PC Problem...

[MARKEG]

I don't know if you guys can offer advice but it's like this. I went to a music PC specialist to build a PC for me about 3 years ago. They used bits of my old system but basically it was a 75% new machine.

It worked like a dream for 2 years. I swore by that company. I recommended at least 5 of my friends to get PC's built there.

Last year I decided to update to XP. So I sent it to the same company to be upgraded. I also told them I wanted a firewire card (that I'd bought from somewhere else) that would support my MOTU 828 soundcard.

Basically it hasn't worked properly for 4 months. Crashes, Blue Screens. Oh my god, it's been awful. I kept in touch with them to try and sort it out over the phone (reversed dirvers etc for the firewire etc etc) and then it blew up last week (smoke smell, ambulance style beeping at start up).

So I sent it back. The guy I had always been speaking to really tried to sort it out. He figured the memory needed a new stick and the motherboard needed changing. Kewl. But now he tell's me it wont load XP. So he passed it onto tech support cause it was taking too much of his time. Then I'm speaking to some guy who's telling me he's been in hospital for the last two weeks and he's got a backlog of computers to see to. Mine will have to wait!

Luckily after 2 weeks he's told me it's on the desk now and getting looked at.

But I'm really scared I'm gonna get charged for a load of stuff I really shouldn't be charged for.

What would you guys do in this situation. My studio is out of action! Should I go mental with the management?? And because the PC wasn't 100% built by them do you think they're going to try to tell me it's my fault the PC didn't work for the last 4 months??

Or am I just paranoid?

[Barely Human]

I dunno mark! Its a dodgy situation! Becuase the pc wasnt completely built by them they could well charge you for it! Though you might not be liable to. You can go speak to a soliciter if you have one and see what they think. Or if its only a few quid their gonna charge, id save the time, effort and stress and just pay them!

[miromiric.]

why do u give someone else to build your PC?

[darkstar]

Mark bring it to me in Devon i would have sorted it out for you, for nothing !

Im always fixing friends and peoples PC's

[darkstar]

Seriously Mark i'll have a look at it for u if u cant get it sorted out

[massplanck]

What would you guys do in this situation. My studio is out of action! Should I go mental with the management?? And because the PC wasn't 100% built by them do you think they're going to try to tell me it's my fault the PC didn't work for the last 4 months??

Or am I just paranoid?

You can only go mental with the management regarding how long it took to get your machine fixed. I work as a hardware engineer for those corporate whores HP and its a fact of life that servers/hardware/PC's break and f*kup only to further increase their profits. My advise to everyone is go it alone, build it yourself, fix it yourself or at least get a knowledgable mate to help you out. You'll get it done much faster and much cheaper and learn something usefull along the way!!

PS: I'm sitting here in a web cafe in dublin and there is burning smell coming from my PC (I shit you not)

[lars]

i agree!

i've always built my own computers from scratch, plugged in bits from older stuff with new stuff and it works like magic.
learning some PC hardware architecture and the way computers and their softwares work isn't that hard a task - when you know your way around a PC, you won't have to depend on some geezer at a computer shop to fix it, let alone wait for weeks on end for it to even reach the fixing desk in the first place.

MY TIPS:
make a list of the specifications your specific use requires. then check out motherboard companies and processor companies to find out which components suit you best. then check out your local computer parts dealer for prices and special offers and go buy the parts. buy the amount of memory needed/required for your specific use (usually 256MB or 512MB is enough even for image manipulation) and make sure it's the right type of memory. the faster (ie. 60ns access time) the memory, the more you have to pay but it's worth it.

so-you now have a motherboard, a processor and some memory. you should also have no problems building this inside your old PC case.
now you just need to consult your motherboards user manual to plug all the wires in, install your processor and memory modules etc. all the other parts you may have (hard disk, CD-RW/DVD drive, floppy disk, display card, etc) you usually just need to plug in. also remember that IF you have lots of components (a powerful processor, two-three hard drives, a CDRW-drive, a powerful display card), let alone components that require lots of power - remember to buy a powerful power supply too.
usually you'll get an ATX supply of 230 or 250W but if you have plenty of stuff inside your computer, buy at least a 300W supply.

