Upgrading season

[tiraides]

A brief update, but I've just submitted my NewEgg order for some G.Skill Ripjaws DDR3 RAM. In short, I decided to take advantage of the $140 G.Skill Ripjaws 2x4GB DDR3 1333 special that NewEgg is currently having. I also decided to go from six 2GB DDR3 1600 sticks to three 4GB sticks myself, but I bought three individual DIMMs rather than one tri-channel kit to save a bit a money. (Seriously: the current price of a tri-channel kit is about $330, whereas individual sticks cost around $90 each.)

On Tuesday, I'll head back to Micro Center and see whether or not there are some 500GB Samsung F3 HDDs available. I thought about buying a second 1TB HDD and combine Options A and B from my HDD plans, but the new plan is to buy two 500GB HDDs and use the 1TB HDD as space for storage and additional VMs. (The new Plan B is to use two 1TB HDDs and keep the 2TB "green" HDD for storage/VMs, but I believe that it's way too much storage for my parents' plans.) I'll order the processor, motherboard, and case (online) for my parents' new system around the beginning of November so those parts will reach them before I arrive to visit. (That will be around the same time that I'll mail off the parts that I've accumulated so far -- NIB, of course.)

I'll also stop being lazy and make the long-overdue upgrades to my system. (Yeah, yeah: there will be pictures then.) Having the system up now (or, more accurately, soon) will allow me to test some of the parts that I plan to sell in the immediate future -- and wipe a few hard drives that I've been meaning to sell earlier.

 

[tiraides]

I chose the last parts for my mom's computer. Or: Pictures will be coming this weekend.

Basically, I picked up the following from Micro Center (NewEgg links are for reference):

$195.99 - AMD Phenom II X6 1055T
$89.99 - Biostar TA890GXB HD
-$40 - MC AMD processor/motherboard combo discount (part of its October sales specials)
+$12.30 - VA state sales tax
=======
$258.28 - Total of above parts

All I need now is the case, which I believe I've decided on....

The bad news: My youngest brother's computer (that I rebuilt for him around the same time that I built my aunt's machine) is shot and my mom wants to buy a replacement motherboard to get it running again. (For simplicity's sake, let's say that my brother's build is comparable to my aunt's. And the "newest" part in it was an Antec Earthwatts EA380 that I bought for $35 two years ago.) Why it's bad news: It may be easier for me to choose (read: buy) new parts for him.

Actually, it's pretty simple (sadly):

$100 - AMD Athlon II X4 640 (MC or NewEgg)
$80 (max) - AM3 mATX motherboard (like the Asus M4A785-M)
$70 (max) - 2x2GB DDR3 1333 kit (like the Geil Value PLUS kit)
$17 - LG optical drive (from MC)
$60 - Decent PSU (like the Antec NEO ECO 400C)
(give the HD 5770 to him and buy my mom an HD 6850/6870)
(recycle my Seagate 7200.12 1TB HDD)
$40 (optional) - Either the CM Elite 310 or Elite 341
(maybe Mom will give him Vista... )

I have to see whether or not I could pick up the X4 640 at MC; that alone could save me another $40. (All of the good sales end on Sunday.)

 

[Dangman]

Well, will your mom actually notice that you bought new parts for you lil bro's PC?

 

[tiraides]

The long story short is that she asked me to... after I spent well over 30 minutes explaining how much it would cost to buy a brand new replacement motherboard, RAM (she also wanted to double the RAM from 2GB to 4GB), and a "decent" (in her words, though she had no idea) video card so my youngest brother can play games. (Considering how badly he treated his last computer, I obviously don't want to spend any more on him, but I can't really say no to my mother. That, and I'm afraid that I'll have to "rebuild" the new one again, should I let her pick the parts.)

I have some spending money and MC has an awesome deal on AMD boards and processors ($40 off the board if you buy both together), but MC was out of the Athlon II quads when I went there yesterday. (One clerk told me that MC receives shipments on Thursday and Saturday. I may go at some point during the weekend, if the online site indicates that they've replenished stock. Or, if they still don't have the Athlon II quads, I'll probably settle on the Phenom II X2 555.)

