1st time building a computer

RadTech7 · 07-05-2008, 07:33 PM

Hey

I'm currently a college student (also an electronics tech so I'm not completely in the dark

), who has very little money as evidenced by the fact that I'm still milking this hand-me-down system:

Sony Vaio PCV-RX682 (dinosaur, I know)
Mobo - Asus P4B266-LM (OEM to Sony) ATX
CPU - Intel Pentium 4 2.2Ghz sSpec # SL68S
PSU - OEM 280 watts; part # 1-468-601-14
RAM - (2) 512Mb DDR SDRAM PC2100 (133Mhz)
GPU - Geforce2 Ti AGP card
3 3.5" IDE harddrives
1 Pioneer DVR-104 DVD burner
1 Pioneer DVD-117R DVD player

My needs are fairly basic, mostly using Office and watching movies, don't really have time for video games, but even with these basic needs, my system lags

My budget is up to $300. I want to use my old harddrives and DVD drives, so all my software & OS are intact. Here are the components I'm looking at buying:

Intel P4 3.00GHz 800MHz sSpec SL6WK 478 CPU: New System Pull 1 YEAR WARRANTY; on Ebay for $38 from a reliable seller

The rest I found at Geeks.com: (It's all new w/ warranties)
Biostar P4M900-M4 Socket 478 mATX MB $65
10-Bay ATX Computer Case w/550-watt Power Supply $36
2 sticks of Samsung 2GB DDR2 RAM PC2-5300 $90.50
Mad Dog Socket 478 Copper Core Heat Sink & Fan to 3.4GHz $9
Geeks shipping: $25

Grand total: $263.50

So I believe this mobo has connections that fit my old drives. What I don't know is:
1) Do I have to flash the bios myself?
2) Geeks says this mobo has IGP integrated video w/256 MB shared memory; does that mean I don't have to buy a video card?
3) Can I actually just hook up the old harddrives to this new system and expect windows to boot up? That just seems way to easy

4) Compared to what I'm use to, this system seems like a massive improvement and is incredibly cheap - am I crazy?

Thanks for any help!!

**emosun** · 07-06-2008, 02:51 AM

Eh , The system you have now is almost the same. If your just watching movies and doing office work , why not just add another gig of ram to what ya got? Really , your talking about going from a 2.2ghz p4 to a 3.0ghz p4. Its the same cpu only 800mhz faster.

Not to mention I would never buy a 478 cpu nowadays. My dad bougt a pc back in 2001 that had a pentium 4 478 cpu. And 65$ for a 478 motherboard is also a ripoff. Should be 10/20$.

If I were in your situation , I would just add some more ram to the system you have , and redo the OS. It'll run the exact same If your just watching movies and doing office stuff. Will save ya alot of money.

**emosun** · 07-06-2008, 02:52 AM

Oh , and the sony viao os won't work on aftermarket motherboards, you would need a regular non oem version of windows.

**emosun** · 07-06-2008, 03:17 AM

Or you could go with this if you want to spend the money anyway on a new pc.

Barebone kit 174$
http://www.tigerdirect.com/applicati...748&CatId=3446

windows xp 90$
http://www.tigerdirect.com/applicati...2182&CatId=672

heatsink 20$
http://www.tigerdirect.com/applicati...739&CatId=1588

extra ram 20$
http://www.tigerdirect.com/applicati...7&Sku=C19-4266

Then reuse your hdd's and cd drives.

To save money I would just ad the ram to what you have. But this would be a good route if you just want to upgrade anyway. Much more future proof. You could even add a videocard someday and play some decent games. But change the psu in the case before that , because the one it comes with is crap.

**sobeit** · 07-06-2008, 03:24 AM

something to consider, with the new motherboard, you cannot use any oem operating systems that came on any other computers. It cannot be transfer between motherboards.

RadTech7 · 07-06-2008, 05:24 AM

Thanx emosun, this helps a lot. I would love to add more ram, but I was told by Sony that 1Gb maxes it out, even though this mobo has 3 ram slots & I'm only using 2. (+ the non-OEM version of this mobo supported up to 2Gb I believe

) Maybe I could try putting in the 3rd stick & if it doesn't work I could sell it on Ebay?

