Topic: Acer Aspire X3200 Owner's Thread (Modifications/Maintainance)

[Alfie]

 Operating System  Genuine Microsoft Windows Vista® Home Basic
 
 
 Processor  AM2 Ath64 X2 5000+ 940 2.6G/512KB
 
 
 
 Chipset  NVIDIA® GeForce® 8200
 
 
 
 Memory  1 x 1GB DDR2 667MHz
 
 
 
 Display Screen  No Monitor
 
 
 
 Video Type  NVIDIA® GeForce® 8200 on board graphics with NVIDIA® GeForce®
8400 discrete graphics
Enabled NVIDIA® Hybrid SLI®
 
 
 
 Audio  Optimized Dolby® Home Theater® audio enhancement, featuring Dolby® Digital, Dolby® Pro Logic® II, Dolby® Headphone, Dolby® Virtual Speaker,
Dolby® Digital Live technologies Embedded high-definition audio with 5.1-channel and EAX® 4.0 audio support
 
 
 
 Hard Disk  160GB HDD SATAII 7200rpm
 
 
 
 Optical Drive  16x Supermulti Optical Drive
 
 
 
 Card Reader  with multi-in-one card reader
 
 
 
 Network Interface  Gigabit Ethernet NVIDIA 10/100/1000 with Modem
 
 
 
 Keyboard & Mouse  USB Keyboard & USB Optical Mouse
 
 
 
 Speakers  with External Speakers
 
 

I got one last August 10,2008 as I took advantage of the BPI madness sale placing it on a 12 month zero interest with a free Samsung Cellphone and USB Hub.

The AMD chip is compatible in speed with a C2D 2.0.

It's preloaded with Vista, and I was surprised at the boot running for less than 2 minutes.
This is when I changed the Mccaffe to AVG 8.0, and included all the other stuff such as the decrypters, codecs, and burners(just Nero and another).I also got myself a wireless keyboard and mouse(Logitech,cheapest Vista capable in the market).

The NVDIA 8200 configure my setting automatically,and, my old Samsung blended well, although, it only have a maximal resolution of 720p...no problem with that,I'm not into MKV files.

Realtek audio was a breeze, I just configured it to digital, if I know that that the video's capable e.g.DVD
Put it back to stereo for ordinary Divx files.
Surprisingly, the unit was silent, fan noise can be heard only if you'd want to hear it.(which I didn't when I used my amplifier and the realtek audio converts the files to dolby digital).

Of course it's a PC, so, whatever problem I may yet have to encounter in the future,I'll just Goggle it and join a forum.(Minimum 2 days solutions).

It's costs 16.9K, comes with a free Vista OS,which one can back up and restore for future use,just in case, one converted back to XP.(But why will you do that,when MS already announced the support discontinuance of XP).

No hiccups were noted with the files I tried.although I upgraded my RAM to 3 Gigs.(Max for my MB, 4Gigs are for those with 64bit apps).

It's just my choice, I find the AMD a lot faster than my Dual Core,but seemingly still a little bit slower when compared with my office provided C2D 2.66(which is unfair since it runs on XP).

I got this since I believe it's a good value for money gadget, and in fact, will do well with most DLP and LCD front projectors. It's multifunctional, very cheap as compared to the Shuttle boxes,looks professional and dignified,with it's solid color and simply embossed Acer Aspire Logo.
Currently, this is most probably the cheapest HTPC in the market, considering that an entry level AMD 64 X2 2800 chipset clone with a Gigabyte Mobo and same hardware specs would cost around 12K, whereas the Acer Aspire cost's 17K but with an incorporated licensed OS,making it more cost efficient than building yourself a clone.

Right now, this is my favorite desktop, I was able to videoconvert at nearly 3/5 times as fast as my office provided C2D 2.66(probably as fast if I have it running with XP as an OS, like my C2D in the office,although, the videocard did help, and I only have an onboard videocard in the Office). The Vista OS also has a ReadyBoost feature,wherein an external USB Flash Drive will speed up processing by providing extrenal memory.

