Computer Advice

[DreamN]

Joined up Hardware Heaven forums in hopes of getting some quick help, but the hardware discussion section is a tad slow.

Figured since there are plenty folk here with computer building knowledge I'd get some help from someone.

Recently my friend's dad gave me his some gateway desktop because he simply didn't want to deal with fixing it (motherboard). It's a Gateway DX4640-UB201A (Mediocre Desktop).

It's not horrible to look at so I'm not looking for a new case lol.

Anyway, I swapped the motherboard and upgraded the power supply to a 480W unit as from what I gathered the supplied 300W unit just wasn't cutting it. Still might end up going with something better.Been thinking about this unit:

Amazon.com: Gateway A-Power AK 850W 20+4-pin ATX PSU w/SATA & PCIe (Black) computer: Electronics

Because it lacked a hard drive I purchased a 1TB 7,200RPM and it's currently running on Windows 7 Ultimate 64-bit. Been trying to load Ubuntu 10.10, but no dice for some reason. Been getting a BusyBox error of some sort, but I'll figure that out later.

Here's where I need some real advice as I'm simply a novice at all this. I downloaded GTA IV to see how it would do and it was horrible. Choppy video and just way to slow. I figure the issue has to be the video card. Did some light research and it's a crappy integrated unit that fails miserably at anything worth playing.

Other upgrade I'd like to do is memory wise. It's only 4 GB and considering I'm running 64-bit Windows I believe I'm limited to 16 GB right? I'd be more than happy with 8 GB. I know this is a simple remove and install deal, but not sure what memory to buy.

Last thing I want to upgrade are the cooling fan(s). It has one fan over the CPU and that's it. I'd like to upgrade that one plus add at least one more. Again, not sure what to buy.

Looking for recommendations that are budget friendly and that will give some good results for someone who's not a total gamer, but wouldn't mind playing some decent games once in awhile.


Below are the stock specs just so folks know what I'm dealing with.

Specifications:

Processor
Intel Core 2 Duo Processor E4700

• Each core operates at 2.6GHz
• Shared 2MB L2 cache
• 800MHz system bus

Chipset
NVIDIA GeForce 7100

Memory
4GB 667MHz DDR2 SDRAM

Hard Drive
500GB 7200RPM SATA II hard drive

Optical Drive
16X DVD±R/RW super multi drive

Media Card Reader
15-in-1 high speed digital media manager supporting the following:

• Compact Flash (CF) I, II
• IBM Microdrive (MD)
• SmartMedia Card (SMC)
• Memory Stick (MS)
• Memory Stick Duo (MS Duo)
• Memory Stick PRO (MS PRO)
• Memory Stick PRO Duo (MS PRO Duo)
• Secure Digital (SD)
• Mini Secure Digital (MiniSD)
• Multi Media Card (MMC)
• RS Multi Media Card (RS-MMC) (need adapter)
• Multi Media Plus Card (MMC Plus)
• Multi Media Mobile Card (MMC Mobile)
• xD-Picture Card (xD)

Video
NVIDIA GeForce 7100 integrated graphics
Up to 256 MB of shared video memory

Audio
Integrated 8-Channel (7.1) High Definition Audio

Network Support
Integrated Intel 10/100 Mbps Ethernet LAN

Modem
56K PCI data/fax modem

Power Supply
300 watt

Add-in Card Slots
One PCI Express ×16 (graphics interface)
One PCI Express ×1
Two PCI conventional

External Connectors
Two PS/2 ports
One HDMI port
One VGA port
Six USB 2.0 ports (two front, four rear)
One IEEE 1394 port
One network (LAN) port
Eight audio jacks (two front, six rear)

Drive Bays
Two external 5.25-inch drive bays
Six internal 3.5-inch drive bays

Operating System
Genuine Windows Vista Home Premium 64-bit COA Only - No Recovery CD

[Om1kron]

Originally Posted by DreamN

Recently my friend's dad gave me his some gateway desktop because he simply didn't want to deal with fixing it (motherboard). It's a Gateway DX4640-UB201A (Mediocre Desktop).

It's not horrible to look at so I'm not looking for a new case lol.

Anyway, I swapped the motherboard and upgraded the power supply to a 480W unit as from what I gathered the supplied 300W unit just wasn't cutting it. Still might end up going with something better.Been thinking about this unit:

Amazon.com: Gateway A-Power AK 850W 20+4-pin ATX PSU w/SATA & PCIe (Black) computer: Electronics

There are 2 parts to your problem, one is upgrading the power supply to a shittier one, second using the stupid gateway case which restricts you to gateway components like said power supply.

You want to make some decen't progress and have this thing last you, get a new case and swap the guts, a corsair/coolermaster/or seasonic power supply at least 500w, I'd recommend a 600w. They're not expensive, but then again all 240 owners I know aaaare cheap asses. =)

Here's where I need some real advice as I'm simply a novice at all this. I downloaded GTA IV to see how it would do and it was horrible. Choppy video and just way to slow.

The second problem you're going to run into is I have no idea what kind of motherboard you're working with, sure you posted specs. And that alread tells me off the bat this computer is a last generation machine because it's running ddr2.

It's not going to run any recent games decently no matter how much money you put into it. Upgrading the ram is pointless unless you get yourself a processor worth a shit.

I don't want to break your heart but nobody probably responded to your thread because this thing is ancient, for about 900-1200 dollars you could buy a beast machine now.

