Upgrade advice please... (1st time poster <g>)

[ro§ie]

i need to upgrade my pc. i have put it off long enough and now my son just
got C & C Generals and the pc just wants no part of it!!

minimum requirements for game are 1.8ghz cpu, 256 ram, 32mb video card using
nVidia Geforce2, ATI Radeon 7500 or more recent.

now my chip is a poor old celeron 450 (clocked to 525), 3D rage pro AGP 2x
graphics card, 256 mbs SDRAM (pc100).

i know a little bit about hardware installation and i have been on a short
course, so i should know how to do this... its the BUYING of the components!
so many to choose! how does one know if that goes with that!

i just bought a new 128mb stick of ram so i was rather hoping to get a
motherboard that accepts it (i've seen some that take both DDR and SDRAM,
dunno if thats at the same time or not).

i would be very appreciative if anyone could advise me on a new CPU,
motherboard and graphics card that will work with my RAM and DMA HDD... oh
and keep the cost down and i am in the UK, but thats ok... i can always look
up the product once i know what to look for!

regards
rosie

 

[ToolPackinMama]

i need to upgrade my pc. i have put it off long enough and now my son just
got C & C Generals and the pc just wants no part of it!!

minimum requirements for game are 1.8ghz cpu, 256 ram, 32mb video card using
nVidia Geforce2, ATI Radeon 7500 or more recent.

What type of RAM do you have?

 

[Phisherman]

It sounds like you need to replace the computer, perhaps sell the old.
I'm still using a 200Mhz computer which runs all the software I need.

 

[spodosaurus]

i need to upgrade my pc. i have put it off long enough and now my son just
got C & C Generals and the pc just wants no part of it!!

Reading your current specs, I can understand why. It's a much more
hardware hungry game than previous command and conquer versions.

minimum requirements for game are 1.8ghz cpu, 256 ram, 32mb video card using
nVidia Geforce2, ATI Radeon 7500 or more recent.

Pretty minimal, especially with new DirectX9 type games coming out
towards Christmas time (which your son may have on his list...)

now my chip is a poor old celeron 450 (clocked to 525), 3D rage pro AGP 2x
graphics card, 256 mbs SDRAM (pc100).

Time to upgrade. You may want to upgrade in stages, but you might as
well just sell the power supply (unless it's a good one), motherboard,
video card, and RAM at the same time. Use the sale of these items to
offset the costs of buying the upgrades. Sorry, but you don't get new
technology for free. Next, buy a new hard drive. Before selling your
old hard drive, use a tool that will overwrite the drive in 1's and 0's
so you don't end up with the new owner recovering deleted personal
files. Formatting does NOT hide these from readilly available recovery
programs.

i know a little bit about hardware installation and i have been on a short
course, so i should know how to do this... its the BUYING of the components!
so many to choose! how does one know if that goes with that!

Just be careful when you swap the motherboards. Do a clean install of
your operating system afterwards. Make backups of ALL IMPORTANT DATA
BEFOREHAND!!!!!!!!!!!!!! You can get away with not doing a clean
install, but it's trickier and can sometimes get a little messy.

i just bought a new 128mb stick of ram so i was rather hoping to get a
motherboard that accepts it (i've seen some that take both DDR and SDRAM,
dunno if thats at the same time or not).

No, not at the same time. You'd do well to just forget the sdram and go
for the newer DDR 333.

i would be very appreciative if anyone could advise me on a new CPU,

An Athlon XP 2200+ or similar chip will give you the most bang for your
buck. Go for a chip with the latest core...T-Bred in this range I
think...Barton if you want to spend a little more and go to a better
CPU. The stock coolers on these CPUs are actually rather good! AND
they're QUIET, suprisingly enough.

motherboard

Gigabyte GA-7VA is an inexpensive board that will suit you fine. I use
it myself.

