hello..im new and i mostly read here on the forum but i think im ready for a pc upgrade ..this is what i have now.. atx case with 450wat powder supple, a socket 478 motherboard, 3gig hyperthread cpu. 1025gig ram and a 128meg radeon 9200 ati video card..im kinda a ebay freak so i thought i would buy a motherboard and cpu, new ram and a new video card.. i like to play games and surf the web so im looking to build somthing fast . could you guys help me get started with a combo from ebay that will get me running faster...thanks
Building a fast machine from ebay parts
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tastegw
Posts: 185 +0
hddave1 said:
i just went thru something very simular to what you did,
same socket mobo, only 2.4ghz cpu and a slightly better gpu.
so i wanted an upgrade, well, what i found out is, when it comes to computer parts, newegg > ebay. i purchased a mobo on ebay, it didnt work, cant ship it back for a refund, so i was forced to purchase another (from newegg this time)
newegg is one of the cheapest well known pc suppliers out there, i think i spent about 700 bucks with them in the last month.
tigerdirect is also decent if you live on the east coast or near the east.
but with ebay, you just dont get the customer support like you would at newegg or tigerdirect.
i learned this the hard way, and i too like to use ebay, but not for pc parts anymore.
edit: also check frys.com every now and then, they run some killer "3" day sales. thats where i got my hard drive, it was half off.
300GB sata mator HD for less than $60, nobody could beat that deal the week i purchased it.
well..ok...with that being said, what would be a good upgrade to what i have as far cpu, motherbroard and ram.. i already have a ati case and a 160gig hd with a nice dvd rw rom.. i can look at those sights you mentioned but to tell you the truth i wouldnt know much about what was better than what i have already so could you send me some info on a motherbroad cpu ram combo that would be a good start to a nice gaming and web surfing machine...thanks for all your advice...
tastegw
Posts: 185 +0
hddave1 said:
with all that said, you may need to decide to go intel or amd.
its like ford or chevy, everyone has an opinion just about.
ppl say intel may be better, but amd has more bang for the buck.
so after choosing your cpu, you then can choose your motherboard.
this can be cheap or really expensive, depending on what you need.
since you want to keep your case/hard drive and cd rom driver, your not going to need a board that supports "SATA" , so that should save you a few bucks.
you can get a decent mobo that should fit your needs for under 75 bucks.
just make sure that mobo has a pci-express slot. and then grab a 8500 or better nvidia card or equivalant from ati. these can cost some money $80 and up.
ill go to newegg and see what i can come up with for a AMD based system. and then leave a reply here for you.
tastegw
Posts: 185 +0
cpu http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819103775
motherboard http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813138077
video card http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814127297
memory http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231097 get 2 sticks or 4 sticks of that (its cheap)
you may be able to use your current power supply also, i see no reason why you wouldnt.
so you have your hard drive, reformat that, you have your dvd-rom and your case. i think i posted everything else you need. that is less than $200 bucks to upgrade to a dual core system . altho, i must say, if you want more power than that 2.1ghz cpu, you can jump up to the 2.8ghz for only $50 more. after that, the bang for the buck really slows down. the 3.2 is $70 bucks more than the 2.8. that makes it 120 more than the 2.1 i posted a link to.
motherboard http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813138077
video card http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814127297
memory http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231097 get 2 sticks or 4 sticks of that (its cheap)
you may be able to use your current power supply also, i see no reason why you wouldnt.
so you have your hard drive, reformat that, you have your dvd-rom and your case. i think i posted everything else you need. that is less than $200 bucks to upgrade to a dual core system . altho, i must say, if you want more power than that 2.1ghz cpu, you can jump up to the 2.8ghz for only $50 more. after that, the bang for the buck really slows down. the 3.2 is $70 bucks more than the 2.8. that makes it 120 more than the 2.1 i posted a link to.
ok...now im understandind a little...well after looking at the links you sent im thinking i want to go to a 3.2cpu intel and 1024megs of ram ,that video card will be fine ,now will i be able to use that mother with this combo or will i need to look at a different broard..thank you very much for your advice and your time
tastegw
Posts: 185 +0
hddave1 said:
socket 478 motherboards are old and crusty, you would really like a am2(if amd chip) board or 775 board(if intel chip). those are more mainstream.
and the memory, just make sure its compatible with whatever board you choose.
most of the newer am2 / 775 boards can use pc6400 (ddr2 800mhz) witch is the most mainstream memory it seems at the moment, not the best but very good memory. also, its cheap enough that 2 gigs would not break you and 2 gigs is alot better than one if your going to run vista or some hard core programs.
make sure your motherboard has a pci-express slot, lots of newer mobo's come with 2 of these, but one should do you fine. that video card cannot be put into a agp slot witch alot of socket 478 mobos have, mine did.
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