[Rebecca Dosch]

Alright, I'm looking to upgrade my PC to be able to run TF2 reasonably well.
http://www.newegg.com/product/product.aspx?item=N82E1681 is my ancient motherboard, so I'm pretty sure I'm going to have to basically rebuild my PC from the ground up except for the monitor, keyboard, mouse and case. Currently I have 2 gigs of DDR400 memory and an AMD Sempron 64 1.6 gHz processor. I'm using the onboard video and sound. I'll probably need a new power source because IIRC my current is 250w. I'd like to get it as cheap as possible, but I'll go up to around $500 if I need to.
So I'll be needing a new motherboard, memory, (probably) power supply, processor, and video card.
Thanks in advance.
Edit: Alright, just ordered http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboDealDetails.aspx?ItemList=Combo.471446
Edit2: I'm considering getting http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819103687 processor. Anyone know a of good motherboard?

You already ordered that combo deal? I'm not as smart as like Tig Ol' Bitties by far, but I built my own rig, and I think that Power supply is a little big for a 4350 video card. Just saying thats a lot of extra power. If you haven't already purchased that card, I would go with a 4650.

If I were building a cheap computer that could do gaming, this is what I would buy. (I never look for combo deals, sorry)

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813135250
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814131360 You could also look at the 4670's, their just a little more expensive.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820148194
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819103687
I won't recommend a power supply, because I usually just pick those by the number of positive reviews lol. After they meet my hardware requirements of course. I assume you'll be using the Hard drive and DVD drives of your old computer? If not, their pretty easy to find. Altogether it's about $210, not including shipping and stuff.

[Kayla Bee]

I have found something that seems to split the DVI signal on the back of another computer. I should be able to acquire it so this question is moot.

I also had a look at the prices. I can get a 8400 with 512mb of ram for ￡26 and one with 256mb of ram for ￡20. I am assuming the one for ￡20 is the better option? I am aslo assuming it would work fine with a 250W power supply?

It does depend on how you want to do it. Keep in mind that the splitter will only duplicate the screens, you won't have two independent screens.

Are hard drives on a raid card interchangable between brands? mine are configured for jbod on 2 highpoint pcie cards might end up getting an areca or promise with higher sata/sas ports...

That should be fine.

Ive had this issue a while now, but a few keys on my laptop keyboard (space, enter, backspace, up/down arrows) will stop working at times. When it happens they do still work, just it can take many hits before they do.

The problem comes and goes without warning.......Im thinking its a loose connection, but I cant take it in for repairs and just thought i might ask in case there is something i can do.

How comfortable are you poking around in your laptop? I'd recommend taking it in because it can get pretty damn complex under there.

It's quite likely that the problem is just a loose connection but it's better safe than sorry.

[Sammykins]

I have a computer with what I think is a PCI-E slot (It looks like http://www.karbosguide.com/books/pcarchitecture/images/828.jpg). However, from what I can make out the power supply is only 160 Watts. Would it still be able to support a video card? I am not looking at anything expensive. Something that plays the Sims 2 and Oblivion at low settings is enough. In other words, a ￡20 8400 would be fine.


(It is an old Optiplex GX280. I think it is low profile)


My computer has a 250W power supply in the back... I am assuming that would support something like a 8400 no problems.


Last question, can I run dual screens with a DIV and VGA port? Or would I need a splitter? I assume I can but it is worth checking.



(I do know that an 8400 isn't worth it, but at present I am using a 6150LE. I am fairly sure it is a set up )

The slimline PSUs from Dell can actually handle a bit more than what it's rated, so the 8400GS should be ok. Those cards are power sippers.

So long as the card has both a DVI and VGA port, it should be able to run dual-screens easily.

Alright, I'm looking to upgrade my PC to be able to run TF2 reasonably well.
http://www.newegg.com/product/product.aspx?item=N82E1681 is my ancient motherboard, so I'm pretty sure I'm going to have to basically rebuild my PC from the ground up except for the monitor, keyboard, mouse and case. Currently I have 2 gigs of DDR400 memory and an AMD Sempron 64 1.6 gHz processor. I'm using the onboard video and sound. I'll probably need a new power source because IIRC my current is 250w. I'd like to get it as cheap as possible, but I'll go up to around $500 if I need to.
So I'll be needing a new motherboard, memory, (probably) power supply, processor, and video card.
Thanks in advance.
Edit: Alright, just ordered http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboDealDetails.aspx?ItemList=Combo.471446
Edit2: I'm considering getting http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819103687 processor. Anyone know a of good motherboard?