One thing I love about this, is that I can download a torrent while watching a movie file,and by the time I finish, a message pop out that the download has been completed(noticeable once I clear the screen).

Now, since the share your HTPC thread has been closed, I opted that we have an owner's thread for this lovable HTPC, since as a desktop, we will need to constantly update and modify our units,and it's best that we have our own thread to share both vital and trivial information for our Acer X3200.

[thesaint]

Sir,
Supported or  capable din ba ito mag dual view?
Mukhang maganda ang review nyo dito ha!
Satisfied costumer. hehehehe.

TIA,

[Alfie]

Supposedly via Vista OS it has dual view support, however, somebody posted in the old thread that the on board video card doesn't, but that can be remedied by incorporating another video card.

[doughn]

I got one last August 10,2008 as I took advantage of the BPI madness sale placing it on a 12 month zero interest with a free Samsung Cellphone and USB Hub.

The AMD chip is compatible in speed with a C2D 2.0.

It's preloaded with Vista, and I was surprised at the boot running for less than 2 minutes.
This is when I changed the Mccaffe to AVG 8.0, and included all the other stuff such as the decrypters, codecs, and burners(just Nero and another).I also got myself a wireless keyboard and mouse(Logitech,cheapest Vista capable in the market).

The NVDIA 8200 configure my setting automatically,and, my old Samsung blended well, although, it only have a maximal resolution of 720p...no problem with that,I'm not into MKV files.

Realtek audio was a breeze, I just configured it to digital, if I know that that the video's capable e.g.DVD
Put it back to stereo for ordinary Divx files.
Surprisingly, the unit was silent, fan noise can be heard only if you'd want to hear it.(which I didn't when I used my amplifier and the realtek audio converts the files to dolby digital).

Of course it's a PC, so, whatever problem I may yet have to encounter in the future,I'll just Goggle it and join a forum.(Minimum 2 days solutions).

It's costs 16.9K, comes with a free Vista OS,which one can back up and restore for future use,just in case, one converted back to XP.(But why will you do that,when MS already announced the support discontinuance of XP).

No hiccups were noted with the files I tried.although I upgraded my RAM to 3 Gigs.(Max for my MB, 4Gigs are for those with 64bit apps).

It's just my choice, I find the AMD a lot faster than my Dual Core,but seemingly still a little bit slower when compared with my office provided C2D 2.66(which is unfair since it runs on XP).

I got this since I believe it's a good value for money gadget, and in fact, will do well with most DLP and LCD front projectors. It's multifunctional, very cheap as compared to the Shuttle boxes,looks professional and dignified,with it's solid color and simply embossed Acer Aspire Logo.
Currently, this is most probably the cheapest HTPC in the market, considering that an entry level AMD 64 X2 2800 chipset clone with a Gigabyte Mobo and same hardware specs would cost around 12K, whereas the Acer Aspire cost's 17K but with an incorporated licensed OS,making it more cost efficient than building yourself a clone.

Right now, this is my favorite desktop, I was able to videoconvert at nearly 3/5 times as fast as my office provided C2D 2.66(probably as fast if I have it running with XP as an OS, like my C2D in the office,although, the videocard did help, and I only have an onboard videocard in the Office). The Vista OS also has a ReadyBoost feature,wherein an external USB Flash Drive will speed up processing by providing extrenal memory.

One thing I love about this, is that I can download a torrent while watching a movie file,and by the time I finish, a message pop out that the download has been completed(noticeable once I clear the screen).

Now, since the share your HTPC thread has been closed, I opted that we have an owner's thread for this lovable HTPC, since as a desktop, we will need to constantly update and modify our units,and it's best that we have our own thread to share both vital and trivial information for our Acer X3200.

sir did u installed a remote control for movie viewing like those mediaplayer? thanks

[Alfie]

Nope...the wireless Mouse & Keyboard is more than adequate for me, furthermore, what I installed was the PowerCinema, and it seems to respond well with the keyboard and mouse.

