Buying a new PC

Joined
May 1, 2005
Messages
15
Reaction score
0
I'm looking to upgrade my (aging) PC, however due to the amount of new compoents needed (CPU, MOBO, RAM, hard disc, CD/DVD writer, graphics card and even the case) I think it might be better just to buy a new one.

The spec. I had in mind is something along the lines of:

3GHz + cpu (either P4 or Athlon 64)
1gig PC3200 ram
6600GT (PCI-E)
CD writer + DVD combo (or DVD writer)
80gig(ish) HD
+ case, PSU etc.

The only thing I don't need is a monitor (and maybe keyboard, mouse and speakers).

What sort of price do you think I should be looking to pay and which are the best places to buy from?

I know it's cheaper to build my own, but I don't want to.
 
Last edited:
Joined
Dec 22, 2004
Messages
1,166
Reaction score
1
Hmmm i don't know really lol i would say around the 700pounds mark ?! :S Don't ask me doe :p

You should really build your own mate ... MUCH more worth it !
 

Reefsmoka

Cookie Monster
Joined
May 21, 2004
Messages
1,946
Reaction score
10
Theres loads of sites that sell good pre built PC's but everyone here would strongly recomend you build your own, you can be saving loads of money, and with that money getting an even better PC.

If your scared of building your own PC, you shouldnt be, its relativly simple, just make sure you read the guidlines/instructions.

Anyway, heres some pre built computers if you must.

Overclockers
Komplett
Aria
Savastore

If i were you I would be looking at a system that contains an AMD 64+ processor, 1 gig memory, 100gig+ hd and a decent graphics card.
 
Joined
May 1, 2005
Messages
15
Reaction score
0
Reefsmoka said:
If your scared of building your own PC, you shouldnt be, its relativly simple, just make sure you read the guidlines/instructions.

I'm fine when it comes to doing a simple upgrade such as adding more RAM and swapping graphics cards etc. I just don't know where to start when building a machine from scratch i.e. which case and PSU to get, making sure all the components are compatible, which fans and heatsinks to get etc.

Ideally I think I want some sort of 'barebones' sytem which comes with MOBO, CPU and RAM which are compatible with each other, plus a case, PSU and all the relevant fans and heatsinks and then the option to add other components of my choice such as graphics card, HD and optical drives.

Also if I buy a pre-built one I can get one with Windows XP already installed, as the only copy I have is a Windows 98 upgrade version.
 
Last edited:
Joined
Apr 15, 2005
Messages
286
Reaction score
1
hmmm u can get a windows xp kinda cheap a oem version... but i just built my comp it was easy only thing hard is getting the cpu on and heatsink and fan thats all everything just slips in a clips.
 
Joined
Feb 26, 2003
Messages
804
Reaction score
0
Dillinja - it's safe to say that in a forum like this where we mostly build our own machines, you're likely to get a lot of recommendations to do the same and build it yourself. While i would always build my own rig now, I only made that first jump into DIY when I had developed a lot of background knowledge and had a couple of friends with experience of self-building PCs - so i could esily get help.

We're always eager to help, but you might find that our online support is not fast enough when you're in the middle of a build. It sounds to me like you really do want to buy off the shelf for now (and maybe get into building later on) so as far as you spec goes, I would say that £600-£800 is reasonable.

For that kind of price though, you may end up with socket 754 rather than skt 939, and the case and PSU maybe a little cheap. Make sure you're not getting things like micro-ATX mobos with onboard sound and vid, rather than seperate video cards. If you want to play top end games, the vid in a basic off-the shelf PC may well be below what you need. A common weakness in shop-bought systems is the minimal consideration they give to things like internal cooling - use of only a single fan and so on. Also keep an eye on the warranty agreement that's included - what it costs for calls to their service helpdesk etc. What upgrades can you do yourself without voiding the warranty? etc...

