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[brain_stew]

I dont know if it's too late, but I have a new powercolor ATI 3850 that's up for grabs. Shipping only! PM me if you're interested. And no reselling! I only want to bother if someone's going to use it.

Damn that's generous. The 3850 is still a mighty capable card, most gamers would honestly be more than satisfied with its performance even if it doesn't stack upto the current crop. Hope it finds a good home.

 

[evil solrac v3.0]

kitinary, you should spend an extra 200 bucks and you'd have a pretty nice system.

edit: as long as we're trading(selling?) computer parts, i have 2 9600 gt and 2 gigs of corsair dominator DDR2 RAM.

 

[Minsc]

Damn that's generous. The 3850 is still a mighty capable card, most gamers would honestly be more than satisfied with its performance even if it doesn't stack upto the current crop. Hope it finds a good home.

It is AGP I should add, in case that wasn't obvious from the previous posts.

October 22nd seems so close, yet far. Damn Windows 7 for being such a leap forward for everything I'm interested in w/ a new machine! Well, it gives me some time to try and get a few more 2D games in before I'm drowning in catching up with all the new releases I've missed.

 

[brain_stew]

AGP cards are to outdated to be carried at most stores locally, or if they have them they are overpriced since they know if you need one, it's going to be hard to find one so they over charge.

I would say the powercolor 3850 is a decent low-end card.

This card would also be worth considering i think: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814125281

(GIGABYTE GV-R465D2-1GI Radeon HD 4650 1GB 128-bit GDDR2 AGP 8X HDCP Ready Video Card )

One thing to keep in mind though is that an AGP card will be worthless when you get a new system, you won't be able to carry it over to a new computer in the future. Just FYI.

Honestly, anything above a 7600GT is going to be CPU limited and a huge upgrade anyway.

Just head to ebay and pick up the cheapest 6600GT/7600GT/7600GS/X1600/6800 AGP card you can find. Any penny over say $30 is just wasted cash imo. Obviously free is even better!! :lol

 

[Kinitari]

Please don't buy that case/PSU combo. You'd be running a serious risk of it blowing up and taking out your other components. It sure as hell isn't cheap if it means you need to buy a brand new motherboard.

I assume you already have a CPU? What is it? If you don't, you should really be looking down the Phenom ii route instead imo.

I was steered clear of that Case+PSU combo, its a few posts back =p.

And yeah I already have a CPU, its nothing fancy, Pentium D 930, but I don't think I can afford another hundred+ bucks for at least another month.

 

[Deus Ex Machina]

I'm looking to build a gaming system. This is my first build and I am terrified.

These are the parts I bought so far;

Case - Solano 1000
MotherBoard - A790GXM-AD3 Black Series
CPU-Cooler - CoolerMaster V10
Power Supply - In Win Commander 750W PSU
Safety First - Anti-static Wrist Band


What's left? DDR3 ram, Phenom II X4 955 and 4890.

For Ram i'm looking at OCZ Gold AMD Edition 4GB

As for the GPU brand I think i'll get DIAMOND OC Radeon HD 4890

If you have any advice please give.

Got one of my XOC 4890s today

 

[evil solrac v3.0]

I was steered clear of that Case+PSU combo, its a few posts back =p.

And yeah I already have a CPU, its nothing fancy, Pentium D 930, but I don't think I can afford another hundred+ bucks for at least another month.

so wait another month, its' possible prices might drop a bit.

 

[MWS Natural]

Since its for games and your require Dolby Digital Live, you're pretty much going to have to get an X-FI based card.

The Asus Xonar range is worth looking into, though their support of older games in multi channel isn't upto par with the X-Fi its better than any of the other alternatives. General sound quality will be much better on the XONAR THOUGH, SO THE CHOICE IS YOURS.

You may just be better off waiting for some more mature W7 drivers though, it is a pre-release OS afterall.

Basically what I told him, I got it working under Windows XP but couldn't get the HDMI 5.1 audio working with my onboard HDMI and Windows 7. It probably will be resolved with the final version. I believe the Xonar cards let you send the sound over the video card's HDMI cable but I'm not sure. If not getting a sound card really defeats the simplicity of audio over HDMI from the 4890.

 

[Firestorm]

Holy crap, so much help~

1. Going to Canada Computers isn't worth it, too far for me, thanks anyway though.
2. I am getting the Gigabyte mobo, not the Asus.
3. Im going to try the code right now on my shopping cart (Which conveniently emptied itself again...) and see if it works, that would save me like another 50 bucks.

You're making me happy~

Yes, I feel it's my duty on GAF to help Canadians save monies.

