New Build which C2D

DizzyEgg · 12 Apr 2007 at 11:20

OK, Its time to get rid of my Athlon64 3200 & GeForce 5950Ultra.

Here is what I have so far:
Abit Fatal1ty F-I90HD ATI Micro ATX (Socket 775) PCI-Express DDR2 Motherboard
OcUK 2GB (2x1GB) PC2-6400 800MHz DDR2 Dual Channel Kit
Samsung SpinPoint T HD321KJ 320GB SATA-II 16MB Cache - OEM

I am not sure which core 2 duo to buy, I hear they are great overclockers, but I only have cheap ram. I am using the onboard x700 untill I DirectX10 are avaliable.

Would I get better system performance if I upgraded to betetr sticks of ram or will these be sufficiant for a nice overclock? I have never really overclocked anything before.

IAmATeaf · 12 Apr 2007 at 11:22

The sticks you have should be fine, as to which CPU to get, that really depends on your budget.

mishima · 12 Apr 2007 at 11:27

I would get the cheapest chip you can - E4300, and then grab some better ram like OCZ or GeIL and you can then overclock the CPU to over 3GHz and RAM nicely too. The OcUK is good stuff but not as overclockable as the other stuff!

DizzyEgg · 12 Apr 2007 at 12:10

Thanks for the input, well I am on a low budget really.

GeIL 2GB (2x1GB) PC6400C5 800MHz Value DDR2 Dual Channel Kit (GX22GB6400DC)
OCZ 2GB (2 x 1GB) PC2-6400 Dual Channel Platinum Revision 2 XTC Series DDR2 (OCZ2P800R22GK)

Would prefer the top ones really as im saving £15, but if they wouldnt overclock then whats the point.

Also would i notice the performance difference between the 800MHz and the 1066MHz versions of the C2D's. Would i notice the differnce between the E4300 and the E6300?

Thanks ppl.

mishima · 12 Apr 2007 at 12:16

I'd go for the OCZ between those two.

There's not going to be much of a difference really, the E4300 is a better overclocker than the E6300. I don't actually know if the MHz difference (800-1066) is noticable, someone with those chips might be able to advise you better than me.

gurusan · 12 Apr 2007 at 12:36

mishima said:
I'd go for the OCZ between those two.

There's not going to be much of a difference really, the E4300 is a better overclocker than the E6300. I don't actually know if the MHz difference (800-1066) is noticable, someone with those chips might be able to advise you better than me.

Not necessarily a better clocker....it's easier for some though as it has a higher multiplier so you wont have to run extremely high FSB speeds....but as for the e4300 being a better clocker....thats nonsense..it all depends on the stepping.

mp260767 · 12 Apr 2007 at 12:43

i'd go for the 6300 and keep the ram you have.

mishima · 12 Apr 2007 at 13:07

Depends what you mean by better, I should have been clearer really than generalising. I meant easier to overclock cause of the multiplyer.

gurusan · 12 Apr 2007 at 13:10

mishima said:
Depends what you mean by better, I should have been clearer really than generalising. I meant easier to overclock cause of the multiplyer.

Aye then I agree 100%.

Col_M · 12 Apr 2007 at 14:03

I was in a similar situation and went for the 6300, does the job nicely. Clocks well (not that i've tried yet - need a better cooler, but it's the impression i get from people who have done it) and when i have a bit extra money in the future i can replace it with something faster.

DizzyEgg · 13 Apr 2007 at 00:44

Hmmmm, well I think Ive decided, im not sure if im mad spending 100 bone on a graphics card now, with a whole range of DX10 cards coming out soon.

Will my current Antec 380W Truepower (came with the case but I hear they are good PSUs) run this system, I have 2 Hard Drives too

Intel Core 2 DUO E6300 "LGA775 Allendale" 1.86GHz (1066FSB) - Retail £99.99
(£117.49)
OcUK 2GB (2x1GB) PC2-6400 800MHz DDR2 Dual Channel Kit OcUK 2GB (2x1GB) PC2-6400 800MHz DDR2 Dual Channel Kit
£67.99
(£79.89)
Abit Fatal1ty F-I90HD ATI Micro ATX (Socket 775) PCI-Express DDR2 Motherboard Abit Fatal1ty F-I90HD ATI Micro ATX (Socket 775) PCI-Express DDR2 Motherboard
£64.99
(£76.36)
Sapphire ATI Radeon X1950 Pro 256MB GDDR3 HDTV/Dual DVI (PCI-Express) - Retail
£89.99
(£105.74)
Sub Total : £322.96
Total : £389.99

Gonna miss out on DX10 till christmass

Thanks for all the help people.

mishima · 13 Apr 2007 at 00:57

Just been and seen the specifications for that PSU (http://www.antec.com/specs/TPII380_spe.html) and it has dual 12V rails that have a rating of 16A. It should power the video card, but it doesnt give you much headroom for overclocking and I'm not too sure how it would fare under load. Might be better to invest in a better PSU especially if you are lookin for a DX10 soon.

DizzyEgg · 13 Apr 2007 at 01:03

Well I am thinking the above upgrade for now (so I can play with vista), then get a micro atx case, psu and dx10 card next time.

I notice that OCUK gaming Full Systems have the same PSU, the following specs.

- AMD Athlon 64 X2 Dual Core 4200+ 2.20GHz (Socket AM2)
- ABIT KN9 Ultra nForce 570 (Socket AM2) PCI-Express DDR2 Motherboard
- GeIL 2GB (2x1GB) PC5300C4 667MHz Ultra Low Latency DDR2 Dual Channel Kit
- NEC 7170 18x18 DVD±RW Dual Layer ReWriter (Black)
- NVIDIA GeForce 7950 GT 512MB GDDR3 HDTV/Dual DVI (PCI-Express)
- Western Digital 250GB SATA-II 16MB Cache
- Antec NSK4400 Case
- Antec 380W PSU
- Microsoft Vista Premium

and

- Intel Core 2 DUO E6400 2.13GHz Processor (Socket 775)
- Abit AB9 Intel 965P (Socket 775) PCI-Express DDR2 Motherboard
- G.Skill PK 2GB (2x1GB) PC6400 800MHz Ultra Low Latency DDR2 Dual Channel Kit
- NEC 7170 18x18 DVD±RW Dual Layer ReWriter (Black)
- HIS ATI Radeon X1950 Pro TURBO Silent 256MB GDDR3 HDTV/Dual DVI (PCI-Express)
- Western Digital 2500YS 250GB SATA-II 16MB Cache
- Antec NSK4400 Super Midi-Tower Case
- Antec 380W PSU
- Microsoft Vista Premium

I think it might handle it, hope so cause im gonna be skint after this.

mishima · 13 Apr 2007 at 01:20

Yeah as I said it will probably run fine, just wouldn't give you much headroom for overclocking thats all, shame not to with that chip and motherboard really.