upgrade question

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bucfanmike

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Joined
Jun 14, 2007
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Im thinking of upgrading my motherboard/cpu/ram/video card.

I would switch from my skt 939 to a am2 based system, but id like to keep everything else in my system the same. I built this computer several years ago. I run vista business. If i change out the items i mentioned will i have to do any type of reinstall of windows? for hard drives i run 2 satas, 1 small one with windows install and 1 larger one for storage and programs.
 
It would help us if you list out which parts you're currently using. Please be as specific as possible.

We need to know this information because, by transferring from a Socket 939 to a Socket AM2 system, you won't be able to transfer everything over.

Additionally, we would like to know how much you're willing to spend on all of the upgrades that you need.
 
Well the only things that i plan on reusing are my

case
psu-coolermaster
zalman cooler- if it can be adapted from 939 to am2
audigy soundcard
my harddrives - 2 sata - both seagates, 1 IDE (more storage)

i was lookign at am2 over 775 just cuz i have preferred amd. i dont run anything thats processor intensive and i usually look to save money by building with parts that are a year or so old and found on the forums here. I want to upgrade from my 3000+ to about a 6000 or so with 4 gigs of ram and a middle of the road graphix card.

I was just wondering if it would require windows to be reinstalled because that is a hassle.
 
dandragonrage said:
If you don't run anything that's processor intensive then... don't upgrade.
Click to expand...


are you on my wifes payroll? lol

its not that i have to upgrade, but i though going from a 3000+ to 6000+ i would see a noticable difference in overall performance for the few hundred i would put into it.
 
Changing the mobo, changing the video card, moving from single -> double core all at the same time is a big change. So yes you are gonna want to reinstall windows. If that's your only reason for sticking with AMD, then forget it.
 
You never answered my question: How much do you want to do this for?

Right now, unless you're trying to save as much money as possible, Intel is the better choice regarding processors than AMD.

And specifics would be nice -- as in, the make/model of all of the components you're reusing, the storage capacity of the hard drives, etc.
 
tiraides said:
You never answered my question: How much do you want to do this for?

Right now, unless you're trying to save as much money as possible, Intel is the better choice regarding processors than AMD.

And specifics would be nice -- as in, the make/model of all of the components you're reusing, the storage capacity of the hard drives, etc.
Click to expand...


wow look im not trying to be elusive here with the details.. i just dont dont remember the exact details of everything in my machine..the computere isnt my main hobby. Now ask me about any details of my home coffee roasting and i can tell you :)

lol i just looked at the box for the psu i recently put in and i was wrong when i said i had a cooler master...see

heres what i know.. i will throw some *** next to the parts i'd like to continue to use

psu- ocz stealth X stream 600w ***

ok new plan this is from my computer/properties

IC35L180AVV207-1 ATA Device ***
WDC WD600BB-OOCAA1 ATA Device ***
MAXTOR S TM3320620AS SCSI ***
LITE-ON DVDRW SOHW-16932... ***
LITE-ON DVD SOHD-16P9SATA ***

ok i also have an unbraded multicard reader that fits into a 3.5 inch bay and plugs into internal usb (reads all memory cards) ***

i have 4 x512 sticks of value ram pc3200
zalman cpu cooler *** <but not a necessity, wouldnt let this be a deciding factor :)
amd 3000+
gigabyte k8nsultra 939
agp video card - NVIDIA geforce 6800GT
creative audigy 2ZS ***

as far as 775 then if the better value is there i would consider it, as far as how much to spend the answer is always as little as possible, am hoping to be under 300 but for the right stuff i would spend near 500 if it would make that much of a difference and add another year or so the end life. i'm not the type that has to have the newest stuff, i'm happy picking up the cpu on the forums from the guy that just upgraded to the newest stuff :)

Right now the only game i play is this cheap online free game mmorpg, but i kinda like it and may start to play a few more online games in the future and will be upgrading my 17" flat panel to hopefully a 22" widescreen and want a system that will be able to handle if it if i decide to play more online games. The monitor price doesn't figure into the upgrade costs btw.

disregard the opening statements i made about not wanting to reinstall windows, honestly when it comes down to it its not a big deal.

hope some of this makes sense.
 
Well, the drive info helps because most newer boards only have one IDE controller, for a max of 2 PATA devices. Therefore, if you have more than 2, you'll need a PCI IDE Controller card -- which is only around $10 if Newegg isn't throwing a fit and pricing them at $20.