[Geren]

Supposedly via Vista OS it has dual view support, however, somebody posted in the old thread that the on board video card doesn't, but that can be remedied by incorporating another video card.

You can use dual view and clone view with the x3200 using just the onboard video card. 

This is my setup.
LCD monitor as my primary display and the Panasonic pv70 as my secondary display connected via hdmi. While my daughter uses the lcd when browsing, i watch downloaded movies on the plasma at full screen mode. No lags. You can configure the resolutions differently for the 2 monitors and resize the desktop to fit the screen.

To configure
1. Turn on the 2nd display then start nvidia control panel( if the 2nd display is not On when you start Nvidia Control, the dual view and clone view options will not show), 
2. Select Setup Multiple Display, select Configured Independently ( Dual View). The 2nd monitor will be like an extension of your primary display. Apply changes.
You can move the mouse and drag windowed apps to the 2nd display.

Recently tried UltraMon Software to manage my 2 displays for different backgrounds and moving apps back and forth between monitors. Works nicely.

[thesaint]

Mga Sir,
Tanong ulit...
Yung bang HDMI output ng ACER Aspire X3200 ay audio at video na?
Walang bang problem just incase na Windows XP ang gamitin kong OS?
Pag ka alam ko kasi Vista Home Edition ang software bundle nito eh!
Lastly, Ma vo-void ba ang warranty nito kapag inupgrade ko yung
HDD from 160gig to 1 Tera and 1gig to 2gig memory?

TIA,

[Clondalkin]

Walang bang problem just incase na Windows XP ang gamitin kong OS?
Pag ka alam ko kasi Vista Home Edition ang software bundle nito eh!

Lastly, Ma vo-void ba ang warranty nito kapag inupgrade ko yung
HDD from 160gig to 1 Tera and 1gig to 2gig memory?

TIA,

Any reason why you would want to reformat a brand new desktop?   Normally, you'd forfeit your warranty if you install another OS.

HDD and addtl. RAM.  Who would ever know unless meron seal sa PC case? (I havent seen a brand PC with seal on the case)  Kung magkaproblema ka and you want to avail of warranty, you can easily put back the stock 160GB hard drive, then pull out the 2GB memory sticks.

[jchu]

Saw a unit sa Villman booth  last Sunday sa Glorietta. (BPI Madness ata). There is a warranty void sticker or seal at the back of the unit.

[Alfie]

Mga Sir,
Tanong ulit...
Yung bang HDMI output ng ACER Aspire X3200 ay audio at video na?
Walang bang problem just incase na Windows XP ang gamitin kong OS?
Pag ka alam ko kasi Vista Home Edition ang software bundle nito eh!
Lastly, Ma vo-void ba ang warranty nito kapag inupgrade ko yung
HDD from 160gig to 1 Tera and 1gig to 2gig memory?

TIA,

Madali lang iyan' 

Iyun' 2Gig RAM upgradable talaga   

Sila pa nga ang mag-papayo sa iyo' na taasan ang RAM....ang sales Talk..."Sir naka VISTA Kayo mas mabuti"

Kung binasa mo ang post ko, na-kalagay nga doon, 3 gig ako, "Kasi ang MoBo pang 3 Gig lang"
Pero hindi totoo iyun' kasi iyun' Vista may 64 bit iyun' pwedeng 4 gig max.

Sa OS naman...pakiramdam ko nga mas maganda ang XP kasi nag video rendering ako,ang magandan lang dito ay Mas bi-bilis siya;
 pero... bakit mo tatangalin ang Vista mo ? Maganda naman ang Vista, tapos, Future proof na. Pag pinormat mo ito'
Tangal pati ang incorporated na Acer empowering technology.
Sayang naman 

Palitan mo nalang ang HDD nang 250 Gig.kaysa 1 TB...kasi hindi recommendado ang 1Tb na may OS...Magbasa ka...madalasa mag Crash...sa 320 ang recomemdadon' maximum, layo na pag linagyan mo nang games: Ngayon, dito mo i-install ang XP mo. 


