Computer newbies: T6524 emachines
Thank you
by yorba - 1/12/06 4:06 PM In reply to: Thanks - installed PSU and 6600 GT by elmerfudd2006I'm happy to hear that everything went well for you, and glad to see that some of our postings helped. I didn't notice myself what the amp rating was on the old PSU. I don't have FEAR, but can tell you that Call Of Duty 2 and SIMS 2 and Far Cry are fantastic with the 6524 and the ATI X800XL video card. Storing the extra leads was the hard part, now that you mention it 
It BOMBED!
by yorba - 10/17/05 3:53 PM In reply to: Power Supply by Tconley2OK... threw in the ATI Radeon X800XL card last night. The driver install failed first. This morning, grabbed a new driver from ATI's web site. It worked beautifully. I had digital input to my digital monitor. It was really nice and crisp and clear ... until ... I ran to the store for about an hour with the screen saver running. When I came home, there were what looked like little red barcodes spaced all around the screen, artifacts. I tried rebooting, they were still there. Safe Mode ... they came back when dragging a window around. So, not software related. Called ATI tech support, got passed to second level. He said it was possibly one of two things ... the card took a dump, or the power supply was not handling the load. Looks like the card is going back and I'm going to be using analog for a while ... of course, now I know how to recover from the crash, the monitor saying it doesn't support analog mode any more, and the other 10 heart attack items I ran into along the way 
Hopefully, I'll find a small power supply that will support the otherwise useless PCI-e slot in the T6524. It is a smaller than normal power supply ... one that will have to be purchased from eMachines ... or the motherboard mounted in a regular ATX case if I want to enjoy digital
New PSU
by yorba - 10/18/05 1:01 PM In reply to: It BOMBED! by yorbaAnd last night I ordered a Startech 400W power supply from eMachines. It is just a tad longer than the original, but the same length and height. Brings it about 1/2" closer to the back of the optical drives, but not enough so that it won't fit. I'll be swapping the ATI card for another, providing they have one in stock.
T6524 PSU
by kbyshop - 10/22/05 7:44 PM In reply to: It BOMBED! by yorbaI have read much concerning the PSU issues with Emachines. I, myself, just bought a T6542 along with an ATI X800XL. After reading about yorba and his X800XL problem, I decided to hold off on my install. I sent an email to Tech Support regarding upgrading the PSU. Here is what was said:
Hello Kevin,
Thank you for contacting eMachines.
I understand that you would like to upgrade the power supply unit of
your T6524 eMachines computer as you are planning to upgrade the video
card.
I am glad that you took the time to write us.
You can upgrade the power supply of your system as long as the new unit
is of ATX form factor.
In addition, your system came with MSI MS-7184 motherboard. This
motherboard has three PCI 32-bit slots and a PCI Express 16X slot where
you could install a new graphics card.
Please note that eMachines does not warrant or support any third party
products, so any support that you may need will need to come from the
manufacturer of the third party device.
Be aware that whenever the case is removed precautions should be taken
against electrostatic discharge (ESD). Make sure that the computer is
off and unplugged. Please maintain contact with a grounded source, such as your computer's frame or use a grounding strap. Damage resulting
from improper grounding may not be covered under the manufacturer's
warranty if these precautions are not taken. Simply breaking the seal
will not void the manufacturer's warranty.
I hope the above information guides you well in your upgrade plan.
Should you require further assistance with your eMachines system, please feel free to send another message. Your comments and suggestions are
welcome.
Sincerely,
Oscar
Badge EME005
It's Easy
by yorba - 10/24/05 6:41 PM In reply to: T6524 PSU by kbyshopTrust me, it was easy as could be. You do not lose your eMachines warranty for adding a video card, nor for changing the power supply. I would suggest the power supplies that eMachines/Gateway offer as they are good quality, very good priced, and using upgrades recognized/offered by the company. It is a simple matter of unplugging the few power connectors and removinf 4 screws. Slide the old out and the new in, carefully, but it it's not hard nor dangerous. Put in the 4 screws in the new, plug the same connectors back in, store the other connectors out of the way, and you're good to go. Their email is a bit scary, but they look to discourage, not encourage upgrades. This one is a simple one.
BOMBED
by Tconley2 - 10/26/05 7:56 PM In reply to: It BOMBED! by yorbaWow. So sorry to hear about the troubles. I have not had the same experience. We are still running strong with no issues at all. Note that I do not allow the PC to heibernate and I also turn off spyware and anti-virus when we play games. Best of luck.
