I have been thinking about this

[Yrubdarb]

I think I might get something like this as my next desktop PC:

Case
STYLISH PIANO BLACK ENIGMA CASE + 2 FRONT USB
Processor (CPU)
AMD A6-3670K APU (2.7GHz, 4 Cores) & AMD Radeon™ HD 6530D Graphics
Motherboard
ASUS® F1A55-M LE: FM1 A-SERIES, SATA 3.0GB/s, USB 2.0
Memory (RAM)
4GB KINGSTON HYPER-X GENESIS DUAL-DDR3 1600MHz X.M.P(2 x 2GB KIT)
Graphics Card
Integrated AMD Radeon HD 6000 Series Graphics
Memory - 1st Hard Disk
250GB SATA-II 3-Gb/s HARD DRIVE WITH 8MB CACHE (7,200rpm)
1st DVD/BLU-RAY Drive
24x DUAL LAYER DVD WRITER ±R/±RW/RAM
Memory Card Reader
INTERNAL 52 IN 1 CARD READER (XD, MS, CF, SD, etc) + 1 x USB 2.0 PORT
Power Supply
450W Quiet 80 PLUS Dual Rail PSU + 120mm Case Fan (£29)
Processor Cooling
STANDARD AMD CPU COOLER
Sound Card
ONBOARD 8 CHANNEL (7.1) HIGH DEF AUDIO (AS STANDARD)
Network Facilities
10/100/1000 GIGABIT LAN PORT - AS STANDARD ON ALL PCs
USB Options
6 x USB 2.0 PORTS @ BACK PANEL (MIN 2 FRONT PORTS) AS STANDARD
Operating System
Genuine Windows XP™ Home + SP3, CD & Licence (£88)
Office Software
NO OFFICE SOFTWARE
Anti-Virus
NO ANTI-VIRUS SOFTWARE
Keyboard & Mouse
LOGITECH® K200 USB MEDIA KEYBOARD (£10)
Mouse
LOGITECH® OPTICAL USB MOUSE (£5)
Headsets (VOIP)
LOGITECH® PC HEADSET 860 - STEREO WITH IN-LINE VOLUME CONTROL (£8)
Warranty
3 Year Silver Warranty (1 Year Collect & Return, 1 Year Parts, 3 Year Labour) (£5)
Delivery
STANDARD INSURED DELIVERY TO UK MAINLAND (MON-FRI)
Build Time
Standard Build - Approximately 8 to 10 working days
Quantity
1

Price: £458.00 including VAT and delivery.


I'm not bothered about modern gamer standards but I might want to add a graphics card someday. My games collection is old and will be updated slowly.

I'm not bothered about Windows 7 either. I might be one day but first I have to be sure that it's worth getting as a second option. Windows XP serves me well as long as I don't fiddle with it.

I know that HDD is a bit small. I don't store much data. I have a 1TB external drive for backup and for storing games on. I also have an old 160GB internal drive I might add if I need it.

I would prefer a A8-based system but the more expensive motherboard would push the price up further than I can justify right now.


Does anyone thing I'm choosing unwisely?

 

[Tom DWC]

The one thing I will flag up here is Windows XP. In comparison Windows 7 is more user friendly (once you get used to it) more secure, faster and able to take better advantage of your new hardware. Windows 7 is also cheaper!

This will meet your requirements while being below budget:

