Help please with desktop PC Purchase

Marcus Geezer

Marcus Geezer

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Marcus
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My old AMD Athlon 64 based PC has now frustrated me to the point that it needs to be updated. I've had it now for longer than I can remember and after various upgrades it has now got to the point where it is deffo creaking at the seams, even running CS2.

I'm looking at upgrading to CS4 or CS5 asap and so need to look at a new PC.

Two things.

Spec: I don't need the latest all signing all dancing cutting edge spec, just want something that will work well. Was looking at something like dual core 3.0ghz, 4Gb Ram, 1Gb video card, and was hoping if anyone could advise if this is about the right level I should be aiming for.

Where?: Can anyone recomend a place to buy where I can get quality products but a good deal?



Thanks..
 
Hello. Take a look at at mesh computers web site. I purchased mine from there :) you can either buy a certain spec model or they can build you one to the level / price you want. I've had mine nearly a couple of years and it's never given me any bother at all.
 
Or Dell normally seem reasonable..

If you do a lot of PS, it is multithreaded so more cores may be better (just upgrading from dual core 3GHz/8G RAM to i7 quad core/multi-thread & 16G RAM - the box with most of the bits in arrived as I was replying to this post :D)....

Can you build your own? It's quite easy...
 
Marcus, how do you feel about a self build? It's surprisingly a piece of ****.

Budget? Oh, and 4gb RAM will be bare minimum if you're sticking Win7 on it. I just get buy with 8 gbs.
 
Thanks everyone for posting. Having done some initial browsing for the sort of spec I'm after I think a budget of £400 is reasonable, and Dean I have no problem with the build, just a confidence with regards to setting up all the drivers, software, etc, so it works seamlessly.

Previous browsing has shown that buying seperate compenents is more expensive than buying a pre-built due to the fact that the manufacturers get bulk buy discounts. I'll start to have a look and see how it works out. Recomend a place or places to buy the components?
 
ebuyer if you're building your own. Nearly always comes out the cheapest when I do mine.

Yes, you may be able to buy built cheaper, but invariably the specs aren't as good as you'd put together yourself.
 
I'd like to build my own and I've just looked at this against a pre-built and it still seems a touch more expensive, but, when it comes to fixing and upgrading, at least you know what you have.

Food for thought guys so thank you. Looks like I need to become an instant expert on same basic PC stuff as well such as what motherboard, drive types etc, if I'm to build my own.
 
I'll have a look. I'm looking also at somehow cannablising parts from my existing PC.

New question....! :)

It's currently has an AMD Athlon 64 processor, so can I just take out the existing motherboard / processor / RAM, and put in a dual core AMD processor / motherboard / RAM and then just carry on using it with my existing Windows XP setup?
 
Marcus Geezer said:
so can I just take out the existing motherboard / processor / RAM, and put in a dual core AMD processor / motherboard / RAM and then just carry on using it with my existing Windows XP setup?
Click to expand...

maybe, maybe not. when you replace something that significant it wont have all of the correct drivers etc to work properly. windows might struggle through and boot allowing you to sort that out. however it might not and itll blue screen all over the shop.

personally when replacing something like a motherboard id always do a fresh install of windows.

i replaced a motherboard in my desktop on a warranty claim not so long ago, same model but slightly different revision.. even that bluescreened.
 
neil_g said:
personally when replacing something like a motherboard id always do a fresh install of windows.
Click to expand...
Yup. Backup your data, and reinstall. It would probably be worth picking up another drive anyway if you weren't planning on doing so - 1TB drives are only £45 on ebuyer.

You will also need to make sure that the power supply is up to it (both wattage and connectors - it's probably is OK, but worth checking especially if you've not got SATA drives in your current box) and that the board will fit in the enclosure (they tend to be standard - either ATX or mATX). You may need to pick up a couple of convertors and cables for £10-£20, but other than that, you're good to go.

If you're capable with re-installing software/drivers, the hardest bit is actually making sure the heatsink is placed well!
 
Thanks gents.

Been looking up on the wonderful t'internet about just upgrading my processor for the moment as I feel if I have to spend beyond a certain level I might as well just go the whole hog and buy/build a new pc. My motherboard is an MSI-7093 which takes a 939 chip and it seems that I can go up to an Athlon 64X2 4200+ as long as my bios is up to date, where with some extra RAM this may solve immediate probs. Any thoughts as to whether this is a good idea?
 
Marcus Geezer said:
Thanks gents.

Been looking up on the wonderful t'internet about just upgrading my processor for the moment as I feel if I have to spend beyond a certain level I might as well just go the whole hog and buy/build a new pc. My motherboard is an MSI-7093 which takes a 939 chip and it seems that I can go up to an Athlon 64X2 4200+ as long as my bios is up to date, where with some extra RAM this may solve immediate probs. Any thoughts as to whether this is a good idea?
Click to expand...

That's the processor I use just now, together with 4Gb RAM it's still fairly quick.

The problem is the 939 is just about ancient history these days.

As is the DDR RAM !
 
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Mikesphotaes said:
That's the processor I use just now, together with 4Gb RAM it's still fairly quick.

The problem is the 939 is just about ancient history these days.

As is the DDR RAM !
Click to expand...

Ebay are selling these processors for not a lot, but the RAM is another thing all together, where it still seems to sell for near enough going rate.

If this costs me less than £100 to upgrade I'm gonna go for it and also do an OS re-install to get rid of all the rubbish that hides itself and slows it down. If I can't I'm gonna cut my losses and invest in a new machine.
 
Also worth having a look at the Dell outlet website, you can sometimes get good deals on the site.
 
e buyer have 2 x 1Gb for just over £60 so you might be struggling.

My advice would be to go for a new machine.
 
New PC definitely...
 
Marcus Geezer said:
Thanks everyone for posting. Having done some initial browsing for the sort of spec I'm after I think a budget of £400 is reasonable, and Dean I have no problem with the build, just a confidence with regards to setting up all the drivers, software, etc, so it works seamlessly.

Previous browsing has shown that buying seperate compenents is more expensive than buying a pre-built due to the fact that the manufacturers get bulk buy discounts. I'll start to have a look and see how it works out. Recomend a place or places to buy the components?
Click to expand...

What you get with your own build is the ability to install a decent MOBO and power supply. Vitually every OEM PC will have a cheap crap PSU and you really don't wanna cut corners there.
 
Have a look at one of the AMD dual core black editions, eg the Phenom X2 550 BE.

Stock speed is 3.1GHz,
6Meg of L3 cache
It is an AM3 cpu but will fit AM2 and AM2+ motherboards,
It is a black edition so the mutilpier is unlocked so if you want to overclock it, it will be easy.
About £65 -£70

Dave
 
OZC Stealthstream
That brings us to about £310.

Pick up a GPU from ebay for about 40 quid and the rest for any old case.

Grab your DVD writer from your current build. Job is a goodun.

You really can't go wrong with drivers etc. They'll come with the gear.
 
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The23rdman said:
Athlon quad
Asus mobo
2x OCZ
Seagate HDD
How much is that so far?
right, that's £262. You now need a GPU, case, PSU...
Click to expand...

The23rdman said:
OZC Stealthstream
That brings us to about £310.

Pick up a GPU from ebay for about 40 quid and the rest for any old case.

Grab your DVD writer from your current build. Job is a goodun.

You really can't go wrong with drivers etc. They'll come with the gear.
Click to expand...

I'll need an OS such as windows 7 for about £70 as well plus my DVD is knackered but at £20 aint much. Total price about £440.

I'll have a look at this I think. Thanks for taking the time to look at this for me Dean.

Edit: GPU?
 
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