Low Cost Build Advice Wanted

[Jerrych57]

I'm considering replacing my 6-year-old Celeron PC with a new build. Low cost is a big concern, and it needs to be dependable. The new system needs to be able to run Solidworks with smaller models, and some relatively simple games like C&C and Age of Empires, etc. Limited internet surfing will be done, also.

I have the following parts in my current system (from a Belarc Advisor printout):

Case:
Rosewill R103A - 350W PSU

HDDs:
1) IC35L060AVV207-0 [Hard drive] (61.49 GB) -- drive 1, s/n VNVB01G2C7914E, rev V22OA66A,

2) SAMSUNG SV3064D [Hard drive] (30.61 GB) -- drive 0, s/n 0236J1FN730772, rev PD100-34,

Video:
RADEON 7500 SERIES [Display adapter]

Other drives:
E-IDE CD-ROM 40X/AKU
SONY CD-RW CRX140E [CD-ROM drive]

I'll be scrapping the 700 MHz CPU and MB. Are any of these parts reusable in newer systems?

I've been around PCs since the 386 days, and I can generally keep one going for quite a while with "plug-in" upgrades and restores and so forth (except it's getting harder lately). I'm a total amateur when it comes to system software and compatibility issues. Computers are an interesting, frustrating, sometimes necessary evil to me.

I think the older Intel dual-core processors will work. I nearly pulled the trigger with an all-Intel CPU/MB combo but reading the reviews on the different Intel MBs scared me off. It appears that having both components made by the same manufacturer does not guarantee success. I was thinking of using:

MB: Intel BOXD865
CPU: Intel P4 531 Prescott 3.0GHz

Memory was another puzzle. It seems there are lots of opinions on who makes the best memory. Which brand should I use for reliability without necessarily the "blazingest" performance?

I'm unfamiliar with SATA drives. Is there an article somewhere that describes the hardware changes that have occured in the last few years?

What suggestions do you folks have on what initial direction to go with a system build?

Thanks,

Jerry

[Cricket]

Originally Posted by Jerrych57 I have the following parts in my current system (from a Belarc Advisor printout): Case: Rosewill R103A - 350W PSU HDDs: 1) IC35L060AVV207-0 [Hard drive] (61.49 GB) -- drive 1, s/n VNVB01G2C7914E, rev V22OA66A, 2) SAMSUNG SV3064D [Hard drive] (30.61 GB) -- drive 0, s/n 0236J1FN730772, rev PD100-34, Video: RADEON 7500 SERIES [Display adapter] Other drives: E-IDE CD-ROM 40X/AKU SONY CD-RW CRX140E [CD-ROM drive] I'll be scrapping the 700 MHz CPU and MB. Are any of these parts reusable in newer systems?

You'll probably need to replace the Rosewill PSU as it's probably not a ATX 2.0 model (24 pin motherboard power connector and 4 pin 12v power connector).

You might be able to resuse the video card if you can find a motherboard with a AGP slot.

The drives will work with the new motherboard as long as you have enough IDE controllers or add a PCI IDE controller expansion card.

Originally Posted by Jerrych57 I think the older Intel dual-core processors will work. I nearly pulled the trigger with an all-Intel CPU/MB combo but reading the reviews on the different Intel MBs scared me off. It appears that having both components made by the same manufacturer does not guarantee success. I was thinking of using: MB: Intel BOXD865 CPU: Intel P4 531 Prescott 3.0GHz

Just so you know, the 531 is not a Dual Core processor...but it'll work fine with a 865 based motherboard.

Originally Posted by Jerrych57 Memory was another puzzle. It seems there are lots of opinions on who makes the best memory. Which brand should I use for reliability without necessarily the "blazingest" performance?

Go to the Crucial.com web site and use the memory configurator to find RAM that is guaranteed to work with the motherboard you decide to go with.

Originally Posted by Jerrych57 I'm unfamiliar with SATA drives. Is there an article somewhere that describes the hardware changes that have occured in the last few years?

