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I was in Costco drooling over the 22" monitors when I see this sign:
Acer Aspire AM5620 - Quad Core $899 - display model $499.
I couldn't resist.
It came with an Acer AL2223W 22" monitor
Intel Q6600 Quad Core CPU
4 Gigs RAM
750 Gig hard drive
ATI HD 2600 Pro
16xDVD writer
Windows Vista Premium (unfortunately) 32 bit
Costco 2 year concierge warranty
and all the usual goodies.

The only bloatware it had was a trial version of MS Office and Norton Internet Security.
All I need is a new video card and I'm all set.
I'm going to try to wait a few months for the 4870 and 9900GTX to come out before I decide what to buy. That 9800 GTX for $249 is sure tempting though.

Wow, nice score...

Lmandrake wrote:Wow, nice score...

Indeed!

Good deal. I would have reamed you out if it was an HP. I generally like Acers. Nicely loaded system too.

Beware of installing a GTX or Ultra version of a video card in that machine though. Chances are the power supply won't hack it. I would strongly recommend you go with an 8800GT as that PSU is almost certainly capable of it (the 8800GT is a pretty standard high-end OEM video card), unless you want to try to upgrade the PSU. The 9900GTX uses draws around 30 watts more than the 8800GT at idle.

I know I wouldn't dream of putting one in my Dell Dimension 9200 without first upgrading the PSU.

Take a look at the sticker on the PSU and make a note of the amperage of the 12 volt rails (there should be at least two 12 volt rails, maybe three but three is rare in OEM systems) and post them here. I'll go dig up the research I have on minimum PSU specs for the 8800GT to make sure you're safe.

You might want to look at the customer reviews for that system on NewEgg, since there might be some useful info there: http://www.newegg.com/Product/ProductRe ... 6883103133

Right off the bat from reading those reviews and doing some Googling, sounds like no one has been able to install XP on that system so you'd better stick with Vista.

Excellent find on the reviews FP. I think it was 20 amps on the 2 twelve volt rails. I'll just swap in my
Enermax Noisetaker EG495PVESFMA 485-Watt Power Supply, to be safe.

That's 20 amps on each of the two 12 volt rails (total 40amps) I assume? That'll run an 8800GT just fine. My Dell 9200 has two 18amp rails (total 36 amps).

NVidia recommends a PSU with a minimum of 26 amps total on the 12volt rails for an 8800GT. I'd be wary of installing anything that draws more current than that with the stock PSU.

IF you plan on installing a better PSU make DARN SURE that Acer uses the standard ATX 2.0 PSU pinout. Most OEM builders use standard PSUs now (Dell does thankfully). Some still don't. The plug might fit, but it will fry your mobo if it's wired different.

Best way to tell is to compare the color of the wires on the main mobo PSU plug. That's an industry standard now. If all the colors are connected to the same pins on both PSUs then you're good, if not don't do it.

You could also Google and see if anyone else has already found out the hard way.

Additionally you might find that the plug is wired correctly but the mounting holes and/or cutouts on the case don't quite line up for a standard PSU. You might have to do some work on the case with a dremel or sheet metal nibbling tool. Try not to get any metal fragments or dust on the mobo.

or just take an old 300 watt psu and run it as an external, which is what i did...i never close my case up anyway....

I would rather have an HP then a Dell any day.

nexus_7 wrote:I would rather have an HP then a Dell any day.

AMEN to That!

HP Consumer PC? I wouldn't take one for free. I've been inside all these PCs. I'll take a Dell, Acer, eMachine or even a Gateway (not too impressed with Gateway lately but still take one) over an HP any day.

HP purposely runs their memory at ridiculously conservative timings, especially their laptops.

All that might be true, but with everything I have done, they have been the most reliable.

I have had far better overall experience with HP than Dell. The only way I would take an eMachine is if came with a receipt and I could return it for cash, or it came strapped with c4 and a remote detonator.

The biggest issues with all these systems is the power supplies. Emachines are the worst when it comes to this, sometimes incapable of supporting an additional hard drive without issues.

I checked and it's 10A on +12V1 and 13A on +12V2, not to exceed 20A total on the 12V rail. It's only a 300 watt PS.
I got worried when I compared it to my 500 watt PS and saw 24 pins on the Acer and 20 on my 500 watt PS. It turns out my 500 watt doesn't have the other 4 pin cable connected. The colors all match up on both.
Now the question is can the 300 watt handle the 7900 GTO?

The extra 4 pins actually aren't "required" you should be able to run it with just the 20 Pin.. I can't answer your question though ;\

eGoCeNTRoNiX wrote:The extra 4 pins actually aren't "required" you should be able to run it with just the 20 Pin.. I can't answer your question though ;\

Actually the 500 watt power supply has the 4 pin connector. The computer's motherboard it's currently in just doesn't use it. Sorry for the confusion.
I found this info on the 7900 GTX:
Note that the new card consumes the largest share, about 45W, from the PCI Express x16 slot and only about 36W from the external power line. The remaining 3W are consumed from the +3.3V line.
I think it should work since the Acer only has 1 hard drive and dvd writer.