 

[tiraides]

With some more information from my mother, here's the new plan for my brother's computer:

Recycling from the old build:
Case: I believe I bought him one of the Antec Sonata cases, but I'm having my mom confirm via pictures
DVD burner: My mom recently bought him a new one so he could play StarCraft II
Windows 64-bit OS: My parents have several unused copies, including the copy of Vista Ultimate I gave them earlier

My "donations" to the cause:
HDD: I'm giving him my Seagate 7200.12 1TB HDD -- I'm now using a Samsung F3 HDD and Intel X25-M SSD combination
Video card: He gets the 5770, my mom gets a 6850, and I wait to see whether it's worth buying a 69xx or a GTX 470/480

Micro Center purchase:
$139.99 - AMD Phenom II X4 955 BE (or, if available, the $100 Athlon II X4 640)
$74.99 - Asus M4A785-M AM3 mATX (I should be able to receive a $40 discount on the board)

NewEgg purchase:
$59.99 - Geil Value Plus GVP34GB1333C9DC 2x2GB DDR3 1333 CL9 1.5V

Amazon purchase:
$59.99 - Silverstone Strider Plus ST50F-ES 500W 80 Plus Certified PSU
$13.98 - Two NZXT FN 120RB 120mm case fans (assuming my case "guess" is correct)

Thoughts?

 

[Dangman]

Plan looks fine to me. At least you got her to see things your way despite the unfortunate caveat.

Anyway, are any of these AMD + mobo combos in stock in your MC?:
http://www.microcenter.com/specials/promotions/AMDbundlePROMO.html

 

[tiraides]

Thanks, Danny. I didn't realize how good those specials were.

I picked up the Athlon II X4 640 and the MSI 785GM-P45 over at MC for $125.99 earlier today. (The board comes with a $20 mail-in rebate, so it wasn't really "free.") I also made my NewEgg (only I went with the G.Skill Ripjaws kit instead of the Geil kit) and Amazon purchases (including the HD 6850 and CM Elite 310) today. The online purchases were sent to my parents' house, where I'll be visiting two weeks from now, and I'll send the parts that I have now over to them later on this coming week.

(I know I promised pictures, but let me rest a little bit.... )

 

[Dangman]

Well even without the rebate, you're still saving over $90 from your planned setup. So not bad.

Take it easy man!

I really got to stop reading your thread. It's really giving me the upgrade itch!

 

[tiraides]

I'm visiting my parents right now and waiting for the rest of the parts to arrive (tomorrow). I'll also take a few pictures of the two builds, including a before-and-after of my brother's system. (I was finally able to confirm the case: it's an Antec Sonata. But I believe that it's a first-gen Sonata, as the HDD cage is parallel to the rest of the drive slots, instead of being perpendicular like later models).

Sorry Danny, but I may have to torment you a bit further tomorrow...

 

[Dangman]

I'm visiting my parents right now and waiting for the rest of the parts to arrive (tomorrow). I'll also take a few pictures of the two builds, including a before-and-after of my brother's system. (I was finally able to confirm the case: it's an Antec Sonata. But I believe that it's a first-gen Sonata, as the HDD cage is parallel to the rest of the drive slots, instead of being perpendicular like later models).

Sorry Danny, but I may have to torment you a bit further tomorrow...

Damn you!!!

That first-gen Sonata case should be just fine. My brother's PC uses a first-gen Sonata case and it's fine for the HD 5770 that's in there. Granted I did have to put a fan on the HDD cage itself to do that but still.

 

[tiraides]

Here's Part 1 of the new project, subtitled, "The Autopsy."

Below are a few pics of the Antec Sonata case and its (former) internals:



This is probably more reminiscent of an archeological dig, considering all of the dust that I saw....



Here are the results of my latest "find"....



AMD Athlon 64 X2 4400+
Asus A8N-E Socket 939 ATX motherboard
Corsair XMS CMX1024-3200C2PT 2x1GB DDR2 3200 CL2 dual channel kit
Lite On LH-18A1P IDE DVD burner
Seagate Barracuda 7200.10 ST320620AS 320GB HDD
BFG BFGR79256GTOCE GeForce 7900GT OC 256MB PCI-E 1.x video card
Belkin Wireless G Plus F5D7001 802.11g PCI desktop card
Antec Earthwatts EA430 430W PSU
Microsoft Windows XP Professional (I don't know which Service Pack "died" with the machine)

... And their replacements....



