Spec me please

lloydf

lloydf

lloydf

Associate
Joined
16 Dec 2007
Posts
8
Hey there, I'm looking to upgrade my pc. My budget is about £300-400 but this is just for processor, memory, mobo and possibly gpu.

My current setup leaves much to be desired:
AMD Athlon 64 3700+
Asus A8N-SLI SE
2GB OCUK Value RAM (PC3200)
BFG 7900GT OC

I would either upgrade now or wait a few months, by then I will have more money and could possibly stretch to a new GPU also. What do you think?

Your advice would be greatly appreciated!
 
OcUK GeForce 8600 GT 512MB DDR2 HDTV/DVI (PCI-Express) - Retail
(£58.74)

Abit IP35 (Socket 775) PCI-Express DDR2 Motherboard
(£82.24)

Intel Core 2 Duo E2180 "LGA775 Conroe" 2.00GHz (800FSB) - Retail
(£57.56)

Arctic Cooling Freezer 7 Pro CPU Cooler (Socket LGA775)
(£17.61)

£216.15 but you still need some RAM

That CPU is good for 3GHZ easily with that mobo and cooler ;)

Also, welcome to the forums.
 
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I was thinking of perhaps going quad core, that'd mean an extra £100 for the cpu but i'd be staying with my graphics card. I'd probably upgrade the graphics card at a later date. I heard the Abit IP35 is a good board, but is the Pro worth getting? Also, which RAM do people recommend? I was thinking of getting 2GB Corsair XMS2 PC6400.
 
the standard board is a good board for overclocking, the pro is only really needed if you want every single drop of performance out of your cpu.
 
I'd only get the 8600GT if I was posotive that I'd be upgrading my GPU in a few months, as it's not really the best sort of card for gaming (if that is indeed what you intend doing with your rig). The 8800GT'll be great when it comes back in stock and it's quite a bit cheaper.

You could actually get the Ati HD3850 and save yourself upgrading altogether (or maybe even stretch to the HD3870)
 
closeratio said:
really? because i have to admit I'm only saying this on what I've heard. What sort of resolutions do you play at?
Click to expand...

same res i use normally: 1024x768 on my dell screen, 19 or 17, cba getting a tape out, think it's 19.

and my pc is a pile as well... pentium D 3.4

so yeah, 8600GT 256MB, top value.
 
Hey Lloydf welcome to the forums.

Arctic Cooling Freezer 7 Pro CPU Cooler (Socket LGA775)
(£17.61)

GeIL 2GB (2x1GB) PC2-6400C4 800MHz Ultra Low Latency DDR2 Dual Channel Kit (GX22GB6400UDC)
(£29.36)

Gigabyte GA-P35-DS3R (Socket 775) PCI-Express DDR2 Motherboard
(£76.36)

Intel Core 2 Duo E2180 "LGA775 Conroe" 2.00GHz (800FSB) - Retail
(£58.74)

OcUK GeForce 8800 GT 512MB GDDR3 HDTV/Dual DVI (PCI-Express) - Retail
(£164.49)

Total : £357.08

Will solve all your problems :cool:
 
Ben M said:
same res i use normally: 1024x768 on my dell screen, 19 or 17, cba getting a tape out, think it's 19.

and my pc is a pile as well... pentium D 3.4

so yeah, 8600GT 256MB, top value.
Click to expand...

Put it at 1280 x 1024 with maximum detail, 8xAF and 0xAA and let us know how well it does. Seriously, not a good card.
 
melbourne720's spec is virtually the same as my setup (with a different make of RAM, same spec though), and I have to say it runs really well. I'm not sure how much of a performance increase you'll see from your previous setup although it should last quite a lot longer, and that cpu coupled with that cooler overclocks really well.

Put it at 1280 x 1024 with maximum detail, 8xAF and 0xAA and let us know how well it does. Seriously, not a good card
Click to expand...

Yeah that's why I thought the 8600GT isn't really a proper gamers card because you can't run it at moderate resolutions with any sort of anti-aliasing or anisotropic filtering on. Ii guess it was aimed at people who don't play too many games and who aren't too bothered to play at low to sub-medium resolutions
 
lloydf said:
Is it worth waiting until next year to upgrade?
Click to expand...

It's always worth waiting until next year!

And it's always worth doing it now.

:confused:

Yes there's better stuff on the way, but it'll be way too pricey and maybe buggy at first. So you'll wait for the price to drop. And then they'll be better stuff on the way again....... Then you have to take into account the recesssion :mad: The next ten years will be very hard.

Personally I'm buying now and steering clear of top $ stuff.
 
lloydf said:
Hello? Any advice would be greatly appreciated. Is it worth waiting until next year to upgrade?
Click to expand...
In-terms of CPU (& maybe GFX), yes. But also depends on what kind of budget you'll have then?

For now, perhaps this to keep you happy (until ~Feb)...
  • Asus P5K Intel P35 (Socket 775) PCI-Express DDR2 Motherboard £64.99
  • Intel Core 2 Quad Pro Q6600 "Energy Efficient SLACR 95W Edition" 2.40GHz (1066FSB) - OEM £131.99
  • GeIL 2GB (2x1GB) PC2-6400C4 800MHz Ultra Low Latency DDR2 Dual Channel Kit (GX22GB6400UDC) £24.99
  • Arctic Cooling Freezer 7 Pro CPU Cooler (Socket LGA775) £14.99
  • Sub Total : £236.96
  • Shipping : £8.25
  • VAT : £42.91
  • Total : £288.12
:cool:
 
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