Thread: So, getting a "new" computer...

And need a little advice on a few parts.

A friend of mine has an old computer that's been (figuratively) gathering dust for a while, an old 3GHz P4 AGP 4X/8X system. He used to run his own cyber cafe, and he constantly builds and updates his own machine (dude's got like a 28-inch monitor or something like that... my jaw dislocated itself when I saw it for the first time), so I feel safe in trusting him when he says it's in good condition... and he said he'll give it to me for free, besides. Problem is, it needs a video card.

That's not that big of a problem. Even though AGP is outdated, NewEgg and eBay both still have a pretty decent selection available, and there are plenty of DX10.1-compatible models. He said the PSU is 400W (he thinks... we haven't really talked specifics yet, so I gather he hasn't gone out and checked it real close), and I'm not sure if that's enough for what I want to use it for. As far as we're aware, it's got 2 GB RAM and everything else necessary (optical drive, hard drive, etc), so the only thing it really needs is a video card and it should be good to go. I plan on moving my master drive from my current system into the "new" system, and either making it the master after a format (if it's better than the one already in there) or slaving it to the other one (if it's worse.) Not looking forward to moving files on and off and all the fun stuff involved in that :3

We just recently got our quarterly bonus here at work, and I plan on using $200 or so of it to buy the necessary components for the system and pay for necessary shipping.

I spent a little time at Newegg looking at components, and this is what I was thinking of going with:

Sapphire Radeon HD 3650 512MB

I'm not familiar with nVidia's naming conventions or product lines (they don't make any sense at all, unlike ATi), so I didn't check them. What gets me about this is that it has a pretty good customer review rating (4/5 with 69 total reviews), it's at a good price point ($67 after rebate, $74 after rebate and shipping), and because it's DX10.1-compatible, I should be able to run TF2 and other games at something better than 800x600@minimum and still maintain a solid framerate.

I do remember reading something about AGP Radeon HD cards requiring a hotfix patch for their drivers, since I think ATi's stopped supporting AGP officially. There seems to be a patch on the Sapphire site, and there's probably one kicking around somewhere on the ATi site, too. Either way, my ancient 9600XT runs just fine with the newest drivers, so I don't think it'll be an issue.

Rosewill RP500-2 500W PSU

This is if the existing 400W proves insufficient, and depending on how old the existing PSU is, I may get a new one anyway since I've had first-hand experience with what a faulty PSU can do to a system. I'd like to get one of the Energy Star-certified ones with >80% peak efficiency, but I can't justify dropping $80-$110 on a 500W PSU, much less one for a less-than-new system. The Rosewill has a solid customer review rating (5/5 with 307 reviews) and states a >72% efficiency at peak load, so that's not too much lower than the 80% models. It's also a lot more affordable at $50. If a new PSU isn't required (and the existing one is still in good shape), I'll probably just save the $50 and put it towards a new monitor (gotta get rid of the CRT I've been using since my old LCD broke...)

Assuming I need to get the new PSU as well, this leaves me with about $90 free, which I was intending on using on getting a new keyboard and mouse (both my mouse and keyboard are as old as my system, which is a little over 5 years... been using my venerable MX500 for that long!) I'll probably pick a Saitek keyboard and Logitech mouse if so.

Now, if the PSU isn't required, I think I'll take that $50 with the $90 left over, add in a little extra and get a new monitor.

Acer X223Wbd 22" looks like the best option there. It's only $170, and considering it's one a customer satisfaction reward and maintains a 5/5 rating with a megalithic 1739 reviews... I doubt it can be beat in that price range. It also comes with a 3-year warranty, which is nice, since the Westinghouse I was using previously died about two weeks after its one-year warranty expired.

I'd love to be able to just save the $200-odd and just go for a BigDog Box, but it's not in the cards right now. But I think that if the system my bud's got is still in good condition, I can spend those $200 and have a system that'll hopefully last me another year or two until I can get one of those BigDog Boxes. What do you guys think?

I have a 3650 for a 22'' here on the second computer. Cecil hit it on the nose.

get a 4850.

Newegg doesn't have any AGP 4850's available, and I'm not sure if it'd even be worth it on an old format like that. I was just looking for a decently-priced monitor... what would be your suggestion for the 3650 or something similar to it? 20"? 19"?

Looking at resolutions, there's a 1440x900 Acer monitor available for $120 here. The LCD monitor I had previously was a 1280x1024, which isn't a widescreen (and is more expensive because of it... $150.) Do you think a 1440x900 would be more appropriate for the 3650?

EDIT: It's sounding like the PSU thing won't be a problem... my friend's got a 520W sitting around with nothing to do, so we'll probably end up using that. I'll probably get a new monitor while I'm at it and then get the new keyboard and mouse at a later date.

I looked at some more monitors through Newegg, and it looks like Acer B193 19" will be the best option, since 1680x1050 is out according to you guys. Its native resolution is 1440x900 (which seems to be the widescreen equivalent of 1280x1024), and it's 19". It's a lot more expensive than I'd like ($160), but the only other one from a reputable brand I found apparently didn't have DVI connectors - and I'd rather spend the extra $40 and get a DVI-enabled monitor than be stuck with lousy VGA.

I might check eBay and other means, but I didn't see a TTP eBay affiliate link, so I'll probably stick with Newegg.

There were some Hanns-G monitors available for $100-$120, but my understanding is that the brand is cheap and the complaints pretty much matched my experience with the Westinghouse monitor - you get what you pay for, and what you paid for is crap. Acer gets good reviews and it's a lot cheaper than Samsung and ViewSonic, so I guess I'll stick with them.

EDIT: How do I use the TTP affiliate Newegg link? Just click the icon and then proceed as usual and TTP gets credited with it?

So I'm planning on getting the 20" 1440x900 monitor and the AGP 3650. How do I use the Newegg TTP link? Just click on the banner ad and then shop like normal?

If I need to make more than one order to have parts sent to different destinations, do I need to go back and click the link for each individual order?

Will Firefox addons like NoScript and Ad-Block Plus affect the link in any way?

I have a 19"/Nvidia GeForce 8600

I set CoD4 to 1440x900

Soooooo beautiful. I wish I could show you the beauty of it.

Originally Posted by bust331

I have a 19"/Nvidia GeForce 8600

I set CoD4 to 1440x900

Soooooo beautiful. I wish I could show you the beauty of it.

I'm sure I'll enjoy being able to run games at better than minimum settings. I may kick things down to a lower resolution for the more complex ones, depending. The system uses old DDR266 RAM, so it won't be as large an upgrade as if it were DDR400 (or DDR2), but 2GB DDR266 is still better than 512MB DDR400 on a mobo that's falling to pieces (fuck DFI.) I'm not sure where the bottleneck will occur, but I'm expecting it'll be the memory, followed by the CPU (3.06GHz P4.) Hopefully the video card will be able to pick up some of the slack, but I'll be happy if I can run TF2 at low-medium settings and maintain 30+ fps.

EDIT: This doesn't answer my actual questions though - how do I make sure TTP gets the nod when I buy my stuff at newegg?

Do I just use the ad-banner link and make my orders like normal? Do I need to use the link for each individual order? Will Firefox addons like NoScript and Ad-Blocker Plus affect it?