New Computer Time! Barebone system questions, help!

[Ro]

I know there are some smart people out there who may be able to help walk me through this. I have decided to upgrade my computer situation, and after browsing Ebay the last couple days, discovered "barebone systems." I think this is exactly what I want- I already have new-ish mouse, keyboard, monitor, speakers, CD/DVD burners, webcam, and two external hard drives- just want to upgrade processor, RAM, motherboard (I don't even really know what that is, lol), get some USB 2.0 ports, one of those memory card reader thingys, and a new case/fan (mine sounds like the Calgary Airport and seems to heat up rather quickly).

Here's the barebone system I found on Ebay:

http://cgi.ebay.ca/AMD-Athlon-64-X2-...QQcmdZViewItem

Here are some questions I have:

-If I order that or something like it, will I be able to piece apart my old system and put together this new one?

-Is that a good deal? Is there a better place online to get a barebone system like that?

-How do I know if the CD/DVD drives/burners I have currently will work with a new system? Are they easy to install, or am I going to run into a mess with drivers, updates, etc.? I don't need dual-layer or fancy new drives, do I?

-I don't need a top of the line graphics card. Zero game playing for me. Just surfing, streaming videos, and the occasional divx/avi/DVD. Is the graphics card that comes with that system OK? What would you recommend?

-Is that processor decent enough? Again, not a game player, it's just gonna be web surfing, everyday CPuck user kinda stuff. Making CDs, editing some photos now and then, Microsoft Word, etc.

-Where is the best place to get RAM? I want to put at least 4 GB in this new system (I have a serious open aplication problem).

-Any other accessories/add-ons/upgrades you would recommend?

Any advice at all is greatly appreciated fellas. In the meantime I am going hammering that search function looking for old threads on building your own computer.

[mykalberta]

What do you want this for.

Its fairly limited on its expandability (only 2 internal devices allowed, so 2 HD or 1HD and 1 burner etc) but if you are just looking for something to burn CD's and use word and some light surfing then it should be ok.

I would see if he can change the shipper to USPS else you might get the UPS shaft on brokerage fees.

I would check NCIX to see what they offer, I am sure they would be at least competitive and likely a better deal IMO

[Traditional_Ale]

If you already have:

A Chassis
A Power Supply
A Cd-Rom
A Hard Drive

then for 200 dollars you can build an:

Athlon 64 X 2 - 5200+ (2x 2.8Ghz)
with 2GB of DDR2-6400 RAM
on an ASUS motherboard that has vga, dvi, rgb, and hdmi outputs, supporting both HD and Blue-Ray. It also has USB2.0, Firewire, LAN, and Audio built in.

For an additional 75 dollars, I will put it together for you if you drop it off at my place.

I am currently working on a system as we speak for another CP member.

[llama64]

For what you want in a PC, that looks pretty decent to me. You'll probably want to beef it up with another gigabyte of RAM though. You'll also need to purchase an operating system.

I've got an Athlon XP 3700, which is no where near as powerful as that CPU. It's no Core 2 Duo but for basic computer use, it's good enough for me. I would say the X2 in that system is more then enough for your stated needs.

You'll want a new Hard drive most likely. Given the processor and memory speeds these days, the biggest bottleneck is a slow hard drive. Granted, it adds some extra jobs in migrating to a new PC, but nothing is stopping you from adding your old hard-drive in as a secondary storage device

Your older CD drives should work fine in the new system. XP/Vista will likely have a driver built in they can use without much trouble.

I tend to buy most of my PC stuff at Memory Express (http://www.memoryexpress.com). Decent prices, they don't try to over sell you too much and the sales staff generally have a clue how to turn on a computer. They also sell upgrade systems designed to fit what you are doing, but they are a bit more expensive then the one you linked.

[I_am_Beast]

www.tigerdirect.ca

[Vulcan]

If you want to use 4GB or more of ram, you have to move up to a 64 bit OS as Windows 32 bit only can use a little over 3GB.

[zhulander]

When you factor in the shipping cost it's not that great of a deal unless you like the look of the case. You can get something similarly spec'd from the computer shops in town. What is your budget? From what you say you use your computer for, it's almost better to just buy a dell when they're on sale for around ~$300.

From Bcom:
ASUS M2N-MX SE PLUS SK AM2+ GF6100 M.ATX 2PCI /PCI-E X16/2DDR2,2000/1600 MTS SAT
ASUS M2N-MX SE PLUS SK AM2+ GF6100 M.ATX 2PCI /PCI-E X16/2DDR2,2000/1600 MTS SATA II RAID, LAN, VIDEO, AUD

CA$57.88 x = CA$57.88

RENDITION DDR2 NON-ECC PC2-6400 1024MB DDR2 800MHZ MEMORY RM12864AA80E
RENDITION DDR2 NON-ECC PC2-6400 1024MB DDR2 800MHZ MEMORY RM12864AA80E

CA$25.95 x = CA$25.95

AMD-RETAIL ATHLON 64 AM2 X2 5200+ CPU SOCKET RETAIL BOX
AMD-RETAIL ATHLON 64 AM2 X2 5200+ CPU SOCKET RETAIL BOX

CA$116.88 x = CA$116.88

FOXCONN 17" MID TOWER W/ 400W PS BLK/SIL TLA776
FOXCONN 17" MID TOWER W/ 400W PS BLK/SIL TLA776

CA$57.95 x = CA$57.95

Subtotal:
CA$258.66

[Ro]

OK, great responses everybody, thanks for the replies.

