PC Pals Forum
Technical Help & Discussion => Self Building, Upgrading & General Hardware Help => Topic started by: Tony on August 23, 2006, 16:29
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right since I have been absent for a bit :roll: [but I still keep in contact with my lovely Lancashire Lass ] I want to know what Bro has built himself since I have been absent ?
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Sorry to disappoint, Bruv, but the last one must have been built too professionally, as it's still going strong! :D
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:D :D
thats funny I'm still on the same one from the same firm.......Chuck Brothers or something....... when was that August /September 2002 ?
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Absolutely! The only thing I have upgraded recently (today, in fact), is Mozilla 1.7.13 to Sea Monkey 1.0.4. Stupid bloody name, but it's where Moz is going.
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I'm up grading a bit since I've just bought a new mini DV camcorder, and editing the files take up alot of resources. So far i've added a firewire card, ordered a dual layer DVD burner, and a 200GB HHD.
It could do with another 512MB of memory and a bigger CPU to be honest to cut the "rendering" time down. [currently Athlon XP 2000+ l2 256 KB with on stick of 512MB DDR PC2700 memory
Do I go for a new board and CPU, or uprade to the board Bios max CPU Athlon XP 3000+ Barton core with a L2 512 KB. Still avaliable new on Ebay but in short supply and not cheap. But I built a PC for a mate in 2003 with the Athlon XP 2500+ Barton, and it was fast compared to mine.
I reckon with the 3000+ I would be sorted for a long time as my normal requirements take little CPU resources and only around 300/350K in memory
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Glad to hear you are alive and kicking Tony! 8-)
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:D old dogs and all that Clive.........
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Absolutely! The only thing I have upgraded recently (today, in fact), is Mozilla 1.7.13 to Sea Monkey 1.0.4. Stupid bloody name, but it's where Moz is going.
Sea Monkey....I'll have to have a look at it.....but I'm well happy with Firefox/ Thunderbird. Got these lovely plugins that Zap signatures.....Sandra's because it scares me to death when you run the mouse over it. Mind you I've left Lona's alone because the music is well ......nice :D ...How you doing you Old Scottish Broiler :wink:
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Have to admit, I'm a but out of date with components and stuff. I tend to work on a need to know basis. When I want to upgrade, I'll need to know about Barton Core's. ;)
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Bartons are already virtually obsolete Simon.
If you upgrade your mobo then I doubt that you would be going for a barton one now but they are ok for what Tony has in mind :)
Its getting even more confusing now with Intels new core duo 2 as the actual processor speed is quite low yet it claims to be the fastest CPU ever :?
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but I still keep in contact with my lovely Lancashire Lass
What about your wee Scottish friend. I was down to see you a few weeks ago and you never bothered your *rse coming to see me. :wink:
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I was car less you old crow [ borrowed from the Irn Bru advert] anyway a little birdie told me you wouldn't go out in a Air Conless car :wink: or you could have come and seen me :D
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Have to admit, I'm a but out of date with components and stuff. I tend to work on a need to know basis.
Me to Simon
When I want to upgrade, I'll need to know about Barton Core's. ;)
The "barton" core CPU's are no longer manufactured Simon, but they are the fastest CPU that you can fit on a Socket A board [which you and I have both got]
After you have reach MoBo upgradeabilty max, you have then to invest in a new MoBo if the max size of CPU ain't bigger enough for your needs. And if you buy a new MoBo, do you go for one with PCI-Express of stay with the AGP slot offerings, otherwise your into a new graphics card as well.
The 3000+ Barton route will be the cheaper option, and as I don't use my PC for gaming, it will forfill my needs for many years to come.
Edit:
My PC will do all I need of it regards "rendering" video files as is, but the CPU is running at 100% and I'm just over my Free Memory at times. Meaning the time it takes the "rendering" process could be cut with more Free memory and a bigger CPU. But there again it ain't as if I'm doing loads of them. The actual editing takes very little resources, it's the file conversion [rendering] that takes the time. Then when that is done its a quick burn to disk. So whilst the rendering is going on you just go and talk to the Wife.....or something like that :D
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It's probably a question of part laziness, and part no longer having the spare time I used to. If I were to try out a new PC, I expect I would be amazed at how much faster it was than mine, but at the moment, mine does all I want it to do, at a speed which is acceptable to me, so if it ain't broke... ;)
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Well I was having a rummage around my PC folder, and came across this little jem. It's a note to a guy who saw a PC I had just built for a friend, so he ordered one from me as well. Now this was exactly three years ago [August 2003] And just shows you how the spec and component prices have moved on, along with the then observations as to future needs.
