First Build in 4 Years...Need Input

E

eL c0L0mb1aNo

[H]ard|Gawd
Joined
May 13, 2002
Messages
1,042
So i've been out of the game for almost 4 years and need your help with building a new system. For comparison, my current machine is an Athlon XP 1700+ with 512MB DDR.

Originally, I was going to go with an AMD system but within the past day or two, I've had some time to read other's comments and have decided that probably isn't the way I want to go. I've temporarily set something up based on another thread I was just reading. That one looks like...

Intel Core 2 Duo E4500
GIGABYTE GA-P35-DS3L LGA 775 Intel P35
G.SKILL 2GB (2 x 1GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800
XCLIO GOODPOWER 500W Power Supply

Here's my dilemma, with this motherboard, I need a video card (duh!). Now, I'm not a PC gamer, BUT that is laregly due to not having a very capable computer. As of now though, I don't run much on my main desktop except for a 3D modeling program that I have for a class (which runs fine on my current machine, GF4 MX440) and some mathematical programs. I would like to get some games going on this computer (probably racing or flight sim, maybe an FPS) but thats not so important, since I have classes to attend to.

Could any of you suggest a decent video card (under $100) that would be decent for simple games or maybe a good motherboard that has decent onboard video (although I like the Digital Audio Out on this motherboard).

Finally, if any of you are wondering about the other components, they can wait to be replaced. I already have a new 320GB PATA (I wasn't banking on building a new rig so soon), PATA DVD Burner and I don't think my case needs replacing just yet (its money I can save for now).

I'm open to suggestions on anything as well. Thanks for helping out an old-timer. :)
 
maybe this one-
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813128072
or this one-
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813138096

I have the biostar board, and I have a X3210 Xeon Quad on it. Its a good combo.
GO- X3210 Quad 247.99 (clubit)
biostar - 7150u-m7 89.99
2gb corsair DDR2-800 38.99 AR

This is what I have - It has allowed a overclock to 320fsb at 100% load running folding at home for 2 weeks. I havent pushed it any faster due to the Quads ability to run hot.

and the Xclio would be good for this combo.
 
Drop the E4500 for an E2160 ($79) and you would add $40 into your budget for a new video card. With the added funds, you could get a Radeon X1950GT ($130) or, if you can find one, a GeForce 7900GT/GS. If you prefer keeping the E4500, however, you could purchase an EVGA 8600GT ($100) or a Sapphire HD2600PRO ($89).

And keep your motherboard... the P35 chipset supports the new 45nm Penryns that have just been released.

The motherboard only has one IDE port (which, as you know, supports two devices), so make sure that your hard drive is set as master and the DVD burner is set as slave. (Or, you could purchase an IDE-to-SATA adapter for one of your drives.)
 
Gwarren007:

I'm looking for something in the ATX format, not so much the Micro ATX since I have a couple PCI cards I need to use and if I get a decent video card, it'll need room to breathe. Thanks for the suggestions though!

Tiraides:

I'll probably keep the E4500, just would rather get some newer tech. I took a look at the 8600GT and browsed some others and came across this XFX 8600GT priced at $130 with a $30 MIR (granted, it will expire tomorrow). Any experience (anyone) with the XFX card or comparisons between that and the EVGA. According to specs, the XFX should be a little better. Thanks for the advice on the board, my gut was telling me, listen to the reviews, keep the board, and swallow the cost of a video card. And 10-4 on the IDE. I have some spare IDE-to-firewire controllers that I could use for other IDE devices so I should be good with that for now.
 
Here you go, best single GPU resource in the world right there. Check out the reviews section :eek:

and uhh yeah... I'm somewhat displeased with the midrange 8 series (it seems like such a mild step up), but they fit the budget. Go with the 8600 or HD 2600.
 
Okay, so I think I'm starting to finalize some things.