Link is broken, but a DDR-based system pretty much means upgrade time. And I certainly hope you didn't order those components...return them please. Assuming you have the case, HDDs, optical drives, OS, monitor and all other externals, these are a good pick up...

CPU+GPU Combo: http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboDealDetails.aspx?ItemList=Combo.442705
RAM+PSU Combo: http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboDealDetails.aspx?ItemList=Combo.469099
MOBO: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813128443

That runs a lil less than $475 before ship/tax. The Phenom X2 555 is a dual-core chip with two extra cores disabled. With the motherboard provided, you can potentially (not guaranteed) unlock those two cores and turn the chip into a fast quad for cheap. There are many guides around the web on how to do this and many are doing this rather successfully.

[Phillip Brunyee]

http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/SearchTools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=5250511&CatId=4948

I'm quite positive I'm going to buy this one within the next 3 days. What would the expected battery life be? Is there a battery I could purchase that would be better?

[Chris Duncan]

I'm quite positive I'm going to buy this one within the next 3 days. What would the expected battery life be? Is there a battery I could purchase that would be better?

It has a standard 6 cell battery so you would get about 2 or 3 hours from it.

In regards to the battery, Newegg http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16834998726 but no longer stock it. You could use the model number and see if it is available elsewhere.

[Eve(G)]

Quick question about temps on my GPU:

I'm using a http://www.newegg.com/product/product.aspx?Item=N82E16834220704 and I've noticed my temps spiking. Just browsing the internet I'm at 60-67 degrees. I decided to run Furmark with not overly demanding settings. (Fullscreen, 1080p, nothing else...) and within 2 minutes I'm at 100 degrees. I just want to make sure that this won't fry my gpu. Should I repaste it myself or RMA? Or are these okay for a notebook of this caliber?

EDIT: And a question about the hinge on the thing:

I made a thread about this a while back, but I'm going to repost, and I realize it will be hard to answer without actually owning the laptop. But lately I've noticed the hinge feels a bit loose, and when it comes to about 3 inches from being shut it just slams closed on it's own, seemingly from the weight of the LCD. Not sure if this is normal, as this is the first notebook I've actually owned. Always used desktops up to this point.

[NO suckers In Here]

I have an Intel E8400 with a stock cooler and a Gigabyte EP45-UD3P, and am thinking about overclocking a little, since Core Duos are so very overclock-able. I've read a few things, but I'd appreciate it if someone would give me some pre-chewed numbers for a conservative overclock (I'd be happy enough with a few hundred MHz more --system stability and ease of execution are the priority). I am comfortable navigating a BIOS, I just need to know what I should change and how much.

Thanks in advance .

EDIT: And I have 2x2GB of Kingston HyperX DDR2 1066 RAM, if that is relevant.

[Rachel Eloise Getoutofmyface]

It has a standard 6 cell battery so you would get about 2 or 3 hours from it.

In regards to the battery, Newegg http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16834998726 but no longer stock it. You could use the model number and see if it is available elsewhere.

Mother [censored]. I just went to see if it was still in stock... it's not. I'm going to go search for it elsewhere... Lameness and weak sauce.

Nevermind. Newegg has it.

[Elina]

Quick question about temps on my GPU:

I'm using a http://www.newegg.com/product/product.aspx?Item=N82E16834220704 and I've noticed my temps spiking. Just browsing the internet I'm at 60-67 degrees. I decided to run Furmark with not overly demanding settings. (Fullscreen, 1080p, nothing else...) and within 2 minutes I'm at 100 degrees. I just want to make sure that this won't fry my gpu. Should I repaste it myself or RMA? Or are these okay for a notebook of this caliber?

