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Computer advice needed once again!
Jan. 21st, 2010 08:07 amAs it seems the graphics card wasn't the only problem but that my motherboard appears to have died well after it became obsolete, my problem scope has now extended to replacing just about the entire base of the computer - CPU, motherboard and case. I'm looking for something that'll last me (as comical a requirement as this might be) but that isn't necessarily top of the range. I'm currently looking at:
ASUS M4A77TD Motherboard (AM3)
This seems to have everything I need on it, and the layout is convenient (PCI Express 2.0 16x that isn't placed too close to the drive sockets, for a start). I was surprised to find just how obsolete my current stuff is, with the lack of a second IDE channel on every motherboard ever now, but I'll just get a lot more use out of my external case, I suppose. If I can fit it back together.
AMD Athlon II X2 250 Dual Core Processor
I used to know about processors, when it was a nice linear scale caused by Intel releasing a new standard every couple of years. Now I basically just spin round twenty times and point at the screen at random. But the socket matches, which is as much as you could hope for, and it comes with a fan as well if my current 939 fan turns out not to fit on to an AM3 socket.
Cooler Master Centurion 5 case
You'd think that a case should at least be an easy choice, but they seem to jump straight from tiny to completely mental, and this is just about the best middle ground I could find. I wanted something slightly bigger than my current case (I measured) because it was getting crowded in there, and this is just about the only one I could see that fit that requirement without including four LED fans and a front display that allowed you to directly control the speed of the processor. The tool-less drive bays are nice, too.
This all adds up to about $200. Basically, what I do with my desktop is some amateur musicianship and development - I'm not after something that can necessarily run games that were released after 2007 or anything, and all of these are an upgrade from my current computer. Do let me know if I'm buying anything completely disastrous.
ASUS M4A77TD Motherboard (AM3)
This seems to have everything I need on it, and the layout is convenient (PCI Express 2.0 16x that isn't placed too close to the drive sockets, for a start). I was surprised to find just how obsolete my current stuff is, with the lack of a second IDE channel on every motherboard ever now, but I'll just get a lot more use out of my external case, I suppose. If I can fit it back together.
AMD Athlon II X2 250 Dual Core Processor
I used to know about processors, when it was a nice linear scale caused by Intel releasing a new standard every couple of years. Now I basically just spin round twenty times and point at the screen at random. But the socket matches, which is as much as you could hope for, and it comes with a fan as well if my current 939 fan turns out not to fit on to an AM3 socket.
Cooler Master Centurion 5 case
You'd think that a case should at least be an easy choice, but they seem to jump straight from tiny to completely mental, and this is just about the best middle ground I could find. I wanted something slightly bigger than my current case (I measured) because it was getting crowded in there, and this is just about the only one I could see that fit that requirement without including four LED fans and a front display that allowed you to directly control the speed of the processor. The tool-less drive bays are nice, too.
This all adds up to about $200. Basically, what I do with my desktop is some amateur musicianship and development - I'm not after something that can necessarily run games that were released after 2007 or anything, and all of these are an upgrade from my current computer. Do let me know if I'm buying anything completely disastrous.
