Upgrading Computer: Suggestions?

chaosRL · 08-20-2004, 03:08 AM

Hi everybody, I just signed up here because the other forum I go to isn't really helping much. Anyways, I'm planning on upgrading my computer, and I need some second opinions on stuff, as this is my first time doing it.

Here's my current setup:
2000 Gateway Computer
1 Ghz Pentium III
Unknown Motherboard
Soundcard came with system
ATi Radeon 9600 Pro (not upgrading this)
80 Gb Western Digital HD
20 Gb Seagate(?) HD (this came with my system)
256 Mb RAM

I'm looking to upgrade my CPU, motherboard, RAM, and PSU. Hopefully, the costs will be no more than $500 MAX, preferably between $300-400, although I know that will be hard. I'm just looking for a faster computer that may be able to run HL2 without lag. Right now, I have this CPU in mind:

AMD Athlon 64 3200+, 512k L2 Cache, The Only 64-bit Windows Compatible Processor - Retail

Model# ADA3200AXBOX
Item # N82E16819103483

Specification
Model: AMD Athlon 64 3200+
Core: Newcastle
Operating Frequency: 2.2GHz
FSB: Integrated int chip
Cache: L1/64K+64K; L2/512K
Voltage: 1.5V
Process: 0.13Micron
Socket: Socket 754
Multimedia Instruction: MMX, SSE, SSE2, 3DNOW!, 3DNOW!+
Warranty: 3-year MFG
Packaging: Retail Box (Heatsink and Fan included)
http://www.newegg.com/app/ViewProduc...103-483&depa=1

My question is whether or not this is a good chip, other options that are better than this, what I will need to do in terms of cooling, motherboards that are good with this chip or any suggested chips, and types of RAM (512 is enough for now, to keep the costs down). Thanks!!!

arkiebrian · 08-20-2004, 03:24 AM

Where are you shopping? I'd like to suggest that you look at mwave.com. I always use them. They have the best prices for individual buyers.

Your specs sound good to me if that will keep you under $500. I didn't see you name a motherboard specifically. You can save money on the motherboard by buying one that doesn't have integreted video or sound (it's crap anyway).

kof2000 · 08-20-2004, 03:25 AM

u can't upgrade ur pentium chip with a amd chip. oh eyeah if you are going to upgrade you SHOULD find out what your MOTHERBOARD is. you should upgrade ur memory first, whats HL2's requirements? who knows maybe you only need to upgrade ur memory then you dont have to spend 3-400 or even 200 bucks.

chaosRL · 08-20-2004, 04:25 AM

so even if i upgrade the motherboard, i still can't go to a amd chip?

sorry i missed the post above, i'm shopping at newegg.com, i will check out your site though. the motherboard i was looking for suggestions, as i haven't really looked at motherboards for this particular chip. i have shopped for socket A motherboards earlier this year when i decided to postpone upgrading until fall.

EDIT: I'm looking into three different motherboards now:

ASUS K8N-E Deluxe ~$138
ASUS K8V SE Deluxe ~$114
ASUS K8V ~$100

The K8N-E Dlx is a nVidia nForce3 chip, while the other two are VIA K8T800 + VT8237. Also it K8N-E has a FSB of 800 mhz while the other two are Scalable Hyper Transport. Can anyone tell me the differences and which one's better?

kof2000 · 08-20-2004, 05:29 AM

u can if you get a new board.

chaosRL · 08-20-2004, 06:08 AM

kof2000 · 08-20-2004, 10:58 AM

depending on ur current psu u might not have to buy another one.

tristan · 08-20-2004, 12:57 PM

I would get the first rig, and might as well bump the psu to 400 so you dont have to look to upgrade it in the near future. See if you can find a sale on a Antec Enermax or Fortron.

Also, only get 1 stick of 512mb ram. That way you can upgrade to 1 gig later and run dual channel with it.

Other than that, great setup.

Grimulus · 08-20-2004, 02:03 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by chaosRL

Hi everybody, I just signed up here because the other forum I go to isn't really helping much. Anyways, I'm planning on upgrading my computer, and I need some second opinions on stuff, as this is my first time doing it.