 

[Jirotrom]

just formated my drive but was only partitioned 50 of my 320gigs... I'd like to partition the rest in another drive but windows XP doesnt show that it exists... Any help would be greatly appreciated. the thing is during the partition it only showed 130 available.

HALP!

 

[DarthWoo]

I'm not sure why only 50GB was partitioned unless you set that yourself, but I recall that sometimes there is an issue with a PC only detecting ~137GB of a drive when you first format and partition it during the initial OS install. Not really sure what can be done about that. However, once XP is installed, you should be able to go to Control Panel > Administrative Tools > Computer Management. In that window go Storage > Disk Management. It should list all of your physical drives as rows, and you'll probably see a column with the 50GB you partitioned, and another column with the rest of the drive listed as unpartitioned or something. You can then right click that section and either partition it into yet smaller sections, or I think just select the whole thing as its own partition. It should be fairly self explanatory. I did it on mine last year, but I can't remember exactly what I picked.

 

[DeadTrees]

just formated my drive but was only partitioned 50 of my 320gigs... I'd like to partition the rest in another drive but windows XP doesnt show that it exists... Any help would be greatly appreciated. the thing is during the partition it only showed 130 available.

HALP!

Have you installed service pack 2?

 

[Ashhong]

hey guys, dont know much about cpu coolers, which of these are better? and they should be quieter than stock right?

http://www.zipzoomfly.com/jsp/ProductDetail.jsp?ProductCode=10006798&prodlist=celebros

http://www.frys.com/product/5854973?site=sr:SEARCH:MAIN_RSLT_PG

the frys one is actually 20 after rebate from stores so its a 10$ difference.

 

[Gowans]

OK Guys here we go again, hopefully more info this time.

How can I fix up my girlfriends old Uni PC her Dad put together, she's just moved into our pad for cheap.

Have a baby on the in 7 weeks so I reckon £100 will be my limit.

Specs: (dxdiag)
Operating System: Windows XP Professional (5.1, Build 2600) Service Pack 3
Processor: AMD Sempron(tm) Processor LE-1250, MMX, 3DNow, ~2.2GHz
Card name: NVIDIA GeForce 6100 nForce 430
Display Memory: 512.0 MB
Current Mode: 1440 x 900 (32 bit) (60Hz)
Description: Realtek HD Audio output
Drive: C:
Free Space: 195.2 GB
Total Space: 224.0 GB


Tried Battlefield Heroes and on Low it ran like shit, would love to be able to use this for TF2, DoWII ans some newer games.

 

[DeadTrees]

AMD Sempron(tm) Processor LE-1250
NVIDIA GeForce 6100 nForce 430

What's the manufacturer and model number for your motherboard? You'll need to know which CPUs your motherboard will support.

 

[Gowans]

What's the manufacturer and model number for your motherboard? You'll need to know which CPUs your motherboard will support.

God knows, Its all built in to the motherboard I'm told

According to the BIOS it's:


ALiveNF66-VSTA BIOS P1.80 (America Megatrends logo also)

AMD Sempron Processor LE-1250 (64-bit)
Pricessor Speed 2200MHz
L1 Cache: 128KB
L2 Cache: 512KB

Tot Mem: 2048MB with 128MB shared Dual-Chennel Memeory Mode
1024MB/266MHz (DDRII533)
1024MB/266MHz (DDRII533)


ordering online for parts is no issue but also my local shop is really cheap too
http://www.falconcomputers.co.uk/

 

[Crazymoogle]

Just FYI for everyone not in the Windows 7 thread...

Microsoft will now allow for upgrade installs from W7RC to Windows 7. Only helpful for the near future, but still probably useful for some.

 

[Mr. Spinnington]

It is AGP I should add, in case that wasn't obvious from the previous posts.

October 22nd seems so close, yet far. Damn Windows 7 for being such a leap forward for everything I'm interested in w/ a new machine! Well, it gives me some time to try and get a few more 2D games in before I'm drowning in catching up with all the new releases I've missed.

hell i'll take it. anything to bring down the cost of my build right now. i can always replace this thing in 4-5 months

 

[PantherLotus]

I dont know if it's too late, but I have a new powercolor ATI 3850 that's up for grabs. Shipping only! PM me if you're interested. And no reselling! I only want to bother if someone's going to use it.

Was this already taken? I'm PM'ing you now.

edit: And I won't replace it in 4-5 months!

 

[Mr. Spinnington]

Was this already taken? I'm PM'ing you now.

edit: And I won't replace it in 4-5 months!

talk to me, baby. let's see what we can work out over pm's

 

[DeadTrees]

God knows, Its all built in to the motherboard I'm told

Try running CPU-Z, then click on the Mainboard tab.

