If people are wondering.....

[Magorian]

Where I am, pull up and chair and hear my story of woe

 My graphics card....well blew up just after christmas, since my birthday was coming up, my dad instructed me to wait on buying a new one so he could get me one, to help him decide which one to get, he enlisted the help of someone who "knew about these sort of things", sure enough, 2 days ago the new graphics card arrived, a rather heavy and impressive Geforce 8800 GTS

 However, we have a two fold problem in that my motherboard does not accommodate PCI express slots meaning I can't plaug it in, and I have a VGA output monitor to a DVI graphics card, so without a connector I couldn't plug it in anyway! Anyway, without a graphics card i'm anable to play, just thought i'd check in with those still on the boards, i've not dissapeared

[Naaman]

Nice card

All the ones I've had included a DVI > VGA adaptor, if not they're easy enough to find http://www.amazon.co.uk/s/ref=nb_ss_w_h_?url=search-alias%3Daps&field-keywords=dvi+to+vga+adaptor&x=0&y=0


So what's the plan for the rest of the system? Chance to do a good upgrade\minimal upgrade or return the card and get an AGP one?
(like these - the Nvidia AGP cards are a little lacklustre)
http://www.scan.co.uk/Index.aspx?NT=1-0-94-268-0

[Magorian]

yeh thats really the decision i've got to make, i'm thinking given my processor current power (it's an old athlon 3400+ I believe), it's probably worth a total motherboard rehaul with a processor in it, dual core's are not too bad price wise, any advise where to look? Or even what to look for TBH, pretty out of the loop with anything that techy

[Naaman]

What other games do you play, WoW is fairly undemanding but if you like your shiny First Person Shooters you'll need a beefier system

What's your budget? I specced a good solid middle range PC for £350 (less without graphics card) and my current build put me out £750 (original spec - there were some warranty issues combined with impatience )

Are you able to build yourself, know people who do or are able to bring the bits to Redhill?


For bit's I'd recommend Scan, never had problems with them and sourcing from one place makes it logistically easier. They also build under the 3XS brand using full retail components, not iffy OEM stuff, and there's a fair amount of customisation available (This is a not bad budget model - http://3xs.scan.co.uk/ShowSystem.asp?SystemID=746) and unless you have some freaky ass software you absolutely need then Vista is fine but pay the extra pound for 64 bit and grab 4Gb of RAM.

[Magorian]

Well, I want something which will last me a while, i'm thinking ideally that it will run diablo 3 as and when it comes out, but I figured i've scored the largely expensive parts so it shouldn't be too much.

  i'm happy putting  system together myself, it's really just slotting stuff in, plus it means I can reuse anything in my current computer (I got a 2 gig ram stick and the graphics card I guess) I dunno if it's decidedly cheaper or if buying the whole system will make it cheaper since i'm buying it all, I think pretty much all I need is a motherboard and processor, maybe another 2 gig ram stick, depends how much we're looking at,

[Naaman]

Given that your old system has an AGP slot I can guarantee that you'll be unable to use your RAM.

For a fairly cheap upgrade here's what I'd go for;

Motherboard
Processor
Memory
Heatsink Heatsink and goop.

One other thing that may be required is a beefier power supply, this is a good one, off brand but identical to Asaka and modular which is really handy

[Twylyte]

You're in the zone John - you know that don't you!!

Mark

[Naaman]

You're in the zone John - you know that don't you!!

Mark

This is sleepwalking for me 

[Magorian]

ok well thats around the 200 quid marker, I never put in a processor myself or a heatsink above it but I guess it's not that difficult

 Cheers for that Nam, muchly appreciated   

[Hercule]

Installing a heatsink/processor is not really Difficult, although its costly if you get it wrong.

You will need some thermal paste - sometimes comes with the heatsink - I always buy a tube use it once and then loose it - so if you know anyone that does this sort of thing they normally have a tube or 2 lying around.

You need to make sure that your processor has the  correct amount of pins for your motherboard - for example a socket 939 Mobo needs a 939 Chip etc...

The Chip will only slot in one way and normally has 1 etched corner so you can see which way rownd it needs to go. Normally it will have a locking mechanism to, so all you do is lift the arm up, stick the chip in and close the arm, if you feel you have to put pressure on the chip to get it to go in, then you are doing it WRONG you will never have to exert force when inserting a chip.

no when putting the heatsink in, thats when you need force. i believe they are easer to connect now, you used to have to use a flat head screwdriver to connect it.

Plenty of videos on the net though about how to install a cpu

[Naaman]

Hmmm - changed the heatsink in the original post, new one is definitely rated for the AM2+ socket (it's also awesome, I have the Intel version)

Another thing to check is the Scan Today Only deals, if you're patient they often do a good mobo\CPU\RAM combo

Putting it together will be easy, Gigabyte board so it comes with a large poster with lots of pictures. Both it and the processor are AM2+ so if you want a faster processor just look for that.

The heatsink (are far as I can see) still uses clips on the AM2 boards so some leverage tool will be required - pliers are preferable but if you have to use a screwdriver get the widest blade possible, that way it can't slip out of the cage and gouge the mobo.

 Thermal paste is included on the list (goop) so you'll have to remove the pad that comes stuck on (if you know someone who uses a Zippo the fuel is a good solvent)

Read the bit from Herc again about slotting in the processor