AMD Athlon II X4 640
MSI 785GM-P45 Socket AM3 mATX motherboard
G.Skill Ripjaws F3-10666CL9D-4GBRL 2x2GB DDR3 1333 CL9
LG GH22NS50 SATA DVD burner
Seagate Barracuda 7200.12 ST31000528AS 1TB HDD
XFX HD-577X-ZNFC Radeon HD 5770 1GB PCI-E 2.0 video card
Silverstone Strider Plus ST50F-ES 500W PSU
Microsoft Windows Vista Ultimate (yes, Danny and enginurd, that one)

I'll be reusing the wireless card for this build, but I'll be swapping out the good optical drive that he had for the one that I picked up earlier. I just found out that it was an LG GH24LS50, and my mom paid the idiot tax (at, I believe, Best Buy), so I decided that my brother can't have anything that much better (or more expensive) than my mom's machine.

I have to finish assembling the two systems... more pictures will come tomorrow.

 

[Dangman]

Microsoft Windows Vista Ultimate (yes, Danny and enginurd, that one)

I'll be reusing the wireless card for this build, but I'll be swapping out the good optical drive that he had for the one that I picked up earlier. I just found out that it was an LG GH24LS50, and my mom paid the idiot tax (at, I believe, Best Buy), so I decided that my brother can't have anything that much better (or more expensive) than my mom's machine.

That made me chuckle

Anyway, holy crap is that PC long overdue for an upgrade.

 

[tiraides]

Regarding the old stuff, I plan on "recycling" everything except for the motherboard, which everyone told me is shot. (I know: I have to do a lot of cleaning first.)

I plan on taking with me the processor, RAM, hard drive (after I run every antivirus and antimalware program I can remember), and video card. I'm going to clean out the Earthwatts power supply and give it to my other brother for his server -- which is actually a computer that I built for him as a graduation present. I'm reusing the wireless card for my youngest brother's system. And my parents get all the old software -- and the Lite On drive. (Hey, it makes a great paperweight.)

I forgot that I had a few family functions to attend tomorrow, so the pictures may not arrive until after I return from vacation.

 

[engiNURD]

Heh, I miss this place... work sux!

Sure... you'll get your DSLR after enginurd buys me my new office desk and 37" LCD. ...

Heh, you can have my old ones (for cheap) when I replace my jerker and Westy 37".

... I really got to stop reading your thread. It's really giving me the upgrade itch!

... and thats why I've been gone a while, lol.

... (I was finally able to confirm the case: it's an Antec Sonata. But I believe that it's a first-gen Sonata, as the HDD cage is parallel to the rest of the drive slots, instead of being perpendicular like later models). ...

Looks like an Antec SLK3800B, since the SLK3700BQE had the same HDD cage as the Sonata 1st gen (rotated 90°).

AMD Athlon 64 X2 4400+
Asus A8N-E Socket 939 ATX motherboard
Corsair XMS CMX1024-3200C2PT 2x1GB DDR2 3200 CL2 dual channel kit
Lite On LH-18A1P IDE DVD burner
Seagate Barracuda 7200.10 ST320620AS 320GB HDD
BFG BFGR79256GTOCE GeForce 7900GT OC 256MB PCI-E 1.x video card
Belkin Wireless G Plus F5D7001 802.11g PCI desktop card
Antec Earthwatts EA430 430W PSU
Microsoft Windows XP Professional (I don't know which Service Pack "died" with the machine)
...

heh, that was an awesome system back in 2005! similar to my opty165/LP NF4U/78GT/2GB build from back then. ahh... brings back memories of when OC'ing got so much easier... then Core2 came out, lol.

 

[Dangman]

Heh, I miss this place... work sux!

And we miss you too

 

[tiraides]

I've been meaning to upgrade this thread for a while now -- thanks for the motivation, Danny -- but, I kinda forgot...

I have to find pictures to wrap up my youngest brother's portion of this thread. The long story short that his build was a success -- and his old hard drive was (surprisingly) able to work with no trouble -- but my mother's motherboard was apparently DOA. Sadly, I just finally exchanged it, so I'll test the board out at my place this weekend.

I'll also be putting the final pieces for my rig in place later on next week. Though I'm interested to see how Sandy Bridge performs, I probably won't make another upgrade to my system until either the LGA2011 processors and boards arrive or the price of an LGA1366 hex-core drops to below $500.

