Gaming rig on a budget + $100. Where to put it ?

DetConan

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Hi,

I am set on a gaming rig on budget with the following components
Sonata II case
MSI K8N-Neo4-F
Athlon 3200+
2 X 512 Ram - Value - Kingston
XFX 7600gt xxx

If I could reach down my pocket for another $80-$100, where would be the best place to put it ?

Go from a 3200+ to a 3700 ?
Get 2 X 1gb ram-value instead ?
go for another videocard ?

Any other idea ?

NB : I do not do any overclocking
 

Gegitech

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I would stay away from the kingston ram, and depending on what games you play I would go for either another gig or up the gpu to a 7900GT or a x1800xt depending on what you play. If you play games like fear I would go for the x1800xt. Now if you play things more like AOE III then I would get the 7900GT. However if you dont play games like this that are graphics intensive then I would go for the ram.
 

sdrawkcaBgoD

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Many people with tell you NOT to go with kingston. I would put the extra cash in a x1800xt.

Ditto. Your GPU is the most important part if you're building a gaming rig. The x1800xt is a much better card to have.
 

rickpcnerd

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i will go with a better video card like an ATI X1800 or A dual core CPU like an Opteron 165. This opteron overclocks nicely, could go up to 2.8 faster than a FX-60
 

sdrawkcaBgoD

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I agree but he said that he doesn't do any overclocking. So he should probably stick with just getting the x1800 or possibly the 7900. Also, if he sticks with the Kingston RAM his overclocking headroom would be pretty limited even if he wanted to try.
 

unbiased4u

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Oh...I was asking because I have one half Crucial and one half Kingston...

Here are some good deals I found on newegg
(btw can you buy from newegg?)

Kingston HyperX - Only a few dollars more than value RAM after rebate has 2 Cas Latency

OCZ Premier Series - has 2.5 Cas latency

OCZ Enhanced Latency 2 Cas Latency

Not sure about the latencies...I know that they affect the timings. I don't OC so I don't need to know these things....

As for the gfx card here is something I would get (if I had any money :()
ATi X1800XT $245 After Rebate + Shipping

Or I suppose you could find something on ebay to save money....I saw an used Ati X800XL for $75 shipped. But the best bet is to buy new...you get what you pay for....well, almost ;)
 

DetConan

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I live in Quebec, Canada. So I can not shop by newegg and a lot of computer stuff is more expensive here than in the States or by NewEgg. For instance, the 7900gt and the x1800xt are really too expensive for my budget...
 

PX7800GT

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i have better idea !! ... reduce the cpu to amd 64 3000+ (you can overclock it easily up to 3500+ or 3700+) ...
then you will have more cash ...
your motherboard is fine ...
then go and buy a 7900GT video card or better X1800XT ...
with the money that you gain for reducing the cpu from 3200 to 3000 you can get better memory like OCZ or HyperX ... with these nice memory you can reach 2.4GHz or 2.5GHz easliy for your CPU ...
then you have a very powerfull system ...
i think this would be the BEST idea ... :twisted:
 

DetConan

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As I am not that good with computer, I do not want to try to overclock. In my case, making a computer work OK under normal circumstances is enough trouble already ;)
 

leo_vader

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Here's my two cents:

1.GET THE x1800 possible the xt, it WIL make a difference, it may load a bit faster with a better cpu or memory or faster hd but when the game actually starts you may feel a bit dissapointed about a lame 7600, it may be pretty bang for the buck but it's not enough.

2.cpu choise is pretty much 3000(low) 3200(mid-range) 3500(enough for most games), now getting the midle solution is never good, either sacrifice gpu(not my choise, see above comment) or get the lower one and wait until you can afford something better(maeby dual core even) or until you learn how to overclock it( tom's has a pretty well made guide on that and you can ask around for advice), and you won't need a better motherboard for a simple 400 mhz overclock.

