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So I'm looking to upgrade a few things in my current rig (as I decided now probably isn't the best time to start a new build). At the moment I've got a EP-9NPA+ Ultra mobo, 7800GT gpu, 2GB of pc3200 RAM and a Atrix 650T, would the PSU be ok powering a 320mb 8800GTS (XT or XXX edition) and upgrading to 4GB of RAM? Also, is either 8800GTS edition better than the other?
Thanks in advance.
Off hand
NO!!!!!!!
Seem to remember that Atrix is a "budget" psu that comes with cheap cases, so you'll be lucky if it can supply half it's listed power.
If the case was twenty quid then probably less than a fiver went into that psu.
I'm thinking this is a very tight low budget you're looking at.
I'm also guessing the ram and graphics card are 2nd hand?
How much are you looking at, as you probably should replace that PSU asap.
Well, I picked it up as a fairly cheap replacement from a 420w Tagan which died on me just over a year ago. I never really intended to keep it this long, but its been running fine so I haven't seen the point in getting anything better.
I'd don't really have budget, it's just that my current setup is a bit old now and I was just looking to upgrade a few things to make it last a bit longer. I don't really want to spend too much on new RAM, GPU and a PSU and then in six months time or whenever end up getting a new i7 system or something.
The RAM and GPUs I was looking at were new, from Scan, costing about £180 altogether for 4x1GB PC3200 and the GPU, but if I'd have to get a new PSU too I'd probably save the money and put to towards a new system sooner.
Check scan's today only, i think the cheap and cheerful FSP is back on there again :)
Which would tide you over until the PSU prices start to come down again.
For more details see-Quote:
Originally Posted by TAKTAK
http://forums.hexus.net/current-barg...ml#post1655759
And I agree with pob, replace that psu now.
Oh yes it's back!
http://www.scan.co.uk/product.aspx?ProductId=22926
On today only for £28
It's the old and very good 700w Epslion given the OEM treatment ie without the fancy paint job or cable bradeing.
:)
RAM, you're on DDR1 so only 3 slots currently? I'm guessing 2x512mb sticks?
Given the expensive price of ddr1 new, Scan have got 2Gb (2X1Gb) Corsair Value Select DDR PC3200 (400), 184 Pins, Non-ECC Unbuffered, CAS 3-3-3-8 on today only £78 but it's normally £83 :confused:
Pure madness, look for 2nd hand :)
Don't go chaseing 4gb if you're only on a 32bit OS stick to 3gb, No point wasteing money on ram that old.
That said 2gb is still fine So a single 1gb stick if you can get it will be ok.
And I don't know where you're getting a 320mb 8800GTS (XT or XXX edition) from . . . :O_o1: ok scan do still have some for £65, £60 on today only
For that money it is tempting. However I've just spotted a gainward 8800gts 512mb g92 for £80 also would be good, and could be reused in a new build as a physx card ;)
http://www.scan.co.uk/Product.aspx?WebProductId=719261
I'm not sure if you can use the older 8800gts 320mb g80 as a physx card, if you can then it makes the choise harder.
Oh and XXX cards are the highest factory overclocked cards xfx sell.
EDIT: just checked 4 ram slots on that Epox so it'd probably be best and cheapest to just fill them up with 512mb sticks. 4x512mb for 2gb will tide you over untill full upgrade.
That's what I've got at the moment, but some things still seem to take an age to load, particularly in WoW.Quote:
Originally Posted by Pob255
I did see the gainward 8800gts on there, but wasn't really sure if it's worth the extra money, plus I wasn't too sure if it'd make a difference with it being PCI-e 2.0 and my board not.
Looking at the FSP and one of the XFX 8800GTS with P&P + VAT that's £100, I could spring for that, especially if I need to replace this current PSU like people are saying.
I can't seem to find any info for the FSP's connections though, will it be ok running my board, a couple SATA HDDs and a few molex connection (1 for the DVD/CDRW and a couple others for fans)?
FSP thread in Bargains thread suggests the you'll have more that enough connectors.
The connectors are if I remember correctly
20+4 pin motherboard
4+4 pin (umm cannot remember the name, the other motherboard one)
2 x 6 pin graphics card plugs
2 x 3 Sata plugs (ie 2 leads with 3 on each)
2 x 1 floppry + 3 molex plugs
If you had more posts you could get free shipping ;)
personally I would say the extra £20 for the gainward 8800gts 512mb g92 is worth it if you can scrape the cash together, if not a 8800gts 320mb g80 will still be a step up from a 7800gt but not by so much.
PS have you defraged your hard drive recently? problem with most MMOs and there high amount of patching is that the files tend to get defraged to heck and back which can put a big dent in the loading times.
Open up task manager while wow is running to check your memory usage, not sure on wow but most MMO's eat 1gb of ram on there own quite happly and can go higher. They are more memory hungery than other games.