I put together a decent computer for 800 dollars for a friend and this included EVERYTHING he needed to start gaming.

I just upgraded from a machine sort of similar to yours and it ran windows 7 like shit.

[DreamN]

Far from breaking my heart Wayne. I got the thing for free and I remember my friend used to play FallOut 3 and Left For Dead 2 without any worries. Just wanted to see how the thing would do with GTA IV.

Definitely won't be tossing money out the ass on the thing, but I figured a little improvement here or there would help. How's the power supply worse that the one supplied? I'm not building a gaming pc here simply because I don't really game at all. Also, not limited to gateway components. The PSU posted is not Gateway. The seller just placed that in the title.

Seems to be taking Windows 7 pretty decent though.


Motherboard is simply a stock replacement like the one below:

ACER MS-7399 GATEWAY DX4720 DX4640 MotherBoard MCP73PV | eBay

[SimpleS14]

Check out newegg for the cpu fan and memory. Usually the memory type is scribed on the memory stick itself. Looking at the specs I THINK it's DDR2 667...you will have to do some research on the motherboard to confirm. The memory limitation will also be confirmed after you research more into your motherboard. The OS can address far more than 16GB of memory.

As for the second fan, are you talking about the case fan? That you can also find on newegg, but you need to measure the fan (or opening) to get the right size.

You will need a video card if you want to play GTA IV decently. That integrated chip is not designed for gaming.

[BOROSUN]

yeah man get that graphic card. also gta 4 runs on a quad to be optimum.

you probably have to oc that e4700.

[DreamN]

Thanks for the advice.

So far I know for certain I should upgrade the video card. I've been looking at the EVGA GeForce GTX 550 Ti, but I'm not certain if it'd be worth it considering my motherboard has a PCI Express x16 slot and that card is a PCI Express x16 2.0. I know I can install it and it'll work, but been reading that it would never run at it's actual capacity.

Overclocking on a OEM motherboard is not something I'd like to do. Also, Gateway Bios doesn't allow it apparently so I'd have to get some software that would and frankly I don't think the results would outweigh the risks on hardware that probably wouldn't do well for to long overclocked. The processor should do fairly well, but just to be safe I've been researching a few upgrades that are actually wallet friendly and do the job with no problem

From reading up I actually am no longer looking to upgrade the memory. 4GB seems to be more than enough for the games I'm considering and for GTA IV.

I will definitely be upgrading the PSU. Looking at Corsairs line up and pairing up the specs with some of the video cards I'm considering. Someone on Hardware Heaven mentioned CoolMasters as well, so I'll look into those.

Appreciate the advice and I welcome any other input.

[BOROSUN]

i doubted you can get anything much with the e4700, anyways.


post your list.
-gpu 550ti
-cpu
-mobo
-psu corsair 850w?

what's your budget?

[DreamN]

gpu I'm considering the 550, but still researching how it'd run with my motherboard. Looking at a few other cards as well.

cpu will stay with the e4700 for the time being.

same goes with mobo.

psu, 850w? overkill. i'm looking at corsair enthusiast series 550w

approximate budget $200-$250 at most. The 550 ti is listed at $150 on newegg (+ $20 mail in rebate & free mafia 2 game coupon).

corsair psu is $90 (+ 15 mail in rebate).

there are more options, but those are the heavy favorites right now.

[KiLLeR2001]

If your goal is strictly to be able to play GTA4, this is what you will need.

Newegg.com - GIGABYTE GV-N84S-512I GeForce 8400 GS 512MB 64-bit GDDR2 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready Low Profile Ready Video Card

and

Newegg.com - TOPOWER Galaxis MX Series GAPS-500MX 500W ATX12V v2.3 SLI Ready CrossFire Ready Modular Power Supply


~$70 for both items. Done and done.

[DreamN]

My goal isn't to just play GTA IV. Don't really have a goal per se, I simply know that if I'm able to run GTA IV with decent settings then I should be able to run any other games I may be interested in that aren't such "powerhouses" like that of GTA IV.

[BOROSUN]

Hmm kinda hard since intel stopped supporting this CPU.

Your mobo choice is limited. Try to find A cheap g33 or g35. this CPU will bottleneck new gfx card maybe eSpecially a 550ti. Its Like vicious cycle of moneypits.

That graphic card killer recomended and E4700 should play okay with gta4.

I always buy higher watts cause I know I'll upgrade later. Plus psu doesn't get obsolete. And good amount of pcie connectors is all i need.

[DreamN]

I won't be upgrading the motherboard. It's not worth it in my opinion. If I end up upgrading to many component then I might as well build a proper gaming pc, which I rather not to because it'd simply go to waste on casual browsing for the most part.

[SimpleS14]

lol so why put any effort in this PC? Just keep it a simple workstation for browsing the web and word processing ha

[DreamN]

Mild effort just for kicks and to make good use of a 27" LCD for some decent games. I just really see no reason to upgrade the motherboard.

Plus got a response on the HH forums that my motherboard actually wouldn't really have much of a negative affect on a new gen graphics card. If that's the case then seems I'm clear on what I'm able to get.

Now it's down to making up my mind on which graphics card would offer what I want at a good price.

I should add that I appreciate his advice. At the very least I'm learning what could better the system. I know if I drop coin this could easily be a above avg. "rig," but currently a little here or there should be fine.