Rebuild for Grandma

1392 Views 28 Replies 12 Participants Last post by macsbeach98, Nov 22, 2009

myresolution_72

Discussion Starter · Nov 21, 2009

So.. I'm at my grandmas house and she has

X2 3800+ S939
2GB 4-Dimms
250GB IDE
X1600XT

and I'm going to rebuild her system. She has an old HP system right now.

JetWay 785G MB
Cooler Master 460W PSU $30 Shipped
Saitek Eclipse II *She requested after seeing the Pink Color*
Logitech Z313 *Upgrade from her old HP LCD Integrated Speakers*
IMC Card Reader *For her Camera*
II X2 240 *She doesn't like to wait for apps to load*
Windows 7 OEM + DDR3 Bundle
Western Digital 500GB

Reused parts from her computer :
IDE DVD-Burner

Parts that I have at home :
Centrion mATX Case

The reason I'm buying that PSU is because I don't need anything fancy and that provides more then enough power for the system while keep the price down. I'm surprised at the price of that Corsair Memory but it's the cheapest memory that's 4GB Dual Channel with free shipping that they had.

Any suggestions? Remember. Trying to keep price down. So far it's $516 w/Shipping.

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savagebunny

· #2 · Nov 21, 2009

Some of your links don't work

And you don't need This because the mobo already has a IDE slot on there for older hardware

Just when you want to use the CD-ROM and HDD, have a Master and Slave IDE cable to use them both on the IDE

myresolution_72

Discussion Starter · #3 · Nov 21, 2009

Quote:

Originally Posted by savagebunny

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Some of your links don't work

And you don't need This because the mobo already has a IDE slot on there for older hardware

Just when you want to use the CD-ROM and HDD, have a Master and Slave IDE cable to use them both on the IDE

Her DVD Burner and HDD is IDE. So I just need a Master and Slave IDE Cable to use them both on the one IDE connection on the Motherboard is what your saying?

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sleeper300

· #4 · Nov 21, 2009

just so you know, the main cause of slow oppening apps is the hard drive. not the cpu. get a good drive if thats your concern

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savagebunny

· #5 · Nov 21, 2009

2

Yes, I twist my words around a lot and get confused

Just like this and your good

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myresolution_72

Discussion Starter · #6 · Nov 21, 2009

Quote:

Originally Posted by sleeper300

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just so you know, the main cause of slow oppening apps is the hard drive. not the cpu. get a good drive if thats your concern

The current one she has now is 7.2K RPM and it's IDE and from what I read .. Regular 7.2K RPM drive don't have improvements over IDE or SATA, just different connectors, so buying another 250GB HDD just for it to be SATA would be a waste of money and she doesn't need Raptors..

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sleeper300

· #7 · Nov 21, 2009

there are differences and its more then just interface and disk speed. platters cache and many other things. get something like a wd caviar black or something. trust me there is a performance boost. the caviar blacks compete with the old raptors and are much larger

Reactions: 1

Phaedrus2129

· #8 · Nov 21, 2009

Hehe, granny with VelociRaptors in RAID10. XD

Yeah, you really don't need the IDE controller unless you're going to be using three or four IDE devices, the three-connector IDE cables will support two HDD/ODDs.

Reactions: 1

savagebunny

· #9 · Nov 21, 2009

Also too add on with expensive ram prices...

I would look in the F/S section on OCN, there is a bunch of good quality 4gb(2x2gb) sets for cheap

Reactions: 1

myresolution_72

Discussion Starter · #10 · Nov 21, 2009

3

Quote:

Originally Posted by savagebunny

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Yes, I twist my words around a lot and get confused

Just like this and your good

But the thing is the motherboard connector looks different then that slave part. So how am I going to connect that if it has two of the same connectors?

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Spritanium

· #11 · Nov 21, 2009

Get a sata hdd if she doesn't like waiting for apps to load

sleeper300

· #12 · Nov 21, 2009

Quote:

Originally Posted by myresolution_72

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The current one she has now is 7.2K RPM and it's IDE and from what I read .. Regular 7.2K RPM drive don't have improvements over IDE or SATA, just different connectors, so buying another 250GB HDD just for it to be SATA would be a waste of money and she doesn't need Raptors..

