Upgrade Recommendations?

[groove10]

OK guys... It's been a loooooong time since I upgraded my computer, in fact since around 2001 or so. I'm running an OC'd Throughbred 1.0 GHz to around 1.2 with some sped up PC133 RAM (768 MB). It simply not cutting it any more and I feel the need to upgrade. I like My sound card and PATA hard disks, so those don't need to go, but I think everything else does need to get a refresh.

I haven't been paying attention to the CPU details recently, but quickly reading up there's been a LOT of changes since the Athlon Thoroughbred days.

What is the best "value" chip for me? I'm not a gamer, but I do a significant amount of CAD work. I'm looking to spend under $300 new or $250 used for the whole shebang (CPU + RAM + Video Card + Mobo).

Any thoughts? It looks like a used AMD Clawhammer or something in that era would be a good bet. I'm sure some people in the FS/T Forums are selling these, no?

Also, what sort of video card would be good for a CAD guy like me? I know that Matrox (used to) make good cards for this, but they were pricey. NVidia was a decent second with ATI 3rd for CAD apps. Is it still the same? Thanks guys!

 

[Cinna696]

300$ is not going to get you much. if anything you'll have to settle for onboard video for under 300$ and even then it's dificult to say the least

its almost impossible to get anything for 300

Your absolute best bet is going with socket 754 and a Sempron 2800 75.50@newegg
an asus k8n vm with nvidias onboard video (6100 i think) 65@newegg
muskin 1gb (2x512) 74@newegg

thats already 213$ no case psu keyboard mouse os

your better off finding a prebuilt computer (used maybe) for 300$ as what your asking is not happening

 

[groove10]

I've got a good Antec Case, PSU, keyboard, LAN, Sound Card, HDs, and even a firewire card. I just need to upgrade the main components.

I don't like onboard solutions at all. I can't get a CPU + Mobo + RAM for $250 nowadays? Damn... I figured there's be some backstock or used I could buy up on the cheap.

Thanks though.

 

[Cinna696]

check the for sale thread, might be s1 there selling some stuff, but i did list a cpu + mobo + ram for under 250

 

[imported_Kiwi]

If you don't have to get right up to current tech, there is a lot of two year old stock being sold at greatly reduced prices. If you bought a 1 GHz AMD in 2001, that wasn't top of the line at the time, was it? I think I bought an XP 1700 then, and a T-Bird 1.33 the year before, even. Wait a minute, you couldn't buy a Thoroughbred then; it was still a Palomino when I got my XP 1700.

Anyway, you can buy an NF3 250 MB and a Sempron together from a variety of online shops for maybe $175 max.


😎

 

[0roo0roo]

yup u are going to have to spend a bit. you waited too long. if you had upgraded a year or two ago you could have gotten away with using stuff like your old memory in a newer faster system. like those 60 dollars xp2000+ and m/b combos that were on every other week for the last two years. now you have to buy memory and other stuff too. there are still frys combos for under 100 that are hard to beat though. add ram and its still way under 200 probably

 

[BOLt]

Originally posted by: Cinna696
300$ is not going to get you much. if anything you'll have to settle for onboard video for under 300$ and even then it's dificult to say the least

its almost impossible to get anything for 300

Your absolute best bet is going with socket 754 and a Sempron 2800 75.50@newegg
an asus k8n vm with nvidias onboard video (6100 i think) 65@newegg
muskin 1gb (2x512) 74@newegg

thats already 213$ no case psu keyboard mouse os

your better off finding a prebuilt computer (used maybe) for 300$ as what your asking is not happening

Well, we'll see what we can do. I am going to be frank and say that my first impression was "no", but I thought about it some more and I'm going to disagree with you, Cinna696. My proposition for a $300 upgrade for groove10's CPU, RAM, and motherboard is below.

Originally posted by: groove10
I've got a good Antec Case, PSU, keyboard, LAN, Sound Card, HDs, and even a firewire card. I just need to upgrade the main components.

I don't like onboard solutions at all. I can't get a CPU + Mobo + RAM for $250 nowadays? Damn... I figured there's be some backstock or used I could buy up on the cheap.

Thanks though.

It's not impossible, but I really hestitate to suggest buying new parts until you can afford a "real" upgrade. My minimum suggested components would be as follows (remember A64 OC'ing means you don't have to spend a lot to get a great processor as long as you at least buy the low end A64.

Now, to completely contradict myself:
Get the AMD Athlon 64 3000+ (Venice) socket 939 processor. Try for E3 stepping (look on the FS/FT forums). Get the PIB because stock cooling is fine, even for a massive OC upwards of 3.0GHz!
Get 1GB of Corsair ValueSelect PC3200 DDR RAM. Get the 512MB x 2 dual-channel kit.
Get the EPoX EP-9NPA+Ultra nF4 Motherboard. Overclocks as much as you can handle and has a great feature set.

Wow, Athlon 64s rock. This system, when OC'd to even a modest 2.4GHz (should be able to do this on stock voltages for the E3 stepping or with a .05V increase for a 3000+ E6 Venice) wll outperform the A64 4000+ at stock speeds! And for a hell of a lot less cost!

Click the "My FS/FT Thread" link in my thread if you want to buy them from me. By the way, these are the components that I would suggest for anyone interested in buying a new system on a limited budget. I'm not trying to con you into buying my components -- I'm just offering a venue for getting them cheaper-than-new while still in excellent condition.

Hope this helps!