It's really not uncommon for rather high end laptops such as yours to reach those sort of temps. It's not going to fry anything since they're designed to shut down before it gets anywhere near that stage but in saying that, a laptop cooler really wouldn't hurt. Even if for peace of mind.

EDIT: And a question about the hinge on the thing:

I made a thread about this a while back, but I'm going to repost, and I realize it will be hard to answer without actually owning the laptop. But lately I've noticed the hinge feels a bit loose, and when it comes to about 3 inches from being shut it just slams closed on it's own, seemingly from the weight of the LCD. Not sure if this is normal, as this is the first notebook I've actually owned. Always used desktops up to this point.

Does the screen feel loose when you open and close it? It doesn't surprise me that it drops given the size of it but I would be concerned if it was generally loose when you were either opening or closing it.

I have an Intel E8400 with a stock cooler and a Gigabyte EP45-UD3P, and am thinking about overclocking a little, since Core Duos are so very overclock-able. I've read a few things, but I'd appreciate it if someone would give me some pre-chewed numbers for a conservative overclock (I'd be happy enough with a few hundred MHz more --system stability and ease of execution are the priority). I am comfortable navigating a BIOS, I just need to know what I should change and how much.

Thanks in advance .

EDIT: And I have 2x2GB of Kingston HyperX DDR2 1066 RAM, if that is relevant.

How comfortable are you in overclocking? A lot of people have taken them from between 3.5GHz to up over 4GHz.

Unfortunately, there are really no pre-chewed numbers because each CPU is somewhat unique in its ability to overclock. Your best bet is to probably browse the Overclock.net forums and get a bit more of a feel for it and the common voltages and such.

[Melissa De Thomasis]

It's really not uncommon for rather high end laptops such as yours to reach those sort of temps. It's not going to fry anything since they're designed to shut down before it gets anywhere near that stage but in saying that, a laptop cooler really wouldn't hurt. Even if for peace of mind.


Does the screen feel loose when you open and close it? It doesn't surprise me that it drops given the size of it but I would be concerned if it was generally loose when you were either opening or closing it.

I think I might just RMA. I have a few more problems that are surfacing, but...being without my precious laptop for two weeks doesn't sound fun.

As for my hinge, maybe it's a bit looser than I'd like, but it's definitely nothing to worry about, at least as far as opening and closing goes. It's more than sturdy enough when it comes to that.

[suniti]

I just bought The Killing Floor on Steam, have an email from Paypal to show I paid for it...but it's still sitting in my basket? When I click on 'my account' it says it's pending. Does this mean the transaction hasn't completed? It does say under The Killing Floor Purchased for this account.

Does it sometimes take a while for it to show in my library?

[Crystal Clarke]

I just bought The Killing Floor on Steam, have an email from Paypal to show I paid for it...but it's still sitting in my basket? When I click on 'my account' it says it's pending. Does this mean the transaction hasn't completed? It does say under The Killing Floor Purchased for this account.

Does it sometimes take a while for it to show in my library?

:shrug: Usually happens instantly but I guess it also depends on the way you funded it.

[BEl J]

I normally pay through Paypal though. And the payment has been made, the receipt is in my transactions on my Paypal......

[Greg Swan]

I normally pay through Paypal though. And the payment has been made, the receipt is in my transactions on my Paypal......

Ya... Like echeck or something else Paypal uses... I am not home so I can't really dig deeper unless I really slack off from work.

I would just shoot off an email to them and bribe with cupcakes.

[Emily Rose]

Ya... Like echeck or something else Paypal uses... I am not home so I can't really dig deeper unless I really slack off from work.

I would just shoot off an email to them and bribe with cupcakes.

You may be on to something clever. Thanks hon.

The Steam forums seem to think it can take up to five days...surely not right....

[aisha jamil]

If sound is that important to you, then you should be looking at external solutions for a notebook. Notebooks generally come with nothing more than onboard audio and for your price range that's pretty much a guarantee. External solution examples:

http://www.m-audio.com/products/en_us/Transit.html
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16829102020&cm_re=creative_x-fi-_-29-102-020-_-Product...at the least

Alternative notebooks:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16834115787
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16834146772

Thanks.

