New PC

[Psychotic]

I think it is time for me to buy new components for my pc. I have a P4 1700MHz with 512RDRAM. I also have 2 HDD one 40GB and the other 30GB. For Graphics I have an ATI Radeon 9800 Pro 128MB.

What I want to change is the CPU, the motherboard, the PSU and the ram. The rest will be used for now.

I think that I will go for an Athlon XP2800 which is 73.97 GBP without a HS/F. Then I'm not sure what motherboard/ram or psu I should buy as I'm not familiar with AMD.

Any recommendations?

p.s. I don't want to go overboard so I'll set a budget of 300GBP. Also this pc will be used for gaming.

 

[Ned_Flanders]

Mobile 2500+ (overclock to / past 3200+ speeds) (£80ish)
1 gig of no name brand Ram (£150)
Any N-force 2 Mobo (£80)
Brand Name 350Watt PSU (£60ish)



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[Psychotic]

I don't wish to overclock the CPU because where I come from the temperatures are way to hot. normal temps for summer 38-43 Celcius and winter 23-28 Celcius.

My current P4 runs at 35-40 when idle and 50-55 when gaming. Imagine what would happen if I overclocked it.

The rest of your recomendations are ok. But when you say 1gig do you mean 2x512MB or 1x1024?

 

[Robc1880]

i have an athlon XP 2500 unlocked with thermalright slk800-u cooler, and Abit NF7-s v2.0, and 2x256mb corsair 3200c2pt ram for sale if your interested.

Remember, there are no stupid questions, just stupid people.

 

[DC1Brendan]

These are my suggestions. The RAM is a bit expensive, it's your choice as you could always downgrade.

Motherboard: ASUS A7N8X-E Deluxe $82.00US http://bestbargainpc.com/asa7denvnful.html

CPU: Athlon FX 3200+ (Barton) $136.00US http://www.wallapc.com/.sc/ms/dd/1098809786790487/9/nc/ee/224/AMD XP 3200+ 400FSB 512K BARTON OEM PROCESSOR

RAM: PC3200 Non-ECC Corsair CMX1024-3200PRO (1-3GB) ($260.00US-$780.00US) http://www.monarchcomputer.com/Merchant2/merchant.mv?Screen=PROD&Store_Code=M&Product_Code=140307

PSU: Fortron Source FSP400-60PFN $58.50US http://www.newegg.com/app/viewproductdesc.asp?DEPA=0&description=17-104-974&CMP=OTC-pr1c3watch&ATT=Power+Supply+for+Cas

 

[dglew]

With that motherboard, since it supports dual channel memory, you'd want to have 2 x 512 MB DIMMs.

For the motherboard, I'd say either the ASUS A7N8X Deluxe v2.00 or the Abit AN7-S.

I can't complain about my 460w Enermax PSU - tons of juice and I can't hear it.

 

[Ned_Flanders]

The mobile 2500+ will overclock with out and voltage increases beyond that of a regular 3200+. Chances are it can do 3200+ speeds with less voltage than that of a stock 3200+ (less voltage = less heat).

Can't lose really.

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[Psychotic]

I have done some research and I also got a new price list so here I what I believe I'll get.

CPU: Athlon XP 3000(400MHz) @ 85.00GBP
Mobo: Abit NF7S nForce2 @ 60.00GBP
HSF: Akasa AK786 (Upto XP 3400+) @ 5.88GBP
RAM: Corsair Value Select DDR 512MB PC2700 @ 57.52GBP x2
PSU: Antec SmartBlue Quiet 350W with twinfans @ 43.48GBP
or Coolermaster/Hiper 350W @ 19.98GBP

total = 309.xxGBP

which is around how much I can afford. What do you people think?

 

[jammydodger]

Dont get PC2700, PC3200 is only a little more(get crucial ballistix is you can afford it). PC2700 will bottleneck your system. If you wanna overclock get a better fan. That one is a POS.

Would a Athlon64 3000+ and motherboard be to far over your budget?

 

[Psychotic]

Athlon64 3000 is 102.21GBP and I am not sure about the motherboard price.

And about the ram 512MB Value SelectDDR PC3200 is 59.87GBP so I'll get those.

As for overclocking I will pass, since I' m not sure on the whole procedure.

 

[coylter]

Overclocking is as hard as breaking a windows with a nuclear tactical warhead.

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[Psychotic]

I've read somewhere that AMD is phasing out the old platforms and using 939 (or something). If I get an Athlon XP 3000 will I be able to upgrade it in the future or will I require new Mobo+CPU+RAM?

Because this is how I got stuck for the past 3-4 years with the P4 1700 since the RDRam platform was phased out I couldn't upgade.

 

[fishmahn]

You are correct, AMD has not and will not upgrade the XP (socket A) platform any more. They are still good budget systems, but if you want to piecemeal upgrade (a piece here, a piece there) you will need to get a socket 939 mobo. Even socket 754 has topped out its upgrade path at the 3700+. Maybe a sempron may come out faster than that for socket 754 later, but I doubt it.

You won't need new ram if you were to upgrade from an XP system, but you will need a new mobo/cpu, as long as you bought pc3200 ram in the first place. This assumes that AMD doesn't jump on the DDR2 or DDR3 bandwagon any time soon. (I personally doubt they'll do DDR2, but DDR3 might be AMD's next step - just a guess though)

And, IMO, if you're doing the piecemeal upgrade path, then hold out on a new mobo until the nForce 4 & Pci-express mobos for 939 come out so you can have somewhere to go with your video card. Of course, you won't be able to use any AGP cards any more then...

Mike.

 

[jammydodger]

This is why I recommended getting an athlon64. AMD are phasing out socket A so there will be no chance for future upgrades unless you upgrade CPU, motherboard (and probably graphics card thanks to PCI-e).
I really think a socket 939Athlon64 3000+ and a socket 939 motherboard would be a better combination.

Its better to spend a little more money and know you wont have to upgrade for a while.