New Computer Time - Low End

Seen these threads a few times before, but the most recent I found was a couple months old.

Been using the same computer for the past 9 years to play FFXI and just general web browsing and other office/school tasks. It finally had a CPU issue last night though, getting over heating errors and terrible performance even when I can get it to boot. Think a hardware issue may of taken hold, as any system restores or settings foolery I've tried haven't restored performance. Always told myself I'd just replace it the next time a rough issue came up, so here we are.

I've long since fallen behind on what a good deal is for PC's or what specs are actually important. First thing that popped up on newegg in my searches was this that caught my eye. No preinstalled vid card, but I've got an okish nvidia card that should do the trick. Monitor is also already taken care of.

Anyone know/care to point me to some better deals? Not really looking for anything super high end, just looking to spend under $500 for a computer that'll last at least a few years with decent overall performance, catering largely to FFXI.

Thanks much in advance!

Eh, arguably you would have a difficult time upgrading it if you desired.
If it is just a CPU issue, look into buying a new motherboard/processor/RAM for your case, and just swap it out.

Build your own, it's easy and fun.
http://pcpartpicker.com/parts/partlist/ and
http://www.reddit.com/r/buildapcforme/comments/1444xx/mod_post_cookie_cutter_builds_update_1/
That's an older post but that subreddit is a good place to start.

for sub$500 it's almost always better to buy a pre-built rig than build your own

It sounds like your old system had the thermal paste fail. If it's not been reapplied for 9years, that's likely where the heat issue is (And maybe a clogged heatsink too) Thermal paste, on average, is only ideally good for about 4 years.

Arctic silver 5 and other high end pastes might last a bit longer, but generic pastes I don't think have a good shelf life to them.

But anyway, for that Acer system you listed, there's 2 things to keep in mind:

1: It's a small form factor, that's mATX at best, so you aren't going to be fitting most video cards in there unless their small profile, single slot cards, like entry level, usually older cards.

2: The power supply in it is only 220watts, it may not be enough to power an external video card, esp depending on which yours is. You'll only have maybe 60watts to play with over the systems needed power (assuming you use 3 USB ports by my calculations), which likely means no 6pin connector, it will have to be run off the PCIe's power only.

Some lower end cards can fit that in both size and power, but you will not have much power to play with, and almost zero power to account for capacitor aging in the power supply.

What video card are you thinking of putting in if you buy the Acer, I could see if it will have enough power and fit^^

Last thing to consider is, unless the video card uses passive cooling, that tower will generate a fair bit more heat that it isn't designed to deal with.

All things considered however, that would be plenty to run FFXI very well.

Another note is you could build you one, if you feel comfortable doing so, or have the experience, AMD makes it super possible now with their APU's, and if you reuse parts and case from your old PC, you could build a pretty decent gaming system for less then 500$. It won't be steller like an i5 system with a geforce 700 card like you might get at 800$, but you'll get more then plenty of power for gaming, far beyond what FFXI needs.

The less you can reuse, the slightly lower end the system will be however, and the lower price you have to go for parts, the less feasible it will be to build your own, and might save money buying something cheaper like this Acer you found.

If you wanted, I could do some searching for pre-built systems, or write up a wishlist for a 500$ system to build yourself^^

I would spend a little more and get a AMD apu or a intel I3 system tbh. That cup is total garbage and the integrated go is pretty ***also. Should be ok for ffxi but anything else forget it. I would open up you computer and give it a good cleaning first. Get a can of compressed air and go to town on all the heat sinks, fans and any intake/exausts first

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16883220687

I would rather get that personally.

That isn't a bad system at all, much better then the Acer one.
Bit of an ugly case, but when you're tight on a budget, you can't always get prettier ones.

But might i make a suggestion of this one:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16883220630

A bit more powerful with an A10 6700 @3.7Ghz (runs a radeon 8000 gpu vs the A8's 7000 series), only 20$ more, but it comes with a 40$ mail in rebate.

It's easy to clean out most computers of the bloatware.
Just go through and delete any program you know you don't need, then delete anything not made by microsoft or related to your PC's hardware. (which can easily be done with the manual and driver disc to check descriptors.)

As for cooling, it suffices for a time. Esp when you just need to get a computer up and working.

