[vprguy88]

Do you think this computer is worth buying:
HP Pavillion a1250n for $810 (without monitor)

Specs
OS : Windows XP Media Edition
Processor: AMD Athlon 64 X2 3800+
Processor Speed: 2.0 GHz
Hard Drive: 250 GB 7200RPM Serial ATA
RAM: 1 GB of DDR SDRAM
Drives: DVD +/- R/RW Drive (double layer, w/ Light Scribe)
DVD Rom
Total expansion slots : 3 PCI, 1 PCI-Express
Available expansion slots : 2 PCI, 1 PCI-Express
Ports
USB 7 USB 2.0 (3 front/4 rear)
FireWire 2
Parallel port 1


So does anybody suggest getting it or not. Does anybody have an idea of a computer around the same price but better?

The link for this comp is : http://www.circuitcity.com/rpsm/oid/...Detail.do#tabs

Thank you for the help. Your help is greatly appreciated.

[gotrootdude]

Looks like a decent price, but...

Personally, I see no reason for dual cores at this time.. Dual cores aren't going to help with games, and really aren't going to help with your media center.. In fact they might hurt it by requiring greater cooling which means more noise..

The 64 bit isn't really helping that much either, since your running 32 bit software..

What I would suggest is to look for a 3200+ or better similarly configured Athlon64 system.. Or even better, build it yourself..

Stick with the Athlon64 for two reasons, the first is the "cool and quiet" technology (important for a media center), the second is the improved memory controller over the AthlonXP..

If you built it yourself, you should be looking around the $400 range..

Also, don't get any Windows Media Center system without a TV tuner..

[gotrootdude]

Just to show you what I mean about dual cores being a bit un-neccesary at the time being, check these benchmarks:
http://www.xbitlabs.com/articles/cpu...-games2_3.html

http://www.xbitlabs.com/articles/cpu...-games2_7.html
The Athlon64 X2 3800+ performs virtually identical to the Athlon64 3200+, at least for todays games..

[Skivvywaver]

Also, if you check over at the AMD forums you will see quite a few threads about problems people are having gaming with dual processor systems. There are ways around the problem but I will skip dual core for now. The only reason to have one is if you are very heavy into multi tasking as there are very few apps that can make use of a dual core setup.

Don't get me wrong, the dual cores are great if you have use for one. If you are wanting a machine for heavy gaming keep away for now. They aren't gaming processors. Even AMD admits it.

[vprguy88]

Thank you for that information, that should save me a good amount of money. I really appreciate the help.

[Noyb]

I wouldn't be afraid to get a refurb ...
this ones very similar to mine and I love it.
You can remove the USB external cage and mount a second bootable SATA in its place.

http://www.compusa.com/products/prod...516&pfp=BROWSE

[Rukee]

I run a dual core in games and it rocks big time. The latest Nvidia drivers are written to take advantage of dual cores in some games and you know more will come.
The factory heat pipe style heat sink that come with the dual cores is very well done and not noisy at all, it`s very quiet. I`d highly recomend a dual core to anyone who`s going to upgrading a gaming system to an a64 s939 platform.

[Skivvywaver]

I would NOT recommend a dual core for a gaming system. Nvidia's drivers are being optimized for dual core but the problems people are having with dual core and gaming are not something I made up. Go to http://forums.amd.com/index.php and look around in the A64 troubleshooting section for gaming and dual core. The facts are there. Until games are multi-threaded which very, very few even have that capability right now and even those run just as well on a single core I would not recommend a dual core for gaming purposes.

Yes, you CAN overcome the problems. Some games make you set the processor up for it EVERY time. Reboot and you are back to square one. The absolute best gaming processor right now is the FX-57. I may buy a dual core eventually, but for now I'll stay put. Maybe in 1-2 years the bugs will be worked out.

[Skivvywaver]

I'll take most of the above back. If you can figure out how to set the affinity and KEEP it set the x2 processor would be fantastic. You could devote one entire core to the game and let the other handle windows and all other programs.

I'll buy a dual core, but I am waiting for other people to get the bugs worked out.

I am like that, and anyway. Dual will be cheaper after it has been in production for awhile.