Thread: Should i go ahead with this upgrade?

Well hello folks... i have a P4 2.8ghz compaq sr1130il with 1.2 gb of ram...

its got only integrated intel graphics (Intel extreme :lol...
does not have an agp or pcie slot (thanks to compaq )....

i've used it for over 4yrs now... replacing it is not an option for me... i have an option of getting a mobo with an agp 8x slot and the same socket 478 setup as in my existing cpu.

The one more advantage i will have is my RAM will also work at its highest speed (currently my pc3200 ram is working at pc2100 speed again thanks to compaq )

the board is available for rs1750... i also checked out agp graphics cards and a 512mb card (ati x1650) is available for ~3k.... this card is able to run nfs most wanted at an average 35fps at full settings @1024x768 (btw this is my fav game)

and it can also run 1080p HD with only 70% cpu utilization, currently even playing 720p videos will use >85% of the cpu....
(currently i can even imagine true HD videos , even certain sites like jibjab's videos make my system squeal :lol: )

so tell me is it worth it going in for the mobo change and then for the card, plz tell me are the prices fine?

PS: The board is 3yrs used but the card is new...

Any thots!? its urgent people! the options are not gonna last forever for me ...

if you can able to expand 3000 to 3500 then you can go for intel duo.
why i insist you because ,you said that you to want to play nfs and hd too.
so these require processor speed.
if budget is the limitation go head.

actually what u are suggesting prasanna is that i change nearly everything in my cpu, if i change the processor then i'l have to change the ram to ddr2 too, n my hdd's to sata, n thats not an option... and needless to say the board wud have to be changed to a newer board (lga775) wud wud also be costlier than this one...

which wud make me have nearly a second cpu just lying around

i'm just having second thots about the board... the card is the best available for the price and also for the agp slot... one more option was the nvidia 7600gt (which performs better than this card) but its not available anywhere.

oh... ok.sorry i didnt make a note of that ram change.so you can go for what you said.

well its already three days since u posted starry, sorry, didnt see this thread before.

the price for a 3 year old non-advanced board should be 1000-1200/- if condition is good otherwise less. DO NOT PAY 1700 for a three years old board.
And yes, if u want to play NFSMW or other games released before/in 2005, that grafix card and 1gb ram will do fine. I m using 7600gt 256mb with 1gb ram on ASUS M2NE with AMD5000+ proc. And I tell u, 7600gt is a grand card for a low price. I can play almost 90% games with MAX details on my system till date. the remaining 10% I have to play on medium/low details (Crysis) .
Have u searched the local market for a socket 478 board. I think I saw some last time I visited Chandni Chowk (kolkata). I think u will find it at ur place too.
they will cost around 2k and u will get warranty.

thx for the re Evander, yes ur point is actually very valid... i will go out today to get some info on the boards...

yes the 7600gt is an awesom card... this x1650pro is just behind it in performance... i will also try to get 7600gt or x1650xt (not PRO, which is the same as the 7600gt)... if i can get my hands on that one it wud b just great...

I have never used ATI radeon, mate, so cant say nething about that.

7600gt PCI-E is still available in kolkata, but i dont know if the AGP version is available or not.

well he sent me a pic of the board... here it is..

http://i450.photobucket.com/albums/q...t/e1881d17.jpg

as u can see there is some amount of rust on the vga port.

but overall the board seems to be in good shape (after all he wudnt have wrestled with it... lol )

i will just tell him the price he's quoting is high... i'll also try to check out the markets tomoro here as today were the elections and most shops were closed when i was free.

Starry, dont take this board.
look at the hand-written slip on it, this board has come from a repair-shop.
-feedback

if that slip means this then u opened my eyes man! thanks!

moreso the rust is just turning me off... to be honest i dont have rust anywhere on my howsoever low performance board even though i've used it for nearly 4yrs now...

even if i get the board and it starts giving me problems then what'l happen!?