Assuming your board supports AM2+ processors, your solution will probably be whatever combination of an Athlon X2 5XXX/6XXX CPU and ATI HD 48XX will fit under your budget.

 

[Firestorm]

Just FYI for everyone not in the Windows 7 thread...

Microsoft will now allow for upgrade installs from W7RC to Windows 7. Only helpful for the near future, but still probably useful for some.

Didn't know that. Pre-ordered it from Best Buy now. Last day, free shipping, and if I get it from MSDNAA or Imagine Cup I'll just cancel or resell it to someone else.

 

[Ashhong]

hey guys, dont know much about cpu coolers, which of these are better? and they should be quieter than stock right?

http://www.zipzoomfly.com/jsp/ProductDetail.jsp?ProductCode=10006798&prodlist=celebros

http://www.frys.com/product/5854973?site=sr:SEARCH:MAIN_RSLT_PG

the frys one is actually 20 after rebate from stores so its a 10$ difference.

anyone?

 

[brain_stew]

OK Guys here we go again, hopefully more info this time.

How can I fix up my girlfriends old Uni PC her Dad put together, she's just moved into our pad for cheap.

Have a baby on the in 7 weeks so I reckon £100 will be my limit.

Specs: (dxdiag)
Operating System: Windows XP Professional (5.1, Build 2600) Service Pack 3
Processor: AMD Sempron(tm) Processor LE-1250, MMX, 3DNow, ~2.2GHz
Card name: NVIDIA GeForce 6100 nForce 430
Display Memory: 512.0 MB
Current Mode: 1440 x 900 (32 bit) (60Hz)
Description: Realtek HD Audio output
Drive: C:
Free Space: 195.2 GB
Total Space: 224.0 GB


Tried Battlefield Heroes and on Low it ran like shit, would love to be able to use this for TF2, DoWII ans some newer games.

I can't really recommending spending anything on that really. All you'd be doing is paying over the odds for parts that are already outdated. Just save up and do a proper upgrade instead. The baby is more important, that extra £100 will be needed for something you don't expect it to be needed for.

Just FYI for everyone not in the Windows 7 thread...

Microsoft will now allow for upgrade installs from W7RC to Windows 7. Only helpful for the near future, but still probably useful for some.

Knew this would be confirmed before long. Good stuff.

Reckon the "upgrade an upgrade" trick will surely work with W7 now as well.

 

[PantherLotus]

talk to me, baby. let's see what we can work out over pm's

PM'd you. If we can work it out, I can't explain the gratitude I would have!

 

[PantherLotus]

/me prays

 

[TheHeretic]

hey guys, dont know much about cpu coolers, which of these are better? and they should be quieter than stock right?

http://www.zipzoomfly.com/jsp/ProductDetail.jsp?ProductCode=10006798&prodlist=celebros

http://www.frys.com/product/5854973?site=sr:SEARCH:MAIN_RSLT_PG

the frys one is actually 20 after rebate from stores so its a 10$ difference.

Never heard of either of them, which means they are both probably quite poor. The ASUS will probably perform better because it has a 110mm fan and a bigger heatsink.

There are much better coolers on the market for the same prices, what CPU do you have and what are you trying to do?

 

[Minsc]

Just FYI for everyone not in the Windows 7 thread...

Microsoft will now allow for upgrade installs from W7RC to Windows 7. Only helpful for the near future, but still probably useful for some.

From your link:

Now here's the bigger catch: While you won't need to downgrade from Windows 7 RC to Vista or XP in order to install Windows 7 final the first, time, you will need to install one of those operating systems and activate it first if you want to do a clean install in the future. Because the Windows 7 upgrade disc will only work with an activated version of Windows. That means you'll need an activated version of Windows XP, Vista, or Windows 7 RC to start with or the disc will be useless.

I wonder if once the RC expires, you won't be able to activate it anymore, thus not be able to install your copy of windows 7? Could mean you'd be out of luck if you needed to reinstall Windows 7 and you were depending on the RC after it expires in March or whenever that was.

 

[Deadly]

Now here's the bigger catch: While you won't need to downgrade from Windows 7 RC to Vista or XP in order to install Windows 7 final the first, time, you will need to install one of those operating systems and activate it first if you want to do a clean install in the future. Because the Windows 7 upgrade disc will only work with an activated version of Windows. That means you'll need an activated version of Windows XP, Vista, or Windows 7 RC to start with or the disc will be useless.

Wait what, if I get the RC of Windows 7 now and I have an activated XP/Vista key, I can upgrade to Windows 7 freely when it comes out?