*facepalm x100000000000000*

you're spending money in all the wrong places and its just a waste. the machine will not open apps any quicker using the same slow old hard drive. many of the things you have are un-necessary as well.

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Mr. Stroker

· #13 · Nov 21, 2009

Why does grandma need anything faster? The old X2 is more than enough to check email and surf the web. If its getting slow it probably needs a fresh install.

myresolution_72

Discussion Starter · #14 · Nov 21, 2009

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mr. Stroker

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Why does grandma need anything faster? The old X2 is more than enough to check email and surf the web. If its getting slow it probably needs a fresh install.

Yeah I just did one and it's a little faster but she just wants something new.

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TheLegend

· #15 · Nov 21, 2009

Quote:

Originally Posted by sleeper300

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just so you know, the main cause of slow oppening apps is the hard drive. not the cpu. get a good drive if thats your concern

Agreed. Application load times have little to do with CPU performance. HDD access times are what you need to depend on.

Not that she needs a VelociRaptor, but moving to a newer SATA HDD merely increases the throughput of the drive. This won't make the apps load any quicker, unfortunately.

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Ben the OCer

· #16 · Nov 21, 2009

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mr. Stroker

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Why does grandma need anything faster? The old X2 is more than enough to check email and surf the web. If its getting slow it probably needs a fresh install.

I would have to agree with Mr. Stroker on this. Though if she still wants a new build at least get new tech like an Athlon II X2 245 and 785G motherboard. Let K8 die. I also have to agree that a new hard drive would be a good idea. There's more to hard drive speed than just the format (IDE and SATA), RPM, and cache size. Think of it this way, saying a hard drive from 2005 and 2009 are the same speed because they both are 7200RPM, is like saying a Pentium D 3GHz is the same speed as a Core 2 Duo 3GHz.

Here is what I'd suggest for Granny:
Athlon II 245 + Corsair 400W PSU Combo $90.99 + shipping after $10 MIR
Gigabyte 785G Motherboard: $94.99 + shipping
OCZ 4GB DDR3-1600 Kit + Windows 7 64-bit OEM Combo: $168.98 shipped after $20 MIR
Western Digital 500GB AAKS: $49.99 shipped
Lite-On DVD Burner: $31.99 shipped
Cooler Master Elite 335 Case: $29.99 shipped

Total: $466.93 + shipping after $30 in MIRs

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myresolution_72

Discussion Starter · #17 · Nov 22, 2009

Took the advice.
Added a 250GB Barracuda HDD
Changed the X2 5600+ to a II X2 240 Retail

Get the II X2 240 Retail allowed me to use the cooler that comes with it, canceling the CM Cooler which saved $15.

I believe I have everything correct. Any more suggestions?

Jman_345

· #18 · Nov 22, 2009

will your grandma be able to navigate Windows 7? assuming she isn't familiar with it.

My dad gets mad for "breaking" the computer for upgrading to Windows 7 lol.

myresolution_72

Discussion Starter · #19 · Nov 22, 2009

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jman_345

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will your grandma be able to navigate Windows 7? assuming she isn't familiar with it.

My dad gets mad for "breaking" the computer for upgrading to Windows 7 lol.

She catches on fast plus Windows 7 I find is easier and faster then XP MCE to use. All her icons would be down on the toolbar and that's self explanatory. She will rarely use the start menu honestly.

EDIT: I saw the part about your dad. I think that's all parents. My mom's desktop would freeze because it had a 200W PSU and it was getting the crap strained out of it, so I put in a 400W PSU i had laying around. No more freezes but it took her at least 5 or 6 months of, "The internet page won't load! You and your fidgeting messed it up! Take that power supply out!" and "I lost my contacts in my e-mail, come fix it now!" before she realized that what I did actually helped her and the computer.

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sleeper300

· #20 · Nov 22, 2009

imo grandma needs chrom os. keep it simple

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