Originally Posted by StarryKnight

even if i get the board and it starts giving me problems then what'l happen!?

thats the main point. Starry, I have assembled many pc for my friends and done it commercially too for 5 months which paid for my M2NE motherboard and 5000+ processor and 7600gt. Over that period of time I have never dealt with second hand goods that do no have warranty.
The slip here is pasted on a chip which is very unusual and generally done when the board is sent to a service-centre. Seen it many times.
Just go for a new board.(if possible, ditch the old mobo+processor+ram too, if possible)

thx man... good thing i posted here...
ya if any new 478 board is not available in the mart then i will have to... if not i anyways will probably have to get a new comp next yr for college...
will then just build my dream machine well not so dreamy that i land up broke... :lol: but a pretty good one at that

yes i think i'll also go in for some commercial assembling once i assemble my own... nice to have some money made

create a thread here again when u plan to buy the next PC, we will all contribute our knowledge to make a top-quality but not too costly PC

I found that connector you were looking for

Originally Posted by hdmyg8586

I found that connector you were looking for

who did u address and what did u mean ???? what dvi jack ????

lol.. i think he missd the correct thread?

so i went today to the market to get an idea of the situation... turns out there's no known branded 845 or 865 board... whats there is a company named 'omaxe' manufactured 845 boards... there is an agp slot there but the people are not even aware if its 4x or 8x...

any info for this brand?

maybe i shud look for the board in not so well known computer hardware places... like the individual shops here n there... m sure i saw an intel 865 board at one such shop but there was no agp slot on it. but i did not ask for any other board there (was bent on 865 with dual channel mem... lol)

evander i think i'm making a mistake not buying the board... after what i saw in the market...

as far as the rust is concerned it is on the parallel port... possibly due to lack of usage.

I havent heard about "omaxe" either and there is no point in buying such a board. I was not worried about that rust, i was concerned about that sticker. Anyway, do look for a new board at other shops and if not found, there no more options for us than to go for that second-hand board. Try to convince the guy to lower the price if possible.
I have dealt in second-hand boards and am sure that , that board can not cost more than 1.2k . let me know what happens.

i've asked him what that sticker meant... see what he replies... ... really that omaxe thing was pure local maal! ...

i'l go around shops here in dwarka tomoro, also those shops which r at hard to access places (saw that board i mentiond at such a place )... i really hope i find one.

so he's saying the label is to know that its his board....

and btw the slip's not pasted on a chip evander... its on an empty space.

thats very silly , and I dont believe it. OK, i am going to tell u what I would do, if I couldnt find a new board (should be priced around 1.8k), I would buy this one for a maximum 1.2k.
Not more.

ok... i've decided i will act wisely for a change and have some patience...

i will just look for a new board somewhere of a reputed brand. if i find one, well and good. if i dont, i will just let the system stay as it is.
it is with gr8 misery that i've come to this decision, but i've finally decided for sure.

i was just thinking the upgrade wud greatly extend the life of the comp... as well as it wud become more powerful.

dont be sorry starry. u have made the right decision.
look at it this way, if u bought this board, u would also have to buy a very poor agp card. this system would then be able to run only a handful of old games.
And after a year when u will try to sell the lot, u will get next to nothing.
thats not what u want. wait for some time and then upgrade the entire cpu/mobo/ram/gpu. the way prices have fallen, it wont hurt u much and in the end u will have a gr8 system capable to run all the modern games and 3d applications.

thx for the re evander... ok so whats decided is decided. i won't be budging from it now. but i dont think the card's that poor, its just behind 7600gt in performance (don't compare to today's pci e cards please )!

i've just got another reason not to go for it. the power supply... just looked at it... its just 250watts! damn compaq! if i go in for the card and the motherboard then i'l have to go in for a psu! wtf! :lol:

thx man for ur advice... i think i've been saved from disaster .

ps: repped

this is screenshot from farcry 2. currently playing it on 7600gt.

this is not helping with my decision !!!!

this is to strengthen ur spirit so u can wait for a pci-e card.