Here's my current setup:
2000 Gateway Computer
1 Ghz Pentium III
Unknown Motherboard
Soundcard came with system
ATi Radeon 9600 Pro (not upgrading this)
80 Gb Western Digital HD
20 Gb Seagate(?) HD (this came with my system)
256 Mb RAM

I'm looking to upgrade my CPU, motherboard, RAM, and PSU. Hopefully, the costs will be no more than $500 MAX, preferably between $300-400, although I know that will be hard. I'm just looking for a faster computer that may be able to run HL2 without lag. Right now, I have this CPU in mind:

AMD Athlon 64 3200+, 512k L2 Cache, The Only 64-bit Windows Compatible Processor - Retail

Model# ADA3200AXBOX
Item # N82E16819103483

Specification
Model: AMD Athlon 64 3200+
Core: Newcastle
Operating Frequency: 2.2GHz
FSB: Integrated int chip
Cache: L1/64K+64K; L2/512K
Voltage: 1.5V
Process: 0.13Micron
Socket: Socket 754
Multimedia Instruction: MMX, SSE, SSE2, 3DNOW!, 3DNOW!+
Warranty: 3-year MFG
Packaging: Retail Box (Heatsink and Fan included)
http://www.newegg.com/app/ViewProduc...103-483&depa=1

My question is whether or not this is a good chip, other options that are better than this, what I will need to do in terms of cooling, motherboards that are good with this chip or any suggested chips, and types of RAM (512 is enough for now, to keep the costs down). Thanks!!!

Yeah..um...you would have to get a new motherboard and ram to upgrade to the 64 bit chip. and plus a 64 almost goes over your budget anyway. I would suggest that if you aren't wanted to upgrade the whole thing, get some more ram. you are running low IMO. i would probably get a new processor, ram and motherboard to being with. go from there because gateway stuff well...just buy the parts.

chaosRL · 08-21-2004, 12:39 AM

I've decided to go with the P4 system with a Fortron 350W power supply, ASUS Mobo, and 1 stick of 512 Corsair RAM. Thanks for your input!

08-20-2004, 03:08 AM	#1 (permalink)
chaosRL New Member Join Date: Aug 2004 Posts: 4	Upgrading Computer: Suggestions? Hi everybody, I just signed up here because the other forum I go to isn't really helping much. Anyways, I'm planning on upgrading my computer, and I need some second opinions on stuff, as this is my first time doing it. Here's my current setup: 2000 Gateway Computer 1 Ghz Pentium III Unknown Motherboard Soundcard came with system ATi Radeon 9600 Pro (not upgrading this) 80 Gb Western Digital HD 20 Gb Seagate(?) HD (this came with my system) 256 Mb RAM I'm looking to upgrade my CPU, motherboard, RAM, and PSU. Hopefully, the costs will be no more than $500 MAX, preferably between $300-400, although I know that will be hard. I'm just looking for a faster computer that may be able to run HL2 without lag. Right now, I have this CPU in mind: AMD Athlon 64 3200+, 512k L2 Cache, The Only 64-bit Windows Compatible Processor - Retail Model# ADA3200AXBOX Item # N82E16819103483 Specification Model: AMD Athlon 64 3200+ Core: Newcastle Operating Frequency: 2.2GHz FSB: Integrated int chip Cache: L1/64K+64K; L2/512K Voltage: 1.5V Process: 0.13Micron Socket: Socket 754 Multimedia Instruction: MMX, SSE, SSE2, 3DNOW!, 3DNOW!+ Warranty: 3-year MFG Packaging: Retail Box (Heatsink and Fan included) http://www.newegg.com/app/ViewProduc...103-483&depa=1 My question is whether or not this is a good chip, other options that are better than this, what I will need to do in terms of cooling, motherboards that are good with this chip or any suggested chips, and types of RAM (512 is enough for now, to keep the costs down). Thanks!!!

08-20-2004, 03:25 AM	#3 (permalink)
kof2000 Diamond Member Join Date: Aug 2004 Location: Oahu Age: 26 Posts: 6,273	u can't upgrade ur pentium chip with a amd chip. oh eyeah if you are going to upgrade you SHOULD find out what your MOTHERBOARD is. you should upgrade ur memory first, whats HL2's requirements? who knows maybe you only need to upgrade ur memory then you dont have to spend 3-400 or even 200 bucks. __________________ QX9650@4.2 swiftech \|9600@3.0 9700 nt 780i \| 790fx 8gb ddr1200 \| 8gb ddr1200 2x150gb 3x1tb \|2x250gb 3x8800gtx \|3x2900xt 1gb 2x20xdvdrw \|2x20xdvdrw 15in1 card reader \|15in1 card reader ng15/g9 \|ng15/g9 1200w psu \|1200w psu 2x28" LCD \|2x28" LCD Last edited by kof2000; 08-20-2004 at 03:29 AM.

