Pick the next upgrade :)

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ShadeZeRO

Limp Gawd
Joined
Oct 21, 2008
Messages
396
Hey all.

Long story short, I'm buying a gift for myself. Just not sure what to get.
Suggestions are always welcome.

Specs as follows:

CPU: Q6600 (g0) @ 3.2Ghz
HSF: Zalman 9500A
Mobo: Abit IP35-Pro
VGA: ASUS GeForce 9800GT
RAM: 8GB G.Skill DDR2-1066
HD: (2) 1TB Green Power, 1TB RE3, (2) Seagate Cheetah 15k.5, 250GB IDE
Sound Card: Creative Sound Blaster Audigy 2 ZS (With Daniel_K drivers)
Case: Antec Twelve Hundred
PSU: PC Power & Coolin 610w? Silencer
Monitors: 22" Gateway LCD (1650x1080), 19" Samsung CRT (1600x1200)

My Options:
New CPU --> Q9550 (overclock it to 4GHz hopefully)
New VGA --> Maybe a GTX 260
New HSF --> Maybe get something more out of the Q6600 (I know it can go higher)
New Monitor --> Match the gateways up next to each other

Only game I Play is CS:Source. Though, I'm waiting for Starcraft2 like there's no other! =D

1) What will you be doing with this PC? Gaming? Photoshop? Web browsing? etc
Gaming (somewhat, mainly source, starcraft 2, and a few niche games). Photoshop & Video Editing as well, but nothing super advanced.

2) What's your budget? Are tax and shipping included?
This is variable, but I'd like to keep it small, maybe a few hundred. I'm about to buy an DSLR right now, so funds are short.

3) Where do you live?
USA- South Florida

4) What exact parts do you need for that budget? CPU, RAM, case, etc. Please be very specific.
Listed above

5) If reusing any parts, what parts will you be reusing? Please be especially specific about the power supply. List make and model.
Keeping all parts just upgrading some.

6) Will you be overclocking?
Already am =) But I want to go further! Except Q6600 has a 1.325 VID, so it sucks =\

7) What size monitor do you have and/or plan to have?
22" LCD, 19" CRT

8) When do you plan on building/buying the PC?
Within 3 weeks

9) What features do you need in a motherboard? RAID? Firewire? Crossfire or SLI support? etc.
Don't really need a new MOBO

10) Do you already have a legit and reusable/transferable OS key/license?
Yes
Click to expand...
 
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Please answer the stickied "ANSWER THESE QUESTIONS FIRST" so that we can help you better.
 
My vote would be towards the vga.

You should see notable differences from 9800GT to GTX260.

The GTX260 is always a good choice for games.
 
My choices come down to this:

GTX 275 or
GTX 260 + A new cooler for my CPU.
 
Go with the GTX 260 and the new CPU cooler. The Xigmatek Dark Knight S1283V is a good yet (relatively) inexpensive CPU cooler.
 
Yup, the Xigmateks HSF are very good and comparable to the Ultra-120. For $40 w/free shipping that's a great deal for great performance. It's definitely better than your outdated Zalman 9500 cooler.

Reviews

http://www.pureoverclock.com/review.php?id=719&page=1

http://www.frostytech.com/articleview.cfm?articleid=2333&page=5

On the video card, EVGA, XFX have better warranty on the GTX 260 as oppose to that MSI brand but, meh, 3 year warranty is good enough. I think so. After 3 years, you would have upgraded your video card anyways. Plus, that's a good price at $173 w/free shipping ($30 MIR) $143 AR.
 
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