Computer upgrade, looking for feedback

[FrenziedEngi]

1. What YOUR PC will be used for. That means what types of tasks you'll be performing.
Primarily for World of Warcraft and some web-browsing/e-mail. Will be running up to 2 wow clients simultaneously (multi-boxing on a single system).

2. What YOUR budget is. A price range is acceptable as long as it's not more than a 20% spread
Up to $500 after taxes, shipping, etc. I am usually good with rebates, so those can be factored in too.

3. What country YOU will be buying YOUR parts from.
Live in USA, probably going Newegg route (or other suggestions)

4. IF YOU have a brand preference. That means, are you an Intel-Fanboy, AMD-Fanboy, ATI-Fanboy, nVidia-Fanboy, Seagate-Fanboy, WD-Fanboy, etc, etc, etc, you get the picture.
No real fanboyism. Just want best performance for the price.

5. If YOU intend on using any of YOUR current parts, and if so, what those parts are.
Yes.. I am upgrading an old S939 3000+ system. I am planning on reusing: ATX case, 550W power supply, ATA optical drive, 2 SATAI hard drives (old style Raptor and a 120GB WD), keyboard, mouse, 2 monitors (1680x1050 and 1024x768 or the next step up), Windows, etc. Basically I just need to upgrade mobo, cpu, graphics, and ram. Unless someone sees a problem with the mix/match of parts.

6. IF YOU have searched and/or read similar threads.
Yeah, I have been looking around for a few weeks.

7. IF YOU plan on overclocking or run the system at default speeds.
Would be willing to overclock modestly. My current system overclocked fairly well and was 100% solid for 4 years. So I would be willing to consider it.

8. WHEN do you plan to build it?
November/December 2008


Here is my current parts list:
Do I need anything more? Aftermarket CPU or GPU cooler? Is this a good video card for what I need? Good mobo/ram combo? Thanks for your help!

SAPPHIRE 100245L Radeon HD 4850 512MB 256-bit GDDR3 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready CrossFire Supported Video Card - Retail
Item #: N82E16814102770
-$15.00 Instant
$20.00 Mail-in Rebate
$169.99
**$154.99


CORSAIR 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 (PC2 6400) Dual Channel Kit Desktop Memory Model TWIN2X4096-6400C5 - Retail
Item #: N82E16820145184
-$10.00 Instant
$30.00 Mail-in Rebate
$64.99
**$54.99


ASUS P5Q Pro LGA 775 Intel P45 ATX Intel Motherboard - Retail
Item #: N82E16813131299
Intel Core 2 Duo E8400 Wolfdale 3.0GHz LGA 775 65W Dual-Core Processor Model BX80570E8400 - Retail
Item #: N82E16819115037
**249.98 (combo deal)

** Total pre-rebate 459.96
** Shipping 13.36

 

[DSF]

Solid choices. If you want more than a modest overclock you'll want an aftermarket CPU cooler, but other than that you're good to go.

 

[FrenziedEngi]

Just to firm up a few points:

* My current power supply should have the output connector I need? It looks like my current mobo has 2x10 pin power supply connection. My power supply has some unused 2x2 connectors as well, I assume these would combine together for the needed 24pin configuration?

* SATAI drives is no problem with the newer SATAII ports?

* Any feelings on 64bit vs 32bit (vista) on these forums? I will do some searching myself.

 

[Denithor]

Current PSU should be adequate if it's from a decent maker (Seasonic, Corsair, OCZ, Antec, etc).

SATA II is completely backwards compatible, no issues there.

If buying a new copy of Windows, definitely go 64-bit so you can use all that shiny new memory if nothing else. Seriously, 64-bit is the way to go if buying new.

And I would suggest a 9800GT for around $90AR instead of the 4850. Just google for "4850 warcraft" to see why.

 

[FrenziedEngi]

Thanks for the feedback on the PSU, harddrives, vista, and pointing out possible issues with WoW and the ATI card. Even if those issues have been resolved, I would like to avoid any possible ones

I am now looking at the 9800 gt for graphics instead of the 4850. Thanks for the suggestion!

Now hopefully we can get some good deals on black friday.