Hmmm... If I'd have to buy a separate sound card anyway, i think http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16883227261 computer that you linked to last thread is worth more to me than the added portability of a laptop. I've been looking on youtube and it looks like the GT240 video card can run a lot of games(MW2, L4D2, Oblivion, GTAIV, etc), especially since the posters have slower CPUs than what we're looking at.

Also, gonna get http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=24-009-263&SortField=0&SummaryType=0&PageSize=10&SelectedRating=-1&VideoOnlyMark=False&IsFeedbackTab=true#scrollFullInfo LCD tonite...

I've got a Merc gaming keyboard and a nice logitech mouse if I need it, but if you have any suggestions before I go through with it, I'd appreciate them.

[LuBiE LoU]

Thanks.

Hmmm... If I'd have to buy a separate sound card anyway, i think http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16883227261 computer that you linked to last thread is worth more to me than the added portability of a laptop. I've been looking on youtube and it looks like the GT240 video card can run a lot of games(MW2, L4D2, Oblivion, GTAIV, etc), especially since the posters have slower CPUs than what we're looking at.

Also, gonna get http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=24-009-263&SortField=0&SummaryType=0&PageSize=10&SelectedRating=-1&VideoOnlyMark=False&IsFeedbackTab=true#scrollFullInfo LCD tonite...

I've got a Merc gaming keyboard and a nice logitech mouse if I need it, but if you have any suggestions before I go through with it, I'd appreciate them.

The GT240 is certainly a cheap, yet moderately powerful card that can hang in with most modern games. It's about on par with the 9600GT. The monitor is ok and there isn't many more elaborate options for that price range anyways. A stikingly similar, but cheaper alternative if you have a Staples nearby:
http://www.staples.com/Acer-P205H-20-Widescreen-LCD-Monitor/product_823879?storeId=10001&jspStoreDir=Staples&AID=10422268&CID=AFF%253A404255%253A404255%253A10422268&cm_mmc=CJ-_-404255-_-404255-_-10422268&SID=154204&PID=404255

[Misty lt]

I'm going to buy or build a computer for my Mom to replace her old one. I don't particularly want to post her specs because they would melt your faces off as if you were in Raiders of the Lost Ark, but here they are.... Get ready.

Windows 98
128 MB RAM
Intel Celeron D
13GB HDD
:cryvaultboy: Horrible, I know.

Anyway, I would only like to spend about $500 or so since just about anything would be a significant upgrade.

I was thinking of something along the lines of an Athlon II x 2, Radeon 4350, a 500GB HDD, and Windows 7. I would also need to get her a new monitor, mouse and keyboard. If you can think of any better price/performance hardware, I'd appreciate it.

[Pete Schmitzer]

I'm going to buy or build a computer for my Mom to replace her old one. I don't particularly want to post her specs because they would melt your faces off as if you were in Raiders of the Lost Ark, but here they are.... Get ready.

Windows 98
128 MB RAM
Intel Celeron D
13GB HDD
:cryvaultboy: Horrible, I know.

Anyway, I would only like to spend about $500 or so since just about anything would be a significant upgrade.

I was thinking of something along the lines of an Athlon II x 2, Radeon 4350, a 500GB HDD, and Windows 7. I would also need to get her a new monitor, mouse and keyboard. If you can think of any better price/performance hardware, I'd appreciate it.

You could probably get away with no graphics card at all and save a bit by just using an integrated chip :shrug: There is also an issue with catalyst drivers and Adobe's hardware acceleration for Flash, negating probably the only benefit she would see for having a graphics card in her system.

[Queen of Spades]

I'm going to buy or build a computer for my Mom to replace her old one. I don't particularly want to post her specs because they would melt your faces off as if you were in Raiders of the Lost Ark, but here they are.... Get ready.

Windows 98
128 MB RAM
Intel Celeron D
13GB HDD
:cryvaultboy: Horrible, I know.

Anyway, I would only like to spend about $500 or so since just about anything would be a significant upgrade.

I was thinking of something along the lines of an Athlon II x 2, Radeon 4350, a 500GB HDD, and Windows 7. I would also need to get her a new monitor, mouse and keyboard. If you can think of any better price/performance hardware, I'd appreciate it.

