AMD PC Upgrade - soup up to the limit!

katie279

katie279

katie279

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Ok - got the following on one of the pcs here:

- AMD 64bit 3500
- 3GB 5300
- Geforce 7900GT
- ASUS M2N-E -http://uk.asus.com/products.aspx?l1=3&l2=101&l3=370&l4=0&model=1419&modelmenu=1

Can anyone give me some advice on the best way to upgrade this? Don't know whether it'd be cheaper to upgrade MB and buy low-end processor etc or pump it up to the maximum as it is? (Does anyone know how high a processor I could fit - don't really understand the difference between AM2, AM2+, AM3 etc... nor whether the highend AM2s are better than the low end AM3s and so on.

Looking to spend circa £300-£500 (though don't worry about gfx card, there's a faint chance in hell I might be lucky in the OCUK compo!)

Any help/example specs would be greatly appreciated! :)
 
AM2 is for AM2 processors only (Phenom, Athlon 64)

AM3 is for AM3 processors only

AM2+ is a whore and will take anything it can get.

I'd go with a 720BE tri-core - excellent value for money
AM3 motherboard if possible, but an AM2+ should take any processors in the near future.
4GB of PC2-8500
HD4850/9800GT

=£350 give or take a twenty pound note.
 
Looking at your motherboard there is not a lot you can upgrade to only the dual core 6000+ cpu which are not sold here.
With £500.00 (just under) you could get an Intel I7 system:

CP-280-IN_60.jpg
Intel Core i7 920 D0 Stepping (SLBEJ) 2.66Ghz (Nehalem) (Socket LGA1366) - Retail £255.99
(£222.60) £255.99
(£222.60)
MB-159-GI_60.jpg
Gigabyte EX58-UD3R Intel X58 (Socket 1366) PCI-Express DDR3 Motherboard £159.99
(£139.12) £159.99
(£139.12)
MY-151-OC_60.jpg
OCZ Gold 6GB (3x2GB) DDR3 PC3-10666C9 Low-Voltage Triple Channel (OCZ3G1333LV6GK) £61.99
(£53.90) £61.99
(£53.90) Sub Total : £415.62 Shipping cost assumes delivery to UK Mainland with:
DPD Next Day Parcel
(This can be changed during checkout) Shipping : £9.50 VAT is being charged at 15% VAT : £63.77 Total : £488.89
 
brilliant help!, sorry guys - should have said - for heavy CG use, so 8GB min ram (presume I can just pick a similar brand of ram in 4 x 2gb sticks? (read somewhere about 2 sticks being more stable than 4, but haven't seen any cost-effective 4gb sticks around yet...?
 
I'd go for 4 sticks of the OCZ 8500 stuff - it's only £65 for 8GB at the moment.

2 sticks is better if you're overclocking (less strain on the northbridge/memory controller) but it only comes into play if you're going for a maximum overclock. If you leave it at stock or go for a milder OC it won't make much difference.
 
Thanks Audigex! That's a great deal, didn't see that.

Yeah, reckon I'll be ok as you describe - don't plan to overclock (more about stability than squeezing performance this build).
 
Should be fine then - although you'd be fine with a mild to moderate overclock as long as you aren't too over-enthusiastic with it :-)

I'd say i7 would be a little over the top for your needs, besides which that mainboard isn't particularly good. However, since you're not overclocking you wouldn't need a CPU cooler for it which saves a tidy £40-50.

If you go in the direction of mine I'd recommend swapping out the x3 for a quad-core instead. CG software should be happy enough to make use of the extra core.
 
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