Main > Main Forum

Suggestions on Budget MOBO/CPU for new bartop build??

Pages: << < (2/4) > >>

robC:

Thanks for the input guys! After some reviewing, I went with the second option listed here. This is going to be a machine mostly for the classics, so I am hoping 1/2G mem will be plenty to roll with. We'll see. But for $70 after rebate (including fan/HS) it seems like a good deal.  I am trying to keep the cost to a minimum, as I am building it for a friend who is on a budget and footing the bill. I will post my results and thoughts about the hardware once I get it set up and running.

Thanks again!
Rob

paigeoliver:

Dropping brand new PC hardware in a bartop is a bit of madness, instead find a used system in the 600 mhz - 1ghz range that is a slimline FANLESS type system that has everything integrated onto the motherboard. Even better if it can boot from a silent drive. Hard drive and fan noise are bigger deals in bartop systems than they are in other ones, because they are going to be right near the user's ears.

A laptop with broken screen could do the same thing and be had for almost no money, and most are pretty quiet.

DeLuSioNal29:

I would have picked the 2nd one too.  Good job.  You definitely want an Athlon (just in case) and for 60 beans after rebate including RAM, you can't go wrong.

One other word.  Sometimes the AMD boards need extra connections that an older ATX power supply does not have.

Once you receive it, see if it will work with the power supply that you have.  If not, I picked up a good quality one for $19.99 that is actually installed in my stand up arcade that is running an Athlon 64 X2 4200+.  It works so good I plan to buy another power supply for my main comp upgrade.
Here's the model # of the power supply that I bought:
http://www.xoxide.com/casegears-black-steel-580w-psu.html

~ DeLuSioNaL


robC:

Hey Delusional, thanks for the tip about the power supply. I will keep that one in mind if the 2 ones I have lying around don't work out. $20 is spot on.  Should be getting the rig in the mail today, and I procured a used 19" LCD monitor and drive to use as well. So it should be underway soon, and I will let you guys know how it works out.

Thanks.

Namco:

I just upgraded my mame machine from an old Pentium 4 1.4GHZ beast running RAMBUS memory that I built in 2001, to an AMD Althlon 64X2 5200+. The power supply for the old one worked fine. The power coming from the powersupply had a 20-pin connector, but you can plug it into the 24-pin header on the motherboard just fine. It's not needed in most cases. As long as you don't run multiple hard drives and a big fat video card, you'll be fine with the old power supply in most cases. The last 4 pins are just extra 3.3v, 5v, 12v, and ground to provide more amps for computers that need more power. They're a revision to the ATX standard 20-pin connector and are just omitted when when you plug a 20-pin power supply into it.

There is another connector that has 4 pins that looks like you can shove into the empty pins of the 24-pin header, you definitely do not want to do that. That one's 12v, 12v, ground, ground, and will kill your mobo if you force that into the 24-pin header. It has it's own header elsewhere on the motherboard. They do sell power supplies with 24-pin power connectors that break apart into a 20-pin, and a 4-pin connector, but remember that those pins are 3.3,5,12&ground and different from the 4-pin connector that plugs into the motherboard directly.

Pages: << < (2/4) > >>

Go to full version