Upgrade time, need advice.

goggles

Member
Oct 9, 1999
44
0
0
Time for an upgrade and I need a little help choosing components to get.
I don't plan on overclocking and I want the most bag for my buck (who doesn't). What do i use my puter for, Surfing, making web pages, graphics and games. A little bit of everything.

The first system I had thought about getting was the Asus A7N8X deluxe board, AMD 2400+, PC 2700 DDR. However after checking the price of P4 2.4, it seams I can get more 'power' from a P4 than the 2400 for close to the same price. I don't know which mobo and memory to use with the p4 though.

So, my question to you guy's is which is the better system to get and which components? Price is an object so lets keep it on a little bit of a budget.

Additional info:
current config,
-Gforce 3 Ti 200 deluxe
-new Maxtor 60gb ATA 133
-Diamond MX300
-Cambridge soundworks 2500
-300W power supply.
-Athlon 650
-Asus K7

Thanks.

 

ericboo

Golden Member
Feb 2, 2001
1,137
0
0
If you really want to save money, get an XP2000, a good heatsink and overclock it. It is much cheaper than an XP2400. Then head over to fatwall@t and read the thread about PNY packaging PC2700 in PC2100 packages. They list all the info you need to grab the right sticks. BB, Staples, and other stores are selling it. I grabbed 256MB from Staples yesterday, pricematched to BB, for $40 after rebate.

So far, you have only shelled out about $150. Grab a nice motherboard for $100 or so, and you are set.

Overclockers has plenty of info on what you can get out of an XP2000 and a decent heatsink.
 

goggles

Member
Oct 9, 1999
44
0
0
Thanks for the info Eric, but like I said I don't want to overclock or all that other stuff. I just want a good reliable system to throw together and is going to be fast. I don't spend lots of time on it and I want it to last me a while.

Thanks again.
 

human2k

Diamond Member
Jun 21, 2001
3,563
0
0
two items that definitely need to be on your list:

tbred B xp1700 or 2100, $49/$95 on newegg.com

saphire radeon 9500np 128mb $159, softmod this card to 9700.
 

goggles

Member
Oct 9, 1999
44
0
0
When I started looking for the upgrade I had thought about the 2000+. Only thing is, that wasn't a big enough jump from what I have, less than a gig faster. So I thought about going 2gig+ instead, and the P4's are cheaper than the XP's in the mid 2gig range.
I really liked the specs of the A7N8X with the 6 channel sound, but I don't know what is a good board for the P4's?
What do you ppl recommend?

I don't need to upgrade the Vidcard, it does everything I need it to do. Just the CPU, Mobo, Memory get replaced.....oh and probably the ps.

Thanks.

 

KidChaos

Senior member
Jan 21, 2003
384
0
0
I definetly would upgrade to an nforce2 chipset motherboard and AMD Athlon XP. Highly probable you'll have to buy a case and/or power supply though. So, that adds another $50-$90 to the purchase. Graphics card is sufficient so no need to spend more money there if you're on a budget. I'd get this combo:

Abit NF7-S motherboard $126

AMD XP 2100+ Thoroughbred processor (OEM) $95

Thermalright SLK-800 heatsink $38

Panasonic Panaflo Axial Fan (Model: FBA08A12H) $8

*TWO* Samsung Original DDR333 PC-2700 256MB CAS2.5 memory modules $61x2 = $122

ANTEC PERFORMANCE II WORKSTATION TOWER ATX Model# SX835II (BEIGE) w/350W SMART POWER ATX12V P4 COMPLIANT POWER SUPPLY - RETAIL $86

Total: $475 (w/o shipping)

*All purchasable at newEgg

This will give you an incredible performance boost from your current system. And it has great upgrade paths. Later on, if you want to add a XP 3000+ Barton Processor, you can do that. The SLK-800 is well equipped to handle any socket A processor you throw at it, current and future. Can also add a graphics card, whether that be ATi, nVidia or other, it'll handle it. Serial ATA hard drive too if ya wish. No need for a sound card as the NF7-S contains the impressive nvidia audio.

Could ya provide me with more info on your current graphics card (i.e. AGP version and manufacturer).
 

goggles

Member
Oct 9, 1999
44
0
0
Vid card:
Asus Gforce 3 Ti 200
64 mb DDR
AGP 4X

What about the P4B533 board? Seems to have not bad specs including 6 channel sound for $115 (newegg)
or the P4PE/l for $119 (newegg)???

Good price on the ram, I was looking at atleast 512mb.
 

KidChaos

Senior member
Jan 21, 2003
384
0
0
Vid card:
Asus Gforce 3 Ti 200
64 mb DDR
AGP 4X
OK, just checking for compatability. Everything's OK. It will work in an nforce2 board.

What about the P4B533 board? Seems to have not bad specs including 6 channel sound for $115 (newegg)
or the P4PE/l for $119 (newegg)???
This should definetly be an AMD system. The onboard audio of any pentium4 board does not come near the audio provided by the Abit NF7-S. It's better than a creative audigy sound card. Plus ya get firewire, SATA, etc.
 

ericboo

Golden Member
Feb 2, 2001
1,137
0
0
XP2000 or XP2100 are really good deals right now. Great bang for the buck. The Nforce2 board with that should be a nice setup.

Doubt you would see a world of difference between an XP2100 and XP2400, and the price is definitely cheaper.

Decide your budget, and that should answer your question. I was thinking of buying a new Shuttle SB51 but went with an Iwill XP4 as it fit my budget much better, and will do what I need and more in conjunction with my Dell 8250. I wanted to get something like a P4 but ended up with a Celeron 1.7GHZ. And I can get a 3.06GHZ HT cpu when the fall WAY down in price.

Nobody said spending money was easy!