Why by a mediocre machine for less than $500 then drop another $200 into it just to make it less mediocre? Get a general idea of what you need & always check the specs before you buy. Had you done that with the Dell, I'm sure you wouldn't have bought it in the 1st place...now you're stuck going thru the hassle of returning it. Asus A7N8X-X 1800+ @ 8.5 x 200MHz 768MB PC3200 2.5-3-3-7 Asus A9550GE/TD 128MB WinME/WinXP Pro

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how about something like this? http://www.cyberpowersystem.com/highendsystem/ultra6000.asp?v=d Asus A7N8X-X 1800+ @ 8.5 x 200MHz 768MB PC3200 2.5-3-3-7 Asus A9550GE/TD 128MB WinME/WinXP Pro

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ive had bad experience with emachines...

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im geussing though this will run games on mediocre settings then wont it, which is what i want. Jam?

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which system are you talking about? The eMachine? As it sits, it will not play games because of the integrated graphics, so an immediate video card upgrade will be required. You mentioned a 9800PRO as a possibilty. It's a great card but it's power hungry...it requires a plug-in from the PSU. It's possible that the 300W unit in that system may not be enough, so you're looking at a PSU upgrade as well. And although 512MB RAM may be enough, most gamers prefer 1GB. In the worst case scenario, you have the PC @ $440 + video card @ $120 + PSU @ 50 + RAM @ $40 = $650 (plus shipping) Now go back & look at the specs for the Cyberpower system I posted: MSI nForce4 S939 w/PCI-E Athlon 64 3000+ 1GB PC3200 (2 x 512MB dual channel) 160GB SATA HDD Geforce 6600 256MB PCI-E video card CD burner DVD burner 6in1 Flash reader $729 w/free shipping...& you can custom configure to "tweak" the price. If you haven't checked the site, I suggest you have a look. http://www.cyberpowersystem.com/ Asus A7N8X-X 1800+ @ 8.5 x 200MHz 768MB PC3200 2.5-3-3-7 Asus A9550GE/TD 128MB WinME/WinXP Pro

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great suggestion ^

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on that thought the card is recommended to have 300 watts of power which ti will have and im going to have 764 ram in between reccommended and peferred by gamers

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I give up.... Asus A7N8X-X 1800+ @ 8.5 x 200MHz 768MB PC3200 2.5-3-3-7 Asus A9550GE/TD 128MB WinME/WinXP Pro

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and minumum requirments for a game i want to play is pentium 4 1.7 ghz which i meet with the amd 2.1 it also needs 512 ram which i meet with 764 it needs video card which mine meets it needs so i have everything im geussing it will run ok any input?

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Jam's suggested pc is very nice... I would take that advice and run with it. (My Athlon 2500XP with 9800PRO runs halflife and far cry nicely. But, even with 768 meg of ram, I am getting to the edge of my pc's capabilities on those games (I always run games with full settings in game and in ATI control panel). If you buy a machine now, make SURE it will be good for at least the next year. And that means don't buy something now, that you will not be able to upgrade later (example, WIndows 64 will be out soon enough, and therefore spend the cash on a 64 bit machine NOW!).

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i just dont understand why you dont think this would work when every requirment for the newest realeased game i meet or surpass. what exactly so you think is the problem . yea obviously its not top of the line gaming ccomputer but im also not looking for that i also do want to spend 800 dollars and the computer jam sent me doesnt even have an apg slot it has pc1-e which that would force me to spend even more to get a different video card for that computer. so i dont understand what the problem would be running a game on medium settings with this computer

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Dont want to spend 800*******

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ok so i geuss i will just get the ALX from alienware and customize it to 20 thousand dollars just so i can play games on high settings. Jam, is this a good computer cause if not i will go higher. Please respond i really want to order this alienware.

