Need Tips! upgrading CPU and motherboard...

[flibulzbuth]

Yep folks, i need the help of all the computer cracks here on IW.

I'm thinking to eventually upgrade my CPU, motherboard and probably power supply too.

I currently have a pentium 2 350 MHz. My graphic card is a voodoo 5500. My warranty is still valid on this one, so i just have to roast it and send it back to the shop to get a new one (probably a GeForce 4, price-wise).
I have a lot of time ahead of me to think about it, about 6-8 months before i have to grill my Voodoo (before the warranty is over).
Most of all, i'm always broke. I'm not looking for the best stuff out there, over 1 GHz is good for me. My budget would be limited to a grand maximum of 250 US$ (give or take a little).

I'm not totally new to computer architecture, i used to build computers for a company 8 years ago. But i never had to worry about power supplies (they came with the case), and things have probably changed a lot since.

Do you have some tips i should know when shopping and installing these things?
Do you know where i can get good prices on these parts?

Thanks all.

[Animal]

Price wise, AMD is the way to go. For the power supply anything less than 350W and your asking for trouble. I'd spend some decent cash on the mobo, it'll make all the difference. I like ASUS, myself as I've found the overclock real well. If you go Athlon, you'll probably need new DDR memory as well, unless you choose a board that supports you current memory configuration. Try to avoid "bargain" motherboards as you'll just create headaches for yourself. Look for something with the KT266A chip. This will future proof you for a little while, and really works well with the newer Athlon XP chips that AMD offers. $250 is a pretty low ceiling, so I'd try to save a little more cash if possible. You'll be much happier in the long run with better parts. The Voodoo 5 should hold you for a little while, but remember 3dfx is dead. new drivers are out there, but nearly as reliable as nVidia. Check out some motherboard manufacturers web site and build from the mobo up.

[flibulzbuth]

Thanks Animal,

My two online info references are
-www.cpureview.com for US price lists, and
-www.tomshardware.com for technology info.

Got any other good sites i should check (apart from company ones). Canadian prices would be a boon too.

[The Hunter of Jahanna]

you can try ebay for someone selling a used PC , or you can go to www.hugebee.com They have everything and will sell you as much or as little as you want. When I upgraded back in feb. I bought a new case motherboard ,pent 4 1.6G processor and 128 Megs or RDRAM from them and only spent $350. They assembled my stuff and sent me the win98 drivers for everything.

[RudeDawg]

Tons of great info at Ars Technica

Check out their "Guides" section. They have "How-Tos" and general tips for building your own systems, and overclocking them. They even do a regular bit where they spec out "dream systems"... [img]graemlins/thumbsup.gif[/img] good luck!

[Thoran]

$250 is tough... $500 and your getting in the ballpark... I'd save a few bucks so you don't have to scrimp on the important stuff.

[flibulzbuth]

I've been reading and surfing all the evening on this.

About Ebay... i don't really trust that system. If the board doesn't work, how do i get a refund? Might be good deals there, but i'm not sure it's worth the risk.

So far, the best motherboard i've found is Soltek SL-75DRV2 (146 CAN$). This board is the #1 recommended of Tom's hardware KT266A review. The two others are Soyo Dragon+ (257$) and Abit KR7A (205$).
Asus mobos ranks low on this review, but things may have change since. Still, 150 CAN$ (=94 US$) is a good deal for a winner board.

The motherboard-CPU combos on hugebee could be a good deal, but i might loose with a no-name mobo.

I'll see what cash is left for the CPU, but there is no big difference between the athlon XP 1600+ up to 1800+. My choice will depend on the price of the other components:

-Case
-Power supply

OMFG! Even if i buy the cheapest, razor-edged case i still have to pay a whooping 76 CAN$ on the PS. Aargh!

There may be light at the end of the tunnel though... just found a 99 US$ AMD compliant case/PS combo at hugebee...

Well, i still have to check for more. I'll ask around me, too. But one thing is certain, i'll never be able to get something decent with my initial 250 US$ budget. [img]graemlins/crying.gif[/img]

Think i'll have to steal a couple of old ladies' handbags. [img]smile.gif[/img]

[Thoran]

I've got the Soltek SL-75drv4 (running at 1800 mhz with a Athlon XP1700+ liquid cooled), it's a great board for overclocking and has been bulletproof, even at 150mhz fsb... It's also over a hundred beans. I've had very good luck on the low end with the ECS-k7s5a. I paid $37 at Frys for it in November (when I bought a processor at the same time) and I'm getting another tomorrow so I can get my second Athlon 1200 box running again. They run about $55 or so.