Case
STYLISH PIANO BLACK ENIGMA CASE + 2 FRONT USB
Processor (CPU)
AMD A6-3670K APU (2.7GHz, 4 Cores) & AMD Radeon™ HD 6530D Graphics
Motherboard
ASUS® F1A55-M LE: FM1 A-SERIES, SATA 3.0GB/s, USB 2.0
Memory (RAM)
4GB SAMSUNG DUAL-DDR3 1333MHz (2 X 2GB)
Graphics Card
Integrated AMD Radeon HD 6000 Series Graphics
Memory - 1st Hard Disk
250GB SATA-II 3-Gb/s HARD DRIVE WITH 8MB CACHE (7,200rpm)
1st DVD/BLU-RAY Drive
24x DUAL LAYER DVD WRITER ±R/±RW/RAM
Memory Card Reader
INTERNAL 52 IN 1 CARD READER (XD, MS, CF, SD, etc) + 1 x USB 2.0 PORT
Power Supply
450W Quiet 80 PLUS Dual Rail PSU + 120mm Case Fan (£29)
Processor Cooling
STANDARD AMD CPU COOLER
Sound Card
ONBOARD 8 CHANNEL (7.1) HIGH DEF AUDIO (AS STANDARD)
Network Facilities
10/100/1000 GIGABIT LAN PORT - AS STANDARD ON ALL PCs
USB Options
6 x USB 2.0 PORTS @ BACK PANEL (MIN 2 FRONT PORTS) AS STANDARD
Operating System
Genuine Windows 7 Home Premium 64 Bit - inc DVD & Licence (£79)
Office Software
NO OFFICE SOFTWARE
Anti-Virus
NO ANTI-VIRUS SOFTWARE
Keyboard & Mouse
LOGITECH® K200 USB MEDIA KEYBOARD (£10)
Mouse
LOGITECH® OPTICAL USB MOUSE (£5)
Headsets (VOIP)
LOGITECH® PC HEADSET 860 - STEREO WITH IN-LINE VOLUME CONTROL (£8)
Warranty
3 Year Standard Warranty (1 Month Collect & Return, 1 Year Parts, 3 Year Labour)
Delivery
STANDARD INSURED DELIVERY TO UK MAINLAND (MON-FRI)
Build Time
Standard Build - Approximately 8 to 10 working days
Quantity
1

Price: £436.00 including VAT and delivery.

Configure Here: http://www.pcspecialist.co.uk/computers/amd-llano-home-office/

 

[Yrubdarb]

I know about Windows 7. I like it. The problem is that too many of the commercial games I enjoy playing, most of them having been published before Vista was, don't. I'm talking about things like Startopia, X2 The Threat, Dungeon Siege 1, Black & White and Stronghold 2. I also have Delphi version 6. I know I will have to replace them eventually but I would prefer to do it gradually. Anyway, Windows 8 is on the way.

Is it true that some modern games won't run under XP at all? I see 'Windows 7' among the minimum specifications.

 

[Music Guy123]

If you have win 7, you can always run stuff in compatibility mode and so run xp games. Also, win 8 won't be out probably for a year or two yet, however, you can try the developer preview for free.

 

[Rakk]

Is it true that some modern games won't run under XP at all? I see 'Windows 7' among the minimum specifications.

Anything that requires DX10 or higher will not run on XP, since XP can only go upto DX9.
And I suspect there are games coming out that will now require DX10 and above - though to be honest I haven't actually bothered checking.

 

[Yrubdarb]

I don't know much about that 'compatibility mode'. I haven't tried it or seen it used.

Changing to Win7 Professional would push the price up to £479 including VAT. It's acceptable if it works but I must wait an extra month or two, by which time the system price will no doubt be higher because of increasing HDD prices. My timing is wrong. Thanks for the advice anyway.

 

[Tom DWC]

There are two types of compatibility mode. The one you require for the majority of older games is available with Windows 7 Home Premium. No need for XP mode found in Windows 7 Professional.

 

[mantadog]

I have used compatibility mode to get some really old games running no problems. Really i couldn't go back to XP, at first it might seem a little strange with all the new features but you will come to wonder how you ever managed with XP.

All the buttons are in roughly the same place, and do roughly the same things as XP so it's not too bad if your worried about having to learn what all the buttons do.

Seems silly to upgrade the hardware but not the software required to get the best out of it in my opinion.

 

[Yrubdarb]

I tested Win7 Home's compatibility mode. It's not good enough. It seems that if I want good backwards software compatibility then I will have to pay for it in one way or another.

 

[Yrubdarb]

I had another thought.

I still want that A8 APU with that motherboard but the configurator still wont let me order them together. I have seen no evidence anywhere that they can't work together. Could I get a special upgrade during pre-production if I ask for it?

 

[mantadog]

With which motherboard? Are you trying to get an A8 in the home and office configurator? If you want that you would need to go to the performance computers configurator?