(Anyone who wishes to make the latter a reality, like right now, shoot me a PM. )

But before I forget, I finally decided to upgrade my video card: come next week, I'll be rocking a brand new EVGA GTX 570.

Excuse me for a moment while I scrounge up some pictures of my brother's "final" build. (Sorry, but my "final" build pics aren't available yet.) I also need to decide on whether or not I should create a new project with my new toy....

 

[Dangman]

I've been meaning to upgrade this thread for a while now -- thanks for the motivation, Danny -- but, I kinda forgot...

LOL! And you just reminded me to update my thread

But before I forget, I finally decided to upgrade my video card: come next week, I'll be rocking a brand new EVGA GTX 570.

Nice! Any particular reason for choosing the GTX 570?

Excuse me for a moment while I scrounge up some pictures of my brother's "final" build. (Sorry, but my "final" build pics aren't available yet.) I also need to decide on whether or not I should create a new project with my new toy....

. New project!

 

[tiraides]

LOL! And you just reminded me to update my thread

You're welcome.

Nice! Any particular reason for choosing the GTX 570?

Two words: Adobe. Linux.

... And the GTX 570 is reportedly a marked improvement over the GTX 470, which was my earlier consideration.

. New project!

Sure, but first, I need to research this thing called "root" ...

 

[Dangman]

Two words: Adobe. Linux.

... And the GTX 570 is reportedly a marked improvement over the GTX 470, which was my earlier consideration.

Ahh gotcha! Great choice.

Sure, but first, I need to research this thing called "root" ...

Oh that little ol' thing

 

[tiraides]

Well, that didn't take long....



Guess what I'm going to do this weekend....

 

[Dangman]

Good times

 

[engiNURD]

jeez, i've got a lot of reading to do, and no time to do it, ...

btw, i finally used that HSF i bought from you, mentioned much earlier in this thread, lol.

now i want a GTX 570.. .but i know i'm not gonna use it, since i havent even played a game on my 5770, lol.

how u likin the droid?

 

[tiraides]

I'm surprised that I missed this earlier... sorry, enginurd.

jeez, i've got a lot of reading to do, and no time to do it, ...

I know the feeling: I'm woefully unprepared for the Sandy Bridge assault. But now I'm hearing rumors that Intel may keep its mainstream and enthusiast chips on one (LGA1155) platform. Dammit... now I really need to play catch-up on my Intel news.

btw, i finally used that HSF i bought from you, mentioned much earlier in this thread, lol.

Are you using it on a Core 2 build, or are you going "old school" with a P4 or Athlon 64?

now i want a GTX 570.. .but i know i'm not gonna use it, since i havent even played a game on my 5770, lol.

Part of the appeal of the GTX 570 is that it performs about as well as the GTX 480 -- and I picked up mine for about $350. But unlike me, you've been the smart one all this time.

how u likin the droid?

It's nice, but I know I haven't used it to its full potential. Part of it is poor time management -- it's yet another thing that I have to devote time to -- but I'm really fighting myself over whether or not I should root the damn thing.

Going back to Sandy Bridge and the P67 chipset, now I'm getting the urge to upgrade. (Unfortunately, I probably won't buy anything until next month at the earliest... and I may have to buy a fourth stick of RAM just to "balance" things out.) Does anyone know of any good microATX P67 boards?

EDIT: OK, I think I know what I want... Core i7-2600K and Asus P8P67-M PRO... when will NewEgg, Amazon, or Micro Center have this board in stock?

 

[Dangman]

EDIT: OK, I think I know what I want... Core i7-2600K and Asus P8P67-M PRO... when will NewEgg, Amazon, or Micro Center have this board in stock?

No idea to be honest. My guess would be another week or so.

 

[tiraides]

In light of the recent problems with the H67/P67 boards, I need to think out loud.

I picked up my board last weekend, but I was... distracted... by other things. In other words, I didn't get started in assembling my "build." Now I may have to RMA the board -- from what I've heard so far, only the boards are affected, not the processors -- and I look like an even bigger fool for rushing into Sandy Bridge.

(As an aside, WHAT THE FUCK?!? It seems like ever since I started this thread, I've been the perfect example of what not to do when buying and building parts. I've even broken several "rules" that I usually tell others to follow.