08-20-2004, 04:25 AM	#4 (permalink)
chaosRL New Member Join Date: Aug 2004 Posts: 4	so even if i upgrade the motherboard, i still can't go to a amd chip? sorry i missed the post above, i'm shopping at newegg.com, i will check out your site though. the motherboard i was looking for suggestions, as i haven't really looked at motherboards for this particular chip. i have shopped for socket A motherboards earlier this year when i decided to postpone upgrading until fall. EDIT: I'm looking into three different motherboards now: ASUS K8N-E Deluxe ~$138 ASUS K8V SE Deluxe ~$114 ASUS K8V ~$100 The K8N-E Dlx is a nVidia nForce3 chip, while the other two are VIA K8T800 + VT8237. Also it K8N-E has a FSB of 800 mhz while the other two are Scalable Hyper Transport. Can anyone tell me the differences and which one's better? Last edited by chaosRL; 08-20-2004 at 04:48 AM.

08-20-2004, 05:29 AM	#5 (permalink)
kof2000 Diamond Member Join Date: Aug 2004 Location: Oahu Age: 26 Posts: 6,273	u can if you get a new board. __________________ QX9650@4.2 swiftech \|9600@3.0 9700 nt 780i \| 790fx 8gb ddr1200 \| 8gb ddr1200 2x150gb 3x1tb \|2x250gb 3x8800gtx \|3x2900xt 1gb 2x20xdvdrw \|2x20xdvdrw 15in1 card reader \|15in1 card reader ng15/g9 \|ng15/g9 1200w psu \|1200w psu 2x28" LCD \|2x28" LCD

08-20-2004, 10:58 AM	#7 (permalink)
kof2000 Diamond Member Join Date: Aug 2004 Location: Oahu Age: 26 Posts: 6,273	depending on ur current psu u might not have to buy another one. __________________ QX9650@4.2 swiftech \|9600@3.0 9700 nt 780i \| 790fx 8gb ddr1200 \| 8gb ddr1200 2x150gb 3x1tb \|2x250gb 3x8800gtx \|3x2900xt 1gb 2x20xdvdrw \|2x20xdvdrw 15in1 card reader \|15in1 card reader ng15/g9 \|ng15/g9 1200w psu \|1200w psu 2x28" LCD \|2x28" LCD

08-20-2004, 03:24 AM	#2 (permalink)
arkiebrian New Member Join Date: Aug 2004 Posts: 6	Where are you shopping? I'd like to suggest that you look at mwave.com. I always use them. They have the best prices for individual buyers. Your specs sound good to me if that will keep you under $500. I didn't see you name a motherboard specifically. You can save money on the motherboard by buying one that doesn't have integreted video or sound (it's crap anyway).

08-20-2004, 06:08 AM	#6 (permalink)
chaosRL New Member Join Date: Aug 2004 Posts: 4	Here's two setups I'm considering. If you could tell me which one you would pick and why, I'd appreciate it! #1 RAM: http://www.newegg.com/app/viewProduc...factory=BROWSE CPU: http://www.newegg.com/app/viewProduc...factory=BROWSE MOBO: http://www.newegg.com/app/viewProduc...factory=BROWSE PSU: http://www.newegg.com/app/viewProduc...factory=BROWSE #2 PSU: http://www.newegg.com/app/viewProduc...factory=BROWSE CPU: http://www.newegg.com/app/viewProduc...factory=BROWSE MOBO: http://www.newegg.com/app/viewProduc...factory=BROWSE RAM: http://www.newegg.com/app/viewProduc...factory=BROWSE

08-20-2004, 12:57 PM	#8 (permalink)
tristan Gold Member Join Date: Jul 2004 Posts: 296	I would get the first rig, and might as well bump the psu to 400 so you dont have to look to upgrade it in the near future. See if you can find a sale on a Antec Enermax or Fortron. Also, only get 1 stick of 512mb ram. That way you can upgrade to 1 gig later and run dual channel with it. Other than that, great setup. __________________ AMD Athlon 3000+ XP (Oc: 2.4ghz) ABit NF7-S v.2 ATI Radeon 9800 Pro 128 512 Corsair pc3200 DDR Seagate 7200 80gig HD Western Digital 80gig HD Antec TRU 430w psu Soundstorm Audio

08-21-2004, 12:39 AM	#10 (permalink)
chaosRL New Member Join Date: Aug 2004 Posts: 4	I've decided to go with the P4 system with a Fortron 350W power supply, ASUS Mobo, and 1 stick of 512 Corsair RAM. Thanks for your input!

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