Spec me... A CPU/MOBO/RAM

BlizzardX · 26 Mar 2009 at 10:50

Morning all,

I've got a budget of approximately £300 to spend on a new cpu/mobo/ram. Currently I'm running a 4200+ Dual Core Athlon (S939) with a 1Gb Radeon HD4850. I was looking at possibly returning back to intel as I haven't had one since 1999.

Can someone suggest something suitable to go with the graphics card?

Cheers

BlizzardX · 26 Mar 2009 at 13:15

I wouldn't be looking at o/c'ing at the moment to be honest, left that well alone a long time ago. I know future proof is possibly the wrong term, but what would serve me better for longer, a quad or dual? The quads are slower, yes? but I presume would be quicker in the long term should they be programmed properly in games etc?

Edit: Also, how quiet is the stock intel cooler? The graphics card is currently passive so noise is really a premium... If the cooler isn't silent, would it be worth going for the 2.66 Kentsfield with a aftermarket cooler?

BlizzardX · 26 Mar 2009 at 13:33

Ok so how cool does the E8400 run? I read that its a 45nm chip, i presume then that the intel cooler will be quite quiet because it shouldn't produce too much heat?

If I'm not editing or encoding constantly, then a dual will be better?

BlizzardX · 26 Mar 2009 at 13:53

Whats the current performance difference like between the X3's and the 8400 Core 2s? Would the DDR2 AMD be the same noticable speed as the Intel?

BlizzardX · 1 Apr 2009 at 16:44

So, I took the plunge and ordered the X3 with the DDR 3 motherboard... should be a good increase!