 

[letsbereasonable]

Wait what, if I get the RC of Windows 7 now and I have an activated XP/Vista key, I can upgrade to Windows 7 freely when it comes out?

No, I think this only means that they'll let you go from the RC to a purchased copy of the Windows 7 upgrade without having to do a clean install, but that you'll have to use an activated copy of XP/Vista if you need to do a clean install after that.

 

[Ashhong]

Never heard of either of them, which means they are both probably quite poor. The ASUS will probably perform better because it has a 110mm fan and a bigger heatsink.

There are much better coolers on the market for the same prices, what CPU do you have and what are you trying to do?

i have a E7400. i used to have it OC to i believe a little over 3.2ghz or so but wasnt comfortable with the temps. i want to overclock it back, but want to spend as little as possible. the 10$ cooler sounded perfect

 

[dasupremeone]

can I go from xp 32 bit to windows 7 64 bit? Or is it going to be a big bitch in october

 

[Ashhong]

can I go from xp 32 bit to windows 7 64 bit? Or is it going to be a big bitch in october

im pretty sure you will just be doing a fresh install, so it doesnt matter. if you are asking if its a good choice, i would say yes. ive been using 64bit vista and 7 with no major problems.

 

[Firestorm]

Is there some kind of trick to finding a good case for a motherboard or are all cases and port placements on motherboards fairly standard? I want the Gigabyte EP45-UD3P and am looking around at cases.

Also, for games, would I be able to get 5.1 out of the onboard digital coaxial port?

 

[TheHeretic]

Is there some kind of trick to finding a good case for a motherboard or are all cases and port placements on motherboards fairly standard? I want the Gigabyte EP45-UD3P and am looking around at cases.

Also, for games, would I be able to get 5.1 out of the onboard digital coaxial port?

All cases will house all motherboards, the only exception is HTPC cases which can require micro motherboards.

The best case out there at the moment IMO for the money is the Cooler Master 690.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811119137

I've seen it in real life and it looks really, really sharp.

i have a E7400. i used to have it OC to i believe a little over 3.2ghz or so but wasnt comfortable with the temps. i want to overclock it back, but want to spend as little as possible. the 10$ cooler sounded perfect

If you want to spend as little as possible get this:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835200035

As its a 775 socket it uses the push pin system. Quite frankly the push pin system is bullshit and i'll take a backplate every time. The Sunbeam Contact Core Freezer is a much better HSF, and its $40 - $15 MIR, but its probably beyond what you need.

 

[longdi]

i have a E7400. i used to have it OC to i believe a little over 3.2ghz or so but wasnt comfortable with the temps. i want to overclock it back, but want to spend as little as possible. the 10$ cooler sounded perfect

the asus one should be good enough, core 2 duo and 3.2ghz is very conservative heat output. confirm at least better than stock e7400 small piece of aluminum hsf.

just make sure it can fit inside your casing and your motherboard have enough clearance.

 

[Yoboman]

OK I've put my PC together, went to turn it on for the first time and everything is powering on but I'm getting no picture! What could the problem be related to?

 

[Toby]

Is there some kind of trick to finding a good case for a motherboard or are all cases and port placements on motherboards fairly standard? I want the Gigabyte EP45-UD3P and am looking around at cases.

That is an ATX motherboard. Any case that says it can house an ATX motherboard will fit that.

As said, the Cooler Master RC-690 seems to be a very good case. A lot of people like it. If you want something on the cheaper side, there is also the Antec 300. I'm a cheap SOB so I own the 300, and I don't have any complaints. Cools very well, and is also pretty quiet. If you see any cases you do like, its also pretty easy to find a review of it somewhere.

 

[Firestorm]

All cases will house all motherboards, the only exception is HTPC cases which can require micro motherboards.

The best case out there at the moment IMO for the money is the Cooler Master 690.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811119137

I've seen it in real life and it looks really, really sharp.

That is an ATX motherboard. Any case that says it can house an ATX motherboard will fit that.

As said, the Cooler Master RC-690 seems to be a very good case. A lot of people like it. If you want something on the cheaper side, there is also the Antec 300. I'm a cheap SOB so I own the 300, and I don't have any complaints. Cools very well, and is also pretty quiet. If you see any cases you do like, its also pretty easy to find a review of it somewhere.

Thank you both!

OK I've put my PC together, went to turn it on for the first time and everything is powering on but I'm getting no picture! What could the problem be related to?

Is your monitor set to the right source?

 

[Yoboman]

Thank you both!

Is your monitor set to the right source?

Yeah. I tried all sources. I'm connecting to DVI via a VGA > DVI adapter... Could that be the problem?