Anyway, I hope the advice you got from here so far is useful...and come back if you want to get views on systems you think might fit your bill:thumb:
 
Joined
May 1, 2005
Messages
15
Reaction score
0
Well i've decided to bite the bullet and build my own :p

Due to my financial situation i'm going to do it a bit at a time over a few weeks. I get paid weekly at the moment so i'll probably buy a new component or two every couple of weeks.

During this period i'll be a real nuisance to this forum and constantly ask questions, but i'll try to keep it to this one thread ;)

I'd appriciate a list of good suppliers (and also the ones to avoid).

My first purchase will be the case, PSU and fan(s) for the case. These are the parts I know least about, so the more advice the better.

I've heard it's better to spend a bit more on the PSU, to get a good make. Which ones would you recommend (I think i'll need 400W at least, as I plan to have 2 GeForce 6600GT's running off of it one day.

Also can somebody recommend me a good case fan(s).
 
Joined
May 1, 2005
Messages
15
Reaction score
0
I've done a quick estimated cost of individual components:

case inc fan £40
PSU £40
MOBO £100 (Socket 939 nVidia SLi chipset)
Graphics card £120 + DVI cable (GeForce 6600GT)
HD £50
Memory £60 (1 gig PC3200)
Optical drives £35
Floppy £5
CPU inc. heatsink/fan £110 (Athlon 64 3000+)

Total: £560

Is anything there wildly out price wise? Also have I missed anything crucial?
 
Joined
Feb 26, 2003
Messages
804
Reaction score
0
Dillinja said:
I've done a quick estimated cost of individual components:

case inc fan £40
PSU £40
MOBO £100 (Socket 939 nVidia SLi chipset)
Graphics card £120 + DVI cable (GeForce 6600GT)
HD £50
Memory £60 (1 gig PC3200)
Optical drives £35
Floppy £5
CPU inc. heatsink/fan £110 (Athlon 64 3000+)

Total: £560

Is anything there wildly out price wise? Also have I missed anything crucial?

PSU may cost a little more for a top brand. You could consider an Antec case with a PSU installed...would cost around the £80 you budgeted for both and you'd be netting a good quality PSU.
Memory will probably be more than £60 for a gig of branded stuff (I'd avoid unbranded or 'generic' ram)
I think you'll be closer to £600 and then don't forget delivery charges.

I tend to get most of my stuff from Scan Computers in Bolton - I keep an eye on their 'Today Only' offers and order at reduced prices, then I collect everything from them at the weekend. It's only a 20 minute drive for me so it's convenient.

Other suppliers that seem ok are: eBuyer (probably the cheapest place for most parts); Overclockers.co.uk (good stuff but more expensive I reckon). I've also used Aria and several others. They all seem to have products that they keep prices low on (Aria are good for cases, for example)...but I guess you'll have to shop around;)
 
Joined
May 1, 2005
Messages
15
Reaction score
0
1nteger said:
PSU may cost a little more for a top brand. You could consider an Antec case with a PSU installed...would cost around the £80 you budgeted for both and you'd be netting a good quality PSU.
Memory will probably be more than £60 for a gig of branded stuff (I'd avoid unbranded or 'generic' ram)
I think you'll be closer to £600 and then don't forget delivery charges.

I tend to get most of my stuff from Scan Computers in Bolton - I keep an eye on their 'Today Only' offers and order at reduced prices, then I collect everything from them at the weekend. It's only a 20 minute drive for me so it's convenient.

Other suppliers that seem ok are: eBuyer (probably the cheapest place for most parts); Overclockers.co.uk (good stuff but more expensive I reckon). I've also used Aria and several others. They all seem to have products that they keep prices low on (Aria are good for cases, for example)...but I guess you'll have to shop around;)

I'm from Nottingham so Bolton's a bit far for me :( Will look on their website though.

I've been looking at Savastore.com as their prices seem quite good.

Which memory brands are good - the price I used was for Aries. The Corsair value select range is only slightly higher as well.
 
Last edited:
Joined
Feb 26, 2003
Messages
804
Reaction score
0
Dillinja said:
I'm from Nottingham so Bolton's a bit far for me :( Will look on their website though.