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AGP is outdated. Here's some facts for you... I have an ATI Radeon 9800 Pro AGP card. It is an 8x AGP card. Now..... there is a NEW type of slot which is called a PCI EXPRESS slot. It is the new standard, and while my card is extremely fast, there isn't much I can buy to surpass it, in fact there is nothing worth buying to upgrade to, asd the increase is not worth the expense. If I want to seriously upgrade my graphics card, I need to upgrade my motherboard too, to one with PCI-E slots. DO not confuse this new slot with the old PCI slot. It is very different. The new type is called PCI EXPRESS! Amd to answer your question, you are right, there is no problem running a game on meduim settings. But there is also no problem buying an XBOX and playing the game on crumby Geforce3 settings either. If you want a machine to play games on, and you said you did, then you need to think, will this machine be ABLE to play games in a year... or will I have to junk it and start again. I will absolutely have to build a whole new machine with a 64 bit AMD soon. But I fully expect my machine to be of use for the next 5 years, as it is a very fast piece of kit. But I do not expect it to play the *latest* games in 1 years time (with all settings to full, as they should be, otherwise what's the point!). Buy what you think, but the advice given will cost you a couple hundred extra now, but save you having to yardsale your $500 machine in a year or two when you're no longer satisfied with it's sluggish performance in Far Cry 3, or something like that. Compusa sell a 64 bit AThlon with 512 ram, and integrated Radeon x200 graphics for $499, so you could just wait a little and buy a pcie card when you have the extra money...

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And we're trying to help you, for free I might add...

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ROFL! PCI-E as the new standard? Are you kidding me? Yes, it is the "lastest and greatest" technology for video card interfaces but AGP is around and still going for another several years. If you haven't noticed, all the Nvidia 6 series have AGP versions as well as PCI-E versions. There are some PCI-E specific such as 7800GTX but majority work with both. PCI-E still hasn't established itself as the new standard as 60%+ are using AGP. Tomshardware has written several good articles early this year talking about how PCI-E has much more expanding room and better future outlook since it allows for higher bus speeds but AGP is still around and will be for some time. As of now, PCI-E and AGP vid cards have very similar results and there is very little, if any improvement from identical vid cards running on the two different interfaces. The 9800 Pro shecky wants to use will do just fine for what he is expecting to get out of this sytem. I say go for it and upgrade when you need to. If you're on a budget you can't waste your money on little things like PCI-E. Your system looks good and should play BF2 just fine on med settings. Just my two cents... - Tony

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i think ill stick with tony since he sounds to be the most educated on the subject. obviously he does his resaearch and knows that you dont have to run run every game on high settings for it to be good. (and by the way ive heard that that radeon x200 really sucks that you were talking about anways.

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With all due respect, I think you should rethink yourself. The eMachines link shows a computer that would have been nice in mid-2003. We're in 2005 now. We run memory at 200/400Mhz minimum. Onboard graphics and 3D gaming are mutually exclusive. I agree PCI-e Vs. PCI isn't a big deal at the moment, but I suspect it will be a year down the line when you find yourself buying a new case, PSU, motherboard, CPU, memory and video card because you wasted $439.99 on a piece of crap today that's already obsolete and has no upgrade path. "If it ain't broke, upgrade anyway."

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first of all its kinda tough tropic to come into a forum where there have allready been 23 responses and have any idea what your talking about. but you keep telling your self you know what your doing. and all you people who think agp is out and pcie is the new thing, not true, apg is still going strong and just because something new is released doesnt mean you have to go get it right away so that you can play games on "ultra high settings." theres pretty much no difference in the picture between playing on high setting and playing on mediu, settings. Yea emachine isnt top of the line gaming but neither is dell or any of the other computers you guys have been advising. i geuss once i get this computer we'll see whos right.

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and like i said earlier if it doesnt work i geuss i have to get that 20 thousand dollar one from alienware so i can play my games "on high settings because thats the only way you can play them."

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Ok. Thanks for that Tony. You won't mind my laughing my ass off at you then, when you read this... http://www.anandtech.com/news/shownews.aspx?i=24451 Agp is no longer the standard. PCI Express is. NVidia have 'no plan' to release their latest card in AGP versions. Check their site. Only listed as PCI Express. So.... I guess that means AGP is now a 'dead end' as far as upgrades are concrened from here on out. Of course, sheckey, you listen to who gives you the advice you want. But if I was spending $500 or more on a computer, I would hope to get the best deal, that would last me the longest, and give me the most options for future upgradeability, and that for me would mean a 64 bit Athlon to begin with. I'll leave it to you.

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And Sheckey. X200 was a budget solution that would allow you to play games in 'not full graphics mode' and would allow yo uto save up some cash and buy a really great graphics card further down the line. Again, anyhow... you don't seem very grateful for the advice you get so buy what you want.