 

[Danj]

If I have an nVidia 650i chipset motherboard, an Intel E6600 dual core CPU, 4 gigs of DDR2-667 RAM and an 8800GT 512Mb, what's the absolute minimum amount of stuff I would need to buy to bring my PC "up to code" as it were? My PSU is already more than sufficient for potential upgrades I think, it's a 750W Corsair PSU that I ended up buying from a local computer place when my PSU blew at the beginning of the year.

 

[volt01]

If I have an nVidia 650i chipset motherboard, an Intel E6600 dual core CPU, 4 gigs of DDR2-667 RAM and an 8800GT 512Mb, what's the absolute minimum amount of stuff I would need to buy to bring my PC "up to code" as it were? My PSU is already more than sufficient for potential upgrades I think, it's a 750W Corsair PSU that I ended up buying from a local computer place when my PSU blew at the beginning of the year.

Your computer seems pretty capable of playing any game out right now, if you are having performance issues, you could upgrade your gpu, and if that doesn't help, get an aftermarket cpu cooler, and overclock you E6600. However, that rig should be just fine for gaming.

 

[TheHeretic]

If I have an nVidia 650i chipset motherboard, an Intel E6600 dual core CPU, 4 gigs of DDR2-667 RAM and an 8800GT 512Mb, what's the absolute minimum amount of stuff I would need to buy to bring my PC "up to code" as it were? My PSU is already more than sufficient for potential upgrades I think, it's a 750W Corsair PSU that I ended up buying from a local computer place when my PSU blew at the beginning of the year.

Your computer is fine for now, however the E6600 is only 2.4ghz. Buy an aftermarket cooler, install it, then overclock it. Apart from that everything is in sync.

Unfortunately your RAM is 667, which means it runs at 333. So the maximum overclock you can do for that CPU is 9x333 without touching the RAM, (which is 3ghz). Its still very worthwhile to do so however. If all of that was jibberish learn about overclocking, its easy to do!

Here are the best coolers out there:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835207004

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835233003&Tpk=xigmatek s1283

Note the Xigmatek is "easier" to install because you can pop it in without removing your motherboard.

If you don't want to overlock/install a new HSF just keep your rig for a year then replace it.

 

[Gowans]

Try running CPU-Z, then click on the Mainboard tab.

Assuming your board supports AM2+ processors, your solution will probably be whatever combination of an Athlon X2 5XXX/6XXX CPU and ATI HD 48XX will fit under your budget.

according to it, its a Mainboard Mode: ALiveNF6G-VSTA (0x44D - 0xF4668DEA)

I can't really recommending spending anything on that really. All you'd be doing is paying over the odds for parts that are already outdated. Just save up and do a proper upgrade instead. The baby is more important, that extra £100 will be needed for something you don't expect it to be needed for.

Yeah man your right, would have loved to been able to get into PC gaming thought, might make a thread to see if anyone has any spare parts as a last chance attempt to see if anyone has any old stuff not being used they can pass along.









EDIT: Made a Old & Unused PC Parts Hand-Me-Downs Recycling Thread

 

[evil solrac v3.0]

according to it, its a Mainboard Mode: ALiveNF6G-VSTA (0x44D - 0xF4668DEA)



Yeah man your right, would have loved to been able to get into PC gaming thought, might make a thread to see if anyone has any spare parts as a last chance attempt to see if anyone has any old stuff not being used they can pass along.









EDIT: Made a Old & Unused PC Parts Hand-Me-Downs Recycling Thread

I have spare parts but i am trying to make a profit, and i'm not sure they would go with your PC.

 

[Ephemeris]

All cases will house all motherboards, the only exception is HTPC cases which can require micro motherboards.

The best case out there at the moment IMO for the money is the Cooler Master 690.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811119137

I've seen it in real life and it looks really, really sharp.

Co-Sign. Built one for a fellow-gaffer recently and man, is it nice.

Front panel was a bitch though. :lol

 

[MWS Natural]

Looking at purchasing an SSD and want to put them in a raid 0.

In Raid 0:
60gig + 60gig = 120gb or 60gb?

 

[TheExodu5]

Got one of my XOC 4890s today

Nice cable management there.

 

[Wrekt]

There is a 24 inch Acer monitor on NewEgg today only for $200 w/ free shipping. The max resolution is 1920x1080 but it's still a great price if anybody is looking to upgrade to a 24 inch monitor.

http://www.newegg.com/Special/ShellShocker.aspx

 

[Gowans]

I have spare parts but i am trying to make a profit, and i'm not sure they would go with your PC.

If there going I could grab them if they could work out worth it & a bargain.