Upgrading the PSU would be real nice too, but I'm not sure how to mount it - the current one is slid into a housing so I attached 2 pics of it. Is it possible to find a new PSU that will slide into this? I'm sure you'll notice how accessible & easy Sony has made my chassis!

The main problem I'm experiencing is just simply navigating through win explorer. I'll open a folder and I have to wait for icons to load. Sometimes I even see a flashlight waving in place of my cursor as though windows is looking for whats in the folder I'm browsing, and this may continue for 6-7 sec before anything loads. The start menu is also slow to load. Maybe this could be solved with a better video card, my comp supports up to an AGP 4x I believe and I simply have the original card. Not sure, but I'm real glad I posted here before laying out 300 pesos! Thanks again guys!

RadTech7 · 07-06-2008, 05:32 AM

Almost forgot!! You said something about redoing my OS? What can I do to improve it - the link you provided suggested xp home ed. sp2?

RadTech7 · 07-06-2008, 07:23 AM

I think my video card is like 32 or maybe 64MB, and it is an Nvidia, maybe my Sony runs with those better?

Found this video card on Geeks.com for $28 + shipping:
NVIDIA GeForce2 MX400 128MB 4x AGP

I was also looking at this one for $55 + shipping:

GeForce FX5500 256MB DDR AGP Video Card
It says it is compatible with either 4x or 8x so I'm not sure how much of the card's capability I would be able to use with just 4x. Are these good choices?

outermon · 07-06-2008, 10:51 AM

For basic use, you really don't even need to buy a video card, it's a waste. I've chosen some parts that (if you're recycling your DVD and HDD drives) should be fine. This should provide a pretty big performance boost. And the parts are $230 plus shipping and handling. Your only issue might be your operating system. Windows XP costs about $90. You could always go with a Linux distribution. I'd recommend ubuntu. It should be fully capable of your basic needs. Openoffice is a fine substitute for Microsoft Office, and I'm sure there has to be video applications for Ubuntu. Also, you can use Firefox and IMing with ease. Linux is also known to run faster than Windows, and is also unaffected by the viruses and spyware that plague Windows. If you decide to go with Windows anyway, $20 over budget shouldn't be too bad considering the massive performance boost you'll recieve. Also, this computer is really small, which, if you're like most college students, you should appreciate.

MicroATX Computer Case:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16811121003

BioStar Motherboard with built-in NVidia 6100 graphics processing (like a video card, but its built-in to the motherboard):
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16813138111

Seasonic 350W PSU (Seasonic is known for making very high quality PSUs, something that you have to make sure of when buying a PSU, as it can fry your entire system if it's cheap.)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16817151038

2GB of PQI RAM (cheaper to go with one stick):
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16820141300

AMD Athalon 64x2 2.5Ghz Dual-Core Processor (this is where you will see the biggest performance increase, most likely):
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16819103212

Edit: You might have an issue with pretty much any new motherboard if your hard drive is IDE, because then you probably won't be able to use both DVD drives. If you are lucky enough to have a SATA HDD, then you should probably get this SATA cable, since room will be tight in that case, and a 90 degree angle cable may be necessary. The shipping is pretty high compared to the price, but newegg combines shipping:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16812123115

**emosun** · 07-06-2008, 12:40 PM

You misunderstood. You wouldn't add an new psu to what you have. Nor a new video card. Just upgrade the ram in what you have, or get a newer pc. And to redo the os you use the disks the computer came with to reinstall it.

Don't bother with getting a video card or psu for that vaio. Either max out the ram , or go with the package I or outermon suggested. Personally I dislike AMD and linux. But its up to you.

