Hey Folks (newbie here)

[Freedive]

Hi folks,
My major problem is the restraint of my current video card so I'm hoping this is the correct forum to post. After reading through a multitude of posts here through the different forums I have one learned quite a bit, and two realized I need some help. After my WIN 98SE P2 400 Mhz died about six months ago I put together a new comp for myself not planning to run much more than home essential (Internet, photo editing & printing, basic word/excel/pwrpoint) programs with of course some gaming. The specs were WIN XP Pro/Athlon 2800 Pro 2.8 Ghz/512Mb DDR/Nvidia 5200FX + the assorted DVD-RW/CD-RW drives. Where I failed was that the mother board does not have an AGP slot just the PCI, hence cannot upgrade video card. Now that I have a renewed interest in combat flight sims (the new ones are terrific "LOMAC") I have decided to build another one and give this one to my kids (10yr & 13 yrs old) which will enable smooth playing of the more demanding games. Is this possible on a budget of about $1500 +/- $500? and could anyone suggest what would be a good system to put together within the budget.

Thanks,
Freedive

 

[Fern]

If take this over to general hardware section and ask somebody help put together compnents with a budget of $1500 +/- $500, you'll get a ton of responses. Be sure and tell them what you wanna use the system for.

This section is better for just vid card stuff.

 

[otispunkmeyer]

but either way i think for 1.5 grand u could build a nice rig

if u like flight sims then, make sure u have a fast cpu an decent memory becuase those type of games rely heavily on CPU power to process the physics n stuff, and for video u should have a 9800pro from ATI at least, if u gonna go this generation then ATI or Nvidia will do, if u gonna go last gen then ATI all the way

 

[CRXican]

$1,500 is a pretty good budget and should allow you to build a rather awesome machine.

 

[high]

Too lazy to link but I would get:

Video: X800 Pro
CPU: Amd Athlon 64 3200+
Mobo: Asus K8V
RAM: 2x512MB OCZ PC3200EL
Case: Antec P160 w/480W Antec
HDD: 36GB Raptor + 120GB Sata Seagate
Audio: Audigy 2 or onboard, your choice
Peripherals: MX Duo, Saitek Wireless Joystick

Something along those lines would be nice and should fall into your budget

 

[blazerazor]

"$1500 +/- $500?" , um, hell ya. Spend 1000 on the box and 500 for a flat screen samsung lcd monitor. amd 2x00 mobile ~$90, MB ~60-120, hd 80 gigs ~60, grahpics ~200-300, ram 512 x2 = ~80 x2 = ~180 Your at $700 dollars with only a cheap case & power supply to go. and maybe k/mouse combo. Plenty left over for that monitor and a few games.

Why not just REPLACE THE MOTHER BOARD!!! Biostar board without Raid but with agp and ddr can be had for like 60 bucks. And your good to go!!

 

[TheAudit]

Originally posted by: blazerazor
"$1500 +/- $500?" , um, hell ya. Spend 1000 on the box and 500 for a flat screen samsung lcd monitor. amd 2x00 mobile ~$90, MB ~60-120, hd 80 gigs ~60, grahpics ~200-300, ram 512 x2 = ~80 x2 = ~180 Your at $700 dollars with only a cheap case & power supply to go. and maybe k/mouse combo. Plenty left over for that monitor and a few games.

Why not just REPLACE THE MOTHER BOARD!!! Biostar board without Raid but with agp and ddr can be had for like 60 bucks. And your good to go!!

That's what I would do, get another mobo and a better video solution.

 

[Freedive]

Originally posted by: blazerazor
"$1500 +/- $500?" , um, hell ya. Spend 1000 on the box and 500 for a flat screen samsung lcd monitor. amd 2x00 mobile ~$90, MB ~60-120, hd 80 gigs ~60, grahpics ~200-300, ram 512 x2 = ~80 x2 = ~180 Your at $700 dollars with only a cheap case & power supply to go. and maybe k/mouse combo. Plenty left over for that monitor and a few games.

Why not just REPLACE THE MOTHER BOARD!!! Biostar board without Raid but with agp and ddr can be had for like 60 bucks. And your good to go!!

I already considered that but you really need to READ THE WHOLE MESSAGE!!! I'm giving this computer to my kids.

Thanks for your input though.

 

[SickBeast]

Originally posted by: Freedive

Originally posted by: blazerazor
Why not just REPLACE THE MOTHER BOARD!!! Biostar board without Raid but with agp and ddr can be had for like 60 bucks. And your good to go!!

I already considered that but you really need to READ THE WHOLE MESSAGE!!! I'm giving this computer to my kids.

Thanks for your input though.

Honestly, it would probably be much more economical to put a new motherboard in the A64 system you already have, buy a 6800GT or something, then build a cheap Mobile Barton computer for your children. You can get an entire Mobile Barton computer (motherboard, CPU, and RAM) for less than $300 very easily. The new motherboard would cost you $100 or so. A 6800GT is $400 if you're not willing to hunt for deals. So, that would leave you with a total price of $800, plus you would have two fully functional computers which are very fast, plus you would have a motherboard left over. Heck, you have a $1500 budget, if you want, just spend the remaining $700 on an Athlon FX53 and call it a day.

I would take my $800 suggestion and pocket the rest though. An A64 is ridiculously overkill for a 5200 videocard. It's like putting a Pinto engine in a Ferrari. On top of that, an overclocked Mobile Barton is a seriously fast computer.

 

[selfbuilt]

Where did the A64 system come from? "Athlon 2800 Pro 2.8 Ghz" is a non-sequitor ... the thoroughbred core AthlonXP 2800+ runs at 2.13Ghz (16x133), the barton 2800+ runs at 2.08Ghz (12.5x166), and the A64 2800 runs at 1.8Ghz (9x200).

I presume it's a 266Mhz FSB thoroughbred core/mobo/ram combo we are talking about here, since I can't imagine a mobo supporting anything higher that didn't have an AGP slot (unless it's a brand name Dell/HP type of custom mobo). If that's the case, the a whole new system (and passing this along to the kids) is not such a bad idea.

Definitely check with the general hardware forum, plenty of people will help you put together a system there. Since you need everything (including monitor, etc), I'd recommend a minimum of a 9800Pro or GeF 6800 NU as your graphics solution (X800 pro or 6800 GT if you can swing it, after the other parts).