So my PC isn't turning on and I'm not sure why. My brother usually helps me with tech support but he's stumped. I asked Kong too and we ended up in the same spot, we don't know but it might be something serious like the motherboard. I do not wanna go to some PC repair store and get scammed so now I'm considering getting a new PC. I'm posting to ask for advice on where to go and what to get. Here's a list of things to consider before replying-
1. I'm poor and most of my funds have to go to family costs. I can't just save up 2k to get something nice.
2. I'm not very tech savvy. I plan on building this new PC to save money but please avoid anything too advanced. I need simple and relatively fool proof.
3. I only need to replace the tower, I have a nice monitor and other accessories.
4. I do not want a potato. I need it to run current games decently. I am no graphics whore but if the games look like shit it'll be a deal breaker.
If I think of anything else I'll post it. Thanks in advance for any help.
You can cannibalize some parts from your old computer - case, power supply, hard drive, memory. If you post details of them then we could recommend compatible parts. You can also save money by using the video card on the mother board depending on the types of games you play and preferred settings.
Below is under $500. I choose these because they are good bang for the buck and mid range.
@Katz- The power light comes on, then turns orange/amber and then nothing but six beeps. At this point I can't do anything because I don't know what is broken and I can't test it because I have no spare hardware and no one to borrow any from.
@Kong- I'm not sure how to find the details you're asking about. I think the HD is fine and it has a lot of space so I don't think I'd need to replace it. The case is fine but just a little dirty and I could easily clean it during the cannibalization.
How confusing will this be for someone new to building a PC? I'm hoping it's relatively straight forward and easily referenced online or w.e.
How confusing will this be for someone new to building a PC?
The only really difficult part is making sure you buy compatible parts. Have someone else tell you what to buy and the rest you can do.
Post pictures of your current
power supply (any text and all of the wires)
hard drive (text and the connectors)
memory
case (particularly the area where you plug stuff in like the keyboard and mouse)
From PMs I know either your mother board or graphic card or both are bad. The cheapest option is to replace them one at a time. But then you don't get a brand new computer.
If it was me, I'd go to a thrift store or ebay, buy a crappy used video card for under $20 that has the exact same type of connector as your old one then plug it into the motherboard. If you get 6 beeps then just buy a new mother board, if you do not get 6 beeps, then just buy a new video card.
Sorry I haven't updated this but it's not easy to use the internet with my 3DS and I don't have much time with this laptop.
My brother found some graphics cards to test and one of them made it get to the desktop without any beeping but the icons wouldn't display after a driver update. It's an old card and it's probably defective in some way but it seems to confirm that the problem is just a dead card. If that's true it's fantastic news.
So now I need to buy a new card to be sure. What does everyone think of the card Kong linked above? 100 bucks is a great price for me but I could go higher if that one is garbage tier.
You need to make sure the new card is compatible with your....
mother board
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most likely PCI-e X16, which looks like the second and fourth slot in this image
Some higher powered cards will have fat fans, meaning you need an empty slot next to the video card so you have room for the fan.
monitor
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which is most likely
DVI
or HDMI
and power supply.
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In the $100 range nearly all video cards will work with nearly any power supply but if you go much higher you will need a more beefy power supply with connectors that look like this
If you don't have that wire on your power supply then make sure the video card doesn't have a port on the top that looks like this
Next decide if DirectX 12 is important. Future games will start relying heavily on it and most current cards wont support it. I'm guessing you probably want DX12.
Then go to this page PassMark Videocard Value Chart - Performance / Price of Videocards and pick something near the top that is in your budget. The first one doesn't support DX12, so skip it. The next ~20 do. Anything with GTX, R7, R9, Radeon 7xxx and Radeon 8xxx will support DX12.
There are other minor things to consider but that covers the crucial stuff. You will be good if you make sure the card supports your motherboard, power, monitor, DX12 and that you are getting a high G3DMark/\$Price score in your budget.
After choosing a card from that list, find it on newegg.com. There you will see pics and a list of specs. That will let you see if it's compatible with your current setup.
Next search google for the card and "review" make sure it is good. You will probably end up on Tom's Hardware.
So it seems like the problems were bad video card (like broken) and a slow main fan(setting had to be changed). We decided on a GTX 960 4GB. I hope that's decent because I doubt I can return it and I didn't see anything else great in the same price range. It certainly seems like a big improvement over my old card. Did I choose poorly?
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