New System Advice Please

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chris18

chris18

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Jan 14, 2008
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Let me say at the outset that I live in the UK.

I have been looking at buying a low budget gaming PC to play Open Rails (MSTS) and Flight Simulator X as my current system, purchased in 2005 (see below):

Windows Vista Home Basic
ASUS A8N-SLI motherboard
2GB RAM
Athlon 64x2 Dual Core Processor 3800+
ATI Radeon X700 256MB 128-bit GDDR2 PCI Express x16 Video Card
Shark Thermaltake Case
Philips 150BX 15" LCD Monitor with built in speakers

is a bit low spec for the best performance and also prone to periodic reboots although my PSU is an FSP Blue Storm 500W purchased in 2006 so I would have hoped that wasn't the culprit.

Upgrading various components, such as graphics card and the PSU, doesn't seem viable as it is still limited in other respects.

I have become brain dead looking at all the various suppliers options but recently came across this:

Processor (CPU): AMD Bulldozer FX-6 Six Core 6100
3.30Ghz (3.9Ghz Turbo Mode)
6 CORES Black Edition Perfect For Overclocking
Motherboard: ASUS M5A78L-M USB3 With AMD 760 Chipset
Supporting Quad & SIX Core CPUs & DDR3 Memory
Memory: PATRIOT VIPER V3 RED 8GB DDR3 1600Mhz - Performance/Gaming RAM
Hard Drive: 1TB SATA3 - 6Gb/s 7200RPM & 32MB Cache
Optical Drive: SONY 24XDVD+/-RW Dual Format & Dual Layer
Graphics Card: ATI Radeon 6450 2GB Graphics Card
Direct X11 With VGA, DVI & HDMI Outputs
Case: COOLERMASTER K350 Black Case With 12CM Fan
Comes With A Clear Side Panel & Front Mounted USB3
450W Power Supply Unit
Connections: 8 x USB2.0 Inc 2 USB3.0, Gigabit LAN 10/100/1000 & 7.1 HD Audio
1 x PS/2 Ports, 1 x Optical S/PDIF Port
Software: MICROSOFT WINDOWS 7 PREMIUM 64BIT
GOT YOUR OWN OS? - SELECT REMOVE ALL SOFTWARE FOR £50 DISCOUNT
AVG Anti-Virus Package
Open Office Suite Inc Word Processing/Spreadsheets
Nero Burning Version 7.0
Monitor: NONE - Can Be Added In Upgrades List Below
Extras: FREE GAME 1 = DIRT4 SHOWDOWN

The total cost is £399.99 which as it includes Windows 7 is I feel a good price.

I'm not sure about the PSU as the brand isn't mentioned nor for the 500W,550W or 650W options. Also, not sure about the motherboard but there is an option for a GIGABYTE 970A-DS3 With AMD 970 Chipset at an extra £35.00. The case also only seems to have one fan unlike my Shark.

Would welcome any comments as to the suitability of the system for my needs and especially any negative points.
 
Solution
tiny voices
Well that GPU is trash. It will struggle with games at the lowest possible settings.

This will NOT play games.

The CPU is not good either. The 6100 is junk. AMD said this themselves. The 6300 is what you want.

That PSU is likely junk as well. You want a 500w unit from Antec, XFX, Corsair, Seasonic.

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tiny voices

tiny voices

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Sep 6, 2012
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Well that GPU is trash. It will struggle with games at the lowest possible settings.

This will NOT play games.

The CPU is not good either. The 6100 is junk. AMD said this themselves. The 6300 is what you want.

That PSU is likely junk as well. You want a 500w unit from Antec, XFX, Corsair, Seasonic.

 
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Solution
chris18

chris18

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Thanks for the replies and for being so open and honest in your opinions, that was exactly what I needed.

As I said I only want the new PC to play Open Rails (MS Train Simulator) and Flight Simulator X with Accelerator pack so I don't need an over powerful system.

The random reboots make any upgrading, such as a new graphics card (the obvious choice) rather pointless, especially as I can't add extra RAM. The CPU itself is just about acceptable but no more hence my looking for a new system.

I abandoned using the PC about 3 years ago because the reboots were annoying me and switched to using a laptop. I have only recently revived my interest in Open Rails and FSX and my laptop isn't good enough. Thought I would give the PC a try but it's clearly not man enough and the reboots still occur from time to time.

I want to keep my budget down to around £450(GBP) max so if anyone care to offer suggestions on a system that would meet my needs I would be grateful. This would have to include Windows 7 64 Bit as I have read that Vista isn't the best for the 2 programs I want to run.

I think my Shark Termaltake case is quite good so if I don't buy a ready built system I could consider reusing the case with a new motherboard, CPU and GPU. I already have 2 optical drives, and 3 SATA hard drives so wouldn't need them. I assume it would have to be an ATX form motherboard or am I wrong?

I am not convinced that the PSU is the problem with reboots so I could try using that initially and only replacing it if I get problems. Unless of course the new motherboard etc. require a better PSU.

This would also have the advantage of not having to wade through mountains of different system options most of which I have no real idea of what I am looking at to be able to compare. I am very much at the mercy of the retailers advertising claims.

Unfortunately, although I have built PC systems (but not my present one) for my own use in the past lack of dexterity in the hands would make it very difficult, if not impossible, so I would have to get someone local to do the work for me.

Suggestions more than welcome.

Thanks
 
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chris18

chris18

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Jan 14, 2008
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Following from last post, if I go with upgrading have thought of the following:

AMD Athlon II X4 740 Quad Core Processor / CPU Running at 3.2Ghz!

ASUS F2A85-M LE motherboard or Gigagbyte F2A85X equivalent. I prefer Gigabyte brand but have seen good reviews of the ASUS.

AMD/ATI HD 6670 Graphics Card with 2GB Memory

8GB DDR3 133Mhz Ram

Any thoughts.
 
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chris18

chris18

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Jan 14, 2008
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Thanks for the reply.

So apart from upgrading the GPU the rest of the system would be OK then, bearing in mind my intended use??

The HD7770 seems a bit more expensive than I had thought to pay, retailing as far as I can see at over £120 on Amazon UK so is there an alternative at slightly less cost I could consider???

 
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