Cheap as poss spec check for bro

SkeeterUK

SkeeterUK

SkeeterUK

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Bro wants a new computer and i was thinking of a cheap conroe 2 duo that will oc to about 3ghz. Is this ok? Im not really familiar with the best but cheapest mb for oc for conroes so i just picked that one as it was cheap and i think mentioned good for oc easily.

If not please help me spec a 8800 card conroe 2gb system for 300-500 range, i know the pic below shows 600 quid + but thats where you lot come in to help be get that right down if possible. Cheapest poss and best components for oc please and best cooler to keep oc cool running. Cheers.

Heres what i was thinking.

2005164693632026279_rs.jpg
 
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Im by no means an expert in this and im trying to learn my self.

But i beleive you could save a bit on the powersupply by buying perhaps a OCZ StealthXStream 600w Silent SLI Ready ATX2 Power (£58.74).

Ive heard good things from OCZ being reliable. Although it may not be as efficient as the crossiar you have 600w instead of 520w and therefore they probly even out. Besides, you only really need 450-500w for your rig. They recomend 500w for the gfx card but you dont really need that much.

Then you might also be able to save a couple more quid by switching your hard drive. Do you really need 500gb? thats a lot and if you buy a smaller one now you could always add to it.

Some cheaper options:

320GB- Seagate Barracuda 7200.10 320GB ST3320620AS SATA-II 16MB Cache This has a 5 year warranty which is pretty good i think. (£52.86)

400GB-

Hitachi Deskstar T7K500 NCQ 400GB SATA-II 16MB Cache(£58.74)

Western Digital Caviar SE16 400GB 4000AAKS SATA-II 16MB Cache (£66.96)


That may not be much of a saving but its still 20-35 quid off :)


Have you already got a case then and all the other parts like fans etc?



:EDIT: Just noticed that the 400GB hard drive from western digital costs the same. But it will run faster then the 500GB and is most probably higher quality.
 
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Hey

I had a OCZ StealthXStream, It went on ebay after about 1-2 weeks...

To loud for my ears to be honest but it was able to power quite a lot of stuff. I had it on the rig in spec, plus 4 , 120mm fans and one 200mm, and 4 HDD's and around 3 USB devices powered by usb so it is a strong unit, and as 8igdave said, I have heard they are reliable.

If noise isnt an issue the OCZ would be a good alternative. But im sure a lot of people will be in here pretty sharpish voting a Corsair and its probably the better of the two in all honesty.. Something to do with the amp rails on the Corsair being a lot higher and the unit is much higher quality build.

Just an opinion ;)

Solarius
 
It's quite difficult squeezing what you wanted into a £500 spec, without taking too much out, but some had to go and others downgraded. Here's what I ended up with:

500.jpg


Same HDD, just lower space
Same PSU, no change
Same CPU, no change
AF7 Pro instead of the Ultra-120 non-extreme
Same GFX card, no change
Different RAM, saves a ton and the Geil is good
Different mobo, see below
Removed sound card, doubt you can squeeze it in

Overall saving: £163.32

Quick note on the price, it's £503 incl. VAT without delivery, and delivery in that price listing is for next day, therefore you can lower the delivery costs by choosing a slower delivery if you wanted too which will save you a few quid.

Some things... picked the 650i ultra because it is a good motheboard overall. It's about a £30 saving from what you had originally. Although it doesn't support DDr3, but really when trying to built a cheap but good rig to use, I don't think trying to future proof a lot of the machine is a good idea, or you price will steadily increase. Also, it allows you to run the CPU and the ram unliked on this board, which means you can tighten the timings on the RAM whilst still overclocking the CPU seperately and not be hampered by the RAM, therefore saving yourself about £35 on RAM.

In respects of the sound card. Really I don't think you'll need it unless you own an expensive sound system with better than a quadrophonic speaker setup. I use my onboard on my 965P-S3 and it rocks. I've always though sound cards were borderline money wastings, but that's my opinion.

It's my suggestion anyhow, others may disagree and probably have specs of their own :)
 
Solarius said:
Hey

I had a OCZ StealthXStream, It went on ebay after about 1-2 weeks...

To loud for my ears to be honest but it was able to power quite a lot of stuff. I had it on the rig in spec, plus 4 , 120mm fans and one 200mm, and 4 HDD's and around 3 USB devices powered by usb so it is a strong unit, and as 8igdave said, I have heard they are reliable.

If noise isnt an issue the OCZ would be a good alternative. But im sure a lot of people will be in here pretty sharpish voting a Corsair and its probably the better of the two in all honesty.. Something to do with the amp rails on the Corsair being a lot higher and the unit is much higher quality build.

Just an opinion ;)

Solarius
Click to expand...


I read reviews saying they are quite. But i take your word for it. I know corsair is better but i was just cuttin down the price. The achualy quality of the OCZ (excluding noise) is certainly good enough i would have thought and was saving money. But i wasn't aware of how loud they were. Looks like im gona have to change my set up to :P
 
Well,

I have also heard stories about them being quiet but like I said from personal experience it wasnt particularly. Infact on the OCZ forums there were people also complaining about the noise levels.

I have to say tho in its defense... Although it is loudish it really kicks out some air.. It would really help with cooling the overall case temp's down. You are right to recommend the PSU just wanted to warn of the noise levels hehe ;)

Solarius
 
Ok soundcard isnt going to be bought he will just be happy with onbaord as he only has 2 cheap speakers that cost a fiver years ago. Also he doesnt mind just using he old maxtor 80gb drive so theres some saving.

He has a case already but duno dimentions to see if it fits a 8800 in or the high heatsink fan.

Cheers for replies all btw,
 
SkeeterPSA said:
Ok soundcard isnt going to be bought he will just be happy with onbaord as he only has 2 cheap speakers that cost a fiver years ago. Also he doesnt mind just using he old maxtor 80gb drive so theres some saving.

He has a case already but duno dimentions to see if it fits a 8800 in or the high heatsink fan.

Cheers for replies all btw,
Click to expand...


I thought 500gb was a bit to much. I think 80gb might not be enough though.

How old is he? If hes only young it is, but if hes older i gues he will be putting music and all sorts on it soon?
 
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