Thanks
by yorba - 10/27/05 2:30 PM In reply to: BOMBED by Tconley2I have a feeling I may have just gotten a bad card, one with a marginal component that just gave up the ghost after a few hours of use. I'll never know for sure as I ordered the 400W power supply, and swapped the card right away. I didn't put the card in until I had the new power supply in as well, didn't want to take a chance ... besides, I got the last card they had in the store. I can only say it is working beautifully now
PSU
by vrome - 10/28/05 12:09 PM In reply to: Thanks by yorbaHi. I've been following this thread as I'm thinking of buying a T6524 tonite but am worried about these power supply issues. I wouldn't actually use my computer for gaming BUT was thinking of adding in a
-tv tuner card and
-a video card ATI x300 (don't need anything for gaming) just so I can have a DVI out to my monitor.
Do you guys think this lower end card + tuner card would give me any problems with the stock PSU? I figured since it wasn't as powerful as the x800 it must use less power right? Any advice you guys could give me would help me greatly.
I have T6524 with Stock Supply
by CliffnMichelle - 10/29/05 11:29 AM In reply to: PSU by vromeHello All,
I bought a T6524 and upgraded to a ATI Radeon X700 Pro PCI Express card, and have burnt it in gaming and what not for a couple of weeks now, not a single problem. Half Life 2 and UT2004 look amazing, both run over 60 FPS with all settings on high 1024X768. Now as for the X800 - X850 cards, not sure how reasonable that upgrade would be for the PSU? 300 watts used to be a load of power, one of the great things about the single core AMD Athlon 64 based systems is that they dont draw near as much power as many of the comperable Intel based systems. Also, ATI cards tend to be less power hungry then comperable Nvidia selections. Honestly Id say upgrade to a X700 Pro, many can be had online for around $150, all current games look great and play at nice frame rates. Keep in mind, nothing under a X1000 series card supports shader model 3.0, and alot of next gen games are going to use that, so I think a X700 now, with a upgrade to maybe a X1600 in a year or so could be a very reasonable upgrade path, and you may never need to swap out the stock PSU.
PSU
by Tconley2 - 10/29/05 1:59 PM In reply to: PSU by vromeYou should have no problem at all. I would not add the low end graphics. The 6524 has on board graphics card of 200. The tuner card will not use much and will compliment Windows Media Center well. I am still having no issues with the 800XL. However, the PC is dedicated 100% to gaming and occassional surfing.
PSU
by vicsrealms - 11/14/05 4:52 PM In reply to: PSU by Tconley2So, very few of you have had PSU problems with this system and the X800XL? How is the onboard sound. I was looking at adding an X-Fi XtremeMusic to the system. So, we will see how mine turns out. Its good to know I can purchase another PSU from E-Machine if I have problems with it. Hows Call of Duty 2 on it? ~grin~
Games
by yorba - 11/14/05 10:19 PM In reply to: PSU by vicsrealmsI tried the Call of Duty 2 demo and it is great with the X800XL. I have Far Cry and it is fantastic, everything set to full and no hesitations, pauses, nothing except great graphics and non-stop action. As for PSU problems, I may have had a bad video card, or not enough power ... the X800XL specs for the PCI-e version called for a minimum 350w and the system had a 300w. I had a screen full of artifacts, little red barcodes all over the screen. Rather than chance it, I just got and installed a larger capacity psu before putting another card in. Onboard sound isn't bad ... I just wanted better, so thru in the audigy2 ... after all ... had enough power to spare after increasing the psu
Games
by Tconley2 - 11/15/05 5:04 PM In reply to: Games by yorbaI still suspect that you had a bad card. Sometimes static can damage the card on installation. Sometimes you just get a bad one from the box. Delicate little creatures to say the least. If you like FPS (sounds like it with Far Cry and Call of Duty), try F.E.A.R., Doom 3, and Battlefield 2. All of these games play without flaw on the T6524. What a system!
Bad Card
by yorba - 11/15/05 8:22 PM In reply to: Games by Tconley2I suspect a faulty card too, but there's no way of really determining what happened. I'd rule out static as it was in an anti-static bag and I wore a wrist strap before handling it at all. Static is nasty ... I've seen memory chips that were zapped by static, looked like moon-sized craters blown through them. I have tried the demos of F.E.A.R. and Doom3, pretty good. I like Call of Duty 2 as it seems a bit more possible, not quite as fast killing the uninitiated
Update
by yorba - 10/20/05 7:20 AM In reply to: Power Supply by Tconley2The new power supply from Gateway came yesterday, two days after being ordered. Kudos to Gateway on the fast service. Startech 400 watt, taxes and shipped, $51 complete, lower than other prices on the web, equivelant to even newegg.com ... more kudos to Gateway for not ripping off customers. Fit in the system like a dream, took only about 10 minutes to swap it out. Although Gateway stated the size to be a tad bigger than the original, it wasn't ... it was the same exact size. Lying the system on it's side, lifting the old one out and dropping the new one in was a piece of cake, plenty of room, easier than I expected, easier than past PSU swaps I've done. After booting to ensure the system came up, I shut down and installed the new card. So far, so good. The picture is more vibrant, clearer and sharper, and better color tones. I'm a happy camper
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