$350 Gaming/General Use PC

[HoosPaul]

Hey all,

I've been lurking for years, and decided I'd finally register to ask advice on a build for my sister. Her computer just died and she is looking for something inexpensive to replace her AMD 3000+ museum piece. Her requirements:

1) Between $350 and $400
2) Will be able to perform well in older games such as WoW, and future WoW expansions.
3) Will be capable of some light video editing.
4) Stability
5) Last for at least two years

After scouring the guides on here, and some various other reviews, here is the system that I'm contemplating. She already has a hard drive (SATA, can't remember much else), optical drive (NEC DVD burner of some sort), Win XP, and monitor.

Power Supply: Antec True430 (Taking this from her present computer)
Video Card: MSI GeForce 9600GT = $179
Memory: Crucial Ballistix 2GB (2x1GB) DDR2-800 PC2-6400 = $35 after rebate
Motherboard: ABIT IP35-E LGA 775 Intel P35 ATX Intel Motherboard = $60 after rebate
Processor: Intel Core 2 Duo E4500 - $127 - $50 (Amazon Gift Certificate) = $77
Case: COOLER MASTER Centurion 5 CAC-T05 $50

General comments are appreciated, but I do have a few specific questions. In particular,

1) Is the Antec PSU up to this new rig? I say it should be fine.
2) How will her performance be on gaming? I think it should handle WoW, the King Litch expansion, and possibly HL2 with ease.
3) Are there any stability issues between these components I ought to be aware of?
4) If I just hook the harddrive up to the new rig, will XP be OK or will I need to reformat and do a fresh install?

Obligatory Answers to Questions:


3. What country YOU will be buying YOUR parts from. United States

4. IF YOU have a brand preference. No fanboyism here.

5. If YOU intend on using any of YOUR current parts, and if so, what those parts are.
Unfortunately her computer is in California, and I'm in Virginia. I can't remember the specific components besides the PSU.
6. IF YOU have searched and/or read similar threads.
I've read Anandtech guides.
7. IF YOU plan on overclocking or run the system at default speeds.
Not planning on overclocking.


Thank ya'll for your time in replying, and I look forward to hearing your responses.

-Paul

 

[IEC]

Power supply is good, if it's the True430 (has 28A on +12V if I'm not mistaken). I have the True430 and it's running a overclocked E2140 on a IP35-E, X850XT, 2 HDDs, optical, several fans, couple of other cards, etc.

9600GT is a great mid-range card. If I'm not mistaken you should be able to get them for ~$170 or less now.
Can never go wrong with Crucial memory
Have the same mobo, it's a great one.
E4500 is a good balance of price and performance.
I like the mid-range Cooler Master cases. I have one myself.

 

[MarcVenice]

The build looks good, but I'd get this videocard: http://www.newegg.com/Product/...x?Item=N82E16814127329 it's considerably faster for just 7$ more.

 

[antas]

Looks good Yes, I think it will play WoW and even HL2. I don't play those games to be honest, but I'm playing NWN2 and Crysis (which is should be more or less at the same range of requirements) in a HD3870 (which is according to several review is about at the same performance with 9600GT).

ABiT Yeah, I love it. I'm using ABiT as well, and have nothing to complain

 

[Roguestar]

It'll fly through HL2, to be sure.

You'll need to at least reactivate XP, but unless you can get to the hard drive to remove all the old drivers before you put it together and add the new ones, you're best formatting it for a clean install.

 

[HoosPaul]

Thanks for the suggestion on the video card, I was looking at the 8800GT's but couldn't find one in my price range. This fits the bill. THe PSU should still be able to handle this card?

 

[jterrell]

Originally posted by: HoosPaul
Thanks for the suggestion on the video card, I was looking at the 8800GT's but couldn't find one in my price range. This fits the bill. THe PSU should still be able to handle this card?

Unless you plan on overclocking that psu is perfectly fine.
I doubt she'll pull even 300 watts.

WoW is more memory intensive than graphically so at this point.

 

[richwenzel]

i play WoW....

I would say that memory and cpu are more important than graphics card...

in the hot deals section you can get the graphics card that marcvenice linked for like 178 shipped...there is also a link for a $152 9600gt...either would do WoW justice now and in the forseeable future....

how did your sister's pc die? could affect some decision making in terms of that psu..

rich

 

[HoosPaul]

She would get home from work and the PC's screen would just go black and the computer was unresponsive. The problem became worse to the point that after 10 minutes the computer will completely die. I'm convinced it's a HW problem -- safe mode doesn't do anything and she can't boot a live Ubuntu disk I sent her without the computer crashing. You may think it's a heat issue, but this problem occurs even if the computer has been off for hours. After reading some threads on here, I thought maybe it was her Radeon 9800 Pro, so I had her play some music to see if the video is just going down or what. WHen the screen dies the sound just loops the same second or so over and over again.

Some threads I've referenced:
http://forums.anandtech.com/me...keyword1=black+screen+
http://forums.anandtech.com/me...keyword1=black+screen+
http://forums.anandtech.com/me...keyword1=black+screen+

She doesn't have any spare parts to test with, and I'm literally across the country (She's in California, I'm in Virginia). While I can't be certain it's a major hardware problem, on a three year old computer with the symptoms described, I have to believe that fixing the problem will involve buying new hardware. And since her mobo is using AGP that means a new video card, and ram, and ... well this is why I suggested getting this setup. She asked if she should take it to a computer repair guy (who wants $70 an hour), and I told her since her computer isn't worth more than $200, I'd rather dump that money straight into hardware. While I realize this current setup should be more than enough for her, she said she wanted it to be somewhat futureproof, and because she doesn't play Crysis or anything, I think it will be -- for her, maybe not Crysis players. Plus, I feel that the she is getting much more for an extra $150 dollars here - the E4500 over the E2140, and the 8800GT over some $100 graphics card.

