Changing PC Case

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kira-i-

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This is my setup:
http://www.microcenter.com/single_product_results.phtml?product_id=0337331

AMD Athlon™ II X2 Processor 240
4GB DDR3 RAM
500GB 7,200RPM Hard Drive

I want to get a new graphics card but my computer is slim so it would require a low profile graphics card, which is hard to find, and it only has a 220w psu, so I also need to replace that but same problem. I decided I want to just buy a new PC case and transfer all my hardware to the bigger case where I can have a regular sized video card and psu.


1) How difficult is it transfer all my hardware to a new case? I've watched a few youtube walkthroughs on it and it doesn't seem too difficult but I'm not sure.





Thanks for all your help, I'd be lost without sites like this!
 
Solution
jmsellars1
So $200 for case, PSU and GPU?

Firstly, Coolermaster PSU's normally aren't very highly recommended. Their cases and coolers are good but there are better PSU's for the price.

For $200 you can get these at Newegg:

Antec Earthwatts 380W - $39.99
Rosewill Challenger - $49.99
Sapphire HD 5770 1GB - $109.99

That PSU should be plenty for that build and the HD 5770 is going to be a lot better than the HD 5670. Also the Rosewill challenger is great at that budget.
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jmsellars1

jmsellars1

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1) Would take a couple of hours to do it properly but it's not difficult.

2) I'd recommend an HD 5770. If you can't afford that then the HD 5670 is ok, if you have more cash then the HD 6850 is good. I wouldn't get anything more powerful than that though. Your nVidia alternatives would be GTS 450 = HD 5770, GTS 440 is roughly the same as HD 5670 and GTX 460 1GB = HD 6850.

3) In most games a decent GPU will help massively but SC2 is CPU dependant, i dont think a GPU will make a huge difference there :( EDIT: Oh wait you don't have a GPU at all atm? Should make a big difference then, SC2 is still CPU dependant though and that may still hold it back.

4) Youre going to want at least 350W i think, the Corsair CX-430 430W is a good quality PSU and it's usually pretty reasonably priced. An Antec or Seasonic 350W would be ok too.
 
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K

kira-i-

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Thanks for the help! I think I pretty much know what I want to buy at this point (I've been researching literally all day).

I'm going to get a $50 case at fry's that comes with a crappy psu I'm going to replace with a new 400-500w psu. Right now I'm looking at a CoolerMaster because they're available at Fry's, and they're supposed to be decent quality. I'm looking at the 512mb HD 5670 because I heard the 6670 is only supposed to be 10-20% faster and thats like $40 more.

Does all that sound reasonable? If you'd suggest anything better or different please persuade me! Money isn't too big an issue but I'd like to keep this below $200.

I'm anxious as hell about disassembling/reassembling my computer but I already bought a antistatic wrist wrap thing for like $2 so there's no turning back now lol. Seriously though if anyone has any tips please throw them out there.

 
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jmsellars1

jmsellars1

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So $200 for case, PSU and GPU?

Firstly, Coolermaster PSU's normally aren't very highly recommended. Their cases and coolers are good but there are better PSU's for the price.

For $200 you can get these at Newegg:

Antec Earthwatts 380W - $39.99
Rosewill Challenger - $49.99
Sapphire HD 5770 1GB - $109.99

That PSU should be plenty for that build and the HD 5770 is going to be a lot better than the HD 5670. Also the Rosewill challenger is great at that budget.
 
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K

kira-i-

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That case looks pretty awesome I gotta say. I think I'm gonna go for it. I'll take you're word on the psu as well. I'm going to do some research on the graphics card though just because I know the other one is a great deal and I haven't looked at this one yet.

Thanks man you seriously just picked out pretty much what Im going to buy I think.
 
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zooted

zooted

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+1 like the suggestion, I have built with the Challenger before, I like it.
 
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jmsellars1

jmsellars1

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No problem :)
 
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AdrianPerry

AdrianPerry

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That SeaSonic PSU at $40 looks a really good buy.

However - taken from Guru3d;

Radeon HD 5770 (single GPU)

The card requires you to have a 500 Watt power supply unit at minimum if you use it in a high-end system. That power supply needs to have (in total accumulated) at least 40 Amps available on the +12 volts rails.
 
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Proximon

Proximon

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That's just them repeating instructions from the packaging. Here are actual power draws:
http://forums.atomicmpc.com.au/index.php?showtopic=264

A typical 5770 will not ever pull more than about 100W, or about 8 amps of 12V power.

My overclocked system (i7 2600K, 5870) with a water pump and 11 fans has never pulled more than 400W from the wall. That's about a 360W load on my PSU.

That said you can get any of the Rosewill cases in combo with a Rosewill Green series 530W
http://www.newegg.com/Product/ProductCombos.aspx?Item=N82E16817182199&SubCategory=58&SortField=0&PageSize=10&page=1

The Rosewill RG530-S12 is made by ATNG and considered a decent PSU for the price. Probably not quite the same quality as the Delta built EA-380D mentioned, but since it won't be stressed as much I would say it's a better choice. Gives you that margin for future upgrades.
Do stay away from the Rosewill RV (Stallion) series.
 
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kira-i-

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Wow, a lot of information there lol

Okay so I'm going to look at the link Proximon gave me since it comes with the case I was already going to get and a decent psu. All the psu's seem to be about the same quality from what I'm getting at so just for conveniance it seems like the combo's the way to go. I still have a few more things I want to look up before I click the buy button.

On another site someone told me that I have to make sure the case is compatible with a mATX mobo otherwise the wires might not reach the multimedia boards on the front case? I'm going to research that and the psu's you guys mentioned as well as that video card I haven't looked at yet. Lots of homework for me.

If this turns out to be difficult I'm just going to get a friend to help me with it. Right now I just want to make sure everything is going to work together before I buy it.
 
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kira-i-

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Okay so it looks like the rosewill challenger should do fine with my mobo.

Right now I'm looking at that combo that comes with the case and the psu, and I'm still being stubborn and sticking with the HD5670 since it just seems to be the best value. Does anyone expect there to be any problems with this set up? Or would you recommend anything else?

I want to order these right now but I should probably I'll wait a day or 2 to see what everybody thinks. Thanks for all the links and input.
 
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jmsellars1

jmsellars1

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The HD 5670 is ok if youre happy with playing games at less than ~1440x900 at around medium-high settings i'd say. The HD 5770 however should max the majority of games at that resolution and it would do ok at 1920x1200.

Also apologies if that SeaSonic PSU wasn't a good suggestion, perhaps just stay with that Antec. Even at the slightly raised price it is still good value.

EDIT: Dunno if this is a good reference point, but my friend has this build:

Intel Core 2 Duo E7500 @ 3.2Ghz
2 x 2GB DDR2 RAM
XFX HD 5770

He plays at 1440x900 and he can play Battlefield Bad Company 2, Stalker Call of Pripriat, Fallout 3 etc on ultra high settings without lag.
 
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K

kira-i-

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I looked up a comparison of the HD5670 and the 5770 and decided to go for the latter. Ya I guess I'm a pushover. For some reason I thought they were pretty close in comparison but I guess not.

http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/HIS/Radeon_HD_5670_IceQ/28.html

Now I guess I'm ready to order it all. I really hope this all works out. For some reason I have a feeling the cards going to be too big for the motherboard or the case or something. Here goes nothing. *Ordering
 
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