and graphics card

Command and Conquer generals will run on older cards. Personally, I'd
like a card that is made for DirectX9. The new nVidia FX cards would
suit, but they'll probably be the most expensive part of this upgrade.
think twice about getting the base model (FX 5200 I think???), unless
your son isn't going to want to play first person shooter games online.
Some cards come with 128mb RAM, others have more, but the extra cost
does not equate to too much improvement in performance for what you're
likely to be using it for. However, you probably won't go wrong on a
reduced price Geforce 4ti based type of card. you'll have to do some
research here, though. I don't know all the different chip numbers of
the top of my head.

that will work with my RAM and DMA HDD

Sell your RAM/CPU/Motherboard AND power supply. It will offset costs.
Go DDR. 256mb minimum if you're running win98. I'd recommend upgrading
to XP and using 512mb RAM.

An old hard drive is going to make system performance drag, too. It'll
start to irritate you and your son after all this you get a noisy old
hard drive lagging your system. Buy a Western Digital 40GB drive.
they're fairly cheap now.

Also, don't shoot yourself in the foot with a crap PSU. I recommend and
Antec TruePower 330W for you, but the 380W one would be a GOOD CHOICE
*hint hint*


Ari

... oh
and keep the cost down and i am in the UK, but thats ok... i can always look
up the product once i know what to look for!

regards
rosie

--

Are you registered as a bone marrow donor? You regenerate what you
donate. You are offered the chance to donate only if you match a person
on the recipient list. Visit www.marrow.org or call your local Red Cross
and ask about registering to be a bone marrow donor.

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[ro§ie]

thanks for the advice... very informative ).

hmm hadnt thought of selling the old bits but i guess they are still good
for wp etc... people buy anything these days!

regards
rosie

 

[zalzon]

thanks for the advice... very informative ).

hmm hadnt thought of selling the old bits but i guess they are still good
for wp etc... people buy anything these days!

regards
rosie

Here's a good choice :

AMD 2400 XP+
A7V8XX
512mb DDR333 (1x512 Not 2x256)
MSI Geforce4 mx440 64M DDR TV (8xAGP)
80GB 7200
Generic Cd-rw (or recycle the one you currently have)
300Watt Power + Case
Keyboard + Mouse

My extensive research (it took decades) indicates that this gives the
best bang for the buck. If you are willing to spend a wee bit more,
go for a 2600 XP+.

 

[ro§ie]

--
If you want to mail me, rosies at blueyonder dot co dot uk!

ro§ie wrote: <snip>




An Athlon XP 2200+ or similar chip will give you the most bang for your
buck. Go for a chip with the latest core...T-Bred in this range I
think...Barton if you want to spend a little more and go to a better
CPU. The stock coolers on these CPUs are actually rather good! AND
they're QUIET, suprisingly enough.

i looked at this and the XP 2400+. the price difference is a few quid so
should i go for the 2400?

Gigabyte GA-7VA is an inexpensive board that will suit you fine. I use
it myself.

good price on this. if you're recommending it, i am happy with that... say,

Command and Conquer generals will run on older cards. Personally, I'd
like a card that is made for DirectX9. The new nVidia FX cards would
suit, but they'll probably be the most expensive part of this upgrade.
think twice about getting the base model (FX 5200 I think???), unless
your son isn't going to want to play first person shooter games online.
Some cards come with 128mb RAM, others have more, but the extra cost
does not equate to too much improvement in performance for what you're
likely to be using it for. However, you probably won't go wrong on a
reduced price Geforce 4ti based type of card. you'll have to do some
research here, though. I don't know all the different chip numbers of
the top of my head.

i saw a CHAINTECH GEFORCE 4 MX440 AGP GRAPHICS CARD FOR PC. AGP GeForce
graphics cards for PC Nvidia NV17 (GeForce 4 MX440) for £40... thats good
isnt it? its hard to know if one should go for a brand such as sparkle or
gainward. any comments?