Trad-Ale - Thanks for the offer, but I'm in Sudbury, ON. And I need a new case anyways. But thanks. And that beer you make tastes great.

myk- You say it's limited in its expandability- doesn't it say it has room for 4 internal drives? Or are two of those already taken up? I dunno. But I will consider that when looking at other systems.

Thanks for the links to those online shops, I am browsing them right now and the prices look good. Might just go that route after I scout out what some shops will piece together for me here.

I already have two external hard drives, so I don't need to take up one of the internal bays for a new HD. Right?

Originally Posted by Vulcan

If you want to use 4GB or more of ram, you have to move up to a 64 bit OS as Windows 32 bit only can use a little over 3GB.

Is Windows XP a 64 bit OS? A friend of mine at work has a copy I can have, but I'll have to ditch that plan and go to Vista if it won't. I really do want to put 4 GB of RAM in this thing- I've always skimped on RAM before and always wished I would've put more in.

Zhulander- yeah, I could care less about the tower. I have two main objectives here- use as many of old components as I can to piece together this new system, and try to save some money while doing so. While still beefing up my current config considerably.

If I have any more questions, I'll put them here. Thanks again for the responses.

[Hack&Lube]

Originally Posted by Ro

myk- You say it's limited in its expandability- doesn't it say it has room for 4 internal drives? Or are two of those already taken up? I dunno. But I will consider that when looking at other systems.

We have no idea because we don't know what the inside of that case looks like. Why not buy a new case from a local computer shop in Ontario? The auction says 4x internal 3.5" bays which would cover 4 hardrives or 3 harddrives + floppy drive/card reader

I already have two external hard drives, so I don't need to take up one of the internal bays for a new HD. Right?

Your operating system has to be on an internal harddrive for Windows XP

Is Windows XP a 64 bit OS? A friend of mine at work has a copy I can have, but I'll have to ditch that plan and go to Vista if it won't. I really do want to put 4 GB of RAM in this thing- I've always skimped on RAM before and always wished I would've put more in.

Windows XP is only 64-bit if it's Windows XP 64-bit edition. Also, 64-bit XP has much lower program compatibility and driver compatibility. Just go with 2GB of ram. There is no reason you need 4GB since you aren't gaming.

Zhulander- yeah, I could care less about the tower. I have two main objectives here- use as many of old components as I can to piece together this new system, and try to save some money while doing so. While still beefing up my current config considerably.

In that case, what you are looking at in that auction is not really a barebones computer at all. The computer in that auction is a complete computer aside from not having a harddrive. A barebones computer will not usually include the processor or the ram. If your main goal is to keep as much old harddware as you can, why don't you post what hardware you already have so we can tell you what is best to keep and how you can go about keeping as much to save money and still get a good computer.

[llama64]

From the linked auction:

Case details:
- External 5.25" Bay x 4
- External 3.5" Bay x 1
- Internal 3.5" Bay x 4
- Dimension 18"x7.5"x16.5" (LxWxH)
- 2 x USB 2.0
- 1 X Audio

Seems pretty expandable to me. I wouldn't worry about that part.

And based on personal experience, XPx64 is not worth bothering with. Drivers are nearly impossible to find, and the ones you do find are buggy as all hell.

If you want 64bit, go for Vista or Ubuntu (though linux is worse then XP for driver support). Personally, I've never seen any performance boost between 64bit or 32bit. In a server, yeah, but for a desktop, nah.

[Bobblehead]

There seems to be a common misconception that XP and Vista are 64 bit.

Not true.

There are 64 bit versions of both you can get, but what is included with 99% of all consumer versions is the 32 bit version. If the version you see says x64 it is 64 bit software; and (strangely enough) if it says x86 then it is 32 bit (x86 refers to the instruction set, not the number of bits). (**nerdy explanation, feel free to skip** remember the old pre-pentium computers that were call 286, 386, and 486? The instructions to run those computers processors was called the x86 instruction set. When 64 bit came along, it was initially called x86_64, but then that was shortened to x64)

Really, the only reason to get a 64 bit OS is if you need more than 3.2GB of memory, and unless you are doing professional autocad or rendering or something like that you won't need that much.

[Ro]

Thanks for all the replies everybody. After reading all this and doing some more research on my own, I visited 3 or 4 local shops today and priced out some different systems. I appear to have found a guy who will piece together a pretty sweet AMD quad-core unit with 3 GB of RAM for me, while taking my old DVD burner from my current machine for a little under $600. I will probably go that route, but may try and save a little more money by dumping off my old machine to somebody and trying to find a new hard drive somewhere online for a little less than he wants.

Thanks again for all the great responses, they steered me in the right direction.

[Hack&Lube]

Originally Posted by Ro

Thanks for all the replies everybody. After reading all this and doing some more research on my own, I visited 3 or 4 local shops today and priced out some different systems. I appear to have found a guy who will piece together a pretty sweet AMD quad-core unit with 3 GB of RAM for me, while taking my old DVD burner from my current machine for a little under $600. I will probably go that route, but may try and save a little more money by dumping off my old machine to somebody and trying to find a new hard drive somewhere online for a little less than he wants.

Thanks again for all the great responses, they steered me in the right direction.

List out all the specifics and we'll tell you if it's a good deal