Ready for a new machine. help!

[Xcobra]

Hello guys, i havent been around for quite some time so im trying to get some help from you all since you are all the gurus.

Well ive had the following system for about two years now and its been a pretty solid system:

DFI NF4 Ultra-D s939
AMD64 3200 (OCed to 2.65 GHz)
G.Skill 2Gb (1GBx2) PC4000 HZ
ATI X800XL 256MB PCI-E
WD Raptor 74GB 10k
Seagate 160 GB HD
Creative SoundBlaster Audigy 2 ZS

Now, I will OC, so dont hesitate to give me some advice on what to buy (especially on the RAM and CPU). I am upgrading because my system can barely handle games such as S.T.A.L.K.E.R. and i need something that will handle that and the upcoming DX10 games. Also, im trying to keep this machine on a $1k budget!

I already have a PSU. Its a OCZ PowerStream 520w. Will it be enough for what im upgrading?

The Upgrade:

CPU: i know Intels been kicking AMD's butt for a long time now, but i was wondering whether to wait for AMD's answer or not? though i was thinking on going for an Intel system...again, i will mostly game, maybe back up movies, etc. I need a high OCable cpu since thats mainly my hobbie behind gaming.

MOBO: I know nothing about current motherboards and how they are in terms of OCing. Id like suggestions for an Intel mobo, that is highly OCable.

Memory: I want 4 GB (most likely 2GBx2) but was wondering if OCing will be a problem with such amount of memory, because i know that when i went from 1GB to 2GB, it became a bit more of a problem. But the main idea is to have something that will keep up with my cpu (in terms of OCability).

Vid Card: i know that i am going to wait for NVidia's next card line-up and hopefully AMD's...i am not too much into OCing vid cards but im sure it helps. Do you think i should wait until the beginning of next year before getting a vid card?

HDD: Im looking for something fast, i know my raptor is fairly fast but i am afraid that i will run out of space. Maybe something around 300GB range would be perfect.

Sound Card/Speakers: i have some Klipsch 4.1 speakers and they work great. Is there anything that would be better than these? Also, im assuming that the sound card can hold just fine, but is it good enough?

I think thats about all i want to upgrade for now. I would really appreciate any of your input. I know the thread is long but its something ive been trying to decide since last spring but havnt had money. Thanks in advance!

-XC

 

[colonel]

why dont you upgrade CPU and video card, get the AMD 4200+ for socket 939.

 

[Xcobra]

thanks for your reply. I have actually considered it, but im trying to migrate into DX10. I also want to a cpu that will keep up with whatever video card i want to stick with (maybe G92 or R650?). since i know that intel is faster clock for clock than amd, or do you think barcelona will bring Intel to its knees?

PS: i will be buying a new monitor (LCD) and most likely be 22" 1680x1050 or maybe even a 24" 1920x1200...im not sure yet as im short on money.

-XC

 

[orion23]

How much are you spending?

Best intel board to buy (Premium board) is the Abit P35 Pro for $185 or so.

RAM, get anything 800mhz and above. I highly recommend the Crucial Ballistix and Tracer line. But any fast ram will do. You could just buy DDR2 1066mhz. Very cheap now days and you won't have to overclock your RAM.

For the CPU, well, Quad Cores are the way to go. You can get one for $300 or less.

And get a great CPU cooler. Tuniq Tower 120 or Thermalright Ultra or Xtreme 120.

VGA is up to you. 8800GTS is a great choice if you are buying today.

Then again, if you are not buying any time soon, why even bother with the other parts since they will be cheaper or replaced in the near future?

 

[Xcobra]

Thanks orion! Yeah i have seen some reviews of that board and it seems very solid, what'd be the next best thing after it? So it doesnt matter what type of ram i get? as long as its fast (like you said DDR2 1066)...but are there any good known brand that has very high OCable ram? and would DDR2 800 be enough to keep up with an OCed cpu?

In terms of cpu, what about the new steppings that intel has released (G0, i believe)? are they worth the money? i wouldnt mind getting a dual core, but id rather stay in the quad core area (i wanna keep this system for quite some time).