Kung binasa mo ulit ang mga post dito at sa Acer Vs. Media Player Thread....eh...sana alam mo na ito'

Sa madali't salita...Hindi affectado ang Warranty. 

Saw a unit sa Villman booth  last Sunday sa Glorietta. (BPI Madness ata). There is a warranty void sticker or seal at the back of the unit.

Iyun' akin, wala akong nakitang warranty sticker, hinid ko sa Vilaman binili, nagkalat naman ito' eh sa iba ka na lang bumili. 

Iyun' kasi'ng Laptop ko, sa Acer ko binili, may warranty sitvker, kung saan ang HDD, pero sa RAM wala. 

Ngayon....basahin mo ang thread ni Nerveblocker,
Nag-buo siya nang Clone....17K ang inabot.
Ba't mo pa pa-hi-hirapan ang sarili mo, eh...dumeretso' ka na lang sa Clone.
Kuha mo pa lahat nang gusto mo.

[andre]

I tore the warranty sticker and put another 1 gb inside. making the unit to 2gb.
My unit is attached to my lcd tv. All it does now are play HD movies, convert divx to psp mp4.
It can't play most games. 
The most it can play are lego games. But lego games are fun. 
I bought a wireless Xbox 360 transmitter for the gamepads.
At least I can still used my Xbox controllers. My Xbox 360 is dead!

[Alfie]

I got mine at Accent Micro, and I'm so sure they didn't put any warranty sticker, since, when I got home, the DVD Writer was not detected, so I called them up,and the Tech person answered "Nakup....hindi ko ho nabalik siguro iyun' SATA...paki bukas, tuturo ko sa inyo', pero alam ninyo naman iyun' di' ba'....paki balik nalang sir....kayo rin, gusto ba ninyong bumalik dito?". 

[jchu]

I got mine at Accent Micro, and I'm so sure they didn't put any warranty sticker, since, when I got home, the DVD Writer was not detected, so I called them up,and the Tech person answered "Nakup....hindi ko ho nabalik siguro iyun' SATA...paki bukas, tuturo ko sa inyo', pero alam ninyo naman iyun' di' ba'....paki balik nalang sir....kayo rin, gusto ba ninyong bumalik dito?". 

Sir i think they removed it. Coz yung nakita ko sa Villman was an Acer Warranty sticker.

[Alfie]

The Acer Store in Mega Mall Cyberzone is owned by Vilman, hence, they're probably more stickler to rules on warranty,rather than the other stores.

I bought my Acer Laptop there and right now I can visualized my warranty seal.

What I'm saying is that other PC shops like Accent Micro, where I got mine, did not bother to put on the warranty seal, and an Acer employee was there to  exchanged pleasantries with me when they gave me the free Samsung Phone and ACER external USB port, and even gave me tips on proper upgrading of the X3200.

So to answer the question asked.....if you wanna, upgrade and not loose the warranty( as what the question was in the 1st place)...buy at another store at the BPI Madness, and clarify the about the warranty sticker thing.....since almost all carry the X3200, including PCXpress. 

[jchu]

Kaso iba pricing nila. Sa Villman the price was 16,900 with 12 months installment. plus free Brother dcp 135C. Sa Accent micro was 16900 cash, if 12months nasa 18,900, both with  free  Brother printer. I did'n't asked the other stores na.

[Alfie]

If you bothered to read my post above, I got mine for 16,900Php with free Samsung Cell Phone and USB peripheral ports.....but that was last August 10,2008....I guess, they have modified their pricing and Vilman in order to compete had a different freebie.

Don't get me wrong, I am friendly with some Vilman personnel both at the Acer store in Mega Mall and in Katipunan, in fact, I used to exchange notes with one of the Villaroman relatives who loves to DL Divx movies and watch them all day at their store. 

Going back to my original answer to the question raised that it's possible to get it at other PC Shops not only at the BPI Madness (but if you're a BPI card holder I suggest to get it in Ayala) but also in Gilmore....sans the questioned warranty sticker. 