A Guide to Serial ATA

A Guide to SATA (NO questions, please)

Originally Posted by Jerrych57 What suggestions do you folks have on what initial direction to go with a system build?

First of all, what's your budget?

Cricket

[Jerrych57]

I'm hoping to stay in the $500 range.

-Jerry

[flanzig1]

Mobo:http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16813131048 $104.99
Video card:http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16814102040 $87.99
Ram: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16820146580 $104.99
CPU: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16819115005 $180
PSU: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16817104954 $53.99
Around $530

[schowerpower]

For that price, you may just want to go with a Dell or some other prebuilt. Seems like under a certain price, the big boys have advantage since they buy in volume. It'll be hard to get under $500 when you include the operating system and case...

But don't let me discourage you, I'm bit of novice myself. Just remember to look at all your options.

[Jerrych57]

Looking at flanzig's recommendations, it looks good to me. My current PC has problems opening some links and I can't check the specs on the MB at newegg.com. Does this MB support multiple IDE HDs? Will it work with one memory stick?

So here's the system:

PSU: FSP Group AX450-PN, 12cm FAN, version 2.0, 2 SATA, PCI Express, 450W
MB: ASUS P5LD2 R2.0 Socket T (LGA 775) Intel 945P
CPU: Intel Core 2 Duo E6300 Conroe 1.86GHz 2M sharing L2 Cache LGA 775
RAM: CORSAIR ValueSelect 1GB 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 667 (PC2 5300)
Video Card: SAPPHIRE 100144ADVL Radeon X1600PRO 256MB 128-bit GDDR2 PCI Express x16 CrossFire
HDD 1:SAMSUNG SV3064D [Hard drive] (30.61 GB) -- drive 0, s/n 0236J1FN730772, rev PD100-34,
HDD 2: IC35L060AVV207-0 [Hard drive] (61.49 GB) -- drive 1, s/n VNVB01G2C7914E, rev V22OA66A,
OS: Windows XP - I'll probably just keep my hard drive intact the way it is. Can I just plug it into a new MB, or is there more to it than that?
Guess I'll just keep the case.

I've thought of the low/mid range prebuilts already, but the thought of being tied up with all the proprietary stuff really turns me off. Just a bunch of stuff I neither need nor want for the sake of convenience. Thanks for the suggestions, though. It's good advice.

-Jerry

[newbuilder14]

That list looks fine if you have no interest in overclocking. Be sure to get 2x512mb of memory and not 1x1gb - for performance reasons. Also, if Newegg is still sold out of that power supply you could go with the 400w version or the Xclio 450bl.

[Stevp]

Unfortunetly you'll find that if you just stick your old hard drive in a new system it probably wont work. It might, but its unlikely. Which means you'll probably find yourself having to reinstall windows and your programs. This is a pain i know but its probably going to be unavoidable, so make sure you take backups of your important data before you dismantle your old system. If you have a licensed copy of windows xp and the install cd it shouldnt be a problem installing it to the new system, a quick phonecall to microsft might be necessary to activate though - simple process.

[flanzig1]

Jerry: That mobo does have the dual IDE, that is why I picked it so you can reuse all of your IDE drives. The single 1gig stick is about $5 cheaper than the dual 512 kit. These parts where picked to fit Jerry's budjet and provide good parts.

[Cricket]

Originally Posted by Jerrych57 OS: Windows XP - I'll probably just keep my hard drive intact the way it is. Can I just plug it into a new MB, or is there more to it than that?

Following glc's instructions:

"I'm going to add something here - this has worked for me and saves a lot of time. If all you are going to do is swap out a motherboard or move a 2000 or XP hard drive to another system, try this.

Before shutting down, open Device Manager. Open up the IDE controllers, you will see one or two busmaster controllers. Double click on them and find the Update Driver tab. Do not search, select pick from a list. You will see Standard Dual IDE Controller. Use that one. Doing this will allow the system to boot without getting the usual INACCESSIBLE_BOOT_DEVICE bluescreen.

This is the key to get it to boot. Of course, it would be a very good idea to uninstall the drivers for all components that will not be making the move."

I've done this successfully a few times.

Cricket