My little computer needs an upgrade!

[aliasaid]

the problem with buying parts and have them lying around for a few days before you assemble is that if something arrives DOA, you may miss out on returning it or getting an RMA or something like that... or i think that you'll have to deal with the manufacturer instead of newegg.... not sure how exactly i just know it isn't cool!

 

[Jake2k]

Hey I just wanted to thank everyone again for all the help, I actually learned a bit from the whole process lol. The combo deal on that quad/mobo has gone up so I plan on waiting till the CPU drops down a bit then find everything else.

One thing I was wondering, would it be better to get a less expensive mobo without the on-board gfx and spend about $35-$50 on a dedicated video card and do they have cards that cheap with dual video?

 

[Muffin Man]

well the combo is still there but the parts have risen in price since i posted them; the mobo is up $15, the ram is up like $20 and the the cpu is up by $5 i think, so... yea, lol.

if you get a dedicated gfx card, it will better than the onboard vid. but for $50 dont expect to get something good for gaming. probably something like this
Newegg.com - POWERCOLOR AX4650 512MD2-H Radeon HD 4650 512MB 128-bit DDR2 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready CrossFireX Support Video Card - Desktop Graphics / Video Cards

do they have cards that cheap with dual video?

do you mean to support dual monitors? yes. the card i posted would be an example of such a card.

 

[RichM499]

Actually the integrated Radeon 4200 is a pretty decent little onboard graphics choice. It's integrated in the 785g chipset, and it can actually do some light to moderate gaming. The Radeon 4200 will run Left 4 Dead at Medium settings and 1280x1024 at between 40 and 50fps!. It will even run Crysis at low detail and 1024x768 at around 30fps!

I know these numbers are small, but it's one **** of a powerful integrated* graphics solution.

I would recommend AGAINST the 4650, because the 4670 is quite a bit more powerful, and only a few dollars more expensive. I used a 4670 for my nephews computer, because I knew that I could just set the games at 1280x1024 or 1600x1200 and he wouldn't notice the difference, and the 4670 chews up any game he plays on it.


If you want to save some money, and do some light gaming for a while, look in to an AMD solution with a 785g chipset. The Athlon 2 x2 240 is cheap, can be found in many combo deals, and paired with a 785g you would have a decent little starter platform.


EDIT: I just re-read through this thread to check to see if I was repeating something someone else already said, and it turns out I was!!!

I Highly recommend the build Trotter put together for you, it will run any recent game at low/medium details, and many older games with high details. Not to mention you'd have excellent options for upgrading in the future

 

[Jake2k]

I won't be doing any gaming and I don't plan on in the future. But I just sold an old amp so now I have my $300 budget ready to go. I have a few more questions though:

#1.
Would it make more sense/save money to get a dedicated gfx card now or just get a mobo with a decent on-board and upgrade to a card in a year or so when I buy a second monitor?

#2.
What would be better for what I'm gonna be doing, a lower GHz quad core or a higher GHz dual core?

#3. Would 2 gigs of ram do what I want or should I try my best to get 4?

Thanks again everyone

 

[Jake2k]

If a board has two video outputs can they both be used at the same time? Like this board for example:

MSI 785GM-E65 AM3 AMD 785G HDMI Micro ATX AMD Motherboard

 

[Trotter]

Finally found something out about that:
ATI Radeon HD 4200 Series Specifications

"Drive two displays simultaneously with independent resolutions, refresh rates, color controls and video overlays for each display "

 

[RichM499]

That's pretty awesome for an integrated video solution. It can do some light gaming and run multiple monitors. I am impressed with ATI's Integrated video solutions, and they help to make for inexpensive builds for people that don't need a powerful graphics adapter. Neat stuff.

 

[Jake2k]

Alright guys I think I put together a decent setup but I need your opinions please:

CPU - AMD Athlon II X4 620 Propus 2.6GHz - $100

MOBO - GIGABYTE GA-MA785GM-US2H - $80 |or| ASUS M4A785-M - $75

RAM - G.SKILL 2GB (2 x 1GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 1066 (PC2 8500) - $53

PSU - ? (I have about a $55 budget for a PSU)

So basically all I have left is the PSU and I might just pick one up from CompUSA since they have some at a decent price and if it's DOA I can just run it back to the store. Any suggestions?

Also I'm leaning towards the Gigabyte mobo since it has the Realtek audio and not the Via like the Asus and I heard some bad things about Via, other then that they seem to be almost the same.

I'm only going with two gigs of ram right now to cut back on costs plus I can always easily upgrade that in the future.

Thank you!

 

[Trotter]

I would pick the Gigabyte over the Asus.

Just make sure you pick a decent PSU. Check out the PSU Guide for what's good and what's crap.