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Family computer, salvaged parts.

668 views 13 replies 6 participants last post by  Forde3654Eire 
#1 ·
Hi guys,

I have a few computer parts lying around here and there that I'd like to salvage to overhaul my parents' computer. They currently have a Pentium 4 machine that's on the way out. Tried everything I could to fix it up, even formatting wouldn't bring it up to speed. It is extremely slow. The machine is 10 years old, my guess is its simply on the way out.

To get you in the picture, this will be a bog-standard office PC. No gaming. Just Word, Excel, Powerpoint, web-browsing and so on. Just basic stuff.

I currently have these fairly new parts that I'd like to use from my previous build:

1) CPU: i3-2100
2) MOBO: Gigabyte B75M-D3V
3) RAM: Kingston 1x4GB 1333Mhz 9-9-9-24

To complete the build, I'd like to salvage parts from their old Pentium 4 machine:

1) WD 160GB IDE HDD. This was a fairly recent upgrade, about 3 - 4 years ago. The original HDD is still lying around, though its only 40GB and 10 years old.
2) CD/DVD IDE Combo drive.
3) The current case and power supply of the Pentium 4 machine. Alternatively, I've just made a phone call with my local computer store. Can pick up a new case and power supply for about $20 only. No frills, nothing fancy.

Now my questions:
1) My main concern is the power supply... whether its the new or salvaged one, both are generic 250W... though I think with the low power consumption of the i3-2100, anything at all will do?
2) The HDD and CD/DVD combo drive are IDE. The Gigabyte B75M-D3V only has SATA ports. Will a IDE-to-SATA adapter solve the problem?
3) Anything I should be aware of before getting into this salvaged overhaul? Hardware incompatibilities etc?

Help would be appreciated. Thanks
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#3 ·
Quality PSU. Doesn't have to be 350-400W, but the lower power units will probably be in the same price range.

I can't tell you how many PSU's have fried over the years of building computers for my family.
 
#4 ·
Try to pick up a SATA HDD for them, IDE with an I3 will hurt its performance?
 
#5 ·
Quote:
Originally Posted by Snowcharm View Post

1. Try and get a quality PSU with at least 380-400 W. Like an Antec Earthwatts/Basic.
Quote:
Originally Posted by legoman786 View Post

Quality PSU. Doesn't have to be 350-400W, but the lower power units will probably be in the same price range.

I can't tell you how many PSU's have fried over the years of building computers for my family.
Thanks for the input.

One does not simply find a quality power supply in the small remote town of Tabuk, Saudi Arabia
redface.gif
Maybe recommend something off Ebay or Amazon? Xoxide can ship too, but I haven't tried from them just yet.

http://www.ebay.com/sch/Power-Supplies-/42017/i.html?LH_BIN=1&_sop=15&_from=R40&_nkw=power%20supply&_pppn=r1&_dcat=42017&Max%252E%2520Output%2520Power=100%2520%252D%2520249%2520W%7C250%2520%252D%2520499%2520W

http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=sr_nr_p_n_shipping_option-_0?rh=n%3A172282%2Cn%3A541966%2Cn%3A193870011%2Cn%3A1161760%2Ck%3Apower+supply%2Cp_n_shipping_option-bin%3A3242350011&sort=price&keywords=power+supply&ie=UTF8&qid=1374783081&rnid=2944662011

http://www.xoxide.com/powersupplies.html

This is the current power supply in the Pentium 4 build:

 
#6 ·
Well if he can get it from ebay sure, it's an option. But always check the trader radtng. You'll want it to be 100% positive or as close to 100% as possible. Cheap and quality PSU's are those like the Antec Basic/Earthwatts or something from Spire/Highpower just to name a few.
 
#7 ·
For the ide drive, you could try using a sata to ide converter. These do not work with all motherboards though.

For the case a power supply, i would not reccomend getting a generic case and psu combo. The psu's in these combos are normally terrible.

If your current psu has the right connectors then I would try using it. Generic psu's probably wont be any better so it would be a waste of money getting another one.
 
#9 ·
Quote:
Originally Posted by legoman786 View Post

Yeah, not all motherboards like the IDE-SATA convertors.

