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**Thoric** · 07-21-2003, 04:44 AM

a all ti4800se isnt going to be at its best on SD system ram. maybe if u got a new video card/ddr ram...:confused:

**Wiggo** · 07-21-2003, 04:50 AM

I bet that P.O.S. ECS K7S5A starts to play up once ya start upgradin'. :hammer:

**Mista K6** · 07-22-2003, 03:01 PM

get a better CPU, def. For a vid card, a Ti4800SE is nothing but a Ti4400 with extra features, dont get it, waste of money. Get a Ti4200. I really recommend them, mine runs the Ut2003 engine sweetly (100fps w/ everything on) and it o/c's very well, def one of the best cards out there for only $130. For a better CPU, any of those sound fine (I dont know alot about AMD's) as a new CPU will give you a big performance boost, unless you like bare terrains and no extra characters =/ . Good luck, : peace2: Mista K6

**Morgan_Lander** · 07-22-2003, 04:59 PM

Get rid of that ECS crap first. 2nd, while the Duron 1.2 ain't a screamer, I'd look at other things to upgrade.

First the motherboard and the RAM. PC2700 is at a decent price, tho you can find some decent PC3200 if you look in the right spots. Directron has 256MB of Samsung PC3200 for under $50 + shipping, which wouldn't be a bad idea. Motherboard-wise, if he's not gonna do much, if any, overclocking, MSI or Gigabyte is the way to go. Both have their KT600 boards available, and shouldn't be too hard to find around $80 or less online for the basic boards.

The Radeon 9500/9500Pro's are being discontinued, and they feature DX9 support. Not dissing the Ti4x00's, but this wouldn't be a bad move.

The last thing I'd change would be the CPU. Remove the other bottlenecks first, then look at swapping out the Duron.

**XBoy** · 07-25-2003, 12:53 PM

Good suggestions guys! The reason I was looking at the ti4800 was because it was pretty cheap on newegg. Sure it's just a beefed up 4400, but it would probably be worth it. I think the best thing to do would probably be to just get the 4200, and then slap in 512 PC2100 DDR (pc2100 is what the board supports!). If money is available probably then will come the processor, but if the mobo isn't giving any problems, then I don't see any reason to change it up. I am suprised a lot of you don't like the K7S5A... I thought it was a pretty popular board. But there definetly IS better.

**amd_man2005** · 07-25-2003, 01:00 PM

Man them k7s5a's are very problem prone, so it wouldnt surprise me one bit if it gives you hell when you put in the new RAM and ti4800.

**Morgan_Lander** · 07-25-2003, 07:32 PM

ECS boards give fits with certain components. They're cheap sure, and if you get the right components to go with them, they run fine. Go ahead and put a creative/broadxtent modem in there and have fun pulling your hair out. Time=money, and I'd rather spend a little more money for a board that's not going to throw fits with certain hardware, than shave a few bucks off and have a higher risk of hardware problems.

You may not have problems going that route, however, ECS boards are not the best boards. They're made to be inexpensive and thus sacrifice higher quality components, trace layouts, etc that make people buy brands like Asus, Abit, Gigabyte, Epox, and others. You get what you pay for.

**XBoy** · 07-25-2003, 10:59 PM

Originally posted by Morgan_Lander

ECS boards give fits with certain components. They're cheap sure, and if you get the right components to go with them, they run fine. Go ahead and put a creative/broadxtent modem in there and have fun pulling your hair out. Time=money, and I'd rather spend a little more money for a board that's not going to throw fits with certain hardware, than shave a few bucks off and have a higher risk of hardware problems.

You may not have problems going that route, however, ECS boards are not the best boards. They're made to be inexpensive and thus sacrifice higher quality components, trace layouts, etc that make people buy brands like Asus, Abit, Gigabyte, Epox, and others. You get what you pay for.

I agree with you wholly :D. This is why I have an Asus A7N8X! But my bro's system was meant to be a budget system, which is why I chose the K7S5A.

**Morgan_Lander** · 07-26-2003, 01:16 PM

I know, even then, I'd look at a basic board from MSI or Gigabyte. ECS is just not worth the savings to me. I rate them on the same level as FIC---craptacular products, except that ECS tends to work more often than FIC does. FIC seems to like to release beta boards so they end up being buggy pieces of **** that are overpriced to boot. ECS has problems, but you're much more likely to have success getting a board to run right.

You want something cheap that doesn't suck ass, try AOpen. Nothing fancy, but they're reliable. Newegg lists their AK77-8XN for $68. It's a KT400 board, which is better than SiS 735 or whatever the hell that ECS board runs.

It's the next cheapest thing you can buy to ECS, but you'll be in a better situation. Also, being a KT400 board, you can use any 333MHz FSB Athlon.

**Wiggo** · 07-26-2003, 02:45 PM

If ya want a budget system mobo then look at the ASUS A7N266-VM but leave that ECS totally alone as from personal experience it's a POS.

**XBoy** · 08-05-2003, 06:02 PM

Well heres what we got:

512 stick of PC2100 CL2 Apacer Ram
Geforce ti4200 128 DDR Chaintech video card

I hope the ECS can handle, and the parts are in good condition :D

**Chezman29** · 08-05-2003, 07:11 PM

Your ECS will be fine. Don't worry about it.
My wifes computer had a K7S5A in it about a year ago and I ran the same thing, a Ti4200 and PC2100 in it for a while until I upgraded one of my other computers and gave her one of my old boards.
I then used the ECS to build my sister a surfing computer(her friend ripped her off and took her old system I built to "upgrade" it to a board with ISA, no PCI and stuff, HE WAS HAPPY THAT FUK!! He took her mobo, ram, cpu, and traded it for some CRAP).
Anyway, I built her a computer with spare parts I had laying around. It is a great computer for her, it lets her check her email!
I am currently building her a new one, with my wifes old 1600+pali.

Anyway, your bro's computer will do what it needs to for the time being. I am sure when he gets some more money you guys will upgrade the mobo and whatever else you can along the way.

Have fun,
Chez

This is the "real world". Not everybody can buy an A7N8X del, with a TT 7+ HSFan, ect. ect. ect.
Just because an ECS is not the best, doesn't mean it doesn't WORK.
SOMETIMES people just have to make due with they have, and should be able to be HAPPY when they have a few bucks to upgrade an item or two!!!:cheers:

**XBoy** · 08-06-2003, 03:40 PM

Originally posted by Chezman29

Just because an ECS is not the best, doesn't mean it doesn't WORK.
SOMETIMES people just have to make due with they have, and should be able to be HAPPY when they have a few bucks to upgrade an item or two!!!:cheers:

You sure hit the nail on the head :D After ripping apart his Doggie case (got it for 35 bucks w/ power supply @ my local comp. shop. I might work there soon, and the guy is cool :D Heres a link to the doggie case if you want to see it :). Anyway everything seems to be working great and my bro is probably playing Day of Defeat right now. A nice upgrade once again from NewEgg! :afro:

**Chezman29** · 08-06-2003, 07:08 PM

XBOY..........................after reviewing that little doggie case, I have got to say.

THE NEXT THING YOU GUYS UPGRADE NEEEEEEEDDDDDDSSSSSSSS TO BE A NEW CASE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

www.directron.com has some nice cases WITH windows for $35-$50!
You can also click on one of the items in my sig to get you to the site.

THAT DOGGIE CASE HAS GOT TO GO.!!!

Chez:cheers:

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Well this is the thread, what should we buy?

Well this is the thread, what should we buy?

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