Question On New AMD

[Guest]

Hi again all Im looking into purchasing this computer for online gaming and
video editing and some websurfing/audio editing....this system can have its
memory upgraded for now im going with min due to cost...The game im getting
DDO requires p4 1.6 megahertz 512 ram and 64 bit video card with SLE the
system im looking into is this::

Compaq Presario Desktop with AMD Athlonâ„¢ 64 Processor 3400+
Model: SR1820NX
512KB L2 cache memory
160GB Ultra DMA hard drive (7200 rpm)
NVIDIA GeForce 6150LE Graphics with up to 256MB shared video memory;
high-definition audio with 8-speaker support

i can upgrade the memory and hd eventually but how is this for starting out
for first 6 months before i upgrade?? need responses asap please

 

[Shenan Stanley]

Hi again all Im looking into purchasing this computer for online
gaming and video editing and some websurfing/audio editing....this
system can have its memory upgraded for now im going with min due
to cost...The game im getting DDO requires p4 1.6 megahertz 512 ram
and 64 bit video card with SLE the system im looking into is this::

Compaq Presario Desktop with AMD AthlonT 64 Processor 3400+
Model: SR1820NX
512KB L2 cache memory
160GB Ultra DMA hard drive (7200 rpm)
NVIDIA GeForce 6150LE Graphics with up to 256MB shared video
memory; high-definition audio with 8-speaker support

i can upgrade the memory and hd eventually but how is this for
starting out for first 6 months before i upgrade?? need responses
asap please

First thing I saw I would not like if using this for gaming..
"shared video memory".

You really want a separate video card with its own memory - in my opinion.

Otherwise it is beefy enough. Weird with the non-SATA hard drive - and you
never stated how much RAM the system had..

 

[Fitz]

I don't know what kind of a price you are getting, but the HP website list
at around $570. For that kind of money I'd consider something in the way of
a barebone system that is upgradeable at your pleasure.

At MWave, I pieced an assembled barebone:
a.. ANTEC SLK1650B (350W TruPower power supply)
a.. ABIT NF8-V2
a.. AMD ATHLON 64 3200+ - NEWCASTLE
a.. CRUCIAL 1GB DDR400
a.. (512MB x 2)
a.. NO FDD / CARD READER
a.. NEC 16X DVD+/-RW
a.. Add a EVGA GeForce 6600 256 MB AGP card

for $511.90

Nothing here is point of the sword technology- but it's all proven, reliable
componets that will perform well. The processor and motherboard are 764 pin
vs the newer 939 pin- a performance hit that will more than be made up by
the 1GB memory and the video card.

Just a suggestion

Fitz

 

[Guest]

hey again ok system has 512 megs of ram upgradable to 4 gigs 512 is mim for
me now due to money system will cost me just under 500 bucks, the shared
video is the minimum im using also for a month or 2 until i get the money to
buy a seperate video card so to use it for a month should be fine for ddo
heres the specs for ddo system requirements:
Processor: P4 1.6 GHz or AMD equivalent with SSE
Memory 512 MB RAM
Graphics Card 64 MB Hardware T&L -compatible video card


Recommended System Requirements

Processor P4 3.0GHz or AMD equivalent with SSE
Memory 1GB RAM
Graphics Card GeForce FX or better with 128MB of memory

also i figure this will be good until they make games needing like pentium 5
or 6 lol or am i wrong

 

[Kerry Brown]

I would never wish a new Compaq computer on anyone. They come with spyware
installed at the factory. The computer will perform very poorly until
someone who has the necessary expertise removes it. Even then it will not
perform as well as many comparable systems. You will not get a Windows CD
with a Compaq computer but a restore procedure which cannot be used for
repairs but only to return the computer to it's factory state. Take Fitz's
advice and look for a "whitebox" computer. This will require educating your
self a bit, knowing what you want the computer to do and what it takes to
make it do that. Here is what I'd recommend as a basic configuration based
on your first post.