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sheckey, You came here for advice & basically, you're getting the same answer from everyone. The eMachine that you want to buy so badly is a piece of crap! I thought I explained myself pretty clearly...either you don't understand, or you don't wanna understand because your mind is already made up. Take the time to look at the numbers again... It will cost you $440, but to be able play games with it, you will HAVE to install an AGP video card because the onboard video sucks for gameplay. A reasonably good card will cost you $100, so now your cost is up to $540. You said you wanna upgrade the RAM as well, so add another $40...now you're at $580. And if you get a video card like the 9800 PRO, it's very possible that the power supply will have to be upgraded as well, so add $50 more, bringing your total up to $630. And that $630 is for a system based on older technology...in other words, a Socket A system w/AGP video, PATA hard drive, & limited upgradeability. The $729 system that I listed the specs for is much more state of the art (Athlon 64, PCI-Express video, SATA hard drive, etc) & will blow that eMachine out of the water. Not only that, but the CyberPower it much more upgradeable & will hold you over for at least a year or 2. The eMachine is already obsolete, not to mention eMachine does NOT build a good system to begin with. And as I said, the CyberPower system can be custom configured at the website, so with a few mouse clicks, you could easily bring that price down well below $700 if you want to. It appears to me that you came here with your mind already made up & you just wanted someone to back you up. There are over 20 replies to this thread already & none of there support your decision except Tony, & his logic is illogical...lol Asus A7N8X-X 1800+ @ 8.5 x 200MHz 768MB PC3200 2.5-3-3-7 Asus A9550GE/TD 128MB WinME/WinXP Pro

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jam i geuss you dont understand ive already bought the video card a long time ago so im not spending another 100 the whole cost will be 470 this is why i dont want to go to pcie because i already have an amd good video card

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"i geuss you dont understand ive already bought the video card a long time ago so im not spending another 100" Where in ANY of these replies does it say that you already have the card? Saying "i plan to put a radeon 9800 pro video card in" in the original question is not the same as "ive already bought the video card a long time ago" in response # 30. I still say you're making a mistake...you're putting a good video card in a weak system. And just because the specs list the PSU as 300W, it doesn't mean it's a good PSU or has the proper amperages on the various rails. Like I said, eMachine does not build a good system. Hey, it's your money...you may be able to install the video card & extra RAM & it may run perfectly well. But if it refuses to boot after the upgrade or locks up, shuts down, bluescreens, etc on you, don't say you haven't been warned.... Asus A7N8X-X 1800+ @ 8.5 x 200MHz 768MB PC3200 2.5-3-3-7 Asus A9550GE/TD 128MB WinME/WinXP Pro

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300 watt psu with a Radeon 9800 pro, which requires direct power from psu... Good luck buddy! You will have horrendous overheating problems I'll guess.

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ok thats what i want

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how about these at least these are listed as gaming http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/SearchTools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=1462311&CatId=0 http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/SearchTools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=1462312&CatId=0

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Both systems are based on PCChips motherboards with SiS chipsets, which basically means they both suck! I gotta tell you, this rates up there with some of the most frustrating threads I've ever been involved with. Once again, I suggest you go to the CyberPower site & use the Custom Configurator. Have a look at the Athlon 64 system for $439. It's a Socket 754 system based on an nForce3 motherboard, so it's much better than the PCChips/Sempron system. If you buy it without a video card, you can save $33...or you can use the savings to upgrade the burner. http://www.cyberpowersystem.com/ If you have a problem with this particular site, there are plenty of other good ones out there. TigerDirect is not one of them.... Asus A7N8X-X 1800+ @ 8.5 x 200MHz 768MB PC3200 2.5-3-3-7 Asus A9550GE/TD 128MB WinME/WinXP Pro

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http://www.cyberpowersystem.com/custom/cfga64.asp?v=d#configurator_top i dont knwo if you can see how i customized this but you think this will work for playing bf2 and Americas Army

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490 before shipping no video card 512 ram im putting in 256 extra ram and radeon 9800 pro

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ok this is the computer jam tell me if this is what you meant and if this will run bf2 and Americas Army well http://www.cyberpowersystem.com/custom/cfga64.asp?v=d case-xblade II mid tower mobo-(754-pin Socket) eVGA nForce3 250 Chipset SATA RAID AGP8X w/GbLAN,USB2,&5.1Audio (the one already chosen but will it work with my video card) 512 corsair ram no video card no speakers windows xp home edition everything else left the same im putting in and extra 256 ram and the radeon 9800 pro (whcih i already own) please respond to this one jam

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the system you had will work just fine Been playin far cry...counterstrike source and all the rest on an amd 2500 barton oc'd to 2.0gz with a 9800pro and 512 pc 2700 ram and don't have any plan's on upgrading anytime soon either. You can chase your tail with constant upgrades but yu really won't see much inprovement 'cept you could run faster with a lighter wallet.

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