07-05-2008, 07:33 PM	#1 (permalink)
RadTech7 Registered User Join Date: Jul 2008 Posts: 13 OS: winxp home ed. sp2	1st time building a computer Hey I'm currently a college student (also an electronics tech so I'm not completely in the dark), who has very little money as evidenced by the fact that I'm still milking this hand-me-down system: Sony Vaio PCV-RX682 (dinosaur, I know) Mobo - Asus P4B266-LM (OEM to Sony) ATX CPU - Intel Pentium 4 2.2Ghz sSpec # SL68S PSU - OEM 280 watts; part # 1-468-601-14 RAM - (2) 512Mb DDR SDRAM PC2100 (133Mhz) GPU - Geforce2 Ti AGP card 3 3.5" IDE harddrives 1 Pioneer DVR-104 DVD burner 1 Pioneer DVD-117R DVD player My needs are fairly basic, mostly using Office and watching movies, don't really have time for video games, but even with these basic needs, my system lags My budget is up to $300. I want to use my old harddrives and DVD drives, so all my software & OS are intact. Here are the components I'm looking at buying: Intel P4 3.00GHz 800MHz sSpec SL6WK 478 CPU: New System Pull 1 YEAR WARRANTY; on Ebay for $38 from a reliable seller The rest I found at Geeks.com: (It's all new w/ warranties) Biostar P4M900-M4 Socket 478 mATX MB $65 10-Bay ATX Computer Case w/550-watt Power Supply $36 2 sticks of Samsung 2GB DDR2 RAM PC2-5300 $90.50 Mad Dog Socket 478 Copper Core Heat Sink & Fan to 3.4GHz $9 Geeks shipping: $25 Grand total: $263.50 So I believe this mobo has connections that fit my old drives. What I don't know is: 1) Do I have to flash the bios myself? 2) Geeks says this mobo has IGP integrated video w/256 MB shared memory; does that mean I don't have to buy a video card? 3) Can I actually just hook up the old harddrives to this new system and expect windows to boot up? That just seems way to easy 4) Compared to what I'm use to, this system seems like a massive improvement and is incredibly cheap - am I crazy? Thanks for any help!!

07-06-2008, 02:51 AM	#2 (permalink)
emosun Mentor Hardware Team Join Date: Oct 2006 Location: usa Posts: 3,114 OS: xp pro sp2 My System	Re: 1st time building a computer Eh , The system you have now is almost the same. If your just watching movies and doing office work , why not just add another gig of ram to what ya got? Really , your talking about going from a 2.2ghz p4 to a 3.0ghz p4. Its the same cpu only 800mhz faster. Not to mention I would never buy a 478 cpu nowadays. My dad bougt a pc back in 2001 that had a pentium 4 478 cpu. And 65$ for a 478 motherboard is also a ripoff. Should be 10/20$. If I were in your situation , I would just add some more ram to the system you have , and redo the OS. It'll run the exact same If your just watching movies and doing office stuff. Will save ya alot of money. __________________ Speedfan-->http://www.almico.com/speedfan.php Everest -->http://filehippo.com/download_everest_home Benchmarks-->http://www.tomshardware.com/charts/g...Score,794.html

07-06-2008, 02:52 AM	#3 (permalink)
emosun Mentor Hardware Team Join Date: Oct 2006 Location: usa Posts: 3,114 OS: xp pro sp2 My System	Re: 1st time building a computer Oh , and the sony viao os won't work on aftermarket motherboards, you would need a regular non oem version of windows. __________________ Speedfan-->http://www.almico.com/speedfan.php Everest -->http://filehippo.com/download_everest_home Benchmarks-->http://www.tomshardware.com/charts/g...Score,794.html

07-06-2008, 03:17 AM	#4 (permalink)
emosun Mentor Hardware Team Join Date: Oct 2006 Location: usa Posts: 3,114 OS: xp pro sp2 My System	Re: 1st time building a computer Or you could go with this if you want to spend the money anyway on a new pc. Barebone kit 174$ http://www.tigerdirect.com/applicati...748&CatId=3446 windows xp 90$ http://www.tigerdirect.com/applicati...2182&CatId=672 heatsink 20$ http://www.tigerdirect.com/applicati...739&CatId=1588 extra ram 20$ http://www.tigerdirect.com/applicati...7&Sku=C19-4266 Then reuse your hdd's and cd drives. To save money I would just ad the ram to what you have. But this would be a good route if you just want to upgrade anyway. Much more future proof. You could even add a videocard someday and play some decent games. But change the psu in the case before that , because the one it comes with is crap. __________________ Speedfan-->http://www.almico.com/speedfan.php Everest -->http://filehippo.com/download_everest_home Benchmarks-->http://www.tomshardware.com/charts/g...Score,794.html Last edited by emosun : 07-06-2008 at 03:18 AM.

