YAUT: Upgrade <$300

[totalcommand]

Hi,

I'm thinking about doing an upgrade on my computer. The max I want to spend is $300. I use my computer mainly for browsing the internet, video encoding, and LIGHT gaming (like the original UT, or new games on low settings).

Here are my current specs:

Athlon XP 2200 rev.A throughbred
Asus A7V333 (via kt333)
512MB DDR333 Corsair XMS memory
Leadtek GeForce4 Ti4600
Enermax 350Watt Power Supply
NEC-3500a DVD burner
Creative Audigy XGamer
3Com Ethernet Adapter Card
Leadtek TV2000 Expert Tv Tuner
2 * Maxtor DiamondMax Plus D740X 60 GB Hard Drive

So...the system is kind of aging, and I thought now might be a good time to start upgrading with the prices that are out there (what do you think?).

Since it seems like every part of my computer is obsolete (processor, platform, gfx interface), I was thinking about doing the following, then saving up monies for a better graphics card in a year or two from now:

79.99 [ZipZoomFly] Chaintech VNF4 Ultra ZENITH VE nForce4 Ultra
92.00 [NewEgg]

146.00 [ZipZoomFly] AMD Athlon 64 3000+ Processor (Venice) Socket 939 Retail
146.00 [NewEgg]

53.99 [ZipZoomFly] Sapphire Radeon X300 SE 128MB HyperMemory(tm)* PCI Express 32MB VRAM Video Card w/TV-Out & DVI
48.00 [NewEgg]

Total: 279.98 [ZipZoomFly w/Shipping], 292.49 [NewEgg w/Shipping]

And I'll keep the rest of my components for now, upgrading ram in maybe half a year.

What do you guys think? I know i'm gonna get nailed on the graphics card, but I'm just looking for something that will have about the same level of performance as my Ti4600.

Thanks for the help.

 

[Bucks]

instead of getting a Radeon X300 get more ram.

 

[totalcommand]

Originally posted by: Bucks
instead of getting a Radeon X300 get more ram.

But the motherboard does not have built in gfx, requires pciExpress cards, and I don't have a pciExpress graphics card.

 

[suicidalpigeon]

msi

 

[SlitheryDee]

Originally posted by: Bucks
instead of getting a Radeon X300 get more ram.

He needs some kind of video card because that board only takes PCI-E and has no onboard video.

totalcommand: It looks pretty good, but the nvidia turbocache cards seem to perform better in that price segment

 

[SlitheryDee]

The radeon express board mentioned above does have integrated video.

Is micro ATX compatible with regular tower cases?

 

[suicidalpigeon]

im pretty sure they can fit in all microatx cases and bigger.

 

[totalcommand]

Originally posted by: wafflesandsyrup
im pretty sure they can fit in all microatx cases and bigger.

yah, i think they fit too if I remember correctly.

I'm looking into the ati solution...the only thing is that the southbridge looks a bit dated, and I want to get as much future-proofing as possible (no sata2, gigabit ethernet, and noticeable lower performance than nforce4 ultra).

But, the price is really appealing...hmm....

Originally posted by: SlitheryDee
totalcommand: It looks pretty good, but the nvidia turbocache cards seem to perform better in that price segment

i saw that in anandtech's review, but it looks like ati's hypermemory cards are much cheaper (about $20).

 

[totalcommand]

What do you guys think about replacing this, which has a 128bit memory interface:

53.99 [ZipZoomFly] Sapphire Radeon X300 SE 128MB HyperMemory(tm)* PCI Express 32MB VRAM Video Card w/TV-Out & DVI
48.00 [NewEgg]

with this, which has the 128MB onboard, but 64bit memory interface:

43.99 [ZipZoomFly] SAPPHIRE 586L Radeon X300SE 128MB DDR PCI Express x16 Video Card - Retail
49.00 [NewEgg]