Iamevil

I have done it before, never had a problem. Until today, i wanted an easy and cheap build and got that, even an integrated graphics card since it was just for movies and backups. And it was easy to build, but no matter what i do i cannot get a picture on the screen. Its blank. All 3 of my monitors are blank. I changed the graphics card just to make sure, and its still blank everywhere. VIA sucks. They are cheap, but they suck. If i ever need a cheap computer again, i'll just buy one from some big computer store. The thing is, there is nothing wrong with the motherboard, its just that the integrated card sets all my screens to powersaving mode. And i cant tell it not to...
Other people have had this problem, but the other way around, when they get a new card they get a blank screen, its easily solved since they can update drivers by going back to the integrated one and do whats needed.

I am not happy now.

I just felt the need to rant.

feck it, i'm getting an Emachine.

ultrablue

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munchkin

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TheMuncher

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Obi

d-_-b

Mateo

That's why I'm not building a computer...ever. I'll buy some midlevel machine, fill the expansion slots with goodies, and be ahead of the game.

BTW, the top level emachine is pretty slick.

SilverStealth89

:-) :-() :-l :-(

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Nightfire

:'(

TheFeniX

Ugh... maybe if you want a bargain 6th level basement option. Don't get me wrong, they're great to just throw to a secretary or office manager, but the only thing really "slick" about them is the marketing. My dad gave me his old 1 Ghz to screw around with. "Designed for Windows 2000" in bold lettering on the PC. Turns out the motherboard didn't support APIC and wouldn't load it. Their tech support sounded dumb-founded when I asked them why I couldn't find a BIOS upgrade on their web site. ACES!

Solution: Garbage Can.

Building a PC always has it's little blood-boiling frustrations. In fact, I think my recent upgrade to an Athlon 64 was one of the few installs that didn't shoot any errors in my face. There are times I've had to troubleshoot a new board for almost three hours after installing it. It's part of the experience. I think of it as a right of passage.

But you've learned the most important lesson a man can learn about PCs: do your research and don't buy the cheap parts. I learned the hard way what horrors the VIA chipset can cause. But it's not bad in itself. It's just mostly used on the real cheap boards.

If you want just a base-line PC, I'll almost always recommend a Dell. I've installed maybe 100-150 over the course of 5 years, and had maybe 5 that didn't work well right out of the box. And if you play hard-ball with the tech support, they'll almost always just ship you a new box. Plus, for around $500 US for decent retail parts, you just can't beat it.

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Iamevil

Being broke, cheap parts are expensive.

I had a good computer, it screwed around more than this but at least it had a pic on the screen. Not that it saved it in the end.

I'm done upgrading computers, they will just screw up and it'll be me who has to deal with it cause i built it. And i dont have the patience.

I'll buy a package deal and when it screws up i send it off on warranty and laugh at the poor people who have to fix it.

warcriminal2

Hang in there buddy, what does not kill us makes us stronger lol

Ive had many many "beat the dog with the keyboard nights" * but persistance is what got me through it.


* I dont really beat my dog, its just a figure of speech

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Warcriminal
chillin n' killin wit authoritaaaaa!!

Steel_Penguin

AMEN. Took me 3 days after i built my comp to get it working right. takes a lot of bios fiddling. And then of all thing windows died two weeks later and i had to start all over again. Good thing i don't have a dog...

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perry

I guess that's the difference between someone who makes computers their hobby and someone would just wants to use the computer.

I don't mind fiddling around with the parts and pieces and settings and tweaks to get my computer running the way I want it to run. It's part of my hobby

drew_952

I couldn't agree more. IamEvil, I can feel your frustration. Stick with it though, check VIA's forums if you haven't already. FWIW, I've had no problems with VIA in the past...

I'm the complete opposite of the above posters; I will nevAr buy an emachine/dell type computer....anything that pre-loads AOL. Perfect for your grandma of choice though.

Mateo

For many, that is the only option.

Look, the specs for the T6524 are: AMD 3500+ 64 bit processor, 200gb HD, ATI r200 series (128 dedicated-pci express slot open), 1gb RaM, dual layer DVD-RW, and 6 channel audio on board.

Price: $600 list.

That's a hard price to beat with a homebrew rig.

My folks just bought two Dells, and both needed to be sent back within a week for MB issues.

Whereas my $400 Compaq soldiers on effortlessly (even if it only likes XP and Debian).