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A little accident with a loose stick of ram resulted in me having a dead stick of ram and apparently a dead motherboard on my hands. I bought a new stick today, which didn't work either - I plan to have it tested, but because two of my three slots were not working last week, I imagine it's the board.
So, it appears the one thing I wanted to replace (my video card) is the one thing I'm keeping.
I currently have an 80gb drive running winxp. Brand new 512 ddr 400 stick, my standby radeon 8500 128mb, and just as I typed this did I realize my sound card was integrated into the motherboard. Aw hell.
Alright, in the market for a new sound card, motherboard, and processor. I plan to go with AMD. I don't know anything else. I really wasn't planning to upgrade for another 6-12 months, but I need my computer for college.
Spare me any nvidia/pentium arguments, I just need input on the best components for my needs. Which are better than what I've got (Athlon 1700+ on a Soyo Dragon Plus! board), and something efficient. I don't need top of the line, just bang for my buck. :)
*Pren_LL-AB
USEast HC
Dark_Mutterings (Necromancer)
Doug_Winger (Wearbear)
Heroic career and 1.10 aspirations cut tragically short because NOBODY CAN DO ANYTHING WITH A 22.2K CONNECTION WHY DOES GOD HATE ME.
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Hi,
Haven't looked for new hardware for a while now, so I'm in my ignorant stage. One of the first places I usually go to to get myself informed is Tom's page at http://www.tomshardware.com/
Sorry to hear about your mobo getting fried. Good luck finding new gear.
--Pete
How big was the aquarium in Noah's ark?
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www.pricewatch.com it's an underrated site, you will not find any tips there about any upgrades. But if you want to get the best price (nobody quote me on this, this is just what I've seen) on PC hardware, I recommend pricwatch. They dont sell anything themselves, they just link to shops across the net that sell for good prices, I'm sure all of you know this already, I just figured I'd repeat it again.
"If you expect a kick in the balls, and you get a slap in the face, then it's a victory!" - 
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For soundcard I'd recommend the Hercules Fortissimo III and I am very happy with it. No problems at all, it seems the drivers are very stable.
I've been using it mostly for gaming/music, and I'm happy with the sound quality as well. It's not insanely expensive either. A good buy IMO.
I don't know enough about motherboards to really recommend one, but I've had no problems with the Abit I'm currently using.
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fortissimo is indeed an excellent sound card :)
if not audigy gamer is still a good buy....you might find the fortissimo III for cheaper though, it's a tad older, I'm looking at the PCG review right now, and it seems like The Vede likes it alot :D I can't find it on pricewatch ...but there's many other places to look :D
"If you expect a kick in the balls, and you get a slap in the face, then it's a victory!" -
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08-10-2003, 07:38 PM
(This post was last modified: 08-10-2003, 07:49 PM by Dozer.)
Ahhh, right up my alley.
Okay, two questions:
1. Any specific reason you are preferring AMD over Intel? AMD was on a streak about a year ago, but the new 800mHz FSB P-4's are GREAT performers, and the 2.4c (which is what I would reccomend) overclocks very well (If that's up your alley :D ) I'm not going to try and convince you (or start an argument), but i was just wondering :)
2. What is your budget? Big question :P Hard to reccomend something if you don't know the price range.
Also, you can't take advantage of dual-channel memory of the nForce series or any of the new Intel chipsets, as you only have one stick of memory, just FYI
Edit: Okay, here's a CPU/Mobo suggestion:
ASUS A7N8X : $124.99 at www.newegg.com
ATHLON XP 3000+ 333MHz FSB: $262.00, retail version including HS/F
For sound card, newegg has the OEm version of the Audigy 2 for $78.00.
That's a total of $465.
...You could go to the ATHLON XP 2800+ 333MHz FSB for $182, if that's too much.
BANANAMAN SEZ: SHUT UP LADIES. THERE IS ENOF BANANA TO GO AROUND. TOOT!
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Errr, i have found Pricegrabber to be MUCH better than pricewatch. But more ofen than not, the cheapest one is NewEgg, anyway :D
BANANAMAN SEZ: SHUT UP LADIES. THERE IS ENOF BANANA TO GO AROUND. TOOT!
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bah it's all the same :P
"If you expect a kick in the balls, and you get a slap in the face, then it's a victory!" -
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Tiger Direct has many reasonable prices on hardware. I have bought much of my computer for college from it.
The mass of men lead lives of quiet desperation - Henry David Thoreau
Whatever doesn't kill you makes you stronger, and at the rate I'm going, I'm going to be invincible.
Chicago wargaming club
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Feryar,Aug 9 2003, 04:29 PM Wrote:For soundcard I'd recommend the Hercules Fortissimo III and I am very happy with it. No problems at all, it seems the drivers are very stable. And I would personally advice in favour of any card EXCEPT that one. I've had 4 generations of drivers for it, and all have given me problems (each driver having different problems in fact). It's been specially annoying with MIDI playback and IRQL_NOT_LESS_OR_EQUAL Blue Screens of Death. All this on Windows XP mind you...
My system has otherwise been always really stable.
Nothing but anecdotical evidence of course :D
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one thing that I hate about computers, is that it's never the same case for all of them (I really wish it was, it would make tech support forums nearly obsolete :lol: ) and what might f*ck someone's pc up, might not f*ck another one's pc up :D . It is a pretty decent soundcard at a reasonable price, I still prefer Audigy Gamer, however :D .
"If you expect a kick in the balls, and you get a slap in the face, then it's a victory!" -
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