I've been looking at Savastore.com as their prices seem quite good.

Which memory brands are good - the price I used was for Aries. The Corsair value select range is only slightly higher as well.

Nottingham? I was born in Nottingham and visit family there every few weeks m8!:thumb:

Corsair value select is the stuff I would definitely go for - it's on Scan's today Only at about £64 for two 512Mb sticks - not far off your estimate. Its normal price is probably nearerv £70'ish. it's passed through quite a lot of reviews and come out very well - some have concluded that it can even match many higher priced branded rams. Corsair wouldn't slap their name on rubbish. Worth the xtra couple of quid I'd say.:thumb:

;)
 
Joined
May 1, 2005
Messages
15
Reaction score
0
I've decided on most of the components now, but i'm still having a bit of problem deciding on a PSU.

Will any PSU work with this motherboard or will I need a certain one because it's PCI-E.

I read somewhere i'll need an ATX2.0 compatible PSU. Is this true?

Also bearing in mind that one day I might have 2 PCI-E cards SLI'ed would a 350W PSU be sufficient or should I go for 420W.

Recommendations would be appriciated.
 
Joined
Feb 26, 2003
Messages
804
Reaction score
0
Enermax Noisetaker PSUs are very good and should have all the necessary connections for your current and future needs. Loads of good brands out there but I tend to go for Enermax, Antec, Tagan or Coolermaster.

Check out a few hardware sites (OcUK is a good one) to see pictures and detailed specs. Just look for 24pin connector (most new ones come with a 24pin main power lead, but include the option to remove 4pins for compatability with older 20pin mobos). Also look for terms like PCi Ready. If it has two PCi connectors, then you're already set up for SLi - either way there are loads of cable adaptors available to convert standard molex plugs to PCi etc.

Why not chose one or two that you think are best and within your budget, then let us have the details and we can let you know which one we reckon would be best?:thumb:
 
Joined
May 1, 2005
Messages
15
Reaction score
0
Here's my proposed spec:

Motherboard £91.52
Graphics card £128.08
CPU £97.88
RAM £66.68
Optical drive £38.25
PSU £82.24
Floppy drive £4.10
Case Fan 2@ £2.34 each
DVI-I cable £3.40
Hard disk £39.75
Case £25.85

Total inc. VAT and delivery £600.06

All the prices are from Scan as they appear to be the cheapest. Is it best to get everything from one place, to reduce postage costs?

A few questions about the above components:
Is the case O.K? I chose it because I wanted to spend a maximum of £600, so it was the only one I liked the look of that was in budget.
The case can have a max of 3 fans in it, should I have 3 as i've only gone for 2. Plus i've only gone for 80mm fans, are 120mm worth the extra money (about 3-4 times as much).

Any other comments about the spec appriciated.
 

Me__2001

Internet Junkie
Joined
Apr 5, 2004
Messages
4,354
Reaction score
1
if there isnt enough holes for the fans get a jigsaw and make enough :), the 120mm fans are usually quieter that the 80's but not all cases have holes for them so its probably better to get some 80mm fans
 
Joined
Feb 26, 2003
Messages
804
Reaction score
0
Dillinja said:
Here's my proposed spec:

Motherboard £91.52
Graphics card £128.08
CPU £97.88
RAM £66.68
Optical drive £38.25
PSU £82.24
Floppy drive £4.10
Case Fan 2@ £2.34 each
DVI-I cable £3.40
Hard disk £39.75
Case £25.85

Total inc. VAT and delivery £600.06

All the prices are from Scan as they appear to be the cheapest. Is it best to get everything from one place, to reduce postage costs?.