Like Defron said, just drop the videocard altogether. Won't affect anything she's been doing on that piece of you know what she's using now.

[Danny Warner]

I'm going to buy or build a computer for my Mom to replace her old one. I don't particularly want to post her specs because they would melt your faces off as if you were in Raiders of the Lost Ark, but here they are.... Get ready.

Windows 98
128 MB RAM
Intel Celeron D
13GB HDD
:cryvaultboy: Horrible, I know.

Anyway, I would only like to spend about $500 or so since just about anything would be a significant upgrade.

I was thinking of something along the lines of an Athlon II x 2, Radeon 4350, a 500GB HDD, and Windows 7. I would also need to get her a new monitor, mouse and keyboard. If you can think of any better price/performance hardware, I'd appreciate it.

For $500, you could build something like this:

CASE+PSU+OS combo: http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboDealDetails.aspx?ItemList=Combo.437504.11-119-218
CPU+MOBO+RAM Combo:http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboBundleDetails.aspx?ItemList=Combo.466394
HDD: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822152185
DVD: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16827135204
LCD: http://www.staples.com/Acer-P205H-20-Widescreen-LCD-Monitor/product_823879?storeId=10001&jspStoreDir=Staples&AID=10422268&CID=AFF%253A404255%253A404255%253A10422268&cm_mmc=CJ-_-404255-_-404255-_-10422268&SID=154204&PID=404255

Around $500 for all that. Get a cheap mouse/keyboard.



OR....you can go with one of Tiger Direct's budget kits:
http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/SearchTools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=6630647&CatId=332
http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/SearchTools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=6570252&CatId=332
http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/SearchTools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=6637560&CatId=332
http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/SearchTools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=6637573&CatId=332


The power supply in a lot of these machines svck, but will probably suite your purpose. The last one will need a CPU fan+heatsink. Just pick up the same LCD and Windows 7 disc seperate.

[Sudah mati ini Keparat]

So it would seem my BSODs were caused by certain settings in Oblivion Stutter Remover, or just made the fault manifest itself :shrug:

Regardless, getting a better cooled casing wouldn't hurt. I've been looking at the selection of my favorite net store, and found http://www.antec.com/Believe_it/product.php?id=MTA4MQ== at an agreeable price of 59 €, "Best of 2008" which is about the age of my system too Does anyone have experiences with Antec's cases?

[Laura Cartwright]

I had the Antec 900. It was a great case. (Excluding cable management. Not terrible, but not great either.) I had to move the HDD cages to top and bottom leaving a 3 slot space in between for longer GPUs like my 5870. I'd assume the 300 may have a similar configuration that would work, but I have not really looked into it.

Just think for the future, and if you see yourself getting a long GPU, you may wish to consider something else to be safe.

[Kelly James]

So it would seem my BSODs were caused by certain settings in Oblivion Stutter Remover, or just made the fault manifest itself :shrug:

Regardless, getting a better cooled casing wouldn't hurt. I've been looking at the selection of my favorite net store, and found http://www.antec.com/Believe_it/product.php?id=MTA4MQ== at an agreeable price of 59 €, "Best of 2008" which is about the age of my system too Does anyone have experiences with Antec's cases?

I have one of those, it's a pretty nice case. It cools well, but it's a tad undersized. Like wolfpup said, if you want to get a long card you have to arrange your hard drives in a way that will allow room for it.

[Queen of Spades]

I was planning on upgrading the GPU (current is http://www.msi.com/index.php?func=proddesc&prod_no=1406&maincat_no=130) if a reasonably priced nVidia DX 11 card comes along. I am planning to build a brand new system few years from now anyway, so i guess i can hold with the 9600GT till then.

And anything is an improvement over the current case, it was recycled from ancient computer with 900MHz Celeron and TNT2 video card, it just doesn't have enough airholes, not to mention fans, to keep it shut :shakehead:

One thing i'm unsure about that case, the PSU is installed at the bottom of that case instead of top, but since my PSU (Antec Earthwatts) has a large fan at it's bottom, i should install it upside down?

Edit: Actually the store page mentions that Radeon HD5970 GPU's won't fit in that case.