Upgrading a low end pc to game!

Ok well i will probably spend 50 on 2gbs of ram at first
the save up and get a video card under 80 bucks
then finally invest in a dual core
 
You are better off saving for a system that can see Vista as well as XP since the support will eventually be gone for XP as it already is for 9X-ME and soon 2000 if not already. New programs now see XP and XP/Vista not 2000/XP.
 
look at Didyouknowthat's post he made a really nice system for $316. My family has had two eMachines (not mine of course) that have gone capoot, they're not good, build it custom. thats my .02
 
Like I mentioned earlier they sadly lack any degree of quality but simply some cheap parts thrown together to stuff on retail store shelves(in the budget section for a high price while not offering much to compete with the better brands :rolleyes: ). For a gaming machine you always want what prebuilt system seriously lacks all too often.
 
yassur

well ok im kind of restricted to just get a pc for christmas and not parts because will only buy me a pc and they dont trust me building a computer from scratch but ya im kinda restricted
 
Besides eMachines of all nightmares there's HP as the alternative to any Dellmares. The prices on many prebuilds have come down in price while custom building leaves room for expansion. The lowest priced prebuild with a Core 2 Dou seen at newegg is the Acer desktop(another boat anchor) seen at http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16883103091 for nearly $500.

For 939 models with a 3800+ X2 AMD model cpu you save a little for the older AMD model or around the same for a P4 case. Custom cases allow for far more options overall. But you are in a tight spot since you would need someone else to aseemble the case for you.
 
Your Dell sounds alright if it can play UT3, why not upgrade that? I've had an eMachines before and the PSU was weak, noisy and hot. The rest of the system wasn't far off the mark either. Research indicates to me that it's not the slim form factor of the XPS210 so you could use just upgrade. Can you tell us what the CPU, a 1.73GHz dual core isn't specific enough.
 
ok

well the dellmare is the family computer and Im not aloud to open it up at all or my parents will flip but I have a question about OC the celeron d because it is stock 3.33 I did research about OC the cpu and I heard about guys running at 5.00ghz and I was wondering if this was possible
 
lanpartiercarter said:
well the dellmare is the family computer and Im not aloud to open it up at all or my parents will flip but I have a question about OC the celeron d because it is stock 3.33 I did research about OC the cpu and I heard about guys running at 5.00ghz and I was wondering if this was possible
Click to expand...

With Extremely expensive air cooling/water cooling, then yes... maybe. If you have an large case with an good motherboard... and an good PSU.
 
Increasing memory and installing a newer, better video card is one option to consider over ocing a low end system.
 
While just a thought you may want to hold off on any eMachines until you at least can a better deal on an HP or not so bottom ended system. Yet in some older models they have run Asus boards just like HP does. The supply and case are still crap explaining the high temps however. Poor air circullation and lack of.
 
diduknowthat said:
The ram isn't a problem as they cost next to nothing, but as for the P4, I think a cheap sempron/Athlon 64 rig would do better. You should check out the post I made where I listed a light gaming rig for about $300, letme go find the link.

edit: ah here it is..

My post
entire thread
Click to expand...

thanks for that, it really came in helpful quite a few times already dude! i've even used some of those builds to show potential clients, they were impressed.
 
When you are not looking for the fastest frame rates and highest screen resolutions what is the first thing to do? Look at the "miniimum requirements" of the intended games when comparing the current system. If it says 256mb you go 1gb and for 512mb try 2gb! If it says 128mb GeForce FX you go 256mb NVidia 7xxx or ATI X1xxx for XP.

In other words you step up to 3 to 4 times the minimum without going overboard. Even on an old Socket A build despite some incompatibility with memory 2gb worked there and is still working on a new build. Since you are running a Dell don't rush at memory simply because of faster timings however. 2gb of a good balue type memory and an average video card should give it the most you'll see there.
 
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