Upgrading the old PC

S

squallz3r0

New Member
I'm looking to get a new setup that would allow me to do things that would normally cause my current PC to crash. Including, converting avi's to dvd format, watching HD movies (simple Video card problem) and possibly gaming.

Although I can only spend about $200-$350 on this upgrade, not sure if that is possible.

Right now i have a -

Asus p4p800-MX motherboard
Intel Pentium 4, 3.2 Ghz with threading (2) (not dual core)
Windows XP - OP
992 MB of RAM

I have 65GB of free space left on my C:Drive and i defragment regularly. No viruses or malware on the system.

I was about to buy 2GB's more of Corsair Memory for it but i got to thinking and i realized that this motherboard only has 3 PCI slots, capable of only 3GB's of RAM, only 2 SATA connections and after i buy the RAM, i would eventually need to upgrade anyway and I don't think i could use those corsair sticks on a newer MB so there's eighty bucks down the drain.

So i'm looking for a newer barebone package with a MB, CPU and Power supply that would have the potential to upgrade later to newer cards (video and such), have a CPU that can process more info than my old p4 and be somewhat of a fast machine, have an AGP slot or a PCI-E for gaming and HD movies and possibly have more SATA ports for future add ons for around $200-$350.

Is that possible?

The only problem is that if i did switch out for this barebone then I would have to buy a good video card for it, possibly a new heatsink and fan for the processor, and also a few sticks of RAM as well. Everything else should transfer over, i.e. USB 1TB hard drive, SATA 111GB hard drive, SATA DVD burner, and wireless network card.

Maybe i'd be better off buying a new PC machine, it might save me some cash. I'm just not sure which package or processors/motherboards would do all of those things for me and still be a decent machine compared to the top dog machines. Any thoughts?
 
CPU - Athlon IIx4 620
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819103706

GIGABYTE GA-880GMA-UD2H (I just choose m-ATX mobo as your existing one is m-ATX)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813128445

G.SKILL 2 x 1GB (I guess your OS is 32bit, it support up to 3.5GB RAM. You can get 2x2GB RAM if you want)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231208

OCZ ModXStream Pro OCZ500MXSP (I chosen a combo deal purely because of the price and MIR. although 4550 is not a gaming card, it come out $35 for both after all rebate. Or you can just simply buy the PSU)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboDealDetails.aspx?ItemList=Combo.457870

Video card - this 9800GT 512MB is $50 after MIR. Good value
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814125288&cm_re=9800gt-_-14-125-288-_-Product

Althernatively, if you got money, have a look at this combo deal. Good bargain when you consider mail in rebate
http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboDealDetails.aspx?ItemList=Combo.469302
 
Thanks for the quick reply, I can't believe that i could get a new system for that price.

If i bought those, i'm assuming that they would all be compatible with each other? Would the power supply come with the power strips to connect to each device or would i need to purchase a few cables, or use my old ones? IDE cables?

Also would i need a new OS or could it transfer over? It is a 32bit i believe.

The video card that comes with the power supply, is that a comparable video card with the geforce 9800 you posted after that link?
 
You could go with an i3 Clarkdale setup with the video integrated in the CPU and add a video card later for gaming if you wish. Most home theatre PC's are based on the Clarkdale chip, as they support Dolby TrueHD, DTS HD-MA, and 8-channel LPCM over HDMI, and work well for video encoding and streaming high definition video such as Blu-ray.

i3 540, $115
ASUS P7H55-M Pro, $90
G.SKILL 2 GB 1333, $55
 
squallz3r0 said:
Thanks for the quick reply, I can't believe that i could get a new system for that price.

If i bought those, i'm assuming that they would all be compatible with each other? Would the power supply come with the power strips to connect to each device or would i need to purchase a few cables, or use my old ones? IDE cables?

Also would i need a new OS or could it transfer over? It is a 32bit i believe.

The video card that comes with the power supply, is that a comparable video card with the geforce 9800 you posted after that link?
Click to expand...

all will be compatible. I don't see you need extra cable as they always come with motherboard. And I think you could easily pick up one at your local computer shop if you need any extra.

4550 is no where near 9800GT. 4550 is a good card for htpc use. As I said previously, I mentioned it due to combo deal.
If you after gaming card, 9800GT is good at $50. Or you can get better card if you got extra cash.