The problem you're probably faceing is the cost of 1gb DDR1 sticks and the slower speeds of the memory
Just been on the aria.co.uk website where I buy most of my memory for system builds. Have a look here - http://www.aria.co.uk/SuperSpecials/...roductId=25701
Is the 512MB Gainward 8800GTS compatible with my board? It's listed as PCIe 2.0 and my board isn't.Quote:
Originally Posted by Pob255
I do defrag quite often, so I'm pretty sure that's not a problem. WoW's pretty memory hungry, it uses about 850,000k just standing around doing nothing.Quote:
Originally Posted by Pob255
I would get the 8800GTS 512mb and the FSP 700w PSU. I have had an 8800GTS 512mb and even with a demanding game like Crysis I could play it at decent settings.
I also ran it in a 975X motherboard with no problems. The motherboard is PCI-E 1.0 and only runs at 8x. I would also check the compatibility list for the motherboard too and whether the chipset has any known limitations with PCI-E 2.0 cards. It maybe also worth checking if there are any BIOS updates for your motherboard too!!
LOLOL
Am i buggerd then :)
i baught this last week.
http://www.maplin.co.uk/module.aspx?...FUgTzAodtThArw
At least it's in a clear case so you can see which part burnt out first :)
Is it really that bad?
I always buy the best I can with PSU's, not to say you have a bad one but it could be hit and miss - it may last 2 weeks or it may last 2 years. Buying bad memory may mean you have to replace the memory, buying a bad PSU could mean having to replace the whole PC.
Am i better off putting the 300W HEC psu back in? selling the atrix one and buying a 400/500W decent branded make? il possibly try my luck :)
Yes..Quote:
Originally Posted by watforddude
It's not a hard and fast rule and I honestly can't recommend what you do with any conviction but I have always bought quality PSU's in the past and never had any problems however I have seen cheap PSU's take out (in a worst case scenario) every component in a friends PC except the HD which somehow survived. The FSP recommended earlier in the thread I have never used but it is very cheap and i have read nothing but good reviews about it.
Is the 300W HEC better than the 650W atrix?
Would have thought there would be more chance of it not working. im not really using big wattage stuff... do you rekon im safe for the time being untill i do purchase a decent one of scan?
Why did you upgrade? How long have you been using the the HEC? If it's been working fine then I would stick with that personally and buy something which should be much more reliable. Unfortunately as you have already used it and I think you have probably overun the cooling off period you can't return it for a full refund. In the end you may have a perfectly functional PSU in the Atrix which will work perfectly well but it's more of a gamble than using a more recognised brand.
You got that despite all the advice I gave you?? That PSU is worse than the HEC. :wallbash:HEC are not fantastic but are a far more reliable make than what you got!! HEC supply Mesh with PSUs IIRC.Quote:
Originally Posted by watforddude
Check back to this thread:
http://forums.hexus.net/hexus-hardwa...upgrading.html
I told you about 4 PSUs you could have used:
1.)Silverstone 350w - around £30 at Scan(was £22 on Scan Today Only)
2.)FSP Blue Storm II 400w - was around £30 at Scan on Today Only(pointed this out to you)
3.)Silverpower SP-SS400 400w- was £35 at the time
4.)OCZ Stealth Xtream 500W - was £45 at the time
Considering that a good 450w PSU like a Corsair VX450W can run a GTX260 any of the preceding PSUs would have been enough for your computers!!
Here is how poor Atrix PSUs are:
http://www.overclockersclub.com/revi...rix_500t/6.htm
The model reviewed was the Atrix 500T Extreme 650W.
Here are the conclusions of the review:
If you are in the market for a power supply in the 650W range, I certainly could not recommend this one for a high performance system. Like its name suggests (Atrix 500T), 500W is probably a more realistic maximum than the stated 650W. The efficiency and power factor are very poor and the failure of the unit to maintain the 3V3 and 5V0 lines at heavy loads, just reinforces my case. I should also bring to your attention a really irritating noise coming from the unit at high load - a sure sign of a stressed out low-end power supply. I am convinced this unit would fail within a short period of time if constantly loaded above 500W. The casing of the power supply got far warmer than the temperature of the air leaving the enclosure suggested, but with such a poor efficiency of 57.7%, this is not surprising. If you are after a power supply for a P4 system for office and Internet use, this unit may do, but do not put one of these in a high performance dual core system.
Pros:
* Quiet during normal operation
* Supports SATA an PCI-E
* Sleeved cables
Cons:
* Very poor efficiency
* Lack of active power factor correction
* Failure of the 3V3 and 5V0 DC lines at high loads
* Internal power supply transformer buzz at high loads
I just give up!!:confused::mad:
I got everything else you advised to get like the Ram and a new Hard drive!
i just didnt have enough left for a top PSU. so dont think all your advise was for nothing. the only thing i didnt follow was the PSU. so dont think you have wasted your time :)
thinking about that i need to change my sig.
Ok seeing as this PSU is seriously that bad and i have better + more components in the computer now and when i have more monies im going to upgrade the graphics card to some in the 120 pounds mark what am i best getting, and dont worrry CAT ive followed your advise so far so il defo go for it.
and i didnt go for the samsung spinpoint i went for this
http://www.ebuyer.com/product/141471 it was cheeper and it allowed me to buy a new case aswell.