Update on a GW2 Worthy pc

W

Waynos

Member
Friday i bought a ASUS K8V-X-SE for $50 via Craigslist
Here is what it came with;
ASUS K8V-X-SE 754 Socket Motherboard 2GB max supported RAM
AMD Sempron 2800+ CPU 1.6GHz
Nvidia GeForce 4MX 4000 128 MB Video RAM
400 Watt Power Supply
18 inch Monitor (big like a TV lol)
USB mouse & Keyboard
Not Bad for $50.00 considering the 400 Watt PSU and the full size tower
case with see-Thru panel and plenty of room for upgrades

it needs 4 things to be ready;
1. Motherboard with AM3 socket supporting 8GB DDR3 $50. tigerdirect
2. AM3 socket AMD CPU 3.2GHz $70 tigerdierct
3. 8GB DDR3 Corsair RAM (2x4GB sticks) $44 tigerdirect
4. ASUS 8400GS Video Card 1GB video Ram $40 tigerdirect
TOTAL NEEDED = $203.00 (I have $60.00 saved)

being low budget i saw this on Craigslist so i jumped on it
knowing it only would need max of 4 parts to run GW2

i'll continue to look for reasonable parts as i can
but i'll be happy running GW2 at min/med settings
just to be able to play..i can add better vid card when
finances are better.

any thoughts on whether i got a good deal for $50 or not?

all feedback is welcome and appreciated.
GOD Bless,
Waynos
 
Assuming the power supply is a decent model (wattage isn't everything) then you got a good deal. One thing to check is the motherboard cable on the power supply. For an AM3 motherboard it needs to have a 20+4 (sometimes it will simply be 24) pin connector. Older power supplies only had a 20 pin connector.
 
Thanks for the tip..turns out it is a
V-Power LC-B400ATX 400 Watt 20-pin PSU lol


here is my parts list im buying as i can from tigerdirect
Part type Item# Description
Motherboard= S458-1404 (AM3 socket type,max 8GB ddr3 240pin ram) $50
CPU= A79-0450 (3.2GHz with fan/heat sync) $70
RAM= C13-1007 (8GB 240pin ram kit (2x4GB sticks) $44
PSU= A107-3027 (450 watts 24-pin works with motherboard listed above) $20
GPU= A455-8410 (ASUS 8400GS video card with 1GB video memory with cooler fan ) $40
Grand total is $224.00
Saved $60
needed $164 then i'll place my order and build away lol
 
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Option 2:
I spoke with a Computer Tech from the church i attend
and he said i can upgrade what i have and run GW2 on low-med
settings by adding the following parts;

1.EVGA GeForce 6200 Video Card 512MB,APGx8,shader 3.0 $50-Tigerdirect
2.Corsair 1GB Memory 184-pin DDR (brings me to 2GB RAM) $27-Tigerdirect
3.AMD Sempron 3300+ 128KB Socket 754 3.33GHz CPU $22-Ebay
Total= $99

never saw that option lol
Thank GOD for Techs that don't mind talking turkey on days off
 
I have lots of comments for you, but not a lot of time at the moment. First, from anything I can find, the Sempron 3300+ runs 2ghz, not 3. Second, I think those parts will only allow low settings. I would be surprised if you would be able to get to medium, but I could be mistaken. However, considering you are short on funds (I completely understand, I am in the same boat) it could be worth it as a temporary solution. I have some other comments for you (and after I check my spare parts maybe something special), but will have to get back to you later on those.

Edit: I need to amend something I said earlier. I am not sure that processor will run GW2. The minimum requirement is a dual-core Athlon 64, which is at least two generations more advanced than what you are looking at. Also, sorry but no "something special." I had a 6200 here, but it looks like that was one of the items I donated to a local charity last month. I need to go work on putting dinner together, after we eat I will look up a few other options for you if that would be a help.
 