The definites right now are:

Intel E4500
Gigabyte P35-DS3L
G.Skill 2GB PC2 6400

I'm debating whether to pull the trigger on the XFX 8600GT XXX since the rebate period ends today. I've also found a different PSU that should save me some money without sacrificing much. It's this Themaltake TR2. For $25 after rebate, its pretty much a steal and its one of the best rated on Newegg. If those two are alright, I think I can go ahead and buy. All told with S&H included, it will be $442.79. Which is more than I had wanted, but still a decent deal.
 
eL c0L0mb1aNo said:
I'll probably keep the E4500, just would rather get some newer tech.
Click to expand...

The E2160 is newer tech. It, like the E4500 is an Allendale core, based off of the Conroe/Merom. The only difference is that is L2 cache was cut in half. Here are some links to check out that should help you determine if less Cache is tolerable (5-10%) for 33% less cash:

Cache size reviews:
Does cache size really boost performance? @ Tom's
Influence of L2 Cache Size on Conroe Processors Performance
2MB or 4MB Cache? @ Anandtech (kinda old)

What size monitor do you have? I still game on a CRT, so the 8600GT is good enough for me. I believe there's an eVGA model that's cheaper (the one tiraides linked to)... I'd go for that instead and just OC the card myself -- its easy.

DO NOT get the TR2 Thermaltake. Its a very low end PSU that isn't suitable for a gaming system, especially if you plan to OC -- it only has 18A on the +12V rail, and thats assuming the label isn't lying!!! Thermaltake PSU's are junk for gaming systems. Their only PSUs worth looking at are from their Toughpower lineup. Stick with the XClio Goodpower 500W. If you have a Fry's near you, they have the Antec Earthwatts 500W for $50 in-store. Don't listen to newegg user reviews for something like a PSU. Stick to the real reviewers, like HardOCP, JonnyGuru.com, Anandtech.com, and Hardwarecanucks.com.

PSU Suggestions:
http://forums.extremeoverclocking.com/showpost.php?p=1590883&postcount=193
http://www.jonnyguru.com/forums/showthread.php?t=1460
http://www.jonnyguru.com/forums/showthread.php?t=103
PSU FAQ: http://www.jonnyguru.net/forums/showthread.php?t=1036
 
So I did a lot of thinking over the past week and have updated my build a bit. I've decided that I'm just going to go ahead and sign up for a Newegg Preferred Account so I can get the zero interest for 6 months. With this, I'll be able to spend additional money up front. The new build is as follows:

Intel E4500
Abit IP35 Pro
G.Skill 2GB PC2-6400
XClio Goodpower 500W PSU
LITE-ON 20X DVD±R DVD Burner SATA Model LH-20A1L-06
XFX 8600GT XXX
Cooler Master Centurion CAC-T05-UW

All together this will cost me $638.77 with shipping included minus $75 in rebates. I think this is all I should need for a pretty solid build. Any final suggestions or anything I might be missing? Thanks for the help guys.
 
I've got an Acer 22" Widescreen LCD. Sorry I forgot to respond to that part of your post.

Should I possibly go for a Conroe processor? Or should I stick with the Allendale for now and then get one of the new 45 nm processors further down the road?
 
I think the mobo might be overkill. What features do you need in a mobo? RAID? Firewire? Legacy ports? High overclocks?

The CPU is fine. Go back to Enginurd's last post about the L2 cache. See if Conroe's 4MB cache is worth it to you.

I say get a better video card as well. This x1950GT performs much better than the 8600GT and it costs less:
Sapphire 100199L Radeon X1950GT 256MB PCI-E Video Card - $110
 
I was actually talking to my supervisor about this today and I decided on the Abit board so I could get the better cooling and stuff. I'm planning on overclocking and feel like this would be a better board than the Gigabyte. I kind of wanted the legacy ports, but I could do without. I think I might actually go with the new Sapphire HD 3850. And I'll stick with the Allendale for now and then save up for a Quad core in the future.
 
Shipping and tax is a deal killer on that one, but I'll go with the VisionTek on Newegg. Thanks for the advice. You know what...I might renege on my initial stubbornness to get the E4500 and instead go with the E2160 since the newer chips will be coming out soon and to save some money for now. Okay, so here we go...

