Best Bang For Your Buck C2D Build?

[mawsoccer]

Here is what I am looking at right now:

Thermaltake Armor Series VA8000BWS - Zipzoomfly - $110
Intel Core 2 Duo E6600 - Zipzoomfly - $312.80
Asus P5B-E - Zipzoomfly - $163.00
eVGA 256-P2-N554-AX e-Geforce 7600 GT KO 256MB - Zipzoomfly - $119.99
NEC 7170A-0B OEM - Newegg.com - $32.00
OCZ OCZ600GXSSLI GameXStream 600W - Zipzoomfly - $96.99 (After Rebate)
OCZ (2x1GB) PC2-6400 Platinum Edition Revision 2 4-4-4-15 - Frys - $210 (After Rebate)
Scythe SCINF-1000 Infinity - Newegg - $49.99
Artic Silver 5 - Newegg - $5.99
Total $980.77

I could also go with the Conroe E6400 for $887.47.

Also, I hope to OC either chip to 3.6 GHz.

Please tell me if you think there are any problems with my setup.

I am also looking for a good fan to replace the Scythe one with. I am very open to suggestions.

Here are a couple of other parts I was considering...

eVGA 256-P2-N584-AR Geforce 7900GT KO 256MB - Zipzoomfly - $199.99 (After Rebates)
OCZ OCZ700GXSSLI GameXStream 700W - Zipzoomfly - $115.00 (After Rebates)
GEIL GX22GB6400PDC PC2-6400 3-3-3-8 (2x1GB) - NextWarehouse - $316.00 (After Rebates)
G.SKILL F2-6400PHU2-2GBHZ 4-4-4-12 (2x1GB) - Newegg - $305.00 (After Rebates)
Antec Nine Hundred Black Steel ATX Mid Tower - Newegg - $132.00
Seasonic S12 Series S12-600W - Zipzoomfly - $135.00

Please let me know if there is anything you would swap out or anything I am missing (Besides a monitor and a hard drive, both of which I already have.[/b]

I am in no immediate hurry, so hopefully some prices will go down between now and the time I will buy. (Waiting till the day after Thanksgiving)

As far as the graphics card goes, I really only play a few EA games and GTA San Andreas so I really shouldn't need the best card out there.

 

[Skott]

Well, if you are really serious about the bang-for-the-buck title then the E6400 is the ideal. Typically the E6300/E6400 does better OCing on the 965 mobos than the E6600+ chips. Its a personal choice really. There are better 600w PSUs out there but not at that price. Most everything else is a personal preference thing so its all good. Just comes down to performance vs price.

 

[mawsoccer]

I'll add the Seasonic S12 to the list of other parts. I am not necessarily going for cheapest C2D overclockable PC, I just want the best money can buy.

 

[Raider1284]

if you going for a gamer build you would be better off getting swapping e6600 to e6400 and that 7600 to a 7900gto for example

 

[akshayt]

Atleast get a 1900xt man, get a lower CPU, lower mobo if required, cheaper 2GB RAM etc.

 

[dBTelos]

Masscool Nextherm 460W would be a much better choise for a PSU. Made by Seventeam and can power the rig easy. It can support SLi 7600. If you wanted to just keep the 7600 with no SLi, then a Enhance ENP 400W 80+ has plenty of power.

 

[mawsoccer]

Does the e6600 oc good on the P5B-E?

Would the e6400 be able to reach 3.6ghz fairly easily on the p5b-e with air cooling?

 

[The-Noid]

These are such loaded questions. Fairly easily if you have a great deal of understanding of what you are doing. Fairly easy to get a 70% overclock...what is the world coming too. You will need some kind of chipset cooler if you are going to hit 450 fsb 24/7 my bet is you are going to have to bump the volts on the northbridge which is ok for overclock runs and such but for 24/7 that thing is going to get toasty.

Read my thread for a pretty good explanation of what you should buy.

http://forums.anandtech.com/messageview...atid=28&threadid=1947261&enterthread=y

 

[bobsmith1492]

Ya, get the cheaper CPU and get a better GPU. You probably won't hit 3.6 GHz either way, but the 6400 is more likely to do it than the 6600 from everything I've heard.

 

[Skott]

Originally posted by: mawsoccer
I'll add the Seasonic S12 to the list of other parts. I am not necessarily going for cheapest C2D overclockable PC, I just want the best money can buy.

Well, this does put a new spin on it. Although buying the best doesnt necessarily mean you have to spend the most. A great system can be had for a reasonable price.

The Seasonic S12 600w is a very good psu. Its not only great performance but also very quiet. Another 600w range psu to consider is the Corsair 620w psu. Its getting lots or rave reviews. I'd also suggest when choosing the mobo you get one that is also quadcore compatible. This will extend the life of your system and save you another full blown upgrade.