Josef DeLaurel
04-02-2010, 10:05 AM
I am a complete novice with regards to building/upgrading pc's but am very keen on learning the ropes. I currently have a standard, unmodified pc that I bought from a well-known, national computer store. I've had it for about two years and it was nothing special to begin with and is now starting to show it's age.
Rather than shell out for a new PC I've decided to begin the long, slow process of learning to build/upgrade PC's, starting with my own. I would like to know what is the best video card I can buy that will work with the operating system I currently have. Parallel to this I would also like to know what is the best processor and RAM upgrade I can install on the unit.
My operating system is thus:
Packard Bell J758
Windows Vista Home Basic
Cuba (MSI MS-7301) Motherboard:
Form Factor
* µATX Form Factor
* 24.4 x 24.4 cm
CPU Support
* Intel Celeron D 3xx and 4xx models
* Intel Pentium 4 5xx and 6xx models
* Intel Pentium D 8xx and 9xx models
* Intel Core 2 Duo models with LGA775
* 533 / 800 / 1066 MHz FSB
Chipset
* VIA PT890 Northbridge
* VIA VT8237A Southbridge
System Memory
* DDR2 400 / DDR2 533 (2 banks)
* Support for up to 3 GB system memory
Expansion Slots
* 1x PCI Express 16X
* 1x PCI Express 1X
* 2x PCI
Ethernet Controller
* LAN 10/100 (VIA VT6103L)
FireWire (IEEE 1394) Controller
* VIA VT6308 IEEE 1394 controller
Audio
* High Definition Audio subsystem using the Realtek ALC 888 audio codec
IDE (HDD, ODD)
* 2 x SATA connectors
* 2 x Ultra ATA-133 connectors
Intel Core 2 Duo E4300:
CPU Specifications
Manufacturer Intel
Type Core 2 Duo (Allendale)
Clock Speed 1.8 GHz
Front Bus Speed 800 MHz
Cache 2 MB
Socket LGA775
Model SL9TB
Stepping L2
Maximum temperature 61°C
Maximum power dissipation 65 W
RAM: 1022
System type: 32-bit
Current graphics card: NVIDIA GeForce 7500 LE
Any help would be fantastic, I've been trying for over a week now to find a place to 'start from' with regards to upgrading this machine and have been completely lost, finding myself going in circles once I'd found out what motherboard I had. Also, price will be an important factor but for now I'd just like to find out what will work with it. In essence I'm looking for a machine that will run most modern games. I'm not fussed about maxing out the graphics settings or sound quality I just want to be able to play the damn things. Being able to run most computer games with a stable frame rate at medium-ish settings would be my dream come true.
Regards,
Josef DeLaurel
Rather than shell out for a new PC I've decided to begin the long, slow process of learning to build/upgrade PC's, starting with my own. I would like to know what is the best video card I can buy that will work with the operating system I currently have. Parallel to this I would also like to know what is the best processor and RAM upgrade I can install on the unit.
My operating system is thus:
Packard Bell J758
Windows Vista Home Basic
Cuba (MSI MS-7301) Motherboard:
Form Factor
* µATX Form Factor
* 24.4 x 24.4 cm
CPU Support
* Intel Celeron D 3xx and 4xx models
* Intel Pentium 4 5xx and 6xx models
* Intel Pentium D 8xx and 9xx models
* Intel Core 2 Duo models with LGA775
* 533 / 800 / 1066 MHz FSB
Chipset
* VIA PT890 Northbridge
* VIA VT8237A Southbridge
System Memory
* DDR2 400 / DDR2 533 (2 banks)
* Support for up to 3 GB system memory
Expansion Slots
* 1x PCI Express 16X
* 1x PCI Express 1X
* 2x PCI
Ethernet Controller
* LAN 10/100 (VIA VT6103L)
FireWire (IEEE 1394) Controller
* VIA VT6308 IEEE 1394 controller
Audio
* High Definition Audio subsystem using the Realtek ALC 888 audio codec
IDE (HDD, ODD)
* 2 x SATA connectors
* 2 x Ultra ATA-133 connectors
Intel Core 2 Duo E4300:
CPU Specifications
Manufacturer Intel
Type Core 2 Duo (Allendale)
Clock Speed 1.8 GHz
Front Bus Speed 800 MHz
Cache 2 MB
Socket LGA775
Model SL9TB
Stepping L2
Maximum temperature 61°C
Maximum power dissipation 65 W
RAM: 1022
System type: 32-bit
Current graphics card: NVIDIA GeForce 7500 LE
Any help would be fantastic, I've been trying for over a week now to find a place to 'start from' with regards to upgrading this machine and have been completely lost, finding myself going in circles once I'd found out what motherboard I had. Also, price will be an important factor but for now I'd just like to find out what will work with it. In essence I'm looking for a machine that will run most modern games. I'm not fussed about maxing out the graphics settings or sound quality I just want to be able to play the damn things. Being able to run most computer games with a stable frame rate at medium-ish settings would be my dream come true.
Regards,
Josef DeLaurel