Cheap, but completely compatible system?

[Psi*]

I just noticed a $20 socket A mother board and started wondering if any possible system built around it could run Windows 7.

I am just entertaining this & don't have a build in mind or specific application ... but lets take a (system) challenging game for compatibility & the the system that can run that often takes care of my other needs.

I also like the AMD <$100 quad core recently announced & the cheapest AM3 mobo I can find for it is $62. I would hope that a board in that range would be fully compatible. It is certainly small. http://www.buy.com/prod/amd-760g-am3-max-8gb-ddr2-matx-cpntpcie16-pcie-2pci/q/loc/101/212418926.html. That has very limited capability.

Video doesn't need maximum frame rate. A good high resolution is always easy on the eyes though ... so is Pamela Anderson, but maintenance is to high for the latter.

So I am thinking low-ish ball system, not sure about competent video or sound although more than adequate sound for a PC (game?) system is pretty inexpensive.

 

[Merlin]

Your Answer here

I have a magic information connectiong
( Google )

 

[Psi*]

I am just looking for less than the fastest machine that my other app requires. I'll get a video card per Solidworks recommendation on their website. They will more than likely push Windows 7 so I just wonder what others who build machines for cheap are building.

Gee Merlin, I think I'll put an order into that MS web site right now ... WOW who knew?!?!

 

[Rob Williams]

Given the value of PC components today, I'd have a really hard time even contemplating building a system based around Socket A. As you mentioned, AMD has a nice budget quad-core, and quality motherboards can be had for around the same, or even a bit less. That's a fantastic base to a great system. If you get a motherboard with built-in VGA or DVI output, then all you really need to worry about is RAM, which also happens to be dirt cheap. If you have old hard drives or ODDs lying around, you could just use them as well to save even more cash.

I'd say if you had a reason for another PC, you might just want to invest in a cheap box that's at least current. That Socket A machine would no doubt run Windows 7, but just think of how much more capable even today's low-end CPUs are... not to mention how power efficient they can be as well. If you don't want that Socket A machine to go to waste, you could always build a little Linux box or server PC or something to that extent.

 

[Kougar]

You'd not have any trouble running WIndows 7 on it, as long as the video card was NVIDIA 6000 series or newer, or ATI 2000 series or newer.

That said, I gotta agree with Rob. It's not worth buying old tech unless you already have much of the parts already and just need one or two. DDR tends to be much more expensive than DDR2, which is ironic because DDR3 chips were selling in bulk cheaper than DDR2 last quarter... soon DDR3 will be cheaper than both.

 

[Rob Williams]

That said, I gotta agree with Rob. It's not worth buying old tech unless you already have much of the parts already and just need one or two. DDR tends to be much more expensive than DDR2, which is ironic because DDR3 chips were selling in bulk cheaper than DDR2 last quarter... soon DDR3 will be cheaper than both.

It's kind of sad, isn't it? Friend was in that predicament a while ago. He wanted to upgrade his S939 rig to an X2, and it was just impossible. This was about two years after he built that machine. Upgrading either the RAM or CPU was going to be too much of a pain in the ass, to say the least. He ended up splurging and got me to build him a $3,000 PC. He made a good choice ;-)