Now I never go for the latest CPU's because the price premium is horrendous. And what would a Dual layer DVD writer, and 200GB HHD costing £73 in total [delivered] today. Have cost back then if they had been avaliable ?
But like Simon sez, PC's built three years ago can still do a good job today. And today £73 allows you to have a large HHD and a DVD burner upgrade. And possibly £26 on another half gig of DDR 333MHz Free Memory [£65 back in 03, and £105 back in 02]
Hi Joe,
I have today ordered the components for your PC, but first I phoned Cath this morning to check you still wanted it, and she informed me that you made out the cheque for £500, you?re a bugger. Like I said if you?re a mate of Brookie?s I consider you as mate of mine. As I have received more from you than I agreed to build the computer for, you?ll just have to accept a higher spec PC from me.
I have ordered a more expensive motherboard to accept the very latest 8xAGP graphics cards, instead of one supporting 4X AGP like Brookie and I have in our PC?s. [AGP stands for Accelerated Graphics Processor]
I have also upgraded the CPU size from an AMDXP2000+ to AMDXP2200+ Incidentally the new motherboard will take a XP3000+ CPU. No home PC needs a 3GB CPU, and in any case they are over 400% dearer yet only 50% bigger in Gigabyte capacity than a XP2000+ But they will not always be that price, the ?Boy Racer? mugs pay a premium just to have the latest biggest chip, even though they wont see any improvement in their games. I know a lad on a technical forum I?m a member of, he put in a new motherboard so he could doubled his CPU size [at great expense] and noticed no difference in the speed of his PC., it was on top of the job as it was, he he.
XP2000+ CPU?s are 43% cheaper today than they were when I bought mine last September, so when XP3000+ CPU?s come down from over £212 to say £50, you can consider upgrading to a bigger chip if you want, but a 2.2GB chip will handle anything you are likely to throw at it..
And last but not least, pointless upgrading to an 8xAGP motherboard, if we are installing a Radeon 7000 64MB DDR 4xAGP graphics card????so I?m putting in a Radeon 9100 128MB DDR 8xAGP graphics card. Now this graphics card is for serious gamers, it will kick ass as they say. And any one wanting to do intensive graphics or photo editing will find this card makes the job that much faster, and DVD films will be that more pleasurable. Coupled with Abobe Photoshop version 7, the latest photo/graphical editing suite that the professionals use. You will have an excellent well balanced PC, capable of fulfilling your needs for years to come.
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What I have also found, Tony, is that the price of shop bought PC has dramatically come down, and to build your own, at the spec of the high street machines (forgetting the quality of the parts), is now financially uneconomical. Try telling Joe Bloggs that he will get a much better PC for his money, by spending the same getting one hand built, as he would by buying one from the high street, but it might not be quite such an up to date spec, and he doesn't want to know!
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Totally agree Simon, it's only really worth doing it for yourself.
Anyway, change of plan, I have looked at costs of upgrading on the existing board, as against going AMD64 3700+ 2.2 GHz IMB Cache on a new MOBO
And for about £50 extra I can have a much faster new 64 bit set up. PLUS have my existing set up in a case with a HHD loaded and ready, as a back up machine. I would just need to pop my graphics and memory chips in to it.
I'll give you exact costings if I decide to do it.....it's that satifaction thing you get from building your own machine.
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Simon to back up what we were saying regards off the shelf PC's you can get a good spec AMD 64 3700+ PC for £531 with XP installed. And a a PCI-Express ATI RADEON X700 SE with up to 512MB HyperMemory Graphics card. LINK (http://tinyurl.com/gwvuu)
As I wanted an AGP x 8 Socket 939 mobo to take my two Dual head cards [one AGP, one PCI] And as Socket 939 mobo's with 1 AGPx8, 5xPCI slots are like rocking horse poo, I thought I better move up to the AMD 64 CPU now. Plus I get L2 1GB with that chip as against L2 512MB on the Barton CPU. Much better for the video editing....that new camcorder is costing more than I thought :wink:
The CPU, Heat Pipe Fan Cooler, Mobo, and 1GB DDR PC3200 400MHz memory came to £157.
Just doing a 3000+ Barton CPU upgrade, new HSF, with another 512MB of 333MHz memory, would have cost me £130. So £27 differance, and by putting my exsisting set up [minus graphics cards] in a cheap £22 case it comes to £49 differance. That way I will also have a spare back up rig, packed away in a box :D
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In the bad old days I thought nothing of paying £1500 for a PC but now it seems that quite reasonable spec machines can be had for under £400 if I'm not mistaken. I'm sure the graphics cards are bottom of the range but I'm sure they would fit the bill for most purposes.