[cHess]

Mga Sirs may linabas na bagong AX3200. Any comments about it. Kailan kaya magiging available ito sa pinas?
Acer® AX3200-U3630A: Available now for a MSRP of $679.99
• AMD Phenom(TM) X3 Triple-Core 8450 Processor (2.1GHz, 512KB X 3 L2 Cache)
• 4096MB DDR2 Memory, Dual Channel
• NVIDIA® GeForce® 8200 Chipset
• Integrated NVIDIA® GeForce® 8200 Graphics Solution
• 640GB SATA II (7200RPM, 8MB Cache) (2)
• Blu-ray Disc(TM)/DVD-Super Multi Double-Layer Drive
• Multi-in-One Digital Media Card Reader
• 56K ITU v.92 Ready Fax/Modem (RJ-11 Port)
• Optimized Dolby Home Theater®
• Windows Vista® Home Premium 64-Bit with SP1
• 9 USB 2.0 Ports (5 Front, 4 Rear)
• IEEE 1394 Port
• HDMI Port
• eSATA Port
• Amplified Stereo Speakers (USB Powered)
• Acer USB Keyboard
• USB Optical Mouse

Acer® P244W 24-inch LCD display: Available now for a MSRP of $339
• 24-inch Widescreen
• 0.276mm Pixel Pitch
• 1920x1080 (native and maximum) Resolution
• 1080p High-Def Support
• 75Hz (Maximum) Refresh Rate
• 2ms (Gray to Gray) Response Time
• 20000:1 (ACM) Contrast Ratio
• 300cd/m2 Brightness
• 170° (H)/160° (V) Viewing Angles
• 16.7 Million Colors
• 6 + Hi-FRC Bits
• 2x HDMI, 1x VGA Inputs
• Vesa 100MM Wall Mount
• Internal Power Supply
• Energy Star Compliant

ito link:
http://gizmodo.com/5062908/acer-releases-ax3200-blu+ray-desktop-pc-and-p244w-1080p-lcd-display

[hanzoh74]

gud evening po,tanong lang about sa videocard,embedded daw ang geforce 8400 nito so it means ba na indi na to matanggal kung may plano ako magchange ng another compatible video card??...kung mag pwede,ano masuggest ninyo na ok na video cards para nito??....kung magchange tau ng HDD to 250 GB or etc.,matatanggal ba ang mga cool features nito like ur dolby at hdmi,acer empowering technology?? ty po..

[Alfie]

For the Video card, it's an entry level motherboard with built in video card, hence, you'll need to disable it once you set in a new video card...BTW, with the exception that there's a new video card that will fit and equipped with HDMI.....of course, you'll loose the HDMI.

As for the HDD,in order to keep the other features: you can always use Acronis migrate, then utilized the original HDD as an external storage HDD.
Another thing that you can do, is for you extract the software data (takes give or take 4 gig of space, if I remember right) from the original HDD, including the empowering tech....and install them on your new HDD, after installing a VISTA Basic and using the provided license number pasted on the casing of the X3200.

[erwin111]

mga sirs,

just bought x3200, but I can't seem to output audio through hdmi.. in the realtek audio settings, the only setting for digital is spdif.. i can output through the analog outs.. is there a way to output audio through hdmi?

thanks,
erwin

EDIT: got to output audio through HDMI already.. i should be setting the default in sounds in the control panel..

But I just notice that the video through HDMI is not so good.. the text are blurry and videos are posterized... i've set already in the nvidia control panel the native resolution of my display (lx80) and i've tried different resolution but no improvement.. i've tried different types of videos (avi, mkv m-hd, 720p), they have the same problem.. movies on my previous pc with vga connection in the same display have rendered it nicely, even with a 64mb graphics card... i've purchased this htpc because of its form factor and hdmi connection..

tanong ko lang mga sirs, may iba pa bang dapat akong i-set para umayos yung video sa hdmi connection? (try ko later yung vga connection kung ok)

[Alfie]

Try using a lower resolution.