)

I can obviously afford to suffer through the RMA process as I have two functional systems, my X58 mATX desktop and my still-good-after-two-years Dell laptop. But I kinda wanted to go with Sandy Bridge now just to get it over with. (I'd also planned on replacing my laptop with a Sandy Bridge-based model, but now that's been indefinitely shelved.)

I'll probably need to think (out loud) about this a bit more....

 

[Dangman]

(As an aside, WHAT THE FUCK?!? It seems like ever since I started this thread, I've been the perfect example of what not to do when buying and building parts. I've even broken several "rules" that I usually tell others to follow.

)

Yeah, can't fault ya for that: I broke some of my own rules regarding hardware purchases, though on a smaller scale, in my own thread.


Yeah keep thinking out loud. Definitely gonna help others figure things out.

 

[engiNURD]

do as i say, not as i do! life happens... move on.

 

[tiraides]

I'm going to try and take care of a few loose ends this weekend.

First, if/when I find the pictures of my brother's completed "after" build, I'll post them here as promised long ago.

Additionally, since I have the parts already, I might as well go ahead and assemble my Sandy Bridge system. The Asus P8P67-M Pro board that I bought has three SATA3 ports, so for the time being, I'll use them for my SSD, HDD, and optical drive. (I have the ability to add one 2.5" drive in the future, but for now I'll leave the slot unused. I probably won't use that "opening" until after I exchange my current board via RMA for one without the Cougar Point flaw.)

I believe that I found something that I could use for my physical firewall PC. Well?

 

[Dangman]

I believe that I found something that I could use for my physical firewall PC. Well?

Hmmm, sure is small and cheap. Should work fine as a firewall.

 

[tiraides]

You know, I've been procrastinating on a lot of the "projects" that I planned on upgrading this year. I need to stop being lazy.

For starters, I just paid for an eBay auction for an APC Smart-UPS 1500VA UPS with no battery. My problem isn't finding a battery and quickly (though the latter may be an issue, as I don't want to spend more on the battery than I did with the UPS) but rather what to do with my old UPS (Back-UPS XS 1200VA). It still works, but I don't really need two UPSes... and it's not like I can transfer it over to protect my HDTV (which is yet another thing that I want to upgrade this year... ).

I'll also need to start planning on returning my Asus P67 board so I can have the new B3 revision. (I know: I need to contact Asus' CS and start the RMA process....) I won't be hurting for a new computer -- I kept my X58 setup for that reason, and I still have my laptop (and smartphone) -- but I'd like to get this done sooner rather than later.

You know, I need to list the remaining projects that I planned on completing earlier this year:

- Finish the Sandy Bridge upgrade
- Root my Droid Incredible and run Gingerbread
- Research mITX firewall (I haven't decided upon buying/building it yet)
- Grab a new/better monitor? (I'll explain later... this may happen in the fall)
- Buy a Sandy Bridge laptop (likely around the holidays)
- Get a bigger, better HDTV (when I can afford it... maybe)

I thought about new lenses and possibly a better camera, but I can't really afford the stuff that I really want... and take care of my upgrading projects. So I flipped a coin... and... I'll be sticking with the D90 for the foreseeable future. (But I may pick up a few cheap accessories along the way.)

OK, enough of that... who wants a used-but-not-abused-UPS (with a battery that you may or may not have to replace)?

 

[engiNURD]

who wants a used-but-not-abused-UPS (with a battery that you may or may not have to replace)?

I'd take it, but the shipping would probably be cost prohibitive.

 

[tiraides]

Thanks for reminding me of a few things, enginurd. (Also, YGPM.)

Hopefully, within the next week or two, I'll receive my B3 Asus board from RMA. I'll then spend the following weekend migrating myself into Sandy Bridge -- I'll probably ask a few questions between now and then to resolve any potential issues before they arrive.

 

[Dangman]

Good luck with the upgrade!

 

[tiraides]

The B3 board came in today... but I have a lot of things to do this weekend.

I'll have to plan for the desktop "upgrade" to commence throughout this upcoming week. And yes, there will be plenty of pictures available.

(Unfortunately, I'll have to wait another week before I can "upgrade" my UPS... or, more specifically, buy a new battery for it.)

 

[tiraides]

Yeah, I resurrected this thing... but I have a few new "upgrades" in mind.