I just checked out each item in your spec and it looks like a very sound selection. You could still afford to get a cheaper but equally reliable PSU, by dropping to something in the 400W range - you aren't really going to need 480 with that number of components. Your vid won't need anywhere near the same power as higher end ones unless ur going to be adding another 6600 in the future. You could spend a little less on the PSU and spend a little more on the CPU perhaps? Overall tho', i reckon for £600 that a very well specced out rig m8:thumb:

Case fans - I would recommend 120mm as long as the case has the right fan holes -they spin slower to shift the same amount of air so they are a lot quieter than 80mmm (but check that the case has 120mm holes). you only need an intake at the front lower end of the case and an exhaust at the rear about level with the CPU to create airflow through and across the motherboard and away from the processor.

For keeping delivery costs down, It's definitely better to get everything from one supplier if you can - unless there's a massive saving from a different supplier for a particular component. Just grab a calculator and work out your total overall costs from Scan and then work out some alterantives if you get parts from elsewhere including their delivery. it's always worth sopending an extra couple of quid on the price if it's saving you £4 on delivery!
 
Last edited:
Joined
May 1, 2005
Messages
15
Reaction score
0
1nteger said:
I just checked out each item in your spec and it looks like a very sound selection. You could still afford to get a cheaper but equally reliable PSU, by dropping to something in the 400W range - you aren't really going to need 480 with that number of components. Your vid won't need anywhere near the same power as higher end ones unless ur going to be adding another 6600 in the future. You could spend a little less on the PSU and spend a little more on the CPU perhaps?.

I went for a high wattage PSU to try and future proof as much as possible. I do intend to add another 6600GT sometime in the future or maybe evan 2 higher spec cards.
 
Joined
Feb 26, 2003
Messages
804
Reaction score
0
Dillinja said:
I went for a high wattage PSU to try and future proof as much as possible. I do intend to add another 6600GT sometime in the future or maybe evan 2 higher spec cards.

Good idea - u can save money on PSU but cheap ones are supposed to be responsible for most hardware crashes. You can get quality and power for £50-60 though.
 
Joined
May 10, 2005
Messages
190
Reaction score
0
This very similar to the system I have just built.

Unless you have already purchased your PSU I can recommend the one I have got for around the 50 squid mark, it complies with your mo bo and its very very quiet. It may be less wattage but it gives a constant supply so your guaranteed 450w all the time, it will more than handle another graphics card too should you chose to add one later for the SLI doobie. It has an old school temp gage too; mine is not going above the 15 degreese mark!

http://www.microdirect.co.uk/ProductInfo.aspx?ProductID=8992&GroupID=0

http://www.sharkyextreme.com/hardware/cpu/article.php/3261_3453401__7

The Processor and MoBo are fast, very fast. I have just got Doom 3 and took no time at all to load, I was very impressed! What I would say with reference to the above review at sharkey, apparently they say the 3000 939 did lag a bit on the benchmark tests and to get the best out of the new 939 socket go for the 3200 at least, however I know how it is one has to keep in budget, fortunately I already had a case and two hard drives from my old machine (Athlon xp 2000) So I managed to save money there and fork out £130 for the 3200

The Graphics are the best thing about this set up, they look truly wicked, I upgraded from an ATI 9800 PRO and you can really tell the difference, its defiantly "next generation stuff" After reading many reviews on the 6600 GPU, Gigabyte, Asus and Gainward were the best to purchase from. I like the passive cooling on that Gigabyte board, looks cool man

Hope that helps anyway and one last thing I was in the same situation as yourself before building this machine. I had never put together a PC before so; I got a mate who has built loads and got him to "oversee" what I was doing, it worked well I learnt how to build a PC knowing help was at hand and making sure I wasn't doing something silly! (He put the Processor on though, I did not want to but after watching I was like “is that it!” I will next time now I know what am doing, lol)
The only Problem I had was connecting the case (on and off + Led) switches to the MoBo, very fiddly and took a few goes to get them in the right order on the board, not really a problem though!
Also asus ship the A8N SLI with the revised BIOS now to get rid of all those bugs!
Nice one
 

Ask a Question

Want to reply to this thread or ask your own question?

You'll need to choose a username for the site, which only take a couple of moments. After that, you can post your question and our members will help you out.

Ask a Question

Top