Lower the contrast on your LCD.

Do let us know if it worked.

BTW...what's your panel? Size and make.

Enjoy.

[erwin111]

thanks sir alfie... my display is 32lx80... i already tried different resolutions, no improvement on the video... anyway, i tried the vga connection.. video is much better and i set the resolution 1366x768 (native resolution of the panel).. i just have to settle with the addt'l analog audio cable...

tapos pala nung nagupdate ako ng driver for the nvidia 8200, nawala yung support for the HDMI audio.. ni-rollback ko na lng.. pero sa ngyon walang use yung HDMI audio kasi kinabit ko na sa analog...

[cHess]

Sayang naman yung HDMI....kung hindi magamit.

Planning also to buy x3200. Question from the owners, how to maximize hdmi both for vidieo and audio? Any set up tips...

Thanks inadvance.

[Geren]

For the Video card, it's an entry level motherboard with built in video card, hence, you'll need to disable it once you set in a new video card...BTW, with the exception that there's a new video card that will fit and equipped with HDMI.....of course, you'll loose the HDMI.

If you add a low profile 8400GS, you need not disable the on board video card. I believe you have to enable hybrid sli on your bios. Graphics will improve as it is Hybrid SLI ready. The on board video card (8200) and the additional card (8400 GS) will work together to improve the frame rate on games and power consumption. You will not lose the HDMI function. The on board hdmi and/or vga connections should still be used for connecting your monitors. You don't have to connect your vga monitor to the 8400GS. It should be connected to the on board video card. When installed properly, you should see a new icon on your system tray that allows you to configure the hybrid sli functions.

[cHess]

Sir what kind or type of 8400GS did you installed? Upgradable pa ba ang processor ng x3200? May owners manual ba na do-download? Thanks.

[jackryan]

If you add a low profile 8400GS, you need not disable the on board video card. I believe you have to enable hybrid sli on your bios. Graphics will improve as it is Hybrid SLI ready. The on board video card (8200) and the additional card (8400 GS) will work together to improve the frame rate on games and power consumption. You will not lose the HDMI function. The on board hdmi and/or vga connections should still be used for connecting your monitors. You don't have to connect your vga monitor to the 8400GS. It should be connected to the on board video card. When installed properly, you should see a new icon on your system tray that allows you to configure the hybrid sli functions.

How much is the 8400GS low profile video card? Where can I get one that sells them at a reasonable price point? TIA.

[Alfie]

I discovered a defect with my Acer, hope that  it does not affect yours.

The LAN is susceptible to overheating.

I found this out,when I placed my 512mb usb at the usb port  beneath the LAN to act as a ready boost, after converting 2 titles to DVD,at  around 2 hours of processing, I lost my network,and the line could not be detected. I took out the line and noticed that the usb was very hot so I turned off the desktop and let it cool down and true enough after an hour the network was back.

This happened the 2nd time when my wireless keyboard and mouse had to have their batteries changed and when I was trying to connect them, again, I lost my network.The usb port was proximal to my LAN; It came back after turning it off for an hour.

I guess this is a problem with mother boards such as these.
Hopefully, I hope it'll give way soon during the warranty, or simply not recur.
Seemingly, building one with a reliably known Mobo is really better as what Nerveblocker did.

[andre]

What's the maximum video memory ram i can allocate for the onboard video?

I'm planning to upgarde to 4GB Memory. As of now I can barely play Red Alert 3

[Geren]

Nvidia 8400 GS costs around Php 1,800.00 (Adapter is included in box).

As for upgradeability, i believe it can be upgraded to the latest AMD quad core cpu. See the link http://www.obsessable.com/desktop/acer-aspire-x3200/

Currently, i have 4Gb ram.

As for the manual, not sure kung saan ang download.

[andre]

Who among you have added 8400 GS for their X3200? I really wanted to Upgrade my onboard video card. What are my other options?