Also, ehlain ya akhi. Totally missed that you're Saudi.
biggrin.gif
Ahlain to yee too! Not Saudi though haha, Irish who happens to live here... picked up a bit of the language!
biggrin.gif


Browsed through Amazon and Ebay... shipping costs are a deal-breaker unfortunately, thanks to the weight of these things... still looking through... found a couple of Diabloteks, but I'm not entirely sure if they're safe to go by. No Antec EarthWatts / Basic available for shipping to my location.

$38 after shipping
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B001BX0MSK/ref=ox_sc_sfl_title_1?ie=UTF8&psc=1&smid=ATVPDKIKX0DER

$43 after shipping
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0009MIP8I/ref=ox_sc_sfl_title_1?ie=UTF8&psc=1&smid=ATVPDKIKX0DER

$75 after shipping
doh.gif

http://www.amazon.com/Corsair-Builder-Watt-EPS%C2%A0-CX430/dp/B0092ML1SC/ref=sr_1_75?s=pc&ie=UTF8&qid=1374868472&sr=1-75&keywords=power+supply

The CX430 is the least expensive "quality" PSU I could find on the list... I'm quite tempted by the Diabloteks, they fall into the 80+ category. The 400W version has a +12V@25A...

I'll look around first and see what's available locally... no high hopes here but worth a try. If I find nothing worthy, I'll take the PSU out of the Pentium 4 build... if it can supply a power-hungry Pentium 4 I think it'll be fine with the i3-2100.
 
#11 ·
Quote:
Originally Posted by Forde3654Eire View Post

Ahlain to yee too! Not Saudi though haha, Irish who happens to live here... picked up a bit of the language!
biggrin.gif


Browsed through Amazon and Ebay... shipping costs are a deal-breaker unfortunately, thanks to the weight of these things... still looking through... found a couple of Diabloteks, but I'm not entirely sure if they're safe to go by. No Antec EarthWatts / Basic available for shipping to my location.

$38 after shipping
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B001BX0MSK/ref=ox_sc_sfl_title_1?ie=UTF8&psc=1&smid=ATVPDKIKX0DER

$43 after shipping
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0009MIP8I/ref=ox_sc_sfl_title_1?ie=UTF8&psc=1&smid=ATVPDKIKX0DER

$75 after shipping
doh.gif

http://www.amazon.com/Corsair-Builder-Watt-EPS%C2%A0-CX430/dp/B0092ML1SC/ref=sr_1_75?s=pc&ie=UTF8&qid=1374868472&sr=1-75&keywords=power+supply

The CX430 is the least expensive "quality" PSU I could find on the list... I'm quite tempted by the Diabloteks, they fall into the 80+ category. The 400W version has a +12V@25A...

I'll look around first and see what's available locally... no high hopes here but worth a try. If I find nothing worthy, I'll take the PSU out of the Pentium 4 build... if it can supply a power-hungry Pentium 4 I think it'll be fine with the i3-2100.
F'real? I have some Irish genealogy coming from my mom's side. My wife is so Irish, that she has red hair.
biggrin.gif


As for finding PSU's locally... I have a good friend whose family lives in Jeddah. Lemme ping him and see what they know about the area for computers. Whereabouts in Saudi are you?
 
#12 ·
Shokran ya sheikh! I've spent a year in Jeddah. As far as I know, its Baroom Center, Khalid Bin Waleed St and the City Center building on Madinah Road. GLTSA also around Quraish St, but they sell more of the much higher-end stuff.

Back in Tabuk now... nothing ground-breaking to find here.

PSU-wise, I'll probably stick to the one powering the Pentium 4 for the time-being. No point getting generic. When a decent offer on a decent PSU comes along, I'll take it.
 
#13 ·
Went over to my local computer store to check what they've got. Bought a basic standard case for $10. Asked for a power supply and told them what kind of system I'll be running. They gave me the one shown below for $12, said it'll do the job fine. I looked around for alternatives but couldn't find anything better. I guess this should suffice? I can return it anytime if I'm not fine with it.

Its either this or pay a whopping $75 for a Corsair CX430.

 
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