Price/Performance?

[DAstler]

Ok guys, I'm on a tight budget and could use your help on deciding what components to purchase. I've done some research, and some backreading on the forums and this is the build that I've come up with:

Mobo:
BIOSTAR TForce965PT

CPU:
Core 2 Duo E6400

VGA:
XFX GeForce 7900GS

RAM:
SUPER TALENT 2GB DDR2 800

Explanation for choosing parts:
Mobo- I choose this one based on some threads in the overclocking forum, also based on reviews from anandtech. The board was chosen mostly for its cheap cost and great overclockability; anandtech got an E6300 up to a 505 mHz fsb here.

CPU- Do I really need to say anything? Conroe is excellent, and barring a huge mistake I should easily be able to reach 3 gHz with this cpu.

VGA- This is one of the components I'm not too sure about. People on the forums seem to think this is a good board for the money atm, and that seems good enough to me. It's got a $40 rebate from newegg bringing the price down by about 20% which is a great deal. I'm mainly buying this card as a placeholder until I can save up enough money to get a decent dx10 card somewhere down the line.

RAM- This is the other component I'm not sure about. I don't claim to know anything about RAM because I don't. I was looking mainly for some mid-range ram that would perform well with my c2d. Anandtech seemed to think that they were good dimms for the price, and that is the main thing that swayed me. This is the component that I'm most open to suggestions about, so recommend away.

The rest of the build will be salvaged from my last computer that a friend helped to put together. Sound Blaster Audigy 2 ZS, 19" lcd, case, 500w aspire psu, and a Cooler Master Hyper 6+ aftermarket hs will all be transfered.

My budget is about $700-750, and the computer would mostly be used for gaming, a little video editing, torrents, and other general usage like e-mail and word processing. I plan to oc the E6400 to about 3.0 gHz, or more if possible. Any suggestions that would lower the overall cost without sacrificing performance would be awesome. Also, if there are any components that could increase performance, but keep the cost the same, that would be great too. Thanks for reading guys, and thanks in advance for any suggestions that are made.

- noob in distress
Doug

 

[The_Prophecy]

Suggested Changes:

Video Card: eVGA Geforce 7900GS <--- Jut as good of a brand, but better clocks on both the RAM and core, plus $10 cheaper.

Mobo: Gigabyte GA-965P-DS3 <--- The solid capacitors on this board really help stability. I have a C2D E6600 OC'ed to 3.2Ghz (400FSB with CPU multiple lowered to 8), with it constantly running SETI@Home. It hasn't even so much as hiccuped while i've had it running. Anandtech may have got that Biostar board up to a 505Mhz FSB, but I highly doubt they had it there for very long. This Gigabyte board with a volt mod can reach 535Mhz too.

RAM: OCZ Gold 2GB (2 x 1GB) DDR2-800 <---- MUCH better brand than Super Talent, better timings, and only $1 more.

CPU: Honestly I would only ever buy an E6300, or an E6600. These chips overclock so well (given good enough supporting hardware, which isn't hard to find) that I try to steer people away from the added cost of the respective next models up.

 

[clutchstrike]

Going along with what The_Prophecy stated, I would go with the XFX GeForce 7900GS Extreme. It is an overclocked version of the card you picked, and it is only 5 dollars more expensive.

 

[DAstler]

Thanks for the input guys,

I've updated the mobo to the gigabyte as recommended by The_Prophecy. I was actually looking at that board as my secondary option. I've also updated the vga to an XFX GeForce 7900GS Extreme as recommended by clutchstrike.

I just have one question regarding the cpu. What is the advantage of buying an E6300 over an E6400 if I can reach the same fsb, but have an 8x multipier with the E6400? It seems like a much better deal to me for the extra $37. If someone could explain this to me that would be awesome.

Thanks again for the advice, and as always, all help is greatly appreciated.

update: forgot to mention I changed the ram to the ocz as per The_Prophecy.

 

[The_Prophecy]

If you are planning on getting your CPU to a certain frequecy, then save the money and buy the 6300. These chips can all overclock to around the same frequency (provided adequate cooling is in place). I told a friend to get an E6300 about 2 months ago. He has since overclocked it to 3.0 with the same cooler I have.

 

[DAstler]

Thanks for all the quick responses, I love the people on this forum for being so helpful.

I think I understand why an E6300 is better for my purposes now, thanks The_Prophecy. CPU now updated to an E6300.

I cannot express how grateful I am for your guys' help. Thank you so much!