Also, don't shoot yourself in the foot with a crap PSU. I recommend and
Antec TruePower 330W for you, but the 380W one would be a GOOD CHOICE
*hint hint*

now i hadnt considered the power supply and case, i was going to use what i
had but a shop i spoke to also said the PSU and case should be changed. how
can i know what PSU i have? so am i also looking at having to buy extra fans
and things? sheesh... it aint a simple upgrade at all, is it!!

regards
rosie

 

[spodosaurus]

i looked at this and the XP 2400+. the price difference is a few quid >so
should i go for the 2400?

If you can afford it, then buy the best available.

good price on this. if you're recommending it, i am happy with that...
say,
you're not the resident clux though are you <g>?

It's a budget board that I personally use on one of my systems. If
money wasn't an issue I'd probably buy more fully featured ASUS boards.
The GA-7VA is a basic board without bells and whistles like RAID and
firewire. It's not the latest board, either, hence the good pricing for
left over stock. It's been my impression that you're looking to do a
relatively budget conscious upgrade, hence my suggestion of this board.

i saw a CHAINTECH GEFORCE 4 MX440 AGP GRAPHICS CARD FOR PC. AGP GeForce
graphics cards for PC Nvidia NV17 (GeForce 4 MX440) for £40... thats >good
isnt it? its hard to know if one should go for a brand such as sparkle >or
gainward. any comments?

These are okay budget cards. They have the same chipset. The
differences will likely be in what additional features the cards have
and the software bundle that comes with them. they're not great
bleeding edge gaming cards: they're leftovers from the last geforce line.

now i hadnt considered the power supply and case, i was going to use
what i
had but a shop i spoke to also said the PSU and case should be changed. >how
can i know what PSU i have? so am i also looking at having to buy extra >fans
and things? sheesh... it aint a simple upgrade at all, is it!!

Without knowing anything about your case or the shop that gave you the
advice, I really can't comment on that. Also, I'm only assuming based
on its age that your current PSU probably is a generic one that doesn't
have power output levels up to todays requirements for this upgrade. To
see what PSU you have and it's specifications you'll have to open the
case. There will (hopefully) be a label on the PSU with the name of the
manufacturer, the Wattage, the model number, and a breakdown of the
amperage on each of the different rails (+12V, +5V, etc). First and
foremost try and get us the name of the manufacturer, model, and
wattage. Regarding adding fans, well, I use a low speed vantec stealth
80mm fan in each of my systems to blow hot air out the back. I live in
Western Australia without air conditioning, and I've found this to be
sufficient even during long periods of computer gameplay *grin*. I
*suspect* that the case probably would not have to be upgraded, but this
is in an effort to save dollars. If the case does not have a spot at
the back for an 80mm case fan, then perhaps it is time for an upgrade of
the case as well. Even cheap $10AUD cases have a spot for an 80mm case
fan! (I like cheap cases because I feel less inhibited when cutting
them up and turning them into 'functional art', but I do not like cheap
PSUs)

HTH,

Ari

PS- keep asking questions if you like, better to ask now than after
you've bought the new components.


--

Are you registered as a bone marrow donor? You regenerate what you
donate. You are offered the chance to donate only if you match a person
on the recipient list. Visit www.marrow.org or call your local Red Cross
and ask about registering to be a bone marrow donor.

spam trap: replace shyah_right! with hotmail when replying

 

[spodosaurus]

If you can afford it, then buy the best available.


It's a budget board that I personally use on one of my systems. If
money wasn't an issue I'd probably buy more fully featured ASUS boards.
The GA-7VA is a basic board without bells and whistles like RAID and
firewire. It's not the latest board, either, hence the good pricing for
left over stock. It's been my impression that you're looking to do a
relatively budget conscious upgrade, hence my suggestion of this board.

