Need Help with cheap build

[saberceltan]

I have a Dell E521 with an Athlon XP 4200+ and a geforce 8600 GT, and I want to build a new computer, but use some of the parts from my dell. Is this possible?
I know I will need a new motherboard, case, and probably RAM, as well as probably a new PSU, but is it practical to move my processor, dvd burner and hard drive to a new machine?

I was looking at this motherboard: http://www.newegg.com/Product/...x?Item=N82E16813128014

and this case:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/...x?Item=N82E16811144151

This would be my first large scale build where I actually have something to lose.

Thanks

 

[stevf]

what is your budget and use for machine? - that will help narrow down what you should do - but these days about the only thing I would reuse is the burner and maybe the HD - but with 500G hd's going for $100, the old one probably isnt worth moving. I would not bother re-using that cpu - you may want to keep the old one as a backup machine or file server

 

[saberceltan]

Well, I was going for an extremely budget gaming machine that I could upgrade significantly in the future, which is why I was looking at an sli board and a nice big case.

 

[stevf]

you certainly can use the cpu, burner, and hard drive, but without knowing a budget hard and the hd size it is hard to recommend what might be best. Also is your vid card PCI-e? Currently and for the forseeable future Core2Duo is the cpu to choose, though the high end amd dual cores arent that far behind.

My suggestion is look at the low end core2duo chips and a mobo that supports that but without a money amount cant make any good suggestions

 

[Denithor]

I'm going to assume you made a typo there and you have an Athlon X2 4200+ right?

Is there anything wrong with your Dell? Does it still play your current games or are you getting slowed down? I would try a fresh Windows install to clean out the crap before talking about hardware.

If you have an X2 4200+ you could upgrade the 8600GT to a Radeon 3850 ($165) for a major boost in gaming performance.

I don't recommend SLI, especially for a "future" upgrade to dual cards. Usually by the time you are ready for that second card there is a new single card out with better performance than you will ever see from two older cards. Keep in mind if you decide to go SLI you are also going to need a good quality high end powersupply (can easily cost another $75-100 or more) just to run the system.

 

[saberceltan]

Thanks for the advice, and I will try a fresh install of windows soon . For Steve, I would like to have my price range as low as possible, below 300 if possible, which is why i wanted to make use of old parts. The main reason I want to upgrade is that it would be nice to have a case with a little more space, as I am worried that with the small, proprietary BTX form factor and with all the pci and pci-e slots filled, my case is not cool enough to support what I have put in it. However, to upgrade to a new case also means a new motherboard, which raises my question, am I better off just starting from scratch?

 

[stevf]

if you do have a athlon 4200+ and not a x2 4200+ then you really need to just start new - if you have the x24200+ then reusing the cpu is an option

here is what i would do as a base - reusing hd & burner for now and vid card assuming it is pci-e

mobo, cpu, mem
http://www.newegg.com/Product/...x?Item=N82E16813128050
http://www.newegg.com/Product/...x?Item=N82E16819116037
http://www.newegg.com/Product/...x?Item=N82E16820231098

this case or one of its many variations - very good for the price
http://www.newegg.com/Product/...x?Item=N82E16811119104
ps - this is often on sale but not today
http://www.newegg.com/Product/...x?Item=N82E16817371006

none of this seems on sale atm - but that comes to about 350

 

[saberceltan]

Yeah, that was a typo, i have the x2 4200+, which is why im considering reusing it.
However, the options that you linked also look nice, and I will probably use them if I dont end up using my old cpu

 

[happy medium]

Originally posted by: saberceltan
Well, I was going for an extremely budget gaming machine that I could upgrade significantly in the future, which is why I was looking at an sli board and a nice big case.

Reuse your cpu and ram. This board has Phenom quadcore support out of the box. No sli ,but you won't need sli. New graphic cards comming will use duel chips on 1 card for the high end.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/...x?Item=N82E16813131234

powersupply? Good name brand 550 watt with a 40 amp 12v+ rail whttp://www.newegg.com/Product/...x?Item=N82E16817139001

This coolmaster case is a great deal!
http://www.newegg.com/Product/...x?Item=N82E16817139001

 

[TemjinGold]

Have you considered selling your whole machine (ebay/craigslist/here) and using the money plus what you have to just build from scratch?

You definitely do NOT want to buy an SLI board as they cost more than non-SLI boards and it's a feature that won't help you.

 

[saberceltan]

I like that board, but it doesn't have great reviews. What do you think of this board?
http://www.newegg.com/Product/...x?Item=N82E16813130065
with this power supply?
http://www.newegg.com/Product/...x?Item=N82E16817182017

 

[happy medium]

Originally posted by: saberceltan
I like that board, but it doesn't have great reviews. What do you think of this board?
http://www.newegg.com/Product/...x?Item=N82E16813130065
with this power supply?
http://www.newegg.com/Product/...x?Item=N82E16817182017

The boards ok but you want to be able to upgrade your cpu to a Phenom quad in the future.

The power supply will cut it for now but how about those quad cpu's and high powered gpu'S down the road?