Upgrading My System (Worth It?)

[DarkReaver13]

Okay, here's what I have:

2.4 Ghz Pentium IV
512MB PC2100 RAM
TriGem Imperial Motherboard
2x Western Digital 80GB HDs
1x Western Digital External 80GB HD
ATI Radeon 9800XT Graphics Card
Audigy 2 ZS Sound Card
450w PSU
DVD-ROM and RW..

I have been thinking of upgrading my processor for a long time now, but I am hesitant as I don't know whether it's worth it at the moment, or better to wait a few months (or more). If I upgrade my processor I'd have to upgrade my motherboard, and therefore my RAM (to DDR2) and my Graphics Card (to PCIe) as well - turning it into quite a large investment.

I was thinking of getting a Pentium 4 3.0Ghz Dual Core, 2GB of Corsair PC5300 RAM, an Intel 975X based motherboard and a Radeon X1800XT GFX Card.. but now I'm not so sure. I also see that AMD processors are generally preferred.

Any suggestions? Anything I really neeeed to upgrade now - or should I wait?

Thanks in advance!

 

[frozenlead]

I second nimble nukle, amd is doing so much better than intel, especially at dual core and 64bit.

i also second him in his parts, cept i recommend you upgrade to teh athlon x2 4200+ if you've got the spare cash, its well worth it.

 

[DarkReaver13]

Thanks guys. Okay, don't suppose you could recommend a motherboard for AMD? And definitely go with the ATI card rather than nVidia?

My budget is around the £800-900 mark bear in mind.

That's erm... $1400 - $1600 USD for non-UK folks.

Also, I'm hoping for this upgrade to last me a good couple of years at least.

 

[crizazykid2]

Your current plan should work for two years.

 

[DarkReaver13]

Do AMD motherboards not support DDR2?

 

[DarkReaver13]

Okay I've narrowed it down to two options I think.

AMD option:
AMD Athlon X2 4200+
Asus A8N32 SLi Deluxe nForce 4 Mobo
Radeon X1800XT
2GB G-Skill PC4000 Dual Channel DDR RAM

£884 / $1,536 USD

Intel Option:
Pentium 4 930 3.0Ghz Dual Core
Asus P5N32 SLi Deluxe nForce4 Mobo
Radeon X1800XT
2GB Corsair PC5300 Dual Channel DDR2 RAM

£872 / $1,515 USD

I'm thinking AMD.

I know you said Asus is overpriced prozac.. but it's not that much more than I'd be paying anyway so I'm not too bothered about that. I may change my mind though.

 

[thebunny]

or you could wait for the m2 socket. Patience is gold
btw your sistem should perform nice so it won't hurt if you wait a bit

 

[CompGeek]

You should get new memory for now(1 GB PC 3200 at least) and wait for Conroe.
A 9800 XT+2.4Ghz should decently run games with most options on and if you have HT you should multitask with no problems as well.
X2 3800 now is probably the best bang for buck ATM but 939 will become outdated pretty soon .
Intel Conroe should be equal with AM2 clock per clock so if you wait, it's gonna be a tough choice anyway . And remember,by going dual core you don't get much improvement in single threaded operations,but receive almost 100% boost in multi threaded ones.
As for gfx, X1800XT is good without doubt but if you wait,you might as well go for the 1900 XT. Do not bother with Nvidia. Right now Nvidia's strong points are 7800 GT and 6800 GS. But those are too low on performance for you.
X1800 XT will beat 7800 GTX in most benchmarks. It's a much better value for the money.

 

[DarkReaver13]

Hm, well I'm SO impatient lol.. But you're probably right.

Will the AM2 and Conroe be released at roughly the same time? I heard mid 2006 for Conroe.

Probably a good idea to wait for the next generation of processors if its that soon.

 

[CompGeek]

Not only that but AM2 and Conroe will be much better bang for buck when compared to current CPUs since prices will fall. So you not only get an up to date CPU,but you also get cheaper prices.
If you go AM2, you'll definitely get something better than a X2 3800 at the same price.

 

[oompa]

AM2 will be released on June 6, 2006.