You can always do upgrades to the cooling system on the CPU and exhaust fan. (Usually the latter isn't a proprietary connection...)

if you are willing and up to the task putting your own together i can make you a 500$ budget build, PM me if you are interested.

got bored and made one for lulz

this is assuming you have a video card to bring with you.

http://pcpartpicker.com/user/misterryu/saved/jnjRsY

can slowly upgrade the rig with an SSD and video card whenever you save some extra cash.

if you want/need a video card on the low, just add 120$ and grab a GTX 750ti , will be able to play pretty much everygame out there smoothly, just not 60fps ultra on some of the newer games lol.

Lots of input lol.

I've pretty much already written off this computer, I've tried cleaning it and such already with no luck. Tried a few different drivers, temp checks, etc, but nothing really showing up as a cause for what's going on. Just going to end up being more trouble than it's worth, specially for something that's long past it's life cycle. And yeah Kath, pretty sure it was the thermal paste as the root of the issue. I replaced it once about 3-4 years after building the system, but never did much more maintenance beyond that, except for cleaning and a GPU replacement. It was a gritty white powder when I popped it open yesterday lol.

It's been years since I've messed with building a system, and 9+ years since I was really serious about it. I'm sure I could get back into it and build one up, but tbh, I think I'd prefer to just get a pre-built and upgrade it as needed. PSU replacement unless it came with a good one would be at the top of the list for sure.

The GPU I've got to transfer is just a PNY Geforce 210, nothing fancy, got it as a replacement for my old one that eventually failed. Worked well enough for FFXI and other random non-modern things. It's got a low profile and doesn't require and additional power beyond the PCI-e slot. Won't be doing much that's high end with it though. The CPU was the real failing point, even random things like Youtube was quite laggy.

Another attractive bit with a pre-built that wasn't taken into account in the partpicker list (but love that list, thanks!) is buying Windows, was still running XP like a baws on this machine. Cleaning out a prebuilt isn't that big of a deal, been doing that for over a decade for random friends and relatives. Even easier if you know to do it ASAP, rather than use it for a while then seek to clean it up. XD

Looking to get the order in on Friday, silly bills and paydays line up just right. Any other deals that I may want to look into? That Asus M11 struck my fancy for sure. Lose the free shipping, but it comes out to the same cost as the ASUS M32 after the additional $20 cost, $20 shipping, and -$40 rebate. Lose a TB of storage (not a deal breaker, got a few random 250-500 GB drives), but better CPU and GPU, though no details about the PSU either. Any real difference between Windows 8 and 8.1? Haven't stayed up to date with 8....at all. XD Speaking of, I've read plenty of horror stories with Windows 8 and FFXI. Any truth to them?

That would be pretty bad for FFXI due to the 5500 being crippled.

The A8-7600 is fairly new and really cheap for what it offers.

Here is a sub $500 USD build that will rock FFXI and most other small stuff.

http://pcpartpicker.com/p/vHMYf7

It's using the APU but equipped with DDR3-2133 dual channel memory. It's got the same graphics power as the cheaper low end DDR3 dGPU's and far more then any of the Intel integrated graphics. I actually have this system myself and use it for playing FFXI in the living room on my big screen HDTV.

Pics

http://i537.photobucket.com/albums/ff338/palladin9479/PC%20Builds/20130917_232103_zpsccc9d3f4.jpg

http://i537.photobucket.com/albums/ff338/palladin9479/PC%20Builds/20130917_232308_zps77588ff8.jpg

The problem with prebuilts is your vastly overpaying for what you get. A $500 USD prebuilt will likely have $300~$350 in actual hardware, especially since OEM's love to go with extremely cheap power supply's and motherboards. You never, EVER, want to go with a cheap PSU or motherboard, nothing but stability issues due to low quality of components. And never get an OEM desktop with an APU, they will put absolutely trash memory with renders the onboard graphics virtually useless. We are talking about unmatched sticks of DDR3-1333.

It seems windows 8 is a hit or miss for ppl and ffxi. I personally had no issues using XI on windows 8/8.1. You could go for the m 11 one. I just hate dealing with rebates cause you might end up never getting it. While the other have good diy builds they don't come with windows which would tag on another $100 or so to the price in less you get it from other means *wink*. That would be the way to go then since I hate prebuilt systems.

found this after some searching


http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16883229565&ignorebbr=1&cm_re=PPSSEVGEAOHCOO-_-83-229-565-_-Product[

That's a pretty nice e system. A little past the budget but a hell of a lot better system.

craigslist is a nice option at times also. I picked up my current Intel i5-3570k rig this way; at a much better deal then even building it myself.

I made this to play FFXI on.