Low on Free Space!

Ok.. well i'm looking at this page currently ($20-$50)..

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produ...10320058 4025&Submit=ENE&Nty=1&SubCategory=58

this one caught my eye: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16817174023
Dual 12v rails, room for upgrade (short of a SLI vid card upgrade..) and is pretty sweet.. $36.50

But like i said before, if you can find out if your video card can live with having only 18Amps on the 12v rails (or not play too much intense games ) then any of the list will work with you, just read the reviews..

Sweet!

Well, I basically only play games, watch anime, and do homework on this computer. XD I don't know about that 18A thing. Isn't it better to be safe than sorry? >_< Or is there some way I can find out?

Thanks.

Well the 20Amps (24ish for overclocked GPUs) is usualy the rule for any sort of gaming rig (since a PSU cannot up the Amps past whatever it can give) since it would be using a pretty reasonable video card that needs the juice.. and the specs are usualy written on the box where you get your card..

But i think if you don't stress out your PC with some intense games for too prolonged periods (like play HL2 or Far Cry etc with high details etc, maybe low-medium ok..) then the 18amps should be sufficiant, seeing that this pc is probably going to be more for general use than a gamer pc..

I say go for whatever PSU you like (thats well within your budget and your specs) because well, it'll still run, its just that you'd probably find the middleground where graphical 'wowness' balances itself with the juice available

Thanks, I'll probably purchase the one you recommended me. On the weekends, I'll be playing Counter Strike for HOURS, literally up to 3:00 a.m., but I guess if I just tone down the graphics, it should be fine?

thats a theory.....

either way the Hipro one (if you're getting that one) has +12V/20Amps already so i dont see any problems...

I'm on the fence with these:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16817174023

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16817182030

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16817182042

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16817182043

1) Is Dual +12V really that important?
2) What do the numbers/symbols in the Output column mean?
3) Which Main Connectors should I be looking for? Dell Dimension 4550.
4) I've spent like ~5 hours sorting through these (when I don't even know what half of the information given means... wtf) and I'm concerned that whatever PSU I buy might not fit in my computer. What then?

Thanks.

BUMP.

Running out of time right now, I'm really at the edge...

Sorry mate was a bit busy for a bit..

1) Not really.. its just there if you need the extra power line..
2) Example the Hipro PSU:

First numbers are the voltages its refering to (eg, 3Volts, 5Volts, 12Volts etc); @ = at; how many amps (current) is supplied eg: 20Amps, 18Amps etc..
3&4) I think you'll just need the standard 20-pin + 4 pin (for the pentium 4's power). From what i've looked around it does seem to be a standard ATX PSU.. didn't you get that temporary replacement one and tried that yet? those are standard ATX units..

This may help as reference for you: http://support.dell.com/support/edocs/systems/dim4550/replace.htm#1114028

Yeah, I got the temporary one... my computer turned on, but the screen wouldn't show, the mouse light didn't turn on (which means it doesn't work), the keyboard doesn't work, etcetera. I think when my PSU fried, my motherboard went with it. And yes, I tried switching mouses, keyboards, monitors, etcetera.

So I guess I'm screwed? Either buy a new motherboard or a new computer (I hope it's not the motherboard that's damaged, but if I keep buying new equipment, I'd probably get a better deal just buying a new computer)... All because of a simple hard drive... what a shame.

Before you do that, go back to barebones system (mobo/cpu, power, onboard video/audio, winxp hdd, 1 stick of ram) and boot that up. If its sucessfull then add peices on one by one.. that should tell you what is not working..

If you are considering a new PC, try and find out what you can slavage from this current one eg: DVD drive, your new HDD etc.. it will at least drop down the price needed to buy more parts.. (i reckon you'd be able to salvage everything but the motherboard, if thats the one blown up.. then again thats pretty much fixing your pc lol... ) Go build your own rig instead of buying an OEM/prebuilt one.. its much cheaper and you'll learn a great deal more than just reading up on it..

I guess it is a shame that you had a bad experience just installing a HDD.. i've installed many in different pcs without much of trouble but i guess everyone's pc is different..

One way to find the specs on YOUR pc as it was shipped from Dell is to use the "Service Tag Number" located on the back of the machine. Go here: Troubleshooting & FAQs; then click the "What is a Service Tag?" and "Find My Service Tag" links to get info on how to find yours. That should give you the needed specs on your computer to help answer some of your own questions. I know the service tag has helped me troubleshoot a number of systems for folks.