 

[Zap]

Originally posted by: HoosPaul
Power Supply: Antec True430 (Taking this from her present computer)
1) Is the Antec PSU up to this new rig? I say it should be fine.
2) How will her performance be on gaming? I think it should handle WoW, the King Litch expansion, and possibly HL2 with ease.

I think performance will be great with the specified CPU, RAM and video card.

The PSU may or may not be up to the task. There has been three different True Power 430W units.

TruePower 430W with dual fans (one 80mm, one 92mm) with 26A on a single +12v rail plus a bonus possibility of being infested with Fuhjyyu capacitors. If this is what she has, then maybe it is the root cause of the problems? I believe this is made by CWT.

TruePower II 430W with a single 120mm fan and around 30A combined over two +12v rails plus a bonus possibility of being infested with Fuhjyyu capacitors. If this is what she has, then maybe it is the root cause of the problems? I believe this is made by CWT.

TruePower Trio 430W with a single 120mm fan and around 32A combined over three +12v rails (probably just a single rail design). This Seasonic made unit should be pretty good.

If she has an original TruePower then I'd suggest replacing it because of possible aging capacitors plus older design with lower +12v power. If she has a "II" unit, can go either way. It will have enough +12v power and though the capacitors are suspect it may not be old enough to matter... yet. If she has a Trio, then all is well.

If she needs a case too, then consider getting an Antec case that includes an EarthWatts power supply. Even the lowest end EarthWatts 380W puts out more +12v power (27A) than the original TruePower 430W (26A). Just looking on Newegg (might find better deals elsewhere):

NSK4480 with EarthWatts 380W $95 shipped
NSK6580 with EarthWatts 430W $110 shipped
Sonata Designer with Earthwatts 500W $109 shipped after $40 rebate
Sonata III with EarthWatts 500W $130 shipped

Alternately get the Cooler Master case you specified and a lower wattage Corsair, such as the 450W or 550W models. I've seen those around $60 after rebate.

 

[angry hampster]

You could get an 8800GS and save yourself $40. It performs just a hair slower than the 9600GT, but is unbeatable for the buck.

 

[HoosPaul]

Thanks for the information Zap...she does have the TruePower 430W. However, she gave me these numbers off the side of the PSU, looks like it can only source 20A on the 12V rail, not the 26A as the Antec website suggests. Great post Zap, and thanks for the suggestion on the vid card angry hampster!

I will actually have the PSU either today or tomorrow, and I'm a Junior EE in college. Can you give me a link on how to test this? I have access to a large range of tools (oscilliscopes, digital scopes, etc...basically anything a university electroncis lab would have) so if there is a way to verify whether or not the PSU is good, I'd love to know. I've read some information on badcaps forums and it seems like I can just open up the case and inspect the caps....time to get my hands dirty!

 

[Zap]

Originally posted by: HoosPaul
Thanks for the information Zap...she does have the TruePower 430W. However, she gave me these numbers off the side of the PSU, looks like it can only source 20A on the 12V rail, not the 26A as the Antec website suggests.

Sounds like an early revision of it. IIRC Antec upped the specs without changing the model designation.

As for testing, you need to put the PSU under a synthetic load and measure the output using an oscilliscope and voltmeter to see how well it holds a steady DC current of the proper voltage. Or, yeah, you can just open it up and see if there's capacitor juice peeking out.

 

[HoosPaul]

Synthetic load, hmm, I've got some high-wattage ceramic resistors that are a few ohms, I think I'll make a space heater while I test this.

 

[HoosPaul]

Wow, Anandtech members are awesome. It was definately my PSU, wish I could post some pics, but can't find my digital camera. Hooked it up to an oscilliscope and the +5V rail was at 3.7V under a 3A load. In addition, the signal had about 0.5V AC on it. Clearly not good. The signal was at 60kHz, which I bet is the frequency for the switching power supply, but oddly the +12V rail was fine - so I bet it's the output caps on the +5V and +3.3V lines not filtering out the 60KHz signal.

Any recommendations for a quality power supply with roughly the same wattage?

 

[Zap]

:thumbsup: for you, :thumbsdown: for the failing PSU.

 

[Roguestar]

Originally posted by: HoosPaul
Wow, Anandtech members are awesome. It was definately my PSU, wish I could post some pics, but can't find my digital camera. Hooked it up to an oscilliscope and the +5V rail was at 3.7V under a 3A load. In addition, the signal had about 0.5V AC on it. Clearly not good. The signal was at 60kHz, which I bet is the frequency for the switching power supply, but oddly the +12V rail was fine - so I bet it's the output caps on the +5V and +3.3V lines not filtering out the 60KHz signal.

Any recommendations for a quality power supply with roughly the same wattage?

Antec Earthwatts 430W PSU $50
http://www.newegg.com/Product/...x?Item=N82E16817371006

 

[richwenzel]

this link on the PSU boards, is interesting, I would say for $5 more its a nice upgrade to the antec

http://forums.anandtech.com/me...=2162708&enterthread=y

 

[HoosPaul]

Ah, perfect. I was just going to post a link to the 450W version of the Corsair. I don't think I'll be buying the Antec because of this bad exerpience...not to mention I'm still haggling with customer service to take their defective product back. But less money for more wattage is a win. Thanks!