Help with building/upgarding my rig

[OliverBGD]

Hi,

I have $1500 to spend and I would like to upgrade my current rig. The specs of the current rig are as follows:

CPU: C2D E6600 2.4Ghz
MEMORY: OCZ 4GB Special OPS 800MHz
MOBO: Asus P5W64 WS PRO
VIDEO: ATI HD2600 XT 512MB
DRIVES: 4 x Raptor 74GB & Seagate 7200.11 500GB

The problem is $1500 isn't enough to upgrade everything, so I am having hard time deciding what to upgrade with the money. My goal is to achieve the best noticeable performance and not theory performance, be future proof somewhat, and bring ease and enjoyment in everyday work. I am deciding between the following, but am willing to accept other recommendations:

1. 2 x Mtron Pro 7000 16GB (Raid 0) $1500
2. Shuttle SX38P2-Pro $440 (Comes with X38 mobo and its a nice little rig)
3. Intel Core 2 Extreme QX9650 Yorkfield 3.0GHz 12MB L2 Cache LGA 775 130W Quad-Core Processor $1080
4. DDR2 or DDR3 8GB $200-800
5. 24'" or 27" Monitor

P.S. I don't play games much so I am happy with the current card I have

Thank you in advance for your help/recommendations.

 

[silent-circuit]

If you aren't gaming there is zero reason to put a cent in that machine. Save your money for when the new architecture hits at the end of the year. If you feel the need for an upgrade and just can't shake it OCing a $275 Q6600 will give you the exact same performance as the $1080 QX chip.

 

[tiraides]

I don't have time to tell you as much as I would like to, so I'll cut to the chase.

The best upgrades that you could make for your system are the motherboard and the video card. Most 24 inch widescreen monitors have a native/max resolution of 1920x1200... and your HD2600XT is woefully inadequate for that task.

And you don't really need an X38-based motherboard right now. The only thing that they offer, compared to the P35 chipset, is native CrossFire support. (Then again, if you really want a 24-27 inch monitor, it's a consideration. But still, only get an X38-based board if you can avoid paying more than $250 for one.)

Take a look at one of these P35-based motherboards (and choose one based on which features you want, for now and possibly in the future):

MSI P35 Neo2-FR Intel P35 ATX Motherboard - $119
Gigabyte GA-EP35-DS3R Intel P35 Motherboard - $127
DFI LanParty Dark P35-T2RS Intel P35 Motherboard - $150
Gigabyte GA-P35-DS3P Intel P35 Motherboard - $151
Abit IP35 Pro Intel P35 Motherboard - $170
Gigabyte GA-EP35-DS4 Intel P35 Motherboard - $176

You don't have to swap out the E6600 if you're willing to overclock it a bit. If you do go that route, get a CPU cooler that can handle the task:

Cooler Master GeminII RR-CCH-ANU2-GP HSF - $30 & 120mm Yate Loon D12SL-12 Case Fan - $3.50 x 2
Scythe SCNJ-1100P Ninja HSF - $36
Tuniq Tower 120 HSF - $45
Thermalright Ultima-90 HSF - $46 & Panaflo FBA09A12M 92mm Fan - $3
Thermalright Ultra-120 Extreme HSF - $57 & Scythe S-Flex SFF21E 120MM Case Fan - $14

DO NOT GET THE EXTREME EDITION QX9650! The Q6600 is a good overclocker and costs much less. Get a G0 Q6600 from ClubIT if you really want a quad-core, or wait a bit for the upcoming Penryns.

For video cards, (with the monitor size that you want to get in mind) the best choices for you would be the 512MB (G92) 8800GTS or the HD3870x2. (I'm not very familiar with "good" monitors, so I can't help you in that regard.)

(I know I'm missing a few things, so I'll come back to this thread later.)

 

[tiraides]

I didn't read silent-circuit's post before I made mine, but in hindsight, I agree with him. With Nehalem coming out some time next year, it's better to wait for the time being.

Having said that, the "best" upgrade you could make would be to purchase a Q6600. You could get a new, larger monitor with that purchase as well.

I said earlier that I forgot something and I did: the CPU coolers that I mentioned for overclocking your E6600 (the "easy" upgrade that I mentioned earlier) were ones that are often recommended for cooling the Q6600. (In fact, add the ZEROtherm Nirvana NV120 to that list....) And I forgot that you said that you didn't game, so you could get away with using the HD2600XT with a new 24 inch monitor. (I don' t know how well it would work with a 27 inch monitor.)