Intel E2160
Abit IP35 Pro (Is this a good buy over the Gigabyte boards? DS3L/R/P?)
G.Skill 2GB PC2-6400
XClio 500W
VisionTek HD3850
Lite-On DVD Burner
Cooler Master case

Can anyone confirm that the XClio power supply will work with the IP35? I'm not sure if its got the 8 Pin 12V connector.
 
It'll work with a 4pin... my vanilla IP35 has been running fine with a 4pin for a few months now. Though, I agree, if you don't need the IP35 Pro, save some cash.
 
Thanks for the help with the power supply. And on the motherboard front, if I'm gonna go with the DS3R, is there any sureshot advantage of getting the DS3R over the DS3L?
 
OpTioN said:
Get a better power supply, something like the Corsair 520HX
Click to expand...

No need if he can't afford it. The XClio Goodpower 500W is more than enough for his build, and its a decent quality unit. However, if newegg is charging $60 for it, ditch it. It should only cost $50. Go with the Corsair 450W instead, for $60AR:

$70 - Corsair CMPSU-450VX 450W PSU ($10 MIR)
 
Intel E2160
Gigabyte P35-DS3R
G.Skill 2GB PC2-6400
Corsair 450 VX
VisionTek HD3850
Asus SATA DVD Burner
Cooler Master case

Thats it. I'm gonna wait until tomorrow to pull the trigger. Thanks so much for all the suggestions everyone and if you have any last minute ideas, let me know. :)
 
I'd probably get the E2180 over E2160..it's not that much more and I think the clock is somewhat better. Still, any of the E2x00's hit good GHz once you overclock them :)

I was going to get an E2x00 as well then upgrade again to Phenom (Jan 08). But with your setup, the E can last you all of next year, and then you can get the Nehalam!
 
Well, as luck would have it, I was denied for the Newegg preferred account, so I'll either have to go back to some of my lower specs or find some alternative funding.
 
I've found that if you're planing to overclock, you should spend more on the PSU that normal, and more on the motherboard.

If your PSU is too weak, you're going to get stuck before your hardware's limits, and it's going to put a lot of strain on your CPU and motherboard.

You aren't going to see any good overclocks with a shoddy or cheap motherboard either.

I personally went for a budget/performance build, and I bought myself an a8n32-sli with an opteron 165. The motherboard was 150, and the CPU was 120. I got a very good overclock out of it (1.8ghz stock to 2.9Ghz orthos stable), and I was able to keep my ram and hard drives to save money. I bought an 8800GTS to go along with it, and it's roughly a 9500 3dmark machine. All for about 550 dollars, because I used as many old parts as possible.

If you plan on overclocking, I wouldn't rule out a k8 AMD. AMD may not have the performance crown, but they have some good mid-range and low end chips that overclock well. If you're going to end up with a c2d e2xxx model, it might be something to consider.

Then again, the low end c2ds overclock very well as well, so you really don't have that much to lose no matter which path you take.
 
How much do you have to shave off?

To start, you can drop down to the GA-P35-DS3L if you don't need RAID. If you do, the Abit IP35 vanilla is $120 - $25MIR at mwave.
 
Also don't just buy everything from newegg, you can find better prices elsewhere. I'd go with the IP35-e and e2140/60 with that mobo those chips will do 3+ ez.
 
Comte said:
Good video card for medium gamer, how about this
ATI 2900GT...
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814102712

enter coupon code EMC1206VGA01 for $20 off
__________________

Price before code $149.99, price after code 129.99. Not a bad deal for that card....
Click to expand...

it seems like it would be a good card until you see its benchmarks. Unimpressive.

if your gonna try for that try for an HD3850, but then again I don't think he was looking to spend that much (its always so easy to recomend a part that costs more isn't it :\, an HD3820 would be a good idea right about now, lock a couple pipes, hit the $120 price point).