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I feel your pain brother. Right now running a pc I built about 6 years ago. It has a core 2 duo and a gtx9500, which is good enough to run gw2 but only on the lowest settings. I'm posting guitars(have too many) and tools (that I don't use) on craigslist and classifiers to build a new pc. Kinda want to go all out and build a top notch machine but that'll be contingent on money and more importantly the status of wife happiness.
 
ok Thanks I'll have to look into it
it would need to fit an APGx8 slot
or a regular PCI slot
i'll have to figure out if it is compatible

the current motherboard i have
MOBO = ASUS K8V-X-SE
Current Card = Nvidia GeForce4 MX 4000 APGx8 128MB DDR
i do have
1 - APGx8 slot
And 4 - PCI slots but i don't think they are PCI-E compatible
 
Here is an option

Cpu and Motherboard combo

Though you should note that the deal ends tonight at midnight pacific time. You will also need some ddr3, which you could buy 4gb for $30 easily enough. Pair that with the video card you were just offered and you should be good to go.

Edit: You could always try to resell the unneeded parts from the pc you just bought on craigslist. Oh, I forgot you will need a powersupply too... hmmm..... guess I will keep looking....
 
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Although the cheap method sounded good for my wallet,
i gotta respect the feedback about dual core CPU.
afterall nothing would be more frustrating than thinking i
was ready to play and not being able too.

so i'll begin my search for
MOBO
CPU
RAM
PSU
Video Card

plus if i have an AM3 or AM3+ socket and PCI-E slot
I can use better quality parts than those of a APGx8 lol

I can still use the following parts for the build
Case
CD/DVD-RW drive
160GB HDD
Mouse
Keyboard
Monitor
so i guess i got my $50 worth from craigslist
with that i'll be happy and collect my parts
without rushing lol

Thanks Everyone
GOD Bless,
Waynos
 
How much do you have available to spend, you can build a decent machine for relatively cheep. There are plenty of us on here who can help you with that. :)
 
after buying the ASUS for $50
I have $61.50 left

i looked on ebay for some good cheap parts
and this is what i found under "Buy It Today"
to avoid the bidding game
(double checked all parts for compatibility)

MOBO= ASUS M5A78L-M LX
AM3+,ATX 24-PIN,8GB -2 slots DDR3 240-PIN $45
(PCI-E slots and stuff as well)

CPU= AMD Athlon II X2 220 2.8GHz DUAL CORE AM3 $39
CPU COOLING= Heatsink w/ fan for AM3 socket CPU $13

RAM= Mushkin Silverline 8GB DDR3 (2-4GB 240-PIN STICKS) $35

GPU= GeForce 8400 GS PCI-E DDR3 1GB Video Memory $36

PSU= Thermaltake ATX 24-PIN 480watt power supply $28

TOTAL includes shipping $186.00
$123.50 LEFT TO SAVE

same parts from tigerdirect = $304
tiger direct using motherboard cpu bundle $250

so thats where i'm at for now.
unless someone can find a cheaper route lol
 
With the am3 socket you could eventually get a phenom II x4 (which is about the best gaming cpu for that socket) and with the pci-e slot you could use the video card that blsimpson offered. I have buddy that had a phenom II he wasn't using (at least I think it was a phenom) I'll check and see. If he still has it I'll see if he'll give it to me and I can send it your way.
 
eek..OS's are so pricey.
i was gonna keep the XP Professional SP3 thats on the HDD
to try and save money lol

if i need an OS it will prolong this grueling process.

i have heard u can get Windows 8 preview OS Free
from microsoft website..but i don't understand the ISO method lol

in all seriousness i never thought about the OS.
Will i have to change the OS?
or can i squeek by for now and get it later?
 
Well, for the os you could always start off with Ubuntu linux (one of the easiest and most stable in my opinion). If you instal Wine, you should be able to run GW2 fairly well. I haven't heard recently, but during the first couple of beta weekends people were reporting that it was working about as well as native windows.
 
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