About to order...

agw_01

agw_01

agw_01

Soldato
Joined
11 Apr 2004
Posts
19,920
I know these threads pop up every day, so I apologise in advance.

I'm sick of my slow and generally fussy old system and want a new one.

I'm about to order the following...

Intel Core 2 Duo E2160 "LGA775 Conroe" 1.80GHz (800FSB) - Retail

Abit IP35-E (Socket 775) PCI-Express DDR2 Motherboard

Crucial Ballistix 2GB (2x1GB) DDR2 PC2-8500C5 1066MHz Dual Channel Kit

HIS ATI Radeon HD 3850 Pro 256MB GDDR3 TV-Out/Dual DVI/HDMI (PCI-Express) - Retail

Hitachi Deskstar T7K500 250GB SATA-II 8MB Cache - OEM

Pioneer DVR-115DBK 20x DVD±RW IDE Dual Layer ReWriter (Black)

XSPC X2O Delta (Socket A,754,939,AM2, 478 and LGA 775) CPU Water Block

Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi Xtreme Audio 7.1 Sound Card - OEM (PCI)

Logitech MX Revolution Advanced Cordless Mouse - Retail

Corsair TX 650W ATX2.2 SLi Compliant PSU

But as I've been out of the game for a while, I'd like some advice. Mainly use my PC for web surfing, music and the odd photoshop/dreamweaver session etc. Don't game much but that could be because my current system isn't very good at that, ha!

Anything I should change?

Thanks :)
 
Don't know much about watercooling but the rest looks good.

Although I'd rather get 4Gb PC6400 for a little more.

3850pro is good but I'd get the 512mb version anyway since it actually does make a difference these days.

620W maybe a little overkill for that setup but it will last through at least several upgrades so it's worth it.
 
Hi Steve,

Thanks for the reply.

Will look into the RAM. Can never have enough of the stuff :)

I've just been looking into the 512mb version and am very very tempted. Currently running a 9700Pro so I'm sure whatever I get will seriously impress me.

Thanks for the feedback on the PSU. What kind of wattage are we talking about with this setup? I'll have two hard disks and two DVD writers (one DL, I already have an LG single layer drive - but obviously not burning at the same time). Oh, not forgetting my WC pump which is a Thermaltake 12v jobbie. Won't take much but still needs to be considered.

Cheers.
 
If you have the cash I'd still go for a 8800GT though.

For your setup soundslike a HX520 will do just fine.

Your current HDDs and DVD writers are they all on IDE? Asking because the IP35-E has only 1 IDE port so maximum 2 PATA devices are allowed.
 
id leave out the XFi soundcard

drop to a Corsair 520w modular PSU, more than enough for that rig!

and find a nice cheap juicey 2x2GB Ram kit, you can get OCZ 4GB Kit (2x2048) Platinum Edition DDR2 PC2 8000 for just £62 quid. that is a bargain.

im currently in a "i hate abit" phase so not sure about the mobo, maybe consider the Asus P5K?

gfx is okay, if you wanted to push the boat maybe as suggested 8800gt 512MB
 
Well... I was a bit finger happy last night so placed an order.

I went for the OCZ 500w PSU and the 3850 512mb graphics card. Wish I'd gone for the 8800GT but I'm sure for how often I play games (and the performance I'm used to) it'll really impress me, heh.

I went for the G-Skill PC2-6400 4gb set-up... really wanted to go higher to leave some overclocking headroom but obviously didn't look hard enough last night and so didn't see the OCZ stuff that Nick metions.

Steve, all current drives (bar one) are IDE but I've ordered two of the Hitachi SATA drives.

Nick, I realised that the sound card I'd ordered was a PCI-E card (somehow?!?!) and the Abit board only had one PCI-E 16x connector. Just e-mailed the shop to switch the soundcard and motherboard to the Asus like you mentioned.

The Asus board is a bit more expensive but I'm well impressed at its features!! Co-ax digital output too for my amp which is exactly what I was looking for. Is the on-board sound on this board any good?

Cheers guys.
 
hi ocz 500 is good:) 3850 is good for gaming and low power so should be fine too.

the gskill is ocable for sure, and better to go 4gb than 2gb especially for gaming. 4gb is nice and smooth, with vista 64.

i switched from audigy zs2 to onboard on my abit 650i sli mobo and its fine, the one on yours is probably better than this anyway. if u find its not good enough maybe look around. i wouldnt buy another creative card again, ever, though.
 
agw_01 said:
Nick, I realised that the sound card I'd ordered was a PCI-E card (somehow?!?!) and the Abit board only had one PCI-E 16x connector. Just e-mailed the shop to switch the soundcard and motherboard to the Asus like you mentioned.
Click to expand...

The IP35-E has 2 PCI-E 1x ports which can be used for the soundcard :)
 
So it does :) It doesn't say it on the listing and I didn't look very closely at the picture.

Ah well... every time I read the specs on the Asus board, the more I think I've made the right move. It supports SATA RAID which is another thing I wanted!

Just out of interest, at stock speeds, what 3DMark03 score would I be expecting? I remember trying to break 5000 on my XP2500/9800Pro system a few years ago :D
 
I'd be amazed if you didn't manage around 9k @ stock.

That chip should easily clock to around 2.8-3ghz too which will push that score even further.

Used both the e2160 and 3850pro and they offered serious bang for the buck! As others have said though... the 8800GT is the better performing card for the money.

Looks like a nicely specced rig. Going from a 9700pro you will notice quite a jump in performance. :)

gt
 
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Hi guys,

I've cancelled my previous order due to not being 100% sure on everything. I'm about to place another order but thought I'd check up on this bits just to see if there's anything I should change?

Intel Core 2 Duo E2160 "LGA775 Conroe" 1.80GHz (800FSB) - Retail
Should I go for the 2GHz version or will the E3160 OC well? I've heard good things about them.

Asus P5K Premium/WiFi-AP Intel P35 (Socket 775) PCI-Express DDR2 Motherboard
I'm impressed with the spec of this board, what say you guys?

BFG GeForce 8800 GT OC 512MB GDDR3 HDTV/Dual DVI (PCI-Express) - Retail
Decided it'd make more sense to future proof the graphics card as much as possible, as it's not that much more expensive than the ATi.

One thing though, I can't find the 4gb OCZ Platinum stuff that Nickg pointed out. Can anyone point me in the right direction or is it from a competitor?

Thanks.
 
dont know how much u paid for the OCZ plats but i think its worth the extra over the 6400 CAS5 stuff listed above.

mobo better than the previous one too but like £20 more exp i think. depends on how much oc you need and do you need wifi etc? i am looking at the asus P5E atm (x38)
but its another jump in price.

i have the cors 520w mod and its great:) not blown up yet, and i have a few duff psu lying around here! (Antec, Hiper R, unbranded to name a few)
 
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