07-06-2008, 03:24 AM	#5 (permalink)
sobeit TSF Enthusiast Join Date: Nov 2007 Location: NEAR Posts: 5,328 OS: windows/linux	Re: 1st time building a computer something to consider, with the new motherboard, you cannot use any oem operating systems that came on any other computers. It cannot be transfer between motherboards. __________________ Do not feed the trolls.

07-06-2008, 05:32 AM	#7 (permalink)
RadTech7 Registered User Join Date: Jul 2008 Posts: 13 OS: winxp home ed. sp2	Re: 1st time building a computer Almost forgot!! You said something about redoing my OS? What can I do to improve it - the link you provided suggested xp home ed. sp2?

07-06-2008, 07:23 AM	#8 (permalink)
RadTech7 Registered User Join Date: Jul 2008 Posts: 13 OS: winxp home ed. sp2	Re: 1st time building a computer I think my video card is like 32 or maybe 64MB, and it is an Nvidia, maybe my Sony runs with those better? Found this video card on Geeks.com for $28 + shipping: NVIDIA GeForce2 MX400 128MB 4x AGP I was also looking at this one for $55 + shipping: GeForce FX5500 256MB DDR AGP Video Card It says it is compatible with either 4x or 8x so I'm not sure how much of the card's capability I would be able to use with just 4x. Are these good choices?

07-06-2008, 10:51 AM	#9 (permalink)
outermon Registered User Join Date: Jan 2008 Posts: 53 OS: Windows XP SP2	Re: 1st time building a computer For basic use, you really don't even need to buy a video card, it's a waste. I've chosen some parts that (if you're recycling your DVD and HDD drives) should be fine. This should provide a pretty big performance boost. And the parts are $230 plus shipping and handling. Your only issue might be your operating system. Windows XP costs about $90. You could always go with a Linux distribution. I'd recommend ubuntu. It should be fully capable of your basic needs. Openoffice is a fine substitute for Microsoft Office, and I'm sure there has to be video applications for Ubuntu. Also, you can use Firefox and IMing with ease. Linux is also known to run faster than Windows, and is also unaffected by the viruses and spyware that plague Windows. If you decide to go with Windows anyway, $20 over budget shouldn't be too bad considering the massive performance boost you'll recieve. Also, this computer is really small, which, if you're like most college students, you should appreciate. MicroATX Computer Case: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16811121003 BioStar Motherboard with built-in NVidia 6100 graphics processing (like a video card, but its built-in to the motherboard): http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16813138111 Seasonic 350W PSU (Seasonic is known for making very high quality PSUs, something that you have to make sure of when buying a PSU, as it can fry your entire system if it's cheap.) http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16817151038 2GB of PQI RAM (cheaper to go with one stick): http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16820141300 AMD Athalon 64x2 2.5Ghz Dual-Core Processor (this is where you will see the biggest performance increase, most likely): http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16819103212 Edit: You might have an issue with pretty much any new motherboard if your hard drive is IDE, because then you probably won't be able to use both DVD drives. If you are lucky enough to have a SATA HDD, then you should probably get this SATA cable, since room will be tight in that case, and a 90 degree angle cable may be necessary. The shipping is pretty high compared to the price, but newegg combines shipping: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16812123115 Last edited by outermon : 07-06-2008 at 10:55 AM.

07-06-2008, 12:40 PM	#10 (permalink)
emosun Mentor Hardware Team Join Date: Oct 2006 Location: usa Posts: 3,114 OS: xp pro sp2 My System	Re: 1st time building a computer You misunderstood. You wouldn't add an new psu to what you have. Nor a new video card. Just upgrade the ram in what you have, or get a newer pc. And to redo the os you use the disks the computer came with to reinstall it. Don't bother with getting a video card or psu for that vaio. Either max out the ram , or go with the package I or outermon suggested. Personally I dislike AMD and linux. But its up to you. __________________ Speedfan-->http://www.almico.com/speedfan.php Everest -->http://filehippo.com/download_everest_home Benchmarks-->http://www.tomshardware.com/charts/g...Score,794.html