Opteron 170 System Dead- Time to Upgrade

[Wag]

Yes, I troubleshot it and it appears to be completely dead, so I have decided to upgrade. I am going to salvage the storage, and drives, but all else can be replaced.

So basically I use my setup to drive my Samsung 56" DLP (hi-def movies), audio, and game playing. Doesn't need to be "super-high end" but I want it to be at least one step up from my Opteron 170, ATI X1800XT, 2Gb 400DDR setup I had before. Core2Duo? Intel? Can it be kept ~$600? I will be using my current case and 550w Enermax PS (good 12v+ rail).

So, essentially what I am looking for:

1. Motherboard
2. CPU
3. Videocard
4. 2Gb Ram

(Anything else I'm missing?)

 

[mad0maxx]

Sound Card and if not included Network Card? I also take it you are going to use the same case from the previous computer. But I think that is it but if you wanna waste money try getting a Physix Processing unit (PPU)

 

[Wag]

Originally posted by: mad0maxx
Sound Card and if not included lNetwork Card? I also take it you are going to use the same case from the previous computer. But I think that is it but if you wanna waste money try getting a Physix Processing unit (PPU)

Most mobos have built in network and sound don't they? (if not I have extras anyways)

Why the hell would I want a Physix videocard? Aren't they (for the most part) useless?

 

[Wag]

Same ATX case. Bump

 

[gramboh]

Tough on $600

For step up from Opty 170 you will want an Intel Core 2 Duo, at least the E6400 (are you going to overclock)? MB's check out Asus P5B (specific model depending on features you need) 2GB PC2-5400 or 6400 if you want to overclock, video card best value is X1900XT 512mb ~$279US.

Not going to be easy for $600.

 

[Wag]

~$600. I can go a little more and keep the X1800XT I have, but I didn't really want to, I wanted a little better gaming performer. What other CPUs/Videocards are in my pricerange?

 

[aatf510]

Originally posted by: Wag
~$600. I can go a little more and keep the X1800XT I have, but I didn't really want to, I wanted a little better gaming performer. What other CPUs/Videocards are in my pricerange?

If you are looking to increase gaming performance, your best bet is to used all $600 on a videocard because a $300 videocard right now is probably going to be more or less equal to a x1800xt.

 

[vailr]

Gigabyte GA-965P-S3 Motherboard - $130
Intel Core2 Duo 6300 - $200
OCZ Gold 2GB (2 x 1GB) DDR2 800 (PC2 6400) - $200 (after $25 rebate)
Re-use existing video card; wait until DX10 cards are available in early 2007.

 

[MrUniq]

you want more performance than the 1800XT?? well nothing out currently will impress you that much. I wish I had that card..

 

[Wag]

Originally posted by: vailr
Gigabyte GA-965P-S3 Motherboard - $130
Intel Core2 Duo 6300 - $200
OCZ Gold 2GB (2 x 1GB) DDR2 800 (PC2 6400) - $200 (after $25 rebate)
Re-use existing video card; wait until DX10 cards are available in early 2007.

Yeah, that sounds like something I was looking for. Core2Duos are 64bit and faster than the Opteron 170 I had, correct? I will RMA what I can save and keep the rest.

That mobo is no good. I have 4 PATA drives (2 HDs, 2 DVD roms) 1 SATA, and would like SLI ability for future upgrades as well.

 

[aatf510]

Originally posted by: Wag

Originally posted by: vailr
Gigabyte GA-965P-S3 Motherboard - $130
Intel Core2 Duo 6300 - $200
OCZ Gold 2GB (2 x 1GB) DDR2 800 (PC2 6400) - $200 (after $25 rebate)
Re-use existing video card; wait until DX10 cards are available in early 2007.

Yeah, that sounds like something I was looking for. Core2Duos are 64bit and faster than the Opteron 170 I had, correct? I will RMA what I can save and keep the rest.

That mobo is no good. I have 4 PATA drives (2 HDs, 2 DVD roms) 1 SATA, and would like SLI ability for future upgrades as well.

A $1000 core 2 duo might be faster than your 170, but that E6300 isn't unless your get a really good chip and overclock the hell out of it.

A lot of modern chipsets including only one PATA channel, and currently Intel chipsets are best for core 2 duo, and they don't include SLI support.

 

[the Chase]

Originally posted by: Wag

Originally posted by: vailr
Gigabyte GA-965P-S3 Motherboard - $130
Intel Core2 Duo 6300 - $200
OCZ Gold 2GB (2 x 1GB) DDR2 800 (PC2 6400) - $200 (after $25 rebate)
Re-use existing video card; wait until DX10 cards are available in early 2007.

Yeah, that sounds like something I was looking for. Core2Duos are 64bit and faster than the Opteron 170 I had, correct? I will RMA what I can save and keep the rest.

That mobo is no good. I have 4 PATA drives (2 HDs, 2 DVD roms) 1 SATA, and would like SLI ability for future upgrades as well.

Not gonna happen with any Conroe mobo unfortunately....

 

[Wag]

Not gonna happen with any Conroe mobo unfortunately....

How about the Asus P5W DH Deluxe? That board is Core2Duo I think, Crossfire, 3 PCI-Express, built in everything else. A little pricey but it does it all.

What CPU would I pair with that?

 

[Bobthelost]

Originally posted by: Wag

Not gonna happen with any Conroe mobo unfortunately....

How about the Asus P5W DH Deluxe? That board is Core2Duo I think, Crossfire, 3 PCI-Express, built in everything else. A little pricey but it does it all.

What CPU would I pair with that?

You can't. Not on your budget.

Drop the SLI, it's a crap upgrade route. If you need more PATA then get a PCI card.

 

[Wag]

Originally posted by: Bobthelost

Originally posted by: Wag

Not gonna happen with any Conroe mobo unfortunately....

How about the Asus P5W DH Deluxe? That board is Core2Duo I think, Crossfire, 3 PCI-Express, built in everything else. A little pricey but it does it all.

What CPU would I pair with that?

You can't. Not on your budget.

Drop the SLI, it's a crap upgrade route. If you need more PATA then get a PCI card.

I could up it $100 or $200 if I had to. I don't want to upgrade my next time for a while (except for videocard), so I could even see doing that mobo with a E6600 and my current videocard.

The problem with getting a smaller non-SLI mobo is most of them only have 1 or 2 regular PCI slots and I need 1 for a Dual-WirelessLan/BT card. The damn X1800XT's fan is so big it always takes up at least 1 PCI slot.

 

[secretanchitman]

E6400/E6600
7900GS/GT/GTX
2x1GB PC6400 (DDR2-800)
Asus P5W-DH Deluxe/P5B-Deluxe or comparable depending on what features you need.

 

[Wag]

Originally posted by: secretanchitman
E6400/E6600
7900GS/GT/GTX
2x1GB PC6400 (DDR2-800)
Asus P5W-DH Deluxe/P5B-Deluxe or comparable depending on what features you need.

What's the main difference between those motherboards? I don't need to upgrade my videocard, pretty sure it works and the 7900 series isn't much better. And lastly, good brand of ram? I've never purchased DDR2-800 before.

 

[Wag]

OK, been thinking about this some more and this is what I've come up with:

Gigabyte GA-965P-S3
E6400 or E6600
2x1Gb Ram

The mobo is cheap and has 3 PCI slots.

I found an old PATA card lying around I could use.

Shouldn't run too much over $600.