Also, its not that im not buying any time soon, in fact in a month to be exact, its mainly the video card market that has me wondering whether i should jump on one now, or wait till the end of the year...but like you said, if im waiting for my last part till the end of the year, why buy it now? its simple, i have money. I probably wont have as much later. BTW, im trying to keep it at $1000... Thanks again for all of your replies! any more would be greatly appreciated!

 

[Xcobra]

any one?

 

[orion23]

The top boards are the Asus P5K deluxe and Premium, Gigabyte P35 DQ6, MSI's ....Platinum, and the Abit P35 Pro.

Cheaest board is the MSI one, for $160 orso, not many reviews there though. The Abit P35 Pro is getting great reviews all over the place, though I'm sure that the MSI board is very good as well.

The Asus and Gigabyte boards will cost you @ least $220 and up.

DDR2 800mhz should be more than enough. And if you buy Crucial ballistix, you'll be set. It is about the best RAM money can buy. Overclocks like hell. Also, the Gskill 2GBHZ DDR2 800mhz is a great choice.

My favorite RAM: Crucial Ballistix Tracer 1066mhz

http://www.buy.com/prod/crucia...loc/101/204681868.html

But this should do just fine. I had the same RAM and it would overclock to 1000mhz or so

http://www.newegg.com/Product/...x?Item=N82E16820146565

About the CPU stepping. G0 is the new one, and dual core is the way to go.
A Q6600 G0 will cost you about $300 and some places are already selling them. Clubit.com, NCIX.com...

 

[Xcobra]

what would you recommend? getting the DDR2 800 and OC (which like you said, it can reach 1000 mhz easily) or get the DDR2 1066 to be on the safe side? also i think im going to go with the gigabyte board since ive read some great reviews for it....

about the cpu, im not sure whether to go quadcore...i dont do too much multitasking, maybe ripping, some encoding, and gaming....besides the basic browsing and word processing...what cpu would you recommend that has a G0 stepping (were these just released or are they still not out yet?)? im thinking on buying a cheaper cpu as i can upgrade later on.....

i really appreciate your help orion!

 

[bryanW1995]

I looked at two gigabyte boards before finally settling on the abit ip 35 pro mentioned earlier by orion. The p35 ds3r is only 135 shipped at newegg and has gotten great reviews. Doesn't have very good mobo heatsinks comared to the ip35 pro or other high end boards, but it's a bargain at that price imho. I paid 191 shipped for the ip35 pro. Probably the best current overclocking board is the GA p35 dq6. It's a little bit more expensive at 236, which is what pushed me to the ip35 pro, but it seems to be the champ right now. Any name brand ddr 2 1066 should work great for overclocking. You can save quite a bit of money if you're going to stay close to 500 fsb by getting 4-4-4-12 name brand (ballistix 2x1gb are 74.99 at newegg right now for example). If you're willing to wait for a deal and don't mind a MIR you can get a deal every now and then on ddr2 1066, too. I got my 1066 ballistix 2x1gb for 89.99AR but the rebate was $75. It wasn't a big deal to me but to many that could push them towards something else. The thermalright ultra extreme is the top air cooler right now, but it's a pain to install, often needs lapping, and you have to but the fan separately. For about $35 less you can get the tuniq tower which is still very strong and doesn't seem to have the same build quality/installation issues.

 

[orion23]

Get the E6750 or E6850. (2.66ghz or 3.0ghz)

The E6750 should be about $200 or less and you should be able to overclock it easily, which is a matter of luck though. I hope you understand this.

I think you should go with DDR2 1066 or even 1000mhz. Be on the safe side, one less component to worry about, no need to play with voltages or custom timings.

The motherboard is a bit more personal. RAID? ESATA? Dual Lan? Wireless Lan? Layout?
Number of SATA ports? COLOR?

All the premium boards are great. They are all fast. It's just that some have better cooling, or better audio, better layout....

CPU cooler? Tuniq Tower 120 is a great and affordable choice. I own a Thermalright Ultra 120 and I love it. More expensive though, and the installation is very simple actually. Very easy. Don't really understand why some say it is hard. I guess we all have different opinions...

