What do you think of this computer...

Carcrazy · Post by **Carcrazy** » 29 Jan 2007, 08:49

My friend's mom said she might want me to build her a new computer for her son. So she gave me a $500 price range and told me to see what I could do. I've found her parts and want to know what yall think.
PS: They already have a 512 MB RAM chip so after the extra stick below they will have 1GB.

http://www.geeks.com/details.asp?invtid=BLK-CPXMAN-02

http://www.geeks.com/details.asp?invtid ... -1108IM-DO

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.a ... 6822136036

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.a ... 6813154007

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.a ... 6814153031

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.a ... 6820146038

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.a ... 6819103535

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.a ... 6832116171

I couldn't get his Neon for a decent price yet but I'll keep looking. Here is his main eyepopping visual effect...

http://cgi.ebay.com/4pcs-80mm-Ball-Bear ... dZViewItem

And there you go... all in all it should cost them about $530 after tax and shipping.

So what do you think?

Jmac- · Post by **Jmac-** » 29 Jan 2007, 10:16

I see a lot of flaws with that computer, most notably PC2700 RAM being used with a S939 motherboard ...

Plus ...

- S939 is like a year out of date
- You're getting an old refurbished no-name brand DVD burner for the price of a newer, better name-brand burner
- The case looks awful and, at $35, I guarantee the power supply will be poorly made
- $60 Crossfire motherboard ... Sapphire's forums report many problems with it, too.
- Vista comes out tomorrow

To summarize, I wouldn't recommend that computer.

Abrams · Post by **Abrams** » 29 Jan 2007, 13:10

Vista is out of question untill prices drop or untill it will support most of current apps/games same as its supported on XP.

As for PC, when your limited in price then go for performace >> PC outer looks.

As for build, mate, really i dont feel like opening 10 windows to see each part, just list em here + links.

PSZeTa · Post by **PSZeTa** » 29 Jan 2007, 16:54

And mixing different types of RAM is usually a bad idea.. Sometimes, they just refuse to work together and cause instability.

Jmac- · Post by **Jmac-** » 29 Jan 2007, 20:13

Abrams wrote:Vista is out of question untill prices drop or untill it will support most of current apps/games same as its supported on XP.

As for PC, when your limited in price then go for performace >> PC outer looks.

As for build, mate, really i dont feel like opening 10 windows to see each part, just list em here + links.

Home Premium OEM is like the same price as XP MCE OEM ...

Most games/apps will run in Vista, just usually not as well ... This is mostly caused by driver issues, though, not the operating system itself ...

weedman173 · Post by **weedman173** » 29 Jan 2007, 22:25

Hopefully that kid isn't going to be using this computer for burning any dvd's or cd's, the drive is slow, we are up to what 52x now and you can get a better drive for around the same price. You need a power supply, as Jmac mentioned above, case power supplys are poorly made and have a high risk of giving out on you. Also, you have picked out a memory stick that is DDR333, the motherboard requires DDR400. Since the board supports dual channel, you'd be better off getting two 256mb sticks instead of one 512mb. Heres a page of memory sticks you could use HERE

Carcrazy · Post by **Carcrazy** » 30 Jan 2007, 00:40

I got the 512 so I could run the other 512 stick with it. The DVD burner will be seldom used, no need to spend extra money for a great DVD burner. And the XP MCE CD comes with Vista Home Premium for free.

weedman173 · Post by **weedman173** » 30 Jan 2007, 00:49

Didn't notice you said they had another stick of RAM, but still, unless they are the same thing you could run into potential problems such as in the worst case, the system will not post. But most likely there will be system instability. Plus, like I said before the motherboard uses PC 3200 and you picked out PC2700. And about the DVD drive, you can get others NEW for the same price that are actually a known brand and are better.. Check theseones out, I wouldn't buy any of them, but they are near the same price range.

S2000_Skyline12 · Post by **S2000_Skyline12** » 30 Jan 2007, 00:52

Uhh actually as I can see, thats just a coupon so that you get home premium for free but for that you would have to go to the site and sign up for a order so they can send you the upgrade version like i'm doing and if you had ordered the MCE05 with the coupon before tomorrow they would send it in the first or second week of february

PSZeTa · Post by **PSZeTa** » 30 Jan 2007, 00:57

Carcrazy wrote:I got the 512 so I could run the other 512 stick with it. The DVD burner will be seldom used, no need to spend extra money for a great DVD burner. And the XP MCE CD comes with Vista Home Premium for free.

There's alot more behind that 512MB, such as memory timings and voltages..

