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nigerian_businessman
[H]ard|Gawd
- Joined
- Sep 3, 2004
- Messages
- 1,535
My mother's work computer started going apeshit about 2 weeks ago. Random reboots without the actual rebooting, it just freezes and the screen goes black. I checked software, dusted the computer out, looked at the hsf to make sure it was attached correctly and I noted that the caps were swelling. So I coaxed her into just buying a new computer since this computer is based around my oooooold as dirt socket A 1600+ processor, with 256mb of ram and a paltry 20gb hd.
Well, she said she wanted to keep it under $500. I managed to put one together for $309 shipped
And I based it around this.
MSI MBOX K9N6SGM-V AMD Socket AM2 AMD Athlon X2 / Athlon 64 FX / Athlon 64 NVIDIA GeForce 6100 /nForce 405 chipset 2 x 240Pin GeForce 6100 Barebone - Retail
Now I've gotta say, this is by far one of the nicest barebones I've worked with. For $90 you get an attractive case, a motherboard with integrated video and a 400w power supply that, according to the specs on the side, is overkill for a system of this calibur with dual 12v and 2 8cm fans cooling it.
The case has good ventilation, with a mesh area over where a video card would be if you were so inclined to install one, and a mesh area with a cooling vent that pushes cool air from outside the case over the processor. Then the power supply fans, which pull the air out of the case. Overall I would say the fans are loud, but with a lower frequency that isn't as annoying as most fans that come with cheap cases and power supplies. It's not so much the fans that I hear as the air just rushing through the case. I'm a bit sensitive to noise, using a Ninja with a quiet 120mm fan on my processor and a zalman cooler on my video card, so take that loud comment for what it's worth.
Installation was quick and painless with Windows Vista Business, I didn't even need the driver disk. Popped a retail X2 3600+, 1gb of Corsair XMS2-675, a 200gb sata hard drive and a 16x lite-on sata dvd burner for a complete system ringing in at $309 shipped (for the hardware. She got the software from work.) I must say I am thoroughly impressed with the performance that can be had for such a small amount of money these days. The 6100 integrated video isn't spectacular, but for a simple work PC it's more than adequate, and although the experience index only gave it a score of 3.0 for Aero, I cannot tell the difference between this computer and mine (x800pro video) as far as that goes.
Once I make my way back downstairs I'll dig up some batteries for the camera and snap a few pictures.
Well, she said she wanted to keep it under $500. I managed to put one together for $309 shipped
And I based it around this.MSI MBOX K9N6SGM-V AMD Socket AM2 AMD Athlon X2 / Athlon 64 FX / Athlon 64 NVIDIA GeForce 6100 /nForce 405 chipset 2 x 240Pin GeForce 6100 Barebone - Retail
Now I've gotta say, this is by far one of the nicest barebones I've worked with. For $90 you get an attractive case, a motherboard with integrated video and a 400w power supply that, according to the specs on the side, is overkill for a system of this calibur with dual 12v and 2 8cm fans cooling it.
The case has good ventilation, with a mesh area over where a video card would be if you were so inclined to install one, and a mesh area with a cooling vent that pushes cool air from outside the case over the processor. Then the power supply fans, which pull the air out of the case. Overall I would say the fans are loud, but with a lower frequency that isn't as annoying as most fans that come with cheap cases and power supplies. It's not so much the fans that I hear as the air just rushing through the case. I'm a bit sensitive to noise, using a Ninja with a quiet 120mm fan on my processor and a zalman cooler on my video card, so take that loud comment for what it's worth.
Installation was quick and painless with Windows Vista Business, I didn't even need the driver disk. Popped a retail X2 3600+, 1gb of Corsair XMS2-675, a 200gb sata hard drive and a 16x lite-on sata dvd burner for a complete system ringing in at $309 shipped (for the hardware. She got the software from work.) I must say I am thoroughly impressed with the performance that can be had for such a small amount of money these days. The 6100 integrated video isn't spectacular, but for a simple work PC it's more than adequate, and although the experience index only gave it a score of 3.0 for Aero, I cannot tell the difference between this computer and mine (x800pro video) as far as that goes.
Once I make my way back downstairs I'll dig up some batteries for the camera and snap a few pictures.