I was thinking after I posted this that for a few dollars more you could
get a more up to date motherboard, but this may be overkill for what
you're looking at, and better to either save the money or buy
better/more memory instead. However, just to muddy the waters further,
these two boards based on the nForce2 chipset will work with the AMD
processor we've already been discussing:

GA-7N400-L1

A7N8X-X

The nForce2 chipset has certain benefits, such as dual channel memory
capabilities, over the Via KT400 chipset that the GA-7VA board is based
on. However, the GA-7VA board is less expensive, and if it comes to a
choice of buying more RAM or some such and getting a slightly more
advanced motherboard, then go with buying the extra RAM. Also, just to
point this out, if you do go with an nForce2 based board you will need
to buy the RAM modules in pairs rather than as a single large module if
you want to take advantage of the dual channel memory features of these
boards. These boards will still take a single large module, you just
don't get the dual channel memory benefits in that particular RAM
configuration.

HTH,

Ari



--

Are you registered as a bone marrow donor? You regenerate what you
donate. You are offered the chance to donate only if you match a person
on the recipient list. Visit www.marrow.org or call your local Red Cross
and ask about registering to be a bone marrow donor.

spam trap: replace shyah_right! with hotmail when replying

 

[ro§ie]

omg, ari!! just as i thought i had it sussed!! i do appreciate all your
advice and i will go look at these further suggestions. yes, budget is
important but i dont want to use a false economy. its great that i can ask
here as quite often you find the *technical support* in a shop is not so hot
and besides, the sale is THE thing! i hate to not have some info in what i
am buying, its a good education for me doing this.

just to clarify... are you saying if i go with the 7VA, i should buy 2 x
256mb DDR rather than 1 x 512?

thanks also for saying i can keep asking... hope i dont overstep it!

be back when i have done my homework ;o)

regards
rosie

 

[spodosaurus]

omg, ari!! just as i thought i had it sussed!! i do appreciate all your
advice and i will go look at these further suggestions. yes, budget is
important but i dont want to use a false economy.

It's good that you recognise that. I consider the geforce4mx440 cards
that you're looking at as 'false economy'. The chips are barely better
than geforce2 chips. The geforce4ti4xxx series of cards are probably a
better investment. If it came down to buying a slightly faster CPU with
an nForce2 board or a geforce4ti based video card, I'd personally go
with the better video card if I were in your situation just to keep a
bit more of a margin on video card performance in case the youngster
prompting this upgrade decides he wants to play a game that requires a
bit more grunt than a 440mx card can muster. Then again, by the time
that happens, it might be even better to sell the 440mx card and buy a
geforce fx based card that's come down in price rather than getting the
geforce4ti card now... (geforce fx cards are newer, but I think the 5200
series of them is like the 440mx series of geforce4 cards...) Oh well,
I think I should stop muddying things now. A good way to decide what
you're going to get is to set yourself a budget right now. Then, aim
for that budget after you select a place where you'll be buying your
parts. You're in the UK, right? Hmmm...I'm afraid I haven't the
foggiest of what online shops are good there :-(

its great that i can ask
here as quite often you find the *technical support* in a shop is not so hot
and besides, the sale is THE thing! i hate to not have some info in what i
am buying, its a good education for me doing this.

In the end you'll probably come away with a good budget system from what
we've already discussed. I say this because sometimes waiting just
makes making the decisions harder.

just to clarify... are you saying if i go with the 7VA, i should buy 2 x
256mb DDR rather than 1 x 512?

No. If you go with one of the nForce2 boards you should buy 2x256. If
you go with the GA-7VA then either option is fine, but I'd go with the
1x512 card to leave the other memory slots open for future adding of cards.

thanks also for saying i can keep asking... hope i dont overstep it!

No worries. If I don't answer I'm sure there are a dozen other folks
watching this thread.

be back when i have done my homework ;o)

I know the feeling: writing uni papers and desktop publishing
alternately this week

regards
rosie

--

Are you registered as a bone marrow donor? You regenerate what you
donate. You are offered the chance to donate only if you match a person
on the recipient list. Visit www.marrow.org or call your local Red Cross
and ask about registering to be a bone marrow donor.

spam trap: replace shyah_right! with hotmail when replying