 

[Xcobra]

thank you very much guys, now i have a better idea of what i want...one last question though...will 2 GB be enough for the upcoming pc games (DX10)? i know its a bit more expensive but i think i can afford it if i can wait a little bit more, but is it really that necessary to have that much ram? will the games use it? Thanks again guys, couldnt have decided without you....

EDIT: also i noticed that Gigabyte gives you the option of adding DDR3 on two slots...should i consider that?

 

[bryanW1995]

I looked at the ddr3/ddr2 gigabyte mobos. They're a nice idea, but they draw a little bit more power than a board with just one or the other. Also, by the time I upgrade to ddr3 I'm going to be getting a nehalem or bulldozer/dustbuster/(insert name of amd chip here). I don't know if 2gb will be enough for some of the games I play, especially if/when I go to vista, so I know where you're coming from there. I've looked a few times at an extra 2x512 or 2x1, but I think I'll hold out for now and get more if it becomes necessary. Every penny I drop into the "new" rig delays my next upgrade...

 

[Xcobra]

i see what youre saying...well do you think i should buy 2 gigs of ram right now and buy the other two later? would that give me any problems with stability (ie running it all four slots (1GBx4))? how about in OCing? would it be better to have 2GBx2 or 1GBx4?

 

[bryanW1995]

I only bought 2gb, but I now wish that I had just gotten 4 all at once b/c the price was unbelievable (89.99ar for 2x1 gb 1066 ballistix). The deals are good right now but not like when I got mine in june. they'll almost certainly get better before you need more than 2 gb.

 

[orion23]

Get 2GB right now and upgrade later when you feel that you need it.

I run Vista Ultimate with Norton Internet Security and play Xtreme Planet, using 2GB or RAM.

No problems here.

And it shouldn't be a problem running your overclock unless you are xtreme about it!

 

[Xcobra]

thanks very much guys, i have a better picture of what i want...appreciate the help, now on to do some shopping....

-XC

 

[PClark99]

what you have isn't horrible, except for the video card and processor.

If it was me,

I would get a decent opteron 165, maybe a used one from the forums that does 2700 on default VCore and drop the cash for an 8800GTS 640MB.

Pocket the balance of your budget for future.

The above should allow Stalker to run smooth.

 

[Xcobra]

i have thought about that, like i said, but again, i want a system that will be useful for gamin for the next 2 years at least, if i get a Opty 165 or something like that, id soon have to upgrade again (ie for DX10 games and what not)...i need a fast system, and i think that with AMD's current cpu line up, they cant keep up with the current high end vid cards, or any future vid card that is supposed to come out in the future...thanks for the suggestion...

 

[PClark99]

Originally posted by: Xcobra
i have thought about that, like i said, but again, i want a system that will be useful for gamin for the next 2 years at least, if i get a Opty 165 or something like that, id soon have to upgrade again (ie for DX10 games and what not)...i need a fast system, and i think that with AMD's current cpu line up, they cant keep up with the current high end vid cards, or any future vid card that is supposed to come out in the future...thanks for the suggestion...

DX10 is based on the video card.

The 8800GTS is DX10 compliant.

 

[Xcobra]

Originally posted by: PClark99

Originally posted by: Xcobra
i have thought about that, like i said, but again, i want a system that will be useful for gamin for the next 2 years at least, if i get a Opty 165 or something like that, id soon have to upgrade again (ie for DX10 games and what not)...i need a fast system, and i think that with AMD's current cpu line up, they cant keep up with the current high end vid cards, or any future vid card that is supposed to come out in the future...thanks for the suggestion...

DX10 is based on the video card.

The 8800GTS is DX10 compliant.

yes! i know that! well you see...if i get the opty, it will not keep up with high end cards in the future...i want a system that will be "future proof" (if that says anything)...doing an upgrade right to a new system based on a superior product (as of right now), will be better for me as i wont have to be buying stuff every 6 months or so....sure i could keep my mobo and get a new cpu, but as i keep upgrading video cards, it will become useless to do so because the cpu will be the bottleneck, thus needing a new mobo+cpu...see my point?