[DonMcG]

Hi. I am purchasing a barebone kit that includes:

Intel Dual Core E2200 2.2GHz Processor
2GB ULTRA's DDR2-667 memory
250GB Seagate SATE II HD
ATX mid-tower case w/ a 300watt power supply

I am way out of date when it comes to computers and capabilities of graphics cards. The last game I played on the computer was counter-strike, nearly a year after it was released. Recently, I purchased a 42" HDTV 1080p and decided to make a computer to play games on and take advantage of my TV. I want to build this computer so it will satisfy my interest in recent PC games. I am aware or games like DC Universe Online coming out along with crysis warhead and fallout. I am aware certain games need vista to run, but I also need help deciding which operating system to use. Is vista better or is XP more "free?" I also know nothing about what else I need to get the computer running. Can someone please help me out and guide me thru this? I have a 300 budget for the graphics card but if I can get away with less, please throw me some suggestions. Thanks!

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Hi. I am purchasing a barebone kit that includes:

Intel Dual Core E2200 2.2GHz Processor
2GB ULTRA's DDR2-667 memory
250GB Seagate SATE II HD
ATX mid-tower case w/ a 300watt power supply



I am way out of date when it comes to computers and capabilities of graphics cards.

Welcome to Geeks To Go:

My name is Cbarnard

I hope I may be of some assistance to you...

Well looking at things:

Did you already purchase the barebones kit?

If not I would hold off... At least till I have finished helping you.

That kit is an old setup, not to mention obsolete.

The PSU on that kit can't handle anymore than what is on the kit... I would advise against this.

I will gladly assist you build what you are looking for.

What type of a budget overall do you have? What country do you live in?

Please reply back and I will help you further

Good luck

Cbarnard

[cbarnard]

Hi. I am purchasing a barebone kit that includes:

Intel Dual Core E2200 2.2GHz Processor
2GB ULTRA's DDR2-667 memory
250GB Seagate SATE II HD
ATX mid-tower case w/ a 300watt power supply



I am way out of date when it comes to computers and capabilities of graphics cards.

Welcome to Geeks To Go:

My name is Cbarnard

I hope I may be of some assistance to you...

Well looking at things:

Did you already purchase the barebones kit?

If not I would hold off... At least till I have finished helping you.

That kit is an old setup, not to mention obsolete.

The PSU on that kit can't handle anymore than what is on the kit... I would advise against this.

I will gladly assist you build what you are looking for.

What type of a budget overall do you have? What country do you live in?

Please reply back and I will help you further

Good luck

Cbarnard

[DonMcG]

I have not purchased it yet but it has the best value at $200 and is the recommended requirements for the most demanding games. I was going to put an xfx radeon 4650 1gb graphics card. Both would cost me collectively $300 plus shipping. To me, although a tad outdated, it's a great buy and will get me to play the games I want to play.

I'm sorry to say but I really don't see how I could get a better set up for that price. Can it be done?

I'm in the US, California to be exact.

Edited by DonMcG, 22 April 2009 - 12:59 AM.

[cbarnard]

Hey I have been working on an example for you.

The price is pretty good for that computer.

Here is a computer I put together for you. All the parts are compatable, plus this is an entire computer not Barebones.

It does cost more money up front. But right now has $110 in rebates.

My advice when you go to the link, add each item to your cart and then you will get an accurate amount for the build.

Here it is:

AMD 9600 cpu
This is a quad core CPU can be different if you would like

Thermaltake 500wt PSU
The power supply could stand to have more wattage.It will do for now, or you can opt for more wattage

Asrocks MOBO
The MOBO is compatible with AM3 processors meaning it can still be upgraded into the new CPU's

Corsair ram 4gb
This ram is twice the amount you had with your setup, And almost 2x the speed

Gigabyte 4670 GPU
The GPU is a step above the one you had chosen and there are better ones than this...