I know that Ivy Bridge probably won't come out until Spring of next year, but I'm thinking of "upgrading" my system again. I'm not talking about a literal upgrade -- Sandy Bridge to Ivy Bridge would be like my going from X58 to P67 (read: it's not a necessity) -- but I'm getting the itch to convert my existing build from the TJ08-B to the SG07.

In fact, my plan currently looks like:

Silverstone SG07 with included 600W PSU
Intel Core i7-2600K
8GB of RAM (I still want 16GB, but prices are still high for 8GB sticks)
mITX Z68 board (that doesn't suck)
SSD (I may go with a 256GB SSD instead of what I have)
2-3TB 7200RPM HDD (probably, instead of what I have)
GTX 570
Slot-loading optical drive (given the comparatively higher costs of slot-loading drives in general, I may break down and go with a BD-ROM/DVD±RW combo drive)

And I would probably go full circle and give my existing Sandy Bridge rig -- with an i5-2500K and a cheap GTX 560 Ti in place of the missing parts -- to my younger brother (not the one who was "gifted" an AMD rig last year). (And why not the HD 6950? Well, my brother loves him some Adobe....)

And here are some of the other upgrades that I have in mind:

- New wireless router (one of the Netgear routers)
- New multi-function laser printer
- Planning for mITX compact firewall (again... maybe...)
- New DSLR lenses (don't have enough for a new DSLR... maybe I should sell some stuff...)
- New HDTV? (probably long overdue)
- New monitor? (I've seen some of the new 16:10 e-IPS monitors and... )

 

[engiNURD]

Are you using it on a Core 2 build, or are you going "old school" with a P4 or Athlon 64?

Heh, sorry I missed that earlier, but I WAS using the HSF on a Core2 - it was my server. Now it's back on the shelf. Might just sell it, since I've trimmed down my arsenal of computers recently.

... but I'm getting the itch to convert my existing build from the TJ08-B to the SG07.

Hm... hit me up if you decide to sell that TJ08. Built a system for a friend of mine in the newer TJ08E revision, and I really liked it.

Slot-loading optical drive (given the comparatively higher costs of slot-loading drives in general, I may break down and go with a BD-ROM/DVD±RW combo drive)

I saw a slot loading optical for $30 recently, but I can't remember where - I'm thinking newegg, but I delete my email blasts if I dont need anything it has in it, so I can't go back and look, lol, sorry.

- New wireless router (one of the Netgear routers)
- New multi-function laser printer
- Planning for mITX compact firewall (again... maybe...)
- New DSLR lenses (don't have enough for a new DSLR... maybe I should sell some stuff...)
- New HDTV? (probably long overdue)
- New monitor? (I've seen some of the new 16:10 e-IPS monitors and... )

I vote for monitor or HDTV. or just do HDTV and double it as your monitor, ehhehe.

 

[Dangman]

I say new HDTV or monitor as well as those will probably be the two items that you'll notice in your every day life.

 

[Chelica]

Which mitx are you going with? Thinking about going the same route.

 

[tiraides]

Which mitx are you going with? Thinking about going the same route.

I haven't decided yet. I've heard of various issues with both Zotac and AsRock regarding their Z68 mITX boards. Worse, none of the major manufacturers -- Asus, Gigabyte, or MSI -- make Z68 boards at this moment. I'm likely going to wait until Ivy Bridge arrives, in the hope that those new processors may spur the creation of some decent boards.

(Or, what is more likely to happen: I'll get bored one day, see the SG07 or a mini ITX board on sale, buy everything that I need at one, post here and say, "Look what I did! " and then go, "What have I done? " )

I vote for monitor or HDTV. or just do HDTV and double it as your monitor, ehhehe.

I say new HDTV or monitor as well as those will probably be the two items that you'll notice in your every day life.

Geez, guys, don't I get a vote in this?

I may look at the router first, as I'm looking at a used or refurbished Netgear WNDR3700 to use with DD-WRT. I'm growing partial towards the new Dell U2412M; I've heard quite a few good things about it.

 

[Dangman]

(Or, what is more likely to happen: I'll get bored one day, see the SG07 or a mini ITX board on sale, buy everything that I need at one, post here and say, "Look what I did! " and then go, "What have I done? " )

.