Spec check - input much appreciated

D_Brasted

D_Brasted

D_Brasted

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Joined
10 Oct 2003
Posts
438
Hi,

The computer just died (mobo) so I'm upgrading pretty much everything. I have a few questions concerning the current choices I've made that I'd appreciate your input on...

I'm not sure which processor to get. I was first intending to get the 2.0 Ghz E2180, which OCUK labels as a "Core 2 Duo" but Intel only call it a "Pentium dual-core processor". Does anyone know whether the E2180 and E4500 processors are "Conroe"s? Also, how much difference does 1/2/4Mb cache make? (the E2180, E4500, and E6550 processors respectively).

I'm not intending to overclock, so will the supplied Intel CPU cooler (with any of these processors) be sufficient in this case?

I read in the Antec 900 manual that they recommend using their secondary support bracket for full-size graphics cards. Is this necessary with this particular BFG card?

With all those fans, will the computer likely be really noisy?

Is the OCZ 600W PSU that I've chosen sufficient (power-wise)? I read that its cables are considered a little short - will this be a problem for this combination of motherboard and case?

I've also read that the Antec 900 has some issues with cable management. Am I likely to need extensions?

I'm going to be running XP Home (from the old computer) for now, although I might later upgrade to Vista. Is 4Gb RAM overkill?

Please bear in mind that I don't want to spend very much more than I am already. If possible, I'd like to keep below £600 all inc.

Thanks.

specsv8.jpg
 
change PSU to a corsair HX520
with xp 32bit youwill only see about 3.5GB of your RAM. this is due to the 4GB limit it can address which includes memory from the graphics card and other sources
the e2180 is named a pentium, however it is based on the conroe cpus and overclocks and performs as well as any intel CPU with the conroe name
when gaming the cache makes little difference, however when encoding, the cache can make a difference
 
The loudest fan in that system will be the GPU's.

Are you running XP 32-bit or 64-bit? You won't see the full 4Gb of RAM on 32-bit, so you could drop to 2Gb, can always buy another kit later.

There is also a link somewhere of a member here benchmarking a comparison between L2 cache sizes with a E21xx and the E6xxx, the difference is neglible.
 
Thanks for the replies. I'd appreciate your comments on the other questions too.

Also, I'm looking again at which processor to get - at the moment it's a choice between the AMD Athlon 64 5600+ at £88.11 inc VAT or the Intel Core 2 Duo E4500 at £78.11. Which one would you get, and will the retail heatsink+fan be sufficient?

If getting the Athlon, I'd get the MSI K9N Neo V3 motherboard.
 
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Assuming you're not overclocking, which one would you get?

Edit on the motherboard - on second thoughts, I'd be getting the Asus M2N-SLI Deluxe at £68.14. Will the stock cooler be sufficient? (I'm NOT overclocking)
 
i would get the e4500 with a p35 based Mb, then one day when you change your mind about not OCing, overclock it
 
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