarry Get TACTICAL NOOK for 25 KILL SCORE  STREAK>X

Offline TheZohan

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Re: Hardware setup
« Reply #10 on: March 04, 2009, 01:09:37 PM »
you can get the 7750 kuma BE for 63.00 + free shipping its faster then then 6400+ and cheaper. and for 4 dollars more then what your paying for the 5050e

and you can get a 9600 GSO for 50.00 which would blow away that 4650 for 5 dollars less
« Last Edit: March 04, 2009, 01:15:50 PM by TheZohan »
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