SFF upgrade from Acer junk (Build help)

[PCI_Slot]

Hi there, last month my family PC died on me... we shall not elaborate more on that, but I would like to resurrect the PC by buying new Mobo + Processor.

Will be reusing:
1) HDD
2) DVD Drive
3) 2GB RAM (consider upgrade if still in budget)
4) LCD Screen

Will be BUYING:
1) Casing
2) PSU
3) Processor
4) Mobo
5) Wired USB Keyboard + Mouse (If cant reuse PS/2 on mITX)

And I am looking at Mini ITX. The purpose of the PC is for normal work (word processing and internet surfing) but once in a while I'm bored, I drop by the PC to play games on low settings (so far played BF3 + Minecraft using GeForce GT220)

As you guys can notice, no GFX in the "Reusing" and "Buying" list because took out the stock GT220 from the stock acer desktop because wanna reduce electricity usage + rarely game, so waste of current.

But since now I'm at it, i was thinking might as well buy a GFX upgrade if it fits the budget.

Here comes the important part, Budget: $400

I understand that I might not get a good GT220 upgrade with that kind of budget, but It's okey because gaming is not important.

Edit: Then i got tempted to look at water cooling if I actually get a GFX, so googled it up, read abit, and was thinking is it worth the $ to pay for a silent PC vs Fans? Not planning to over clock. If ok, I'm willing to bump budget to $600. And also how often do I have to change the water/cooling agent? Since it's a family PC, i dont wish to tend to it regularly. If its troublesome, i wont consider it.

 

[BlitzStryker]

Skip water cooling,redundant for your usage.

The $ for that ain't cheap and can be better spend elsewhr esp with a tight budget.

Any reason for Mini-ITX since you are changing your casing? Cos it's quite ex as compared to other size mobo.

 

[PCI_Slot]

Skip water cooling,redundant for your usage.

The $ for that ain't cheap and can be better spend elsewhr esp with a tight budget.

Any reason for Mini-ITX since you are changing your casing? Cos it's quite ex as compared to other size mobo.

Will skip watercooling.

As for the mITX, well actually because I wanted it to look small since its at the living room and try something new, but come to think of it, if I can squeeze some specs on a bigger form factor PC (but not so big...) And its worth the space sacrifice, I won't mind, since I've been living with the previous PC just fine.

Its not a HTPC anyways.

 

[PCI_Slot]

So now I'm considering mATX, if I can reuse the casing (which i believe is a mATX) then i can squeeze in some specs. But I'm still looking at an aftermarket PSU. Some how, i just dont trust stock PSUs because have bad experience with the previous ACER/HP desktops.

Hopefully with this images, you guys can advice me on whether the aftermarket PSU can fit in my old casing.

 

[Kiwi8]

No problem with aftermarket PSU (if that means a normal ATX PSU).

 

[terence52]

So now I'm considering mATX, if I can reuse the casing (which i believe is a mATX) then i can squeeze in some specs. But I'm still looking at an aftermarket PSU. Some how, i just dont trust stock PSUs because have bad experience with the previous ACER/HP desktops.

Hopefully with this images, you guys can advice me on whether the aftermarket PSU can fit in my old casing.

1. Yup, It's a normal MATX casing
2. PSU don't have to swapped actually. Pretty decent FSP 400W unit I see there I think. Can't read the model of the psu. It's a normal ATX sized psu as well.

 

[nippp0n]

CPU & Mobo: G2120 & Asrock B75M-DGS @ $163
Ram: Kingston 1600mhz value ram 4GB @ $35
GPU: Sapphire 7750 1GB @ ~$150

Total: $348
Buy from Tradepac.

 

[PCI_Slot]

Before deciding whether to reuse the stock PSU, gt qn to ask about troubleshooting PC problems.

My PC died on me because it kept restarting after booting up. Randomly, during BIOS and also during Win7 loading user accounts.

The more i tried to trouble shoot by taking out RAM, extra USB ports, even HDD, still to no avail and it became worse. The last time i checked, it cant even turn on already.

