New gaming rig opinions

[MrMet]

The time has come for me to upgrade my rig. I use it mostly for gaming. Looking to start completly fresh. Havent decided on a case yet but that may or may not be determined by my mobo. I am an AMD guy and always have been. I am currently running a Barton 2500+ with the a Nforce 2 board and have had it for the last two plus years. Havent kept up with the latest and greatest the last year or so so I would appreciate any suggestions on a cpu/mobo. I'm not big into overclocking so thats not a big priority. Thanks in advance for any ideas you share!

 

[ribbon13]

First: Big, small or exact budget? What display are you using/planning on using? This shall detemine if you need an SLI motherboard or a non-SLI.

Any components you plan on keeping? If PSU is one of them ,what exact brand/model is it?

If your a mid budgeter with not much on overclocker, your motherboard is right here

 

[bunnyfubbles]

GPU first, RAM/CPU second (priority between those two depends on budget).

 

[MrMet]

budget not high concern. Not looking to go all out, most expensive or newest tech isnt my utmost concern. I have an antec smart power 420 psu currently and i would probalby be keeping that.. I also have a 21 in mitsubishi crt that although is kinda aged will most likely continue to use (unless it craps out soon). At the current RAM prices i will most likely get at least a gig maybe two gigs if mobo supports it. I currently have a gig of ddr in my rig but being i am gonna give it to a family member so i will get new. (have another psu to put in old machine). Gonna buy a new dvd burner as well. I would say my budget is as follows cpu/mobo 250-300, video card 250-300 case 100 and ram 150-200. Burner 50-100. If i can keep the whole build under a grand i will be more than happy. I would be happy as heck if i could keep price between 700-800

 

[TankGuys]

I'd say go with one of the socket 939 opterons if you can find them. Even if you don't OC they are nice, and if you do decide to try your hand at an overclock, it's a great chip for that. Your 420w PSU should be fine. As for your video card, if you watch for some deals, you can often pick up one of the 7800 series cards for the high end of your pricerange, otherwise watch for an X800/850 series. Case, I'd personally spend the extra on a P180, they are great cases, I love mine. Finally, get the NEC 3540 or 3520 (I think those are the right model numbers) series DVD burners... great performance and well under your max budget allowance for them.

Motherboard wise is up in the air... you may want to go with an Asus or something, otherwise a DFI/Epox in case you ever want to have a go at serious overclocking.