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Thread: PC Died and convinced the wife we need an upgrade

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    PC Died and convinced the wife we need an upgrade

    Sorry mods....wrong section, please could someone move?

    Well our now 4 year old PC has been stuttering for a month or two and finally gave up the ghost last night.

    I've decided its time to upgrade, although its going to be more like a new build.

    Im a little out of touch as to what I should be looking for, but know I want to go for a Raptor 150Gb drive for the system.... always regret not getting a 10k drive last time!

    Other than that I was thinking around £50 for memory, £100 graphics, £100 CPU and £100 motherboard.

    Graphics wise I want to be able to run newish games at a fairly decent res, so I was thinking maybe;

    Gainward ATI Radeon HD 4870 Graphics Card 512MB DDR5, which is probably going to stretch my budget

    CPU I was thinking;

    AMD PHENOM X3 PROCESSOR 8650 - 2.3GHZ - TRIPLE CORE CPU

    Motherboard;

    Gigabyte GA-MA78GM-US2H

    Memory

    Corsair 4GB 2 x 2GB PC6400 800Mhz DDR2

    Would you guys be able to advise if this looks ok to you? Or if you would suggest any alternatives?
    Last edited by hamd01; 11-03-2009 at 10:36 AM. Reason: wrong section

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    Moosing about! CAT-THE-FIFTH's Avatar
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    • CAT-THE-FIFTH's system
      • Motherboard:
      • Less E-PEEN
      • CPU:
      • Massive E-PEEN
      • Memory:
      • RGB E-PEEN
      • Storage:
      • Not in any order
      • Graphics card(s):
      • EVEN BIGGER E-PEEN
      • PSU:
      • OVERSIZED
      • Case:
      • UNDERSIZED
      • Operating System:
      • DOS 6.22
      • Monitor(s):
      • NOT USUALLY ON....WHEN I POST
      • Internet:
      • FUNCTIONAL

    Re: PC Died and convinced the wife we need an upgrade

    The Raptor is a waste of money TBH. Modern SATA hard disks are much faster than even some a few years old. You will get greater gains spending your money more wisely!
    You need to spend more on the CPU BTW. You also need to budget in a decent PSU too. Running a new system off a 4 year PSU is NOT a good idea.

    Something like a Samsung 640gb or 1tb drive will do the job nicely:

    http://www.ebuyer.com/product/158688

    http://www.scan.co.uk/Products/1TB-S...ache-89-ms-NCQ

    Here is a review of the Samsung F1 series hard drives:

    http://techreport.com/articles.x/14200/15


    Here is what I would get:

    Phenom II X3 720 ~ £120

    http://www.ebuyer.com/product/159071

    Asus 780G-EM ~£64

    http://www.ebuyer.com/product/150278

    4gb RAM ~ £35

    http://www.ebuyer.com/product/130429

    HD4870 ~ £150

    http://www.novatech.co.uk/novatech/s....html?SAP-4870

    http://www.novatech.co.uk/novatech/s....html?POW-4870

    The latter has an aftermarket cooler and is pre-overclocked/

    I would go for this PSU if it comes back into stock:

    http://www.scan.co.uk/Products/650W-...2-QUAD-SLI-PSU

    If not this one would be the minimum one I would go for:

    http://www.scan.co.uk/Products/450W-...PLUS-certified

    Remember that Scan has free postage for Hexus users with 20+ useful posts and there is free postage at Ebuyer for orders above £49.99 and also at Novatech.

    Also check the Today Only page on Scan for offers!

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    • Hyperviper34's system
      • Motherboard:
      • Biostar TP45 HP
      • CPU:
      • E7200 @ 3.1GHz
      • Memory:
      • Corsair 4GB Kit (2x2GB) DDR2 800MHz/PC2-6400 XMS2
      • Storage:
      • 750 GB Samsung HD753LJ Spinpoint F1
      • Graphics card(s):
      • PowerColor HD 4870 1GB GDDR5
      • PSU:
      • Antec 650W Neopower Modular PSU
      • Case:
      • Antec Three Hundred Black
      • Operating System:
      • Vista Ultimate 64
      • Monitor(s):
      • Samsung SM2243BW 22" TFT

    Re: PC Died and convinced the wife we need an upgrade

    Have a look HERE if you fancy an intel alternative. The build has been designed for around the £450 mark so anybody look to a gaming/general use DIY PC to go onto a screen upto 22" it ideal. It's been build and tested with results for you to look at and compare.

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    Re: PC Died and convinced the wife we need an upgrade

    Thanks for the comments, I have a look at whats in stock and at some reviews and have come to the following spec. How does this look to you guys;

    Corsair 4GB Kit (2x2GB) DDR2 800MHz/PC2-6400 XMS2 Memory Non-ECC Unbuffered ~ £35 Corsair 4GB Kit (2x2GB) DDR2 800MHz/PC2-6400 XMS2 Memory Non-ECC Unbuffered CL5 Lifetime Warranty - Ebuyer

    Phenom II X3 720 CPU £119 AMD Phenom II X3 720 2.8GHz Socket AM3 6MB L3 Cache Retail Boxed Processor - Ebuyer

    Asus 780G-EM Motherboard £64 ASUS M3A78-EM 780G Socket AM2+ onboard graphics 8 channel audio mATX Motherboard - Ebuyer

    XFX HD 4870 512MB GDDR5 Dual DVI HDTV Out PCI-E Graphics Card £150 XFX HD 4870 512MB GDDR5 Dual DVI HDTV Out PCI-E Graphics Card - Ebuyer

    Coolermaster RealPower 700W Modular PSU - SLI Ready £85 Coolermaster RealPower 700W Modular PSU - SLI Ready - Ebuyer

    Samsung SpinPoint F1 640GB Hard Drive SATAII 7200rpm 16MB Cache £49 - Samsung SpinPoint F1 640GB Hard Drive SATAII 7200rpm 16MB Cache - OEM

    Any opinions or suggestions would be greatly appreciated

  5. #5
    Moosing about! CAT-THE-FIFTH's Avatar
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    • CAT-THE-FIFTH's system
      • Motherboard:
      • Less E-PEEN
      • CPU:
      • Massive E-PEEN
      • Memory:
      • RGB E-PEEN
      • Storage:
      • Not in any order
      • Graphics card(s):
      • EVEN BIGGER E-PEEN
      • PSU:
      • OVERSIZED
      • Case:
      • UNDERSIZED
      • Operating System:
      • DOS 6.22
      • Monitor(s):
      • NOT USUALLY ON....WHEN I POST
      • Internet:
      • FUNCTIONAL

    Re: PC Died and convinced the wife we need an upgrade

    I prefer the Powercolor HD4870 as it has a better cooler IMHO. However I am uncertain whether it expels all the hot air out of the case though.

    Some reviews:

    http://ixbtlabs.com/articles3/video/rv770-4-p1.html

    http://www.overclockersclub.com/revi...color_4870pcs/

    The standard HD4870 from Novatech is £6 cheaper though than the one from Ebuyer.

    For the price you are paying for the PSU I would get an Enermax unit as they have UK based support:

    http://www.scan.co.uk/Products/525W-...uard-SafeGuard

    http://www.scan.co.uk/Products/625W-...uard-SafeGuard

    The other alternative would be Corsair as they have a five year warranty. The HX520 is a great power supply:

    http://www.ebuyer.com/product/114945

    A good 500w to 600w should be enough for you system.

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