I have a P4 2.8ghz prescott core CPU and when transfering the motherboard, one of the ram slots blew, so I need a new motherboard and PSU...not an expensive motherboard, i'll play cs and cs source sometimes on it but thats it. I've built PC's before but am unsure as to what PSU I should use. Does every PSU fit any motherboard? Also what brands are decent, again not trying to spend too much, maybe 25 for the PSU max. I've got my new video card chosen and im set between 3 motherboards, only problem is the PSU...help is appreciated, thanks.

Yup just about every PSU will work with every motherboard.

You might check out this Thermaltake. It's probably overkill, but it should be pretty solid, plus its free after you send in the 5 rebates.

forgot to mention, I have a 80GB HD, 1GB ram, looking at a 6600gt or FX5500 AGP 4x/8x,...a friend said 400-500 watts would be good, and brands...thermaltake is nice, but again im looking for the cheapest with decent reliability, sunbeam is horrible from what I heard, what about raidmax?

Also horrible. The only brands I would trust would be: Antec, Cooler Master, Corsair, Ernemax, Fortran (FSP), Hiper, OCZ, PC Power & Cooling, Seasonic, Silverstone, Tagan, and Thermaltake.

As for wattage I ran a setup very similar to that (AMD 2800+, 512mb Ram, 120Gb Hard Drive & an FX5500) on a 250w Hipro. I think :Solid: had a guide about picking PSU's up here a while back.

Go for a hiper ,thayre sexy and have a good track record for a lower priced power supply

Newegg.com - HIPER HPU-4K530-MS 530W Power Supply - Retail

But if you want 100% stability and performance ANY "Pc and Power cooling" power supply is a top choice.
Thats all i'll ever buy again!!!

Heres the one I'm using in my game rig,I know its more than you want to spend.
just wanted you to see something nice to compare to.
Newegg.com - PC Power & Cooling Silencer 610 EPS12V 610W Continuous @ 40°C Power Supply - Retail

Well your asking us our opinion on what we think.......

So here's my two cents........
Im almost gonna say there are no power supplies in the $25 range that's gonna be a quality power supply. If that's what you want then so be it. Although, I will warn you when it comes to cheap power supplies it a total crap shoot on them. There reliability just plain s*cks. Some last for years, months, weeks, and even day's before they bite the bullet.

Since they are cheaply made they dont include any features in the event of a power issue. It will go up in smoke and take your hardware with it.

When you weigh the pro's and cons.......Is it worth spending $25 on a power supply that can destroy hundreds of dollars worth of hardware. I'll let you be the final judge but im telling you your taking a risk buy a low quality power supply.

You can believe me or not............it's your choice.

FYI:> Raidmax low priced power supplies are junk........I'd stay away from those.

The only brand that will be decent in that price range is going to be a Fortran---and even those are going to be $30+.

Thanks guys,
Newegg.com - Thermaltake TR2 W0070RUC 430W Power Supply - Retail

Im going with that for the PSU...biostar mobo since theres only 3 mobos to choose from:/ and the x1650 pro thanks to scarface....the extra 30-50 bucks should be worth it...thanks again guys!

Antec SmartPower 500w Dual Fan ATX 12v Power Supply - SP-500


Antec SmartPower 2.0 450w Dual Fan ATX 12v Power Supply - SP-450

Rebate Deals

the deal dude comes through! any sweeet deals on decent video cards for CS:S and BF2?

Quote: Originally Posted by ex421 the deal dude comes through! any sweeet deals on decent video cards for CS:S and BF2?

Open Box: POWERCOLOR R96-LD3 Radeon 9550 256MB DDR AGP 4X/8X Video Card - OEM
Open Box: SAPPHIRE 100562L-GN Radeon 9600PRO 256MB DDR AGP 4X/8X Video Card -
Open Box: SAPPHIRE 100575L-RD Radeon 9600XT 256MB GDDR2 AGP 4X/8X Video Card - OEM
Open Box: HIS Hightech H130H256N Radeon X1300 256MB GDDR2 PCI Express x16 CrossFire Ready Video Card - OEM
More Open Box Deals

I posted both Styles "AGP & PCI-e"

hmm, that 9600xt looks nice, you guys think it will play BF2 ?

oh for the love of.....IM SELLING A BRAND NEW ANTEC 450 WATT PSU IN THIS THREAD!!!

FOR $30 NO LESS

You can check here: http://forums.pcapex.com/hardware_ad...read_this.html

I haven't updated it in quite some time so the prices may be a little out of date. Currently the best offerings are in the >500W category.

Regarding the video card, you may be able to find a nice 6800XT, they have great overclocking potential. Even without overclocking they are more powerful than the 6600GT, and cost about the same.

I want to get the 6800xt, unfortunately it is out of my price range...is that 9600xt the best bang for the buck at around 40-70 dollar AGP cards?

Quote: Originally Posted by ex421 I want to get the 6800xt, unfortunately it is out of my price range...is that 9600xt the best bang for the buck at around 40-70 dollar AGP cards?

Can you stretch any further? You can get a GeForce 6600 for ~$80-90, which has shader model 3.

eBay - 6600 agp, 6600 agp Desktop Laptop Components, Video Cards for Desktop PC items on eBay.com

I really cant go any higher without downgrading my memory, which I really dont want to do. I think im just going to purchase the 9600xt...thanks again guys...i'll let you know how it works out in one or two weeks...

Quote: Originally Posted by ex421 I really cant go any higher without downgrading my memory, which I really dont want to do. I think im just going to purchase the 9600xt...thanks again guys...i'll let you know how it works out in one or two weeks...

If so, then yeah, the 9600XT will do you OK if you're sensible about your expectations. Good luck with your new PC bits.

Well the hardware has arrived! Below is my old hardware PCmark2005 score...once I install all the hardware and get back from work i'll post the new score.

Futuremark - ORB - Result Analyzer

Your link was broken...unless you have the "Pro" version and can save tons of projects, it's often better just to post a screenie of the details of your test, since one of your saved projects will have to be deleted eventually, and you end up with a dead link