Yes, Intel is the better choice for value right now, especially if you overclock. If you'd rather stick with AMD, then go ahead. AMD needs all the help they can get. Most low to midrange AMD CPUs will outperform their intel counterparts at stock speeds, but once you OC BOTH CPUs, the Intel will always win with these current CPUs.

Do you intend to OC? BTW, OC'ing a Core2 is MUCH easier than it was to OC a s939 CPU. Most Intel CPUs will OC at least 1Ghz with little effort.

What features do you need in a motherboard? Firewire? Legacy ports (parallel/serial)? etc...

If you don't need much, then here's a couple suggestions...

Intel:
$150 - 9600GT or 8800GT, depending on deal you can find (but wait for the new cards)
$130 - Intel Core2Duo E7200
$90 - GA-EP35-DS3L
$85 - 4GB (2x2GB) DDR2-800
======
$455 + tax and shipping

AMD:
$150 - 9600GT or 8800GT, depending on deal you can find (but wait for the new cards)
$125 - AMD Athlon X2 6000+
$90 - GA-MA770-DS3 or GA-MA78GM-S2H
$85 - 4GB (2x2GB) DDR2-800
======
$450 + tax and shipping
 
Here's what I figured out (my notes are in bold):

bucfanmike said:
heres what i know..

OCZ StealthXStream 600W PSU
IC35L180AVV207-1 ATA Device - IBM Deskstar 180GXP 180GB IDE hard drive
WDC WD600BB-OOCAA1 ATA Device - Western Digital 60GB IDE hard drive
MAXTOR S TM3320620AS SCSI - Maxtor DiamondMax 21 320GB SATA hard drive (a rebadged Seagate 7200.10 HDD)
LITE-ON DVDRW SOHW-16932 - IDE DVD burner
LITE-ON DVD SOHD-16P9SATA - IDE DVD-ROM drive
(Unbranded) 3.5 inch (internal) USB memory card reader
Zalman CPU cooler (Could you search online and find out which model it is?)
Creative Sound Blaster Audigy 2 ZS sound card
(Which case are you reusing? What type of fans -- and how many -- does it use?)
Click to expand...

Regardless of whether you go Intel or AMD, you would have to replace the motherboard, processor, RAM, and video card (as none of the motherboards sold today support AGP video cards). You could go with a motherboard with an onboard GPU -- which would probably work with the free MMORPG you're playing -- but you may want to wait until all of the new video cards arrive. (They should start to trickle in next week, if they haven't already started to now.)

I'm going to say this right now: The StealthXStream PSU is a bad choice for the long term. It is based of the FSP Epsilon PSU, which is known to produce out-of-spec voltage fluctuations, or "ripple," at high loads. Ripple can weaken (if not kill) your system over time, so the power supply is not worth keeping over the long term. (You probably won't reach high loads with your system, but why risk it?) Right now (if you can fit this in with your budget), the Antec Earthwatts 500W PSU is a good replacement power supply that's curretnly on sale.

Here's a sample Intel build you could work from (for under $300, all from NewEgg):

$90 - Gigabyte GA-EP35-DS3L
$80 - Intel Pentium Dual Core E2200
$70 - G.Skill 4GB (2x2GB) DDR2 800 dual channel kit
=====
$240 - Subtotal (not including shipping or taxes)

... And here's a possible AMD setup:

$80 - Gigabyte GA-M78SM-S2H
$82 - AMD Athlon X2 5000+ Black Edition
$70 - G.Skill 4GB (2x2GB) DDR2 800 dual channel kit
=====
$232 - Subtotal (not including shipping or taxes)

The AMD Black Edition processor has an unlocked multiplier that makes it (a bit) easier to overclock, but it doesn't come with a CPU cooler. The Intel E2xxx processors are all capable of reaching around 3GHz-3.2GHz on good air cooling (though YMMV). (But as soon as you can tell us which model Zalman you have, I could find out whether or not it will work with your new setup.)

You should reuse your Maxtor HDD (which is a rebranded Seagate HDD) and your IDE DVD burner. Onboard sound has improved to the point that you may not even need to use the Audigy 2 ZS, so try using the onboard sound first.
 
Heh, I went with your $500 budget. :p Those builds tiraides posted are great, too.

Since you already have the SXS600W, you might as well keep it, since you're most likely not going to reach full load on it (especially now that you've been informed). Just keep in mind what tiraides mentioned... and don't put too much on it. In other words, you might want to grab a couple external enclosures for your IDE drives instead of keeping them in the system.
 
ok guys, this is all good info.. im out the door on my to work right now, so i'll give some more info on my case and zalman on my next post. maybe id be better off to start from scratch again :)
 
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