OS/ HDD - you just plug your old HDD on the new one. But there occassionally be some driver issue. I recommend you re-install the OS if you could.
 
I think that's what i'll end up getting ^^^. Thanks for all of the help!

Before I buy, I'm wondering if there would be a comparable intel setup that might be still in that price range. I'm a lot more familiar with Intel than AMD.
 
daisymtc said:
all will be compatible. I don't see you need extra cable as they always come with motherboard. And I think you could easily pick up one at your local computer shop if you need any extra.

4550 is no where near 9800GT. 4550 is a good card for htpc use. As I said previously, I mentioned it due to combo deal.
If you after gaming card, 9800GT is good at $50. Or you can get better card if you got extra cash.

OS/ HDD - you just plug your old HDD on the new one. But there occassionally be some driver issue. I recommend you re-install the OS if you could.
Click to expand...

You are almost guaranteed to have some driver problems. You can easily repair them. However, you should really reinstall the OS around 18 months to 2 years, so this would be a great time to do so.

Also, just as an idea, sell the 4550 card after you get it. Or throw it in another computer you have.
 
I need to somehow drop the price 75 bucks for now. Where can i cut corners for this upgrade?

CPU
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819103706

MB
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813128445

PSU + Video
http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboDealDetails.aspx?ItemList=Combo.469302

Memory
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820145252

I was thinking that maybe if i got a less expensive PSU and then waited on the video card, then it would drop the price enough. But would my MB be able to play my HD movies without the Video card?

What if i got this PSU+VIdeo card combo listed below to drop the price back down? Would i be able to play the HD movies on this and then later on get the gts 250? Would the GTS 250 be able to run on this PSU Combo -

http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboDealDetails.aspx?ItemList=Combo.457870

Is that a reliable PSU?

If not then maybe I should just buy a stand alone PSU and then wait on the Video card until i can muster up some more cash.
 
squallz3r0 said:
I need to somehow drop the price 75 bucks for now. Where can i cut corners for this upgrade?

CPU
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819103706

MB
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813128445

PSU + Video
http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboDealDetails.aspx?ItemList=Combo.469302

Memory
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820145252

I was thinking that maybe if i got a less expensive PSU and then waited on the video card, then it would drop the price enough. But would my MB be able to play my HD movies without the Video card?

What if i got this PSU+VIdeo card combo listed below to drop the price back down? Would i be able to play the HD movies on this and then later on get the gts 250? Would the GTS 250 be able to run on this PSU Combo -

http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboDealDetails.aspx?ItemList=Combo.457870

Is that a reliable PSU?

If not then maybe I should just buy a stand alone PSU and then wait on the Video card until i can muster up some more cash.
Click to expand...

That PSU is a good brand, but that may be cutting it a touch close with just 500W.
 
squallz3r0 said:
What kind of wattage am i looking at if i want to get one that I won't have to replace when i upgrade my video?
Click to expand...

I can't say for sure, but typically, around 650. 750 is the highest you would want, 600 is the lowest. At least, that is what I see. But I am by no means an expert.
 
squallz3r0 said:
I need to somehow drop the price 75 bucks for now. Where can i cut corners for this upgrade?

CPU
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819103706

MB
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813128445

PSU + Video
http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboDealDetails.aspx?ItemList=Combo.469302

Memory
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820145252

I was thinking that maybe if i got a less expensive PSU and then waited on the video card, then it would drop the price enough. But would my MB be able to play my HD movies without the Video card?

What if i got this PSU+VIdeo card combo listed below to drop the price back down? Would i be able to play the HD movies on this and then later on get the gts 250? Would the GTS 250 be able to run on this PSU Combo -

http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboDealDetails.aspx?ItemList=Combo.457870

Is that a reliable PSU?

If not then maybe I should just buy a stand alone PSU and then wait on the Video card until i can muster up some more cash.
Click to expand...

Do you really need USB3? You could get http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813186200
For far cheaper, sacrificing mobo features for good value.
 
Hey guys, i'm looking for a good case to fit all of these goodies in. I'll need something with a good air flow in it, and i would like to have it completely clear. But most of those pc cases are made by sunbeam and apparently that isn't a good brand from what i hear.

I want to make sure it's durable but flashy and nice (good construction, leds, clear, and airflow). Also something that would support the size of my MB. I'm afraid that when i get all of my upgrade parts that they won't fit inside of the case at my house. Any suggestions?
 
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