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I have just spent nearly a grand on a new bed, so at the moment, a new PC is a long way down the road!
Tony, that link doesn't work, but yes it does prove the point. What people also forget, when considering a quote for a personal build, is that Windows XP will add about £60 to the final total - which they see as getting for nothing with an off the shelf PC. Of course, it doesn't matter that they get the full installation CD with a personal build. :roll:
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I have just spent nearly a grand on a new bed, so at the moment, a new PC is a long way down the road!
Tony, that link doesn't work, but yes it does prove the point. What people also forget, when considering a quote for a personal build, is that Windows XP will add about £60 to the final total - which they see as getting for nothing with an off the shelf PC. Of course, it doesn't matter that they get the full installation CD with a personal build. :roll:
Sorted Simon, its the third PC spec down on that page.
Clive I Know it's mind boggling, only thing going up these days would appear to be house prices :D
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Sorry Bruv, the link is still not working. All I get is a 404 error page. Try posting it in full - perhaps TinyURL is doing something to it? :dunno:
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Sorry Bruv, the link is still not working. All I get is a 404 error page. Try posting it in full - perhaps TinyURL is doing something to it? :dunno:
Aspire EXXX series (http://www.shopacer.co.uk/sess/utn;jsessionid=1544edcf1046d7b/shopdata/Desktops/Consumer+PCs/Aspire+Exxx/product_overview.shopscript?)
Gerrrrrrrrrrrrrronimooooooooooooooo ......nailed the bugger :D
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Just doing a 3000+ Barton CPU upgrade, new HSF, with another 512MB of 333MHz memory, would have cost me £130. So £27 differance, and by putting my exsisting set up [minus graphics cards] in a cheap £22 case it comes to £49 differance. That way I will also have a spare back up rig, packed away in a box :D
Doh the total differance has now grown by another £17 to £66, as the Yank could not confirm his reasonably priced (£38) 1 GB PC3200 Micron [Crucial] memory stick was compatiable with the Mobo. Just told me to check with the mobo maker, but tech support is only geared up to answer questions about faults on their product. No serial number and your not let past GO.
So I went for two 512 MB PC3200 Corsair sticks that were cross referanced on their memory compatiblity selector. I've never had an issue with memory. But the mobo manual cited only two memory modual choices by Samsung, and two by Nanya, and one each by Micron and Infineon. Turns out there are loads of compatible choices in Corsair, Cricial, and Kingston.
Talking of memory faults, an eighteen year old across the road was sw**king his brand new £999 gamer machine from "overclockers " something or other yestereday. It had two 1GB sticks in it, very quite machine, look the part [like Sandra's beast] Anyway I poped back over with some software for him, and he stood in the door way chin on the step, and said...you wont beleive this....I said ...it's brewed up? Turns out it just crashed mid game...Blue screen of death ...error dumping memory.
I said take out a stick see if it works with only either one in. He was not sure so phoned the firm up and they said the same thing. Turns out after reseating the sticks it worked....But it was still slow to me., anyway they came and picked it up today.
Edit: Cost differeance estimates adjusted based on £90 for a new XP3000+ barton core upgrade to existing mobo. With 1 day 23hrs to go on Ebay, a new 3000+ barton is now bid at £77 delivered. Could it reach it reach £100?
Anyway as of now I'll end up with two PC's instead of just one, for an extra £66 pound outlay.
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Nice to see you back Tony :D
This Dell offer has came on today and don't look too bad for £499 delivered.
Specification:
Intel® Pentium® D 805 Dual Core (2.66GHz, 533MHz fsb, 2x1MB cache)
Windows® XP Home
1024MB Dual Channel DDR2 533MHz Memory
160GB (7200rpm) Serial ATA Hard Drive with 8MB DataBurst? cache
16x max. DVD+/-RW Drive
Dell E196FP 19" Flat Panel Monitor
128MB ATI Radeon® X300 SE HyperMemory graphics card
Integrated Audio with Dolby Digital 7.1 capability
http://configure.euro.dell.com/dellstore/config.aspx?b=&c=uk&cs=ukdhs1&l=en&oc=D08515 (http://configure.euro.dell.com/dellstore/config.aspx?b=&c=uk&cs=ukdhs1&l=en&oc=D08515)
As usual with these you have to scroll down and change the cover to "Collect & Return, 1 Year Service only" to get the £499 price
And if you do want 256 video card scroll down some more and select it which adds £23.50 to the total price.
