First off, you need to figure out exactly which motherboard you're running and what CPUs it actually supports before we can even talk about moving forward... so, do some digging and let us know what board you've got.
Also, check your power supply. Find out the brand and the wattage. If you can get a clear shot of the sticker on the unit, just snap a photo and post it here... And how much RAM are we working with?
Honestly, you're looking at a new CPU, a new GPU, maybe a new PSU, and probably more RAM too...
You can pick pretty much any drive you want... just make sure the enclosure has an eSATA connector, otherwise you're wasting your time. If you're sticking with USB, honestly, just go with a WD solution—they're better quality.
And if your PC doesn't have eSATA, you can just fix that using this and that...
If speed is actually a priority for you, just get a drive with an eSATA interface. Trying to move dozens of gigabytes over USB is pure torture... slow and painful. 😱
You might also want to look into buying the drive and the enclosure separately. Something like this:
For about a hundred bucks, you can snag a 2TB eSATA drive, whereas those WD Elements ones only offer USB.
Or even grab a docking station like this. You can swap out both 3.5" and 2.5" drives, it supports hot-swapping, and it even has one-touch backup.
Look, VRAM isn't even the main thing here... you don't need 1GB. What actually matters is how beefy the GPU itself is. CUDA technology is what lets the graphics processor help out the CPU; the memory on the card doesn't have anything to do with that. It's just there to store and process stuff before it hits your screen...
So, honestly, I'd rather you look at something with 512MB. If you can swing it, grab a GTS250. They'll cost a little more, sure, but they have 128 unified processors compared to the measly 96 you get on a GT 240...
Personally, I think this overclocked version would be solid: You could also just go with the non-overclocked one if you want to save some cash...
If you’re talking about an adapter, finding the genuine OEM part is going to be a nightmare—and even if you do, it’ll probably cost a fortune. Your best bet is just grabbing a compatible replacement. Bring that dead one along so you can match the specs, then head over to a place like Best Buy or Micro Center; they usually carry this kind of stuff.
Hey, Alex Harris32, on the PCExpert forum Jackson is selling an Antec 300 - for $117. I think it's a decent deal, provided you can actually fit a Cooler Master case inside...
The Shinobi looks sharp. Those mesh doors, that glossy black trim where you can see the LEDs peeking through... the rest of the case is just a clean design. 👍
As for whether the motherboard fits—that’s total nonsense. 😁 There’s plenty of room, no need to start cutting things. It only comes with one 120mm front fan which isn't noisy at all (at least not in my build), and the internal layout is solid. Airflow is good too. Just slap an extra 120mm exhaust fan in there and you're golden; temps stay excellent.
What actually bugs me is how thin the metal is. Actually, "thin" isn't even the right word—it's more like flimsy. I'm not saying the PSU is hanging by a thread; you'd have to be a complete moron to mess that up since it sits on rails rather than just being held by screws. But if you try to grab the top edge of the case while it's open (with all the components inside), you can't really do it without feeling it give. 😁 The metal bends... 😁 On the bright side, because it's so soft, you can easily bend it back into shape.
So, the build quality—huge minus. You have to be careful with it.
Of course, given the class (and price) of this case, don't expect dust filters. To be honest, I have no idea how I'm going to clean that front fan when the time comes... I looked, and I don't see any way to actually pull it out. Luckily, it's still running fine and isn't buzzing. I clean it occasionally and give it a little lube here and there, but once it gets clogged, I'm lost.
Quiet? Honestly, the case is pretty decent. I wouldn't say it's dead silent—it's big and has a lot of open space inside (which is great for airflow), but that volume combined with the PSU, coolers, and fans creates a noise that's basically imperceptible during the day. At night, though, once everyone else is asleep, you can hear a faint hum. I thought the thin metal would resonate and rattle, but that definitely doesn't happen. As far as vibration goes, it's dead quiet.
The display... hahaha... the display works perfectly. If I remember correctly, I wrote this both here and on the retailer's site when I bought it: everything works exactly like the manual says. Except, the idiot who wrote the manual swapped the button functions. So when you follow the instructions, it feels like nothing is working. Just do the opposite of what it says and you'll be fine. The sensors work, they show the temps wherever you stick them, and the fan speeds display correctly. It's actually a very good display.
And about the PSU, I've said it before: it's not that bad. Two rails, 14A and 15A I think, handles a low-end build without any issues... like an office PC or even an HTPC. For an HTPC, you might want to swap out its fan, but for standard use, it's not even that loud. Decent enough.
But man, that metal... the Shinobi is seriously flimsy, whereas the metal on the rondo ( Links, that larger desktop, is probably twice as thick. Even though the case footprint is quite large (it fits any board) and I can easily sit a monitor on it—modern 20"-22" LCDs work fine, and I even had a 15" CRT sitting on it without issue—it's like these two cases aren't even from the same manufacturer.
Yeah, looks like you might be losing contact... grab those needle-nose pliers and give it a careful squeeze to straighten it out. Just don't pull on it, or you'll rip the whole thing right out...
If that doesn't work, just try a different cable... they aren't exactly expensive, maybe 20-$10 at Home Depot...
It's hard to give a solid answer off the top of my head. Honestly, the smartest move is to just drop it off at a local repair shop—maybe even a TV specialist—to see what's actually wrong and if the fix is worth the money. Anything else is just pure guesswork...
The only thing you can really try on your own is to slightly wiggle the data cable (make sure it's unplugged first, obviously) and check all the connections to see if that makes any difference...
There’s no reason it shouldn't work if it's just a USB keyboard. What's your move here? If you actually have a soldering iron and feel like tearing the whole thing apart, that’s definitely the cleaner way to go... but if you're feeling lazy, then there's this other option... 😁
That’s just how it goes with those triple-output graphics cards. You might see VGA, DVI, and HDMI listed, but you can’t actually run all three at once—you're stuck with any two combinations, like HDMI plus DVI or HDMI plus VGA. Usually, on cards like that, the VGA port ends up being the "third" option if your monitor only has an analog input.
As for the monitor, just hit up whatever retailer you prefer and ask them to special order it. Most of them pull from the same two or three major distributors, so if it's in stock somewhere, they should be able to grab it for you.
Look, there's no point in anything weaker than this—honestly, even this might be overkill, but whatever... plus, who in their right mind is buying a 1GB card these days?
How do I even put this? It's like dropping a Formula 1 engine into a Chevy Pinto... sure, it'll run, and technically it works... but you aren't going anywhere fast. 155 miles/h