Upgrades

knight0334 · Posted: Wed, 01 Aug 2007 21:57:11 Post Subject: Upgrades

Right now I'm running a dinosaur of a PC, been putting off building a new system for a year or so. Each time I go to price out a new PC, I end up pricing out a "dream" system - which is way out of my budget. That and been trying to hold out for the new AMD core CPU's to be released(will not have an Intel desktop - ever).

I'd like a budget mobo that will allow for SLI at a later date - but that means spending $200-300 on a half decent video card because my AGP card wont work. lol Thus means the need for a $100-200 PSU to feed the two cards later too. It never ends.. lol CPU's and memory are cheap these days though..

But if I buy now, God knows a better deal will come along within the next week. Trying not to spend alot on a system, but still have a system that is an upgrade from my present unit and will be decent for a couple years.

I dont game much anymore, but I multi-task like a mofo. So, the more core/cpu's there are - the better.. CAD-E, big file transfers, surfing pr0n with 10-20 browser windows open, email, 2-3 IM appz open, etc.. Only game I play is BF1942, no intentions to play any other game in the near future. I was hoping to have a quad core in my next upgrade - but I really dont see that happening this time.

Dimensionjew · Rated NC-17 Joined: 25 Oct 2006 Posts: 108

**Doctor Feelgood** · Posted: Thu, 02 Aug 2007 11:03:41 Post Subject:

Maybe a dual socket board with two dual core processors?

That was my somewhat cheaper upgrade... Mostly used stuff, generally from 2CPU.com. Net result is still 4x 2GHz cores.

knight0334 · Posted: Thu, 02 Aug 2007 11:37:51 Post Subject:

I was thinking of going that route if I could find an affordable mobo+cpu(s)+coolers+ram+VGA+PSU package.

The only things I have that would work in a new system would be my HDDs and optical drives.

BeerCheeze · Posted: Thu, 02 Aug 2007 11:46:49 Post Subject:

I think the problem is that if you have that much CPU bandwidth, do you have the subsystem to supply it with enough data to keep it from being bored?

I would think you would probably need some place like 8GB of RAM, 10K or 15K SCSI drives in probably a RAID 0 (maybe some SATA-3 Drives would work?).

That's sorta why I was leaning to just staying with Dual core for the foreseeable future. Yea, 4 cores = uber l33t h@X0r but....

knight0334 · Posted: Thu, 02 Aug 2007 12:00:22 Post Subject:

I've got (4) SATA-II drives in raid 0 presently.. The only setup that can realistically support quad cores/cpu's are the Opteron class or 4x4 arrangements.

I can choke a FSB on a single Intel system, let alone using dual core or quad core of that make.

acruxksa · Posted: Thu, 02 Aug 2007 13:45:01 Post Subject:

SLI mobo = $100 (Gigabyte 570SLI....just a suggestion)
8600GT = $125 (more than enough for bf1942, dual monitor, no xtra power cable needed usually)
x2 5000+ (Brisbane) = $120 (lower power consumption than 90nm cpu's)
2GB DDR2-800 = $90

This isn't a quad system, but AMD's says Barcelona will be AM2 compatible, so you should be good to go quad when prices come down after the initial release gouging. I'm not sure what psu you have, but if it's reasonably new, you should be ok until you decide to go SLI/quad.

I got the prices listed from the egg, so I'm sure a little searching and you could find better deals.

knight0334 · Posted: Thu, 02 Aug 2007 14:19:02 Post Subject:

wow.. not bad at all price-wise. How does that 8600GT compare to a Radeon 9800Pro?

A new PSU is in order for any system upgrade. I'm using a Enermax 350w that I had sitting in my parts bin.

acruxksa · Posted: Thu, 02 Aug 2007 14:57:42 Post Subject:

It will be better, especially at higher resolutions, but I don't think you would notice much difference in BF1942. Considering it's age, the R9800pro is still a very respectable card.

The 7900gs and x1950pro are faster than the 8600gt in most current benchmarks, but the 8600gt has the benefit of dx10 compatibility for the future. It's in-expensive and can probably perform quit well in an SLI setup. Although a single 8800gts would probably be faster.

If you don't need dx10 (most people don't, at least not yet) then a 7900gs or x1950pro would be a better choice, but they are about 30-40$ more.

**Doctor Feelgood** · Posted: Fri, 03 Aug 2007 11:48:27 Post Subject:

newegg.com has a 8600GT 256MB for $70 AR.