Help choosing a motherboard

[Linkinparkks]

A few months ago my fx 5200 graphic card fried due to a faulty fan. Then a little later my mobo just stopped working, unlucky for me both were over the warrenty date.

So now all i have left is:

-Intel P4 2.4(socket 478)
-Geforce 7600 GT

So can anyone recommend me some good mainboards, or should i just get a new processor, if so which processor do u recommend and what board should i get to go with it(i don't mind if its amd or intel).

Also I only have $200 left to spend.

Thx for everyone's help in advance

 

[slicessoul]

Does the memory is dead too ?

 

[Linkinparkks]

nope, but i was planning to buy a faster one thats why i didn't add it, sorry

 

[slicessoul]

I supposed your memory is DDR. Since you're mentioning to buy the faster one so it's mean you'll buy DDR2, right ?

If yes, then you'll need to say goodbye to your 478 processor.

For a slow upgrading, you can check the Mainboard such Asrock Dual VSTA or Asrock 775 ( i don't really get the names, just check Asrock).
One or maybe the two of them support AGP, PCI-E, DDR and DDR2 in one mainboard.
Buy the processor such E6300 or P4D. You still can use your DDR and VGA card for amoment, when your budget is raising, buy the DDR2 then you can say goodbye to the DDR.

 

[evongugg]

I recommend you go with the Core 2 Duo, but you will have to buy a lot of new parts.

http://www.tomshardware.com/2006/11/13/shootout_at_the_core_2_corral/

 

[Linkinparkks]

but i'm kinda on a budget at the moment ,

umm... know of any good ddr2, pci intel or amd mainboards.

 

[purdueguy]

With a $200 budget you can't do much. My suggestion is to get the cheapest mobo that supports your CPU and save the extra money to start your collection in getting a new system.

Here's another route for you to think about.

Is your 7600GT AGP or PCI-Express? I'm assuming it's AGP. Based on this assumption, I'd get the ASRock 939 Dual mobo and an AMD 3700+ San Diego Socket 939.

You can reuse your memory and video card. Btw, how much DDR 400 memory do you have?

If you do have PCI-Express, I'd suggest another mobo like the Asus A8N-E.

 

[Linkinparkks]

umm..... now i got 512, do u think i should trade in my current processor for a new one,

i want to overclock my cpu to about 3.0ghz and i need a cpu and a mainboard that can do that on a budget

sorry for asking so much


Also i have the pci version of my graphic card

 

[purdueguy]

No worries. That's what the people on this forum are for. The more questions you ask, the better anyone with the experience here can be helpful.

Something is not correlating here. The FX5200 only came in PCI or AGP flavor. So your mobo was probably supporting either.

As far as the 7600GT, it's only availabe in PCI-Express (this is not the same as PCI) or AGP flavor. You said it's PCI, that's not possible.

What motherboard did you have before it fried? What exact part number is the 7600GT that you have. I actually think you have the AGP version.

Btw, you are severely limiting your system with only 512MB of RAM.

I forgot to ask what kind of Power Supply you have. Does it have a 20pin or 24 pin connector? This will definitely limit what upgrade paths you have.

Now, I'm asking you so much. What goes around, comes around. ;-)

 

[Linkinparkks]

The board that broke was an Asus P4s800, and my graphic card was a fx 5200 agp version, after these two components broke i took out the cpu, hdd, and disk drives. I just left them around as spares, but this week my bro wanted me to build him a gaming rig which is able to play most games on medium, so i went out a bought a Geforce 7600 GT.

I think i'll buying a new box anyway so i not so worried about the power supply.

At the moment these are the components i already have:

- Geforce 7600 GT <---PCI-e
- P4 2.4 (socket 478)
- Samsung DVD/RW
- Seagate 250GB

I would like the new rig to have at least:

- a ddr2 ram (since he's using it for games)
- a mobo which would allow me to overclock and also one which would support pci-e for my Geforce 7600GT

My alocated budget is now $ 300, this is only for the cpu and the mobo.

I think i would like to trade in my cpu and get a Intel Core 2 Duo E6300

so now i would have about $120 for a mobo, know of any good ones for around that price.( its ok if its a bit over budget)

Hope it clears up everything, sorry for not explaining clearly before

 

[purdueguy]

Before you go purchase the E6300 & say the Gigabyte GA-965P-S3 which fits your budget, what PSU do you have? But with a $300 budget, you are not going to get a C2D, a new mobo and a gig of ram. Currently, memory has shot up around %50 percent. The same memory I bought last year for under 80 bucks is around 120 nowadays. You're going to have to add another 130 for memory if this is the case.

This is very important. If the PSU isn't powerful enough than your purchases will be done in vain.

You don't need DDR2 to run games. Upgrading your DDR400 from 512MB to 1GB will be fine. I have an Athlon 2400+ with a gig of RAM & a 6600GT. It allows me to play Neverwinter Nights 2 but on lowest setting. It's playable but I need a better video card & CPU. I'm hoping to get a 2500+ and OC it to 3200+.

You're best bet might be to get an Athlon 64 3200+, a relatively cheap mobo (ASUS A8N-E) and an extra 512MB of DDR400 Ram. This PQI Turbo DDR400 with a MIR will keep the entire update to under $200.

Unfortunately, I can't upgrade to even such a basic Athlon 64 even though I have a 350W PSU. I only have a 20 pin connector and the motherboards for an Athlon 64 require a 24 pin connector. Make sure your PSU has a 24 pin connector but based on the age of your computer, I don't think this is the case.

 

[Linkinparkks]

i can get the ram and the psu from my friends, they have some lying around
after their upgrades, thx the Gigabyte GA-965P-S3 was just what i was looking for.

I'll try asking my bro, i'll let him decide.

Just in case if i can't find these boards at my local store do u know of any other alternative boards for the c2d cpu and also the athlon cpu which would overclock well on a budget.