when you've installed everything, fire up your computer and install the flavor of operating system of your choice. personally, I go for windows 2000 workstation because to me it's proven to be the most stable OS microsoft have made till date. XP looks like candy but is much heavier and if you're doing music with a computer, there's no sense in installing a good-looking lousy-working system.
then you need to set up the internet connection and download the NEWEST drivers from the manufacturers of your components. those that ship with the motherboard or video card, usually tend to be slightly out-of-date, so you're better off with some fresh drivers.

once you're through all this, and if you're still experiencing problems, try to find out what's causing it and what are the symptoms. ie. your computer is not firing up at all - possible solution is that some component is busted or installed the wrong way round. on the software side it can mean there's problems with drivers and you have to revert back to older drivers, find them through google or something.

..

well.. that's the most generic kind of help i can give. i don't know if it helps or if it's just bollocks but really, i don't suggest you buy a OEM (original equipment manufacturer) retail computer off the shelf (compaq/HP/dell etc) because their spare parts usually cost a whole lot more than spare parts for non-OEM computers.

[WEZ]

STILL ON " ME " , MUCH MORE STABLE FOR MUSIC SOFTWARE I FIND ,

XP IS FAR TO BOSSY & INTELLIGENT FOR ITS OWN GOOD ,

PING , THIS DRIVER SMELLS , IM NOT LOADING IT , THANKYOU

DING DONG , WHY DID YOU DO THAT , I , XP WOULD DO IT LIKE THIS

CLANG , YOUR PRETTY SHIT AT TUNES ARNT YOU , I , XP AM NOT

DING DONG , FOO KAFF !

MORE RAM , BETTER THE MACHINE !

IM RUNNING A 980MHZ P3 PROCESSOR , WITH 1 1/2 GIG OF RAM , GOES LIKE STINK , NEVER HAD A PROBLEM !

XP NEEDS A MINIMUM OF 512 MB RAM TO RUN STABLE , AND DOES EVERYONE NOTICE THEY SUPPLY MACHINE WITH ------
FOR EG....

##### 3.2GHZ QUANTUM SPEED P4 PROCESSOR #######
##### GEFORCE MX 460 G CARD #######
##### SOUNDBALSTER PRO #######
##### XP HOME EDITION ( SUCKS ASS ALSO , PRO IS 1/2 BETTER )

AND FINALLY IN SMALL PRINT ----

128MB RAM ,

A FRIGGIN JOKE , THEY KNOW ITS SHIT , SO IN A WEEK WHEN YOU LOAD ALL YER KIT ON , THEN COMPLAIN TO THEM THAT ITS SHIT N SLOW , THEY RECCOMEND MORE RAM , OOOOO THERE YOU GO , MUCH FASTER , MORE MONEY FOR THEM !!!!!!!!!!!!!!

WANKERS ,

ITS NOT CHEAPER BUT MORE BENEFICIAL IN THE LONG RUN , TO ASK SOEMONE WHO KNOWS THERE STUFF IE , THE LADZ ABOVE , OR US , IN THE FUTURE GUYZ & GALZ , FOR DESCENT SPECIFICATION ON TO DATE HARDWARE OR TO GET IN CONTACT TO BUILD ONE ETC......

BOMB PC WORLD , OR SORRY EX BURGER KING STAFF !!!!!!!!!!!!!

THERE IVE HAD A MOAN , ANYONE WITH TECCHY PROBS , LIKE THE OTHER GUYS , IM HERE TO HELP !!!!!!!!!!

:D

[WEZ]

DARKSTAR

pagefile.sys

WHAT IS IT ?

[TOM EQ]

TBH u need to ask yourself if you really need to use XP, I do use XP but it uses shitloads of ram just for the OS, I was quite happy using ME and 98SE.

SE is really all u need, it has the usb support. Why do you want XP?

(It is pretty sexy tho (is that weird?))

[darkstar]

DARKSTAR

pagefile.sys

WHAT IS IT ?

http://www.computing.net/windowsnt/w...rum/20879.html