New computer, but reusing some parts

[Psychless]

My current setup:

Intel Celeron 1.3GHz
256mb of Kingston PC133 SDRAM, 128mb PC100 SDRAM (not a major brand)
Trigem Lomita motherboard (stock motherboard for hp pavilion 502n)
40gb hard drive (5400RPM)
integrated video (4mb of memory)
<200 watt power supply
Samsung SyncMaster 753DF monitor

I plan on keeping the monitor until I get a little more cash. The rest I'd like to upgrade. I'll be using the computer for web surfing, basic programming, and other basic tasks. I'd also like to play some new games that would require a GeForce 7xxx or 8xxx. I will overclock, as long as I don't spend a lot of money on a cpu cooler. I'd prefer 2GB of memory as well. I will not be upgrading to Vista, for now at least. I was thinking of a Core 2 Duo 4xxx series and a GeForce 8500GT. I've already decided on a $60 case. Please give me your suggestions.

 

[MarcVenice]

e4400 with a gigabyte ds3l should overclock nicely. Slap a arctic freezer 7 pro on it, and it should hit 2.6-3ghz. Don't buy a 8500gt, it will suck for gaming, the least you should buy is a x1950pro for 125$ or so. 2gb of ddr2 800 should cost 65$ or so AR. You'll need a new PSU as well, a corsair 450vx will provide plenty of power. Then pick any HD you like, something 250-320gb I guess for 60-65$.

That should roughly cost 600$ with the case included.

 

[nick1985]

Prices include shipping:


DVD Burner = Samsung 20x DVD Burner = $30

Case = Rosewill Black case w/120mm rear fan = $45

Power Supply = Antec Neopower 500watt = $55 (AR)

RAM = 2gigs of Gskill DDR2 800 = $70

Hard Drive = Western Digital 320gb SATA w/16mb cache = $75

Motherboard = Gigabyte P35 = $105

CPU = Intel Core 2 Duo E6550 Conroe 2.33Ghz = $176

Video Card = Leadtek 320mb 8800GTS = $270 (AR)


Grand Total = $826 shipped


Now obviously this is a $75 over budget, but there are several ways to save that if you wanted. You could save $10-$15 on RAM by just getting some 'value RAM'. You could also knock some off the hard drive by getting a smaller one or shopping around for a deal on one. Also you could get a Core 2 Duo allendale core, granted they dont have as fast of a FSB as the Conroe core, but they still overclock like mad and you could easily save the entire $75 if you go that route.

Many people hit over 3Ghz with this chip ($117 shipped)


With the 8800GTS video card in this budget rig, however, is pretty neat. It will allow you to play basically any game out there.

Good luck with your build.

 

[Psychless]

Nearly all of your suggestions, nick, look really good. I can knock off the $30 for the DVD burner, since I already have one. Sorry about not mentioning that. I will opt for the slower cpu though, and get a cpu cooler. 320gb would be a little excessive for me, so I'm going with a cheaper hard drive. Also, the link to the case links to the dvd burner so I'm sticking with the case I have picked out, unless you want to fix the link. Thanks.

 

[nick1985]

Whoops messed up my linkage!

If you already have a case then dont bother, it was just a generic looking rosewill black case.

 

[Ika]

Regarding Rosewill cases, they can be surprisingly good... give this thread a quick readover.

Cliffs of the thread: The R560x series and R6A series cases are of a much higher quality than most people would give them credit for. The innards are practically exactly the same as Antec's cases, which many people like.

 

[Blain]

Build it already!!!