brotherswing

Re-reading my original post, I realized I didn't really state the overall goal. Allow me to refine my objective... I'm not necessarily trying to increase the overall ambient light level, I'm trying to focus it in a specific spot, while phasing out black components. The theme of the build is Jörmungandr, the World Serpent from Norse mythology. I eventually want to have as many white components as possible, while using ARGB so I can control the lights to avoid the clashing you get when you mix random brands. With all that said, let me rephrase my original question...does anyone here know of a CPU air cooler in white or silver that has ARGB lighting? Or should I get over my fear of leaks and just get a H100i?

Howdy gang, I need some opinions about RGB air coolers. Here's the relevant information, I have the Ryzen 7 3700X in a white full tower case, using ARGB lighting. The CPU is currently using the stock cooler that came with it. I noticed after getting a vertical GPU mount that there's a noticable dark spot in the lighting over the CPU. There's plenty of RGB coolers to choose from, but let's keep this simple. I'd like to find a white air cooler with ARGB lights from a reputable company. Not many components come in white, let alone with ARGB, which is why I'm asking here. I'm sticking with ARGB so I can actually set some elegant lighting effects, instead of unicorn migraine lights. I'm reluctant to go with an AIO because I don't overclock and I'm afraid of leaks inside my new computer. So...what do you think?

I'm in almost the exact same boat as the OP, except my potato has a GT 635. I had looked at the options, and just like the OP discovered my 270w PSU doesn't have the juice to run a better graphics card anyway. I'm thinking about a GT 1030. It's power consumption is low enough I can run it, and it's performance will run circles around my current GPU. Right now I'm just saving up and waiting for a good sale.

I'm actually planning a build that's almost identical to this. I'm planning a budget gaming box for around $350, with an eye for future upgradability. Here's the parts list I came up with... PCPartPicker part list: https://pcpartpicker.com/list/jYrDsZ Price breakdown by merchant: https://pcpartpicker.com/list/jYrDsZ/by_merchant/ CPU: AMD - Ryzen 3 2200G 3.5 GHz Quad-Core Processor ($94.99 @ Amazon) Motherboard: Gigabyte - B450 AORUS M Micro ATX AM4 Motherboard ($82.99 @ SuperBiiz) Memory: GeIL - EVO SPEAR 8 GB (2 x 4 GB) DDR4-2400 Memory ($47.98 @ Newegg) Storage: Kingston - A400 120 GB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($19.99 @ Amazon) Storage: Western Digital - Caviar Blue 250 GB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($19.55 @ Amazon) Case: Deepcool - MATREXX 55 ATX Mid Tower Case ($49.98 @ Newegg) Power Supply: Corsair - CX (2017) 450 W 80+ Bronze Certified ATX Power Supply ($24.99 @ Newegg) Total: $340.47 Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available Generated by PCPartPicker 2019-01-29 11:32 EST-0500 Now this is simply an example, there are choices I made that will not apply to you. Overall I think it's very doable.

I got my A+ certification building gaming machines during that era, consider me a fount of knowledge at your disposal! That being said, your sound card should be PCI and your graphics card should be AGP. A GeForce 3 would be ideal, if you can find one, backed up by a Sound Blaster 64 or Live. Edit: Forgot to mention, 98 has absolutely zero support for NTFS, so make sure you use fat32.

Alright, your machine is ideal for gaming, but it's the wrong tool for the job. It isn't bad, just geared for a different task. The only upgrade you should look at is RAM. I use 32 GB in dual channel mode and it's not bad for audio work. I have been using my PC to record guitar work since the late '90s, and you are lucky. It's far easier now than it was in the days of breakout boxes like the Audigy. As long as Cubase is already using the lowest latency audio driver you can find, you should be fine.

I did check my local Craigslist, there weren't any... right now. I'll keep an eye on it, but a decent PSU isn't hugely expensive. I just have to be patient. And when I get that sorted, the cards I've been looking at (something around a GTS 250) will not have gotten any newer. ?

After scouring the second hand market I realized everything I'm looking at will kill the 280 watt power supply in this machine. If I replace the power supply to accommodate the gpus in my price range, I'm no longer in my price range. Conclusion: I am not in a position to upgrade this machine. It was worth a shot, and I thank you for your suggestions.

I made a stupid mistake. Not once, but several times. Fall in love with a new game, find it on a Steam sale a few years later, then buy it only to find my machine can't run it. My current specs: i5-4440, 32 GB DDR3, 128 GB SSD (system), 1 TB HDD (software), nVidia GT 635 (OEM) It's a Lenovo that I bought 5 years ago or so, it's been solid if not spectacular. I knew the GPU was next on my upgrade list, but had been holding off because of what concurrency did to the market. I'm a disabled vet supporting a family of four, so money is always crazy kinds of tight. After seeing the video about how much of a waste of money cards like the R7 240 are, and knowing my budget is not going to ever reasonably grow to accommodate anything a real gamer would ever consider using, I did a little bit of soul searching. Considering I'll have to save for another five years for a GPU and a PSU that can drive it, I had an epiphany. By abandoning the games my machine cannot run, and sticking with the seven year old MMO my wife and I play (on the lowest settings) I don't need an upgrade at all. Problem solved. TL;DR The cheapest upgrade is to lower your standards/don't buy new games