Possibilities are:
1) Mobo fried or short circuit.
2) CPU overheat (but i replaced thermal paste alr)
3) Bad RAM.
4) PSU problem.

Bad ram I cant even run memtest because keep restarting but I have a "feeling" it's no problem.
My "gut feeling" tells me it's PSU or MOBO.

Cant cross check and swap parts with other PCs because this is the only PC i have thats y had to use my "gut feeling"

BTW, thanks for the info Kiwi8 and Terence52! and Nippp0n, thanks for the reccomendation. GFX + 4GB ram looks like a good upgrade but sad to see the CPU mark lower than the stock Q9400. But should perform better on the ground because it's a 3.10GHz each core compared to 2.66GHz for hte Q9400 and so far i don't think I need 4 cores for a family PC.

 

[nippp0n]

You might want to replace the psu to see if the problem still persist.

 

[PCI_Slot]

You might want to replace the psu to see if the problem still persist.

Actually this is nt the first time it happened. Weird thing is that it happened 2 times before, 3mth interval.

After that period, PC works fine... So that's y I'm still clueless what's happening. What I did was resit the RAM, plugged out the GFX (another reason why it's not attached at all) replug the power cables.

So my only guess is PSU getting bad...

That's y I was considering a new PSU. Will the cheapest one suffice?

Ok now the plan is new PSU, GFX + 4GB RAM. If problem still there, I'll get a new mobo+CPU. Coz core 2 quad still not a bad CPU.

 

[watzup_ken]

CPU & Mobo: G2120 & Asrock B75M-DGS @ $163
Ram: Kingston 1600mhz value ram 4GB @ $35
GPU: Sapphire 7750 1GB @ ~$150

Total: $348
Buy from Tradepac.

I think TS can consider getting a Powercolor HD 7770 @ around 157 bucks if I am not mistaken. Should provide reasonable gaming experience at the budget.

Core2 Quad is def a better option as oppose to the Pentium dual core processor. However, I think your mobo should be running DDR2. Best to check first before getting. If its DDR2, recommend that you check on the garage to see if you can get it there. ITs not cheap if you get brand new.

 

[nippp0n]

Actually this is nt the first time it happened. Weird thing is that it happened 2 times before, 3mth interval.

After that period, PC works fine... So that's y I'm still clueless what's happening. What I did was resit the RAM, plugged out the GFX (another reason why it's not attached at all) replug the power cables.

So my only guess is PSU getting bad...

That's y I was considering a new PSU. Will the cheapest one suffice?

Ok now the plan is new PSU, GFX + 4GB RAM. If problem still there, I'll get a new mobo+CPU. Coz core 2 quad still not a bad CPU.

I think your CPU is still pretty decent since it is a core 2 quad. You might want to check if you are running on DDR2 ram as current DDR3 ram will not fit into your system.

 

[nippp0n]

I think TS can consider getting a Powercolor HD 7770 @ around 157 bucks if I am not mistaken. Should provide reasonable gaming experience at the budget.

Core2 Quad is def a better option as oppose to the Pentium dual core processor. However, I think your mobo should be running DDR2. Best to check first before getting. If its DDR2, recommend that you check on the garage to see if you can get it there. ITs not cheap if you get brand new.

Yeah agree that the cpu is still decent enough. Recommended it before he posted that his cpu is core 2 quad.

 

[PCI_Slot]

In the end I got myself a Powercolor 7770 (158$) + FSP PSU 450W (75$) - 3$ discount.

According to acer website its DDR3 but u guys made me doubt it because the notch of the 4GB DDR3 ram does look abit different.. Haha. So in the end didn't get it.. Anyways no worries, I can go back again next week because I'll be arnd that area.

 

[PCI_Slot]

Wooohooo. The verdict is out... I replaced the PSU and it's working right now. Installed the HD7770 fine and enjoyed playing a game or 2.

I'll get the 4GB DDR3 next week.

Guys thanks for the suggestions that fits my budget.

Really appreciate it much.