Help - Father's Day PC - < $500

[EyeOfThe]

Hey, where is the best PC system w/o Monitor I can get for under 500 bucks?

I seen a few on Mwave.com - what's better - the cheapo AMD 1.3 Mhz or the cheapo Intel 1.3 Mhz?

Thanks

 

[CrazySaint]

A 1.3GHz Duron will smoke a 1.3GHz Celeron. Also, if you're willing to build the case yourself, you can build a noticably better system for about the same cost (actually spec'd out a system at newegg.com). The system I spec'd had an Asus A7N266-C, which is a pretty nice board with onboard graphics and sound that should be far superior to whats on the MWave box. The system also uses DDR RAM instead of SDRAM. It also has a decent Enermax case. Overall, the system I spec'd should be a lot faster, more solid, and more feature-packed than the mWave system.

 

[etalns]

AMD Athlon XP 1500+/266 FSB PROCESSOR - $77
SHUTTLE AK31A AMD K7 VIA APOLLO KT266A DDR SOCKET A ATX MOTHERBOARD - $59
KINGSTON KVR266X64C25/256 256MB 32x64 PC2100 DDR RAM - $45
ENLIGHT MICRO ATX CASE - $45
CREATIVE LABS SOUND BLASTER LIVE! 5.1 - $32
ASUS CD-S520 52X CD-ROM DRIVE - $28
Seagate Barracuda IV ST340016A 40gb 7200rpm EIDE - $73
Microsoft Windows XP Home Edition - Full Version - $90
1.44" disk drive - $10
ATI RADEON 7000 32MB SDR NO TV OUT AGP - $29

Total cost= $488.00

Now, this is assuming that you put the computer together yourself, whether or not your interested in doing this is all up to you.

This system will blow both the systems you listed straight out of the water.

(edit: All prices listed are Neweggs prices, shipping is applicable)

 

[EyeOfThe]

Holy Cow...

Thanks for the info!!!

I think I will build this box - it will be great practice for the box I wanna build for myself - but I don't have to worry about breaking anything since it's all cheap stuff!

Do I have to order anything else like fans and that paste stuff?

P.S. Does NewEgg charge tax? What might the shipping cost? I'll take a look and see if I can find out...

 

[EyeOfThe]

Hmmm - I was just thinkin, I can cannibalize some of the parts from my Dad's old PC, right?

It's an old AMD 350 Mhz, but I figure I can use the:

Floppy drive
CD-ROM
CD-Burner (we installed that like 6 months ago)
Mouse, Keyboard, Monitor of course
There is also a USB card that I had to install in order to get the scanner to work... I can move that into the new box too.
The wires/cables?
The power supply? ...Does that case mentioned come with a PS? ...How many watts would this system need?
Oh yeah, I need to be able to install the card for the cable modem too... Does that mobo mentioned allow for me to install a cable modem and a USB card (or is the USB built in?)

Actually, It might be nice to have firewire. My Dad mostly does his digital camera stuff on the computer, while my little bro surfs the web and downloads music. Firewire might be cool to have when he is uploading the 128MB digcam card.

 

[EyeOfThe]

 

[88]

This should work

Floppy drive
CD-ROM
CD-Burner (we installed that like 6 months ago)
Mouse, Keyboard, Monitor of course

This you shouldn't need

There is also a USB card that I had to install in order to get the scanner to work... I can move that into the new box too.
The wires/cables?

This would cause you problems

The power supply? ...Does that case mentioned come with a PS? ...How many watts would this system need?
Get a "good" (I use Antec but there are other choices) PSU 350 or better (400 perferedly)

Oh yeah, I need to be able to install the card for the cable modem too... Does that mobo mentioned allow for me to install a cable modem and a USB card (or is the USB built in?)
Just get a network card and yes all current boards support USB to my knowledge.

 

[Pheran]

Yup, you should be able to reuse some of those parts. Whether or not you can reuse the power supply and case will depend on whether or not they are ATX (older cases and PSUs may be 'AT' style). I'm assuming that the only reason you need the USB card is because the old system has no builtin USB ports so you shouldn't need it anymore on the new system. Here's my alternative Newegg proposal:

Enlight EN-7250 Case w/ 300W PSU $46
Abit NV7-133R Motherboard $89
AMD Athlon XP 1700+ (Retail) $95
Crucial 256M PC2100 RAM $43
Seagate Barracuda IV 40G HD $73
Visiontek Xtasy GeForce2 GTS-V 32M $45

TOTAL: $391 plus $39 shipping to NJ = $430

That leaves you extra room to buy software (Windows) or upgrade some pieces. I chose the Abit nForce board for the low cost, good integrated audio, 4 IDE channels (even if you don't use the RAID), onboard ethernet, and USB 2.0. Let me know if you have any questions.