The monitor is the same as i have here and i'm delighted with it
Edit> If you don't want the monitor they are currenty fetching around the £155 + Delivery costs on ebay :wink:
HTH
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Thanks cammy,
thats an excellent deal, especially with a 19" monitor thrown in, suppose they are all built in China like most things are these days.
Only thing I have against Dells are they have very little capacity to upgrade them, but at those prices who needs to :D
I bought a superb 7 piece eucalyptus wood garden set, made in Vietnam. On offer half price in the Spring from Focus. And with my daughters home mover discount card, I got it for £112.50. I also bought an 3 piece aluminium patio set last June, made in China. because we don't actually have a garden in this rented gaff....just a little balcony :D
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Only thing I have against Dells are they have very little capacity to upgrade them, but at those prices who needs to :D
As far as i know it is the 3100 models that aren't upgradable but this is a 5150 model which i'm sure is more flexable...ohhh and upgradable :wink:
But best to check first :cowboy:
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Fire extinguisher thrown in for free? :whistle:
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:pmsl:
:brain:
:D :wink:
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Nice on Clive,
did you know it was on the market news today that Apple are recalling 1.1 million laptop batteries as well................Theres a bloody Chinaman out there somewhere on for a right old bollacking. :D
I bought 2 brand new batteries for my Canon camcorder on Ebay for £11.98 delivered. Exact same battery, color everything, apart from it dont say Canon on it. They are £52.50 each delivered on the website I bought the camcorder from.
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Talking about £77 bid for a 3000+ barton on Ebay with 1day 22hrs to go. Look at this lot as an upgrade LINK (http://tinyurl.com/hcf8n) currently £102 + delivery with 23hrs 20 mins to go. 3200+barton, mobo, 1 GB memory and 160GB HHD. :D
Right I'm off just look at the time :D
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I bought a superb 7 piece eucalyptus wood garden set,
What are those poor little Koalas going to eat if people make furniture out of the source of their food supply :shock:
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I bought a superb 7 piece eucalyptus wood garden set,
What are those poor little Koalas going to eat if people make furniture out of the source of their food supply :shock:
Do they have em in Vietnam@ I thought they where all Orangatans since the US drenched the place in Agent Orange :roll:
Seiously, I "think" :D it had one of those ...."made from sustainable wood sources" Should hope so, as the Skipton store alone had back orders for 52 sets that weekend.
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Do they have em in Vietnam@ I thought they where all Orangatans since the US drenched the place in Agent Orange :roll:
Koalas may like to holiday there and possibly would get the equivalent of delhi belly if they had to eat foreign food :wink:
If they have any agent orange left over could they please send me some as I would like to clear out my back garden, ordinary weed killer just doesnt seem to work efficiently on my jungle :(
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If they have any agent orange left over could they please send me some as I would like to clear out my back garden, ordinary weed killer just doesnt seem to work efficiently on my jungle :(
You could always try the environmentally friendly way and ask Clive to send you a couple of sheep.
Get rid of your jungle, fertilise the garden and have a nice roast. :wink:
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What an excellent plan MB! But don't forget to leave the rosemary bush! Lamb and rosemary were just made for each other. :laugh:
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I semi tamed it on saturday afternoon with the help of a couple of friends and a chainsaw and a machete that I recently bought :)
I was going to post a photo but I dont want to give Lona another heart attack as it looks so different to when she was here a few months ago :D
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Lamb and rosemary were just made for each other.
lets just say you think I wouldn't agree wouldn't you??? :laugh:
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lets just say you think I wouldn't agree wouldn't you??? :laugh:
:doh: I forgot about the mint sauce! :laugh:
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yep mint sauce is always needed.
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Right getting this thread back on track, I finished up doing the new PC for £280 including the cost of a case for my AMD Athlon 2000+ PC, this now being a backup PC. Because I like my original case, as it only requires one screw in the entire PC build proccess. It turned out being just £76 dearer going the new mobo route, than up grading my original computer, plus I ended up with two PC's.
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Nice one bruv! :thumb:
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I semi tamed it on saturday afternoon with the help of a couple of friends and a chainsaw and a machete that I recently bought :)
I was going to post a photo but I dont want to give Lona another heart attack as it looks so different to when she was here a few months ago :D
It will be 3ft high by next year if you don't get out the weedkiller. :D
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If the weeds are only 3 feet high that will be great Lona.
Some were taller than me this year :shock:
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And that's not an exaggeration. :haha: