Upgrading the Value Gaming PC

What 2-4 upgrades to the Value Gaming PC would most increase the performance? Is XP Pro worth the extra money vis-a-vis XP Home?

Well, depends on which of the 2 systems you choose. However, this question would probably be answered best in General Hardware. If I were you, I would go to General Hardware and post this same question, because the people that post there regularly build systems all the time. Just tell them what you plan on using your system for primarily, and what kind of price range you have. They should build you a lot better system than the Value Gaming system. :)

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Originally posted by Royal Oaks
They should build you a lot better system than the Value Gaming system. :)

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I don't know; I'll take that AMD system up against anything they can build for $1K, on an across-the-board basis. Athlon XP 2200+, nForce2, 512-MB (2x256-MB) DDR333, Radeon 9500 Pro, 19" Samsung 955DF, Logitech 5.1 speakers, and all the little extras (KB, Mouse, OS, etc.) that can really add up.

I feel pretty confident that there's very little you can do with that PC, while staying with the $1K budget and buying all the required components, that's gonna bump up the overall package by any noticeable level.

That is, outside of five-finger discount. :)

Well, not to argue too much in this forum, but I would have personally gone with a T-Bred B processor for one. The chips run a lot cooler than their T-Berd A counterparts, and especially for a budget system with no exotic cooling, this could definitely come in handy. Couple that with the fact that most 2100+ chips are doing 166 FSB straight outta the shoot with no uppage of Vcore, and you have yourself a very nice procesor there. Also, the best NF2 board in my opinion is the Epox 8RDA+, and at $102 it is worth the extra $11. Also, the best RAM today for the cheapest price would have to be the Kingston Hyper-X PC3000. Each 256MB stick can be had for around $45. This price difference could be subtracted with the SB Live5.1, since we would be using on-board sound with the 8RDA+. We could even same more money by going with the non + version of the Epox, and getting a $5 LAN card. I do think it is a very nice system, but IMO the 2200+ is not anywhere in the same league as the 2100+, and this is why I said you could get a better system. :)

Hey no problem, and if we didn't have the strict $1K budget (or less-than $5 over) and the need for commonality between the AMD and Intel systems. Even the $10-$15 dollars extra inherent in your config (ran the numbers just to confirm) is over our limit and we'd be back to chopping hardware in other areas.

Plus, the EPOX has the same audio as the MSI, so I don't see the advantage for the on-board audio portion (which some readers send me hatemail if I recommend :D) without the MCP2-T.

I know the adherence to the budget sounds strange, but them's the rules of the game. :)