Carcrazy · Post by **Carcrazy** » 30 Jan 2007, 02:52

Will it really matter if it is DDR 400? In my computer I have a PNY 256 MB 333 along with a PQI 1GB DDR 400 and my pc works fine.

weedman173 · Post by **weedman173** » 30 Jan 2007, 03:04

You must be lucky then, I helped put together a few other computers and 2 of those had different RAM modules, and one of them had instability and the computer never showed the right amount of RAM. The other one would not boot, so we took out one of the RAM modules and it booted fine. I'm just trying to tell you that it may cause problems, not always but sometimes.

prince1142003 · Post by **prince1142003** » 30 Jan 2007, 03:14

Since your PC is capable of Dual Channel memory, you won't get that benefit (which is a huge benefit) if you use two different memory chips. Not only that, since you have one PC2700 chip and one PC3200 chip, you're chips will only be running at PC2700 speed. Basically, you'll be bottlenecking your PC even though things will run fine. When dealing with Dual Channel memory, it's advisable to get two or more memory chips of the same capacity and same speed. Although some motherboards can overcome this limitation, most cannot.

Even if the DVD burner will be seldom used, I suggest get a good brand name one. Maxwell makes good DVD drives, and so does Plextor. The drive doesn't have to have a lot of features, but if you go with a good brand name, you'll be less likely to have problems later on.

Socket 939 processors are on the decline. AMD won't be making any more such processors or motherboards in the 2007 year. If you switch to a 939 processor now when they're on the decline, you'll regret not waiting for an AM2 or AM3 processor.

The case is ok, but there are better cases out there. And a 480W power supply won't cut it for you if you decide to run a Crossfire system. You should get a new brand name power supply as well.

IMO, purchasing a computer right now is the worst idea, especially with the amount of cash you're looking to spend. I would suggest that you continue using the PC you're using and save up for better parts. It'll be worth it later on.

If you're serious about a custom built PC or adding components to your current PC, please do significant research.

Jmac- · Post by **Jmac-** » 30 Jan 2007, 04:26

Carcrazy wrote:I got the 512 so I could run the other 512 stick with it. The DVD burner will be seldom used, no need to spend extra money for a great DVD burner. And the XP MCE CD comes with Vista Home Premium for free.

1) It doesn't matter that it will be seldom used, you can still get a new name-brand DVD burner for $30 ...

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.a ... 6827106042
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.a ... 6827136108
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.a ... 6827152076
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.a ... 6827151136
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.a ... 6827131038

2) The upgrade to Vista Home Premium isn't free. You still have to pay shipping and handling which is usually $20 - $30. Not to mention that the upgrade is a complete pain in the ass.

S2000_Skyline12 · Post by **S2000_Skyline12** » 30 Jan 2007, 04:29

Then tell me how come I don't have to pay the shipping?

Carcrazy · Post by **Carcrazy** » 30 Jan 2007, 05:31

I heared shipping was about 5.99.

That last DVD Burner is the one I have on my computer for twice as much.

S2000_Skyline12 · Post by **S2000_Skyline12** » 30 Jan 2007, 05:50

Hmm, Weird...

Carcrazy · Post by **Carcrazy** » 30 Jan 2007, 05:52

Ya, I still can't beleave I go tthat thing for $15. Anyway, I e-mailed his mom and told her she might want to buy this drive because it would be more reliable...

http://www.geeks.com/details.asp?invtid ... LK&cat=DVD

NFSBLUECIVIC · Post by **NFSBLUECIVIC** » 30 Jan 2007, 06:42

get one of the dvd burners off of newegg, they are 30 bucks, and newegg is more reliable than geeks, i have bought stuff from both. Also the cases from geeks that i have had experience with, which is about 7 total, have all been poorly made, very flimsy, with short lived psu's, i suggest a ultra case, they are real nice, same with their psu's.

2fast4all · Post by **2fast4all** » 03 Feb 2007, 10:03

just buy from newegg.com

a case like this would be good
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.a ... 6811119106
switch to am2

Carcrazy · Post by **Carcrazy** » 04 Feb 2007, 01:22

Not enough money for AM2 and no window on case. Besides the parts have already been ordered. Thx though, I might buy me one of those...

2fast4all · Post by **2fast4all** » 04 Feb 2007, 08:12

good luck on building the rig

Carcrazy · Post by **Carcrazy** » 04 Feb 2007, 17:55

Thanks!

Abrams · Post by **Abrams** » 08 Feb 2007, 02:05

Jmac- wrote:
Abrams wrote:Vista is out of question untill prices drop or untill it will support most of current apps/games same as its supported on XP.

As for PC, when your limited in price then go for performace >> PC outer looks.

As for build, mate, really i dont feel like opening 10 windows to see each part, just list em here + links.
Home Premium OEM is like the same price as XP MCE OEM ...

Most games/apps will run in Vista, just usually not as well ... This is mostly caused by driver issues, though, not the operating system itself ...

yep tho amount of security holes in Vista almost same as in first XP release, at least from what i have read so far.

p.s. as for crossfire or sli and PSU, id say that such options usually good if you got a certainly good amount of funds to buy 2 top gfx`s, since sli`ing 2 medium versus single top isnt worth it, if your going to get dual card setup, dont bother unless you can afford both cards to be top ones wich prolly from 7900 GT and 1950 Pro ranges and upper to R600(soon)/G80 series.

NFSBLUECIVIC · Post by **NFSBLUECIVIC** » 08 Feb 2007, 08:31

Ya i wonder what teh 8600 will be like, any news on when that and the r600 are coming out?