3.as for the memory, go with what everyone else reccomended, c2 or c2.5 is reccomended, pc3200 is minimum, pc 4000 is future proof for oc.
and don't get 2 512 sticks, if you can't afford 2 1gb sticks just buy one now and another later.

Follow my advice and youl have a future proof pc! :D
 

PX7800GT

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2.cpu choise is pretty much 3000(low) 3200(mid-range) 3500(enough for most games)
WTF ??
There is just a little difference between 3000,3200,3500 ...
i overclock my 3000 to ~2.2 wich means 3500 speed , but i dont see ANY difference in ANY games , even in some CPU LIMITED games like Dawn Of War & some RTS games ...
The difference between those is a few MHz. All three will perform similar, especially with a card like X1800XT. All those CPUs are enough for today's games.
See ?? as the Boss said , these CPUs perform similar ...
So this is why i recommand to get 3000+ for spending more money on graphic card ...
so Getting 3000+ & X1800XT would the best option...
 

subtitansguy

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I would now suggest that you should think about adding a dedicated sound card to vastly improve the speed of gaming and sound quality. It seems to be overlooked peice of the puzzle.
 

shadowduck

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I would now suggest that you should think about adding a dedicated sound card to vastly improve the speed of gaming and sound quality. It seems to be overlooked peice of the puzzle.
How does a a sound card improve gaming speed???

Because onboard sound uses the CPU in order to produce sound. Adding a sound card in theory takes a load off the CPU. Today, I doubt it matters.
 

shadowduck

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I live in Quebec, Canada. So I can not shop by newegg and a lot of computer stuff is more expensive here than in the States or by NewEgg. For instance, the 7900gt and the x1800xt are really too expensive for my budget...

Try ncix.com and memoryexpress.com they have prices similar to newegg and sometimes actually cheaper.
 

leo_vader

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Ok, i know there isn't a big difference betwen those cpu's but it's the only choise you can make in that price range, and a slihtly higher frequence never hurts :lol: , you may not notice it in frame rates but in a couple of years it may repreasent one more game that his pc can play before trashing it :x . I DO know i may be exageraiting on this but i'm at least half right. :oops:
 

PX7800GT

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you may not notice it in frame rates but in a couple of years it may repreasent one more game that his pc can play before trashing it :x .
Hey , Do You Think Only 200MHz Can Make His System Faster Or Can Add A Few Months To The System`s Life Time ??... I Don`t Think So ... The Performance Difference Between 3000+ & 3200+ is Nothing ...
I Think It`s a Waste Of Cash To Buy a 3200+ When He Needs a Better Video Card ...
 

PX7800GT

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How does a a sound card improve gaming speed???
Yes , Yes , Sound Card Can Improve Gaming Speed , & In Some Games Can Improve Much ... Like Call Of Duty & Battle Field...
As shadowduck Said :
onboard sound uses the CPU in order to produce sound. Adding a sound card in theory takes a load off the CPU.
He Is 100% Right !! 8)
 

leo_vader

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Exactly, i only listed his options and sugested the 3000+ over the other one's, i do agree with you on the fact that it wouldn't give any visible increase, but still it may give one more frame in some game out there, get the point?
 

Heyyou27

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Because onboard sound uses the CPU in order to produce sound. Adding a sound card in theory takes a load off the CPU. Today, I doubt it matters.
It helps, but I'd only recommend the soundcard once you've already picked everything else, if you have money left over.
 

TSIllusion

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As everyone else has said, you should pretty much:

1) Drop your current CPU and lower it to 3000+
2) Get 1 / 2 GB ram with the money from the CPU - OCZ plz

3) How bout your HDD and stuff? if you aren't using old ones... drop the HDD storage capacity and get a lower one... save bout $20-50$ there

4) Now you probably have bout... 150$ to use, upgrade your 7600gt to 7900gt, if you cant, just use that 150$ to get another 7600gt for sli - tats always fun (sli with mid range cards =D)

or else... take that 100$ and pocket it for sum other cause... you don't always ahve to hit ur limit in buying a computer