Upgrading to Core Duo on a budget

[doodler85]

Hey guys,

I'm currently running a Northwood P4 2.8 with 2 gb of XMS DDR 3200 and RAID 0's seagates. I think I have a 480 watt power supply at the moment.

Anyway, I'm thinking about upgrading to a Core Duo, and I have a few questions. First...

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16819115004
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16813131070

How's that look for a CPU/MB combo? Second, would it support my current RAM, or would I have to buy new stuff? Are there any budget motherboards (OC capable) that support DDR?

What about my power supply? I realize I'll have to buy a new video card (currently running a 9800 pro), so will that be an issue? I'd probably go for something around $200, so it wouldn't be too power-hungry.

I am also thinking of doing a decent OC job to this... nothing too extreme though. I plan on using air cooling, and I just want this thing to be stable and quick. No bragging rights necessary. Any suggested speeds/threads discussing this?

I'll be using this PC for a little bit of gaming, but primarily multimedia / graphic design work. So... I need POWA.

Thanks guys!

 

[lyssword]

you'll need new type of ram, the DDR 2 to work with that mobo.. Power supply should be fine, since conroe eats less power and there isn't anything @ $200 that will eat more than ur 9800pro

There is a ASROCK dual-vsta mobo that will work with DDR 1 (like u got) but it will suck for overclocking.. It can accept your old 9800pro AGP as well.. Expect lower performance with this setup tho..

 

[The-Noid]

http://forums.anandtech.com/messageview...atid=28&threadid=1947261&enterthread=y

I wrote a FAQ on which motherboards to purchase as well as what kind of money you are looking to sub. If you are taking the hard drives power supply and case over you can obviously take that money off, but those boards are the best in each category.

Cheers.