Samsung 500gb HDD
The HDD is 2x larger than the one you selected

LG dvd burner with lightscribe
I have several of these DVD burners and they work great and with lightscribe it scribes images to the face of the DVD so you don't have to write on it.(Looks very nice)

Nzxt case
This is an overall good case, but not expensive, I would install a second 120mm fan in the front by the HDD if I was you.

Total cost of the build before shipping and rebates $523.93

Cost after rebates $413.93


So as you can see this may cost more upfront but you will get a large amount back and for about $100 more you will have a brand new more up to date computer that can grow with your desires( which only evolve with better technology)

I hope I have been of assistance with this. If you need anything else just let me know also:

Let me know what you decide.

Good Luck

Cbarnard

[DonMcG]

I appreciate your input very much! I found another barebone with a 2.6GHz dual core processor and 3gb of ram. Along with a 400 watt power supply. I need a computer I will advance along with technology. So I think I am comfortable with the barebone. I do need help finding a cheap but good graphics card. Right now I chose the xfx 4650 he, what do you think?

[DonMcG]

Thank you for you help. I am getting the first kit I mentioned, the other didn't have a hard drive. Tellme more about these DVD burners, I need a reader for the kit.

[cbarnard]

Well there are several kind of burners out there:

CD\DVD burners\readers these are cheap I always purchase the dvd burner I gave you a link to.

Lightscribe is a process that burns an image to the face of the disk(it can be designed any way you want it)

Blue Ray CD\DVD burners\readers these can burn any format specified by the manufacture these cost the most

they also make combo burners and readers for someone that would like to watch blue ray but not burn it(but you can burn everything else. you can pick one of these up for about $100

I hope that is what you are looking for, If you have another question or need further explanation about this just get back to me.

Good Luck on the build

Cbarnard

[DonMcG]

Thanks for the feedback! Unfortunately, I had to order a computer yesterday morning and had to decide. I changed it up a bit, same kit new graphics card, XFX GeForce 8800GT. They are saying that 215watts is enough so 300watts should be over enough. I threw in an 18x DVD-rom. Is there anything I should know before attempting to put it together? Thanks again.

[cbarnard]

Hey,

Just be static safe. Always ground yourself to what you are working on. Static discharge can be devastating.
Other than that it is pretty straight forward.

Good luck and let us know how the build works out. If you have any other questions feel free to ask.

Cbarnard

[DonMcG]

How do you recommend doing that?

[cbarnard]

To be safe with static electricity

Unplug the computer

Maintain contact with a bare metal surface while working with the computer

This can be accomplished several ways:
touching it with you hand
or wearing a antistatic wrist bracelet (click on link)
Static is a great enemy of sensitive electronics. A mild static charge can ruin your computer, and the static that commonly build up in the human body can instantly kill it.

I hope this helps you out

Good luck

Cbarnard

[DonMcG]

Woah. I knew about the static frying the board but how do you put a computer togethet while touching the table constantly? I don't have time to order a bracelet, think you can explain a sure way to make sure I don't fry it, in more detail? Thanks!

Edited by DonMcG, 26 April 2009 - 01:16 PM.

[cbarnard]

What I do if I don't have a strap, I keep in contact with a hand or arm on the case.

And don't work on the rug, make sure it is a solid floor.

You should be good if you do that.

Good luck

Cbarnard

[DonMcG]

Hey Cbernard! I have one final question. I am sending this message via my new barebone kit! It runs really well. The only problem is that with the options that the kit came with, when the graphics card is inserted, XFX GeForce 8800 GT, the system begins beeping, continuously and wont stop until the card is removed. What's wrong?! Help me! Thanks

[cbarnard]

the system begins beeping, continuously and wont stop until the card is removed.

What is the name of the manufacture of your bios?

What is the beep code sequence you are hearing?
how many beeps
High\low pitch
length of each beep (long\short)

It may be continuous but is there a specific rhythm like (1...2.3.) or 1...2.3.4.)

The beep is part of a code, it tells you what is wrong.

Please get back to me about the BIOS, and the rhythm(specifically)

Good luck

Cbarnard