Also that PSU is fine. The difference in CPU power consumption overclocked and stock is minimal --50W at worst. the Corsair VX is fine so long as you dont plan on running two 8800s (it will run one just fine btw).

and yeah, your an american, you get choice, why dont you shop around? wish I had that luxury. Zipzoomfly, Tigerdirect (Tigerdirect does have a canadian outlet but the service is terrible and the prices are bad),mwave, lots of other places. Up here in canada its NCIX or nuffin eh!
 
MrWizard6600 said:
it seems like it would be a good card until you see its benchmarks. Unimpressive.

if your gonna try for that try for an HD3850, but then again I don't think he was looking to spend that much (its always so easy to recomend a part that costs more isn't it :\, an HD3820 would be a good idea right about now, lock a couple pipes, hit the $120 price point).

Also that PSU is fine. The difference in CPU power consumption overclocked and stock is minimal --50W at worst. the Corsair VX is fine so long as you dont plan on running two 8800s (it will run one just fine btw).

and yeah, your an american, you get choice, why dont you shop around? wish I had that luxury. Zipzoomfly, Tigerdirect (Tigerdirect does have a canadian outlet but the service is terrible and the prices are bad),mwave, lots of other places. Up here in canada its NCIX or nuffin eh!
Click to expand...

Benchmarks compaired to what? And he said he wasn't a hardcore gamer, just wanted to game sometimes....That 2900GT will do him just fine and cost him $40 less that the 3850....

As far as shopping around goes, Newegg has great service, and its my choice to use them. Can you show that card cheaper anywhere?
 
I wouldn't recommend any 2900 series card unless the price was phenomenal -- and that price isn't, IMO.

I'll wait for the OP to post back and answer the questions I asked earlier before I recommend any more changes.
 
You should get the lite mobo then (DS3L). Maybe consider the 7900GS video card. It's very good. you don't need dx10 anyway since it runs in Vista. The other video card to consider is 1950 pro. If you can get either for $100ish you're set!. That should shave about $100 total from your cost.
 
enginurd said:
So whats your budget again?
Click to expand...

I still might be able to get what I had originally planned if I can talk to my old man about it. Otherwise, I'll probably have to back it down to at most 600, preferably in the 550-575 range.

enginurd said:
How much do you have to shave off?

To start, you can drop down to the GA-P35-DS3L if you don't need RAID. If you do, the Abit IP35 vanilla is $120 - $25MIR at mwave.
Click to expand...

I was considering going down to the DS3L as originally planned because I don't need the RAID but liked the extra SATA ports.

MaStaFLaSH said:
Also don't just buy everything from newegg, you can find better prices elsewhere. I'd go with the IP35-e and e2140/60 with that mobo those chips will do 3+ ez.
Click to expand...

I would go other places but I just like Newegg and have had nothing but great experiences with them and trust them the most. It will take some darn good prices for me to buy from other places.

MrWizard6600 said:
and yeah, your an american, you get choice, why dont you shop around? wish I had that luxury. Zipzoomfly, Tigerdirect (Tigerdirect does have a canadian outlet but the service is terrible and the prices are bad),mwave, lots of other places. Up here in canada its NCIX or nuffin eh!
Click to expand...

See above.

-----------------

So, I'm hoping that I'll be able to get my dad to front the extra cost, but if not, I'm guessing my best bets for reducing the overall cost would be to back down to the DS3L and the 8600GT XXX.
 
Sorry, I've been busy lately, especially with the holidays comin up. Though, it looks like Danny has you covered. You'll only take around a 10% hit by going with the lower cache E2160, so you should be fine -- especially with that HD3850.
 
Intel E2160 - $82.99
Gigabyte P35-DS3R - $129.99
G.Skill 2GB PC2-6400 - $46.99
VisionTek HD3850 - $179.00
ASUS 20x SATA DVD Burner - $37.99
Corsair VX450W - $79.99 ( - $15 MIR)
Cooler Master Centurion RC-532 - $44.99

Shipping: $29.53

Total: $631.47

I'm 99% positive I will be able to live with this (and pay for it). Thanks everyone for all the help and suggestions, especially enginurd for hanging in there and eventually convincing me to go with the E2160. :) I should be a very happy camper when this stuff comes in.
 
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