 

[JarrettNZ]

For that system, I don't think need anything more than 300W. Your won't need the cables because most motherboards from with the ata , floppy cables.

 

[JarrettNZ]

Case - ANTEC Performance PLUS Model PLUS660 with Antec Original TRUE P4 Power Supply 330Watt $91
Motherboard - Asus A7N266-VM NVIDIA nFORCE 220 Chipset 266/200MHz FSB $77
CPU - AMD Athlon XP 1800+/266 FSB PROCESSOR CPU - RETAIL $105
Memory - CRUCIAL MICRON 256MB 32x64 PC 2100 DDR RAM $43
Hard Drive - MAXTOR 40GB 7200RPM Model # 6L040J2 -D740X $72

Total so far is $388, but I suggest getting a new keyboard and mouse. They can't make a huge difference in how you use a computer. Don't need video or sound because they are built in. "Oh yeah, I need to be able to install the card for the cable modem too... " Sounds like you want to install a LAN card, you don't need to because it is bulit in. They are newegg prices but I suggest looking at local computer stores but shipping on things like the case are too much. Does the digicam support Firewire in the first place? If it does add a firewire card. Then you still need to buy a OS.

FIREWIRE IEEE 1394 CONTROLLER CARD - RETAIL BOX $25

 

[EyeOfThe]

Questions -

Is it ok to get OEM stuff... like the CPU for example?
It looks like the 1800+ is at the sweet spot price-wise... that is, there is a bigger gap in price to the 1900+.
Is the sound on these mobos with built-in sound GOOD-sound or is it bare-bones-sucky-sound? (It only has to be good enuf to listen to downloaded MP3's which would then be burnt onto CD's and played on other equipment)
Does the case come with fans or do I need to get some?
Does the cpu come with fan/cooler/heatsink/paste or do I need to get some?

I'm going to be visiting my folks for 4th of July weekend, so I guess I got some time to watch prices drop. I'll ship the parts to my folks in NY in advance and then build it over the weekend.

Thanks

 

[Pheran]

It should be noted that the video and memory performance on the nForce 220 solution will be substantially worse than the nForce 415+GTS-V due to the GeForce2 MX core and integrated graphics eating up system memory bandwidth.

 

[Pheran]

The difference between the OEM and retail CPU is that the OEM one does not include any heatsink/fan unit. So if you buy the OEM you need to get a separate heatsink/fan. I agree that the 1800+ is the sweet spot for price/performance right now, I was just trying to keep the cost down.

The sound on the nForce chipset is very good, probably the best integrated sound on the market. The Abit NV-133R even comes with the bracket with an SPDIF connector for Dolby Digital output.

I believe the Enlight case on my quote already comes with a case fan.

 

[manko]

I just picked up an Emachine with an Athlon XP 1600+ for a friend. It was $599 after rebate at BestBuy. He already had a Geforce 3, so we just popped that in and he had a decent system. It was a few hundred bucks cheaper than a newegg 1800+ system I speced out for him and it will save me a lot of support hassles...

http://www.emachines.com/products/products.html?prod=eMachines_T1600

Specifications
CPU: AMD Athlon? XP processor 1600+ (QuantiSpeed? architecture)
Chipset: VIA KM 266
Memory: 256 MB DDR (PC 2100)
Hard Drive: 40 GB HDD
Optical Drives: 24x10x40x Max. CD-RW Drive;
3.5" 1.44MB FDD
Video: S3 ProSavage8 (integrated)
(1 AGP slot available for upgrade)
Sound: AC '97 Audio
Modem: 56K* ITU v.92 ready Fax/Modem
Network: 10/100Mbps built-in Ethernet
Ports/Other: 4 USB ports (2 on front), 1 Serial, 1 Parallel, 2 PS/2, Audio In & Out, MIDI/Game port, Mic-In & Head Phone jack on front, 3 PCI slots (2 available)
Peripherals: Keyboard, Wheel Mouse, Amplified Speakers
Dimensions: 7.25"w x 14.125"h x 16"d

 

[JarrettNZ]

It should be noted that the video and memory performance on the nForce 220 solution will be substantially worse than the nForce 415+GTS-V due to the GeForce2 MX core and integrated graphics eating up system memory bandwidth.

Yeah I know that but I don't see anything intense like gaming in his specs.

 

[CrazySaint]

"Does the cpu come with fan/cooler/heatsink/paste or do I need to get some?"

The OEM CPU only has the CPU. The retail CPU comes with a HS/F and a thermal pad (not paste). Its not the best solution, but its adequate if you aren't going to overclock the system.

"Is the sound on these mobos with built-in sound GOOD-sound or is it bare-bones-sucky-sound?"

The nForce chipset has very good integrated sound (approx. on par with a SB Live!)