A current P4 CPU (LGA 775) or a current AMD Athlon CPU (Socket 939)

A motherboard that uses an Intel chipset with a P4 CPU or an nForce chipset
with an AMD CPU and also has a PCI-EX slot for video. Some good brands are:
Intel, Gigabyte, and ASUS.

An ATI Radeon or Nvidia PCI-EX video card with 256 MB on the card

1 GB ram

80 GB or larger hard drive. Don't worry about SATA or PATA. Size is more
important. Make sure the drive has minimum 8 MB cache. If you are doing a
lot of video editing then get the biggest you can afford.

DVDRW drive

Windows XP Home OEM or Retail with CD

If you cannot find this in your price range then you will have to compromise
something or wait until you can afford it. I recommend checking out local
computer stores that build their own computers. Ask your friends if they
know of any good ones or bad ones to avoid. Check out the stores yourself.
Give them a list of what you want. Ask about their warranty. Do not buy
until you have checked a few stores.

 

[Bruce Chambers]

Hi again all Im looking into purchasing this computer for online gaming and
video editing and some websurfing/audio editing....this system can have its
memory upgraded for now im going with min due to cost...The game im getting
DDO requires p4 1.6 megahertz 512 ram and 64 bit video card with SLE the
system im looking into is this::

Compaq Presario Desktop with AMD Athlonâ„¢ 64 Processor 3400+
Model: SR1820NX

I don't much care for the "quality" of Compaq's consumer-grade product
lines, but if you're on a tight budget...

512KB L2 cache memory
160GB Ultra DMA hard drive (7200 rpm)

OK, but SATA would be faster, though, as well as helping improve the
air flow (by virtue of the much thinner cables) inside the computer case
to help components stay cooler. Frankly, I'm a little surprised that
anyone is still offering systems without SATA hard drives; Compaq must
have a backlog of older motherboards to unload.

NVIDIA GeForce 6150LE Graphics with up to 256MB shared video memory;

This one specification alone renders the computer unsuitable for your
intended uses, to my thinking. You'll really want to have an AGP or PCI
Express Video adapter with at least 128Mb (256Mb would be better still)
of its own dedicated video RAM. If you don't want to install a decent
video adapter, you'll definitely need to increase the system RAM to
compensate for the amount consumed by the video adapter.

high-definition audio with 8-speaker support

What brand and model? Or is it an integrated audio controller? If the
latter, it will won't probably be adequate for "audio editing," not if
you're thinking of music and care about sound quality. For gaming,
it'll probably do, for a few months.

i can upgrade the memory and hd eventually but how is this for starting out
for first 6 months before i upgrade?? need responses asap please

While 512Mb seems to be the "sweet spot" for WinXP under normal uses, I
think a gigabyte (1024Mb) would better meet your stated needs,
especially if you stick with the integrated video adapter.


--

Bruce Chambers

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[Fitz]

The Compaq you are talking about has some drawbacks.

Unwanted software, usually installed on a "trialware" basis that can be
difficult to remove completely and will interfere with the performance of
your computer (I just bought a dell laptop, spent the first two hours
removing garbage- it had over 40 running processes when I started it).

OEM software you do want is usually not the fully functional package you
would get retail- something is usually left out to encourage you to buy the
retail version at some point (this is especially true of CD/DVD
recording/editing programs- something you said you were going to do).

Proprietary hardware that can be expensive and difficult to replace.
Inferior components (especially no name power supplies)- add a video card
and some memory and you stand a good chance of having to replace the PS in
short order.

I agree with the other poster that a 939 pin system vs. the 754 that I
listed would be better, but I was trying to stay close to the price of the
system you listed. The AMD64 3200 Newcastle would more than meet your needs
and is a good value. The biggest disadvantage is there is no operating
system included, so you would either have to already have one, or buy an OEM
WinXP disk along with the hardware. You would be getting a system that would
outperform the Compaq out of the box, not contain any bloated software, and
would be more easily upgraded than the Compaq.

Good luck- whatever you decide

Fitz