Hardware Salvage?

[jcwest]

I've been using a second-hand PC from a friend for about a year now so I'm not sure of the specifics of the hardware or age. It recently pretty much gave up the ghost (a couple of capacitors on the mobo are shot), so I'm looking to build a new system. I've never built a PC before (so I'll have more posts on build suggestions upcoming) and I'm on a tight budget so I'm wondering if I can salvage any of the hardware, namely the memory and the video card.

Since it's second hand I'm not entirely sure of the specifics of the hardware. It's a Dell and I think it's about 2-3 years old. When it was new, I think it was a pretty decent system. I think it has 2GB (2x1GB) of RAM but I don't know the speed. The video card is an nVidia card (I've looked at the system profile in WinXP and I think it was something like a 270 or 275 but don't remember about GT or GTX or anything, maybe 512GB). I don't have any of the original packaging, so is there any way to tell the hardware specs from the hardware itself? The only thing I do that requires any sort of muscle is WoW, and this machine ran it pretty well. I'd appreciate suggestions on whether or not it's worth keeping either of these things (or if it's even possible). Sorry for the length.

Thanks.

 

[Billb2]

Fill this out and post it.

 

[jcwest]

1. What YOUR PC will be used for. That means what types of tasks you'll be performing.

World of Warcraft.

2. What YOUR budget is. A price range is acceptable as long as it's not more than a 20% spread

$400-$450

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

US

4. IF YOU have a brand preference. That means, are you an Intel-Fanboy, AMD-Fanboy, ATI-Fanboy, nVidia-Fanboy, Seagate-Fanboy, WD-Fanboy, etc.

None.

5. If YOU intend on using any of YOUR current parts, and if so, what those parts are.

Depends. Please see original post.

6. IF YOU have searched and/or read similar threads.

I tried but couldn't find anything.

7. IF YOU plan on overclocking or run the system at default speeds.

Probably not.

8. What resolution YOU plan on gaming with.

I have a 20" monitor with a resolution of I think 1440x900.

9. WHEN do you plan to build it?

at some point in the near future.

 

[Malak]

If all you are doing is playing WoW, just browse newegg for all the cheap stuff. You might even be able to get away with onboard video, like the AMD 4200 chipset, and skip the video card. Probably get away with under $400 for a new system.

 

[ScrapSilicon]

Originally posted by: jcwest
I've been using a second-hand PC from a friend for about a year now so I'm not sure of the specifics of the hardware or age. It's a Dell and I think it's about 2-3 years old. When it was new, I think it was a pretty decent system. I think it has 2GB (2x1GB) of RAM but I don't know the speed.

Thanks.

Dells usually have a service tag which can be looked up here..