First build... help!

[radha]

Hi. I am researching a new build. My goals briefly

1. over clockable.
2. expandable
3. future proof as much as possible. usuable for 3 years atleast with an occasional upgrade
4. decent graphics. i am not a gamer, flight grear is the most demanding app i use.
5. bang for the buck.
6. wireless networking

And this is what I came up with so far

mobo- Asus M2N32-SLI Deluxe Wireless Edition
cpu- AMD Athlon 64 X2 5600+
ram- OCZ2T8002GK 2GB Kit DDR2-800 PC2-6400 Titanium
video- ASUS EN7900GS/2DHT/256M
hdd- 2x Western digital WD1600AAJS in raid0
case- antec nine hundred
psu- OCZ GameXStream OCZ600GXSSLI ATX12V 600W
display- SAMSUNG 906BW19" 2 ms (GTG) DVI Widescreen LCD
speakers logitech x-540
keyboard logitech G11
mouse logitech G5
dvd writer Samsung SH-S182M/BEBN

all this for approx.$1500. I can push that a little for a better build.
Any issues with this config....will all the pieces go together to make a solid system...any suggestions
Thanks,
Radha

 

[heltoupee]

I'd look at going Intel right now if you want future-proof and overclocking. AMD will be releasing a new socket and processor soon, and I think the AM2 socket is destined to go by the wayside. Look at a motherboard with the nforce i650 chipset, or possibly Intel's P965.

Core2Duo 6300 or 6400 will give you great bang-for-buck if you are overclocking.

Wireless networking is a simple cheap PCI add-on card or even a USB add-on. Get something that is the same brand as the router is, so you can take advantage of built-in speed-increasing features (108 Mbps channel bonding, Pre-N, what-have-you). PLEASE don't base your motherboard choice on the fact that they bundle a WiFi card with it.

Someone else is going to have to help with the RAM, because I don't overclock.

Check out toms new "best gaming card for the buck" article that came out May first for a great breakdown of bang-for-buck video cards.

You should have no problem building a fast core2duo system within your budget.

 

[scoot241]

I agree. Core 2 Duo is the way to go. Get an E6320 or E6420 for an overclocking processor.

I'm a fan of ASUS, but I've never bought their motherboards with built-in wireless. I never saw the need for it, and if I do want to add it, I can plug in any number of USB or PCI cards. I think you'll like the ASUS P5B Deluxe.

I think the RAM you've selected should be good to overclock with, but I don't have much experience with it either.

Since you're overclocking, what's your plan for cooling? Stock cooling isn't going to cut it. There are many avenues to take when it comes to cooling. I don't have any experience with water cooling, but I prefer Thermalright heatsinks. I use an XP-90 on my C2D E6420, and I used it on my P4 2.4GHz before that and it works very well on both of them.

 

[radha]

looks like a lot of research to do
How is E6600 considering oc?
I will take your advice and not look for onboard wireless

 

[heltoupee]

Someone correct me if I'm wrong, but I thought, as an architecture, Core2Duo can go up to a certain point, plus or minus a little depending on which bin your actual processor got put in.

Put more simply - there really is no difference between a 6300 and a 6600, except clock speed. The chips came off of the same wafer, and could have both been destined to be 6600's, but in testing it was found that, for some reason, chip A would be a 6300, and chip B a 6600. This process is called 'binning'.

Now, let's say the best individual C2D processor out there can make it to X.X GHz. The worst one can make it to Y.Y GHz. You'll have a greater chance of finding the best among the 6600's and the worst among the 6300's, because of the testing and then binning of the processors done by Intel at the factory.

Now, some chips (bad overclockers), X.X is much much higher that Y.Y, meaning that each specimen will only overclock a little bit. Others (good overclockers i.e. C2D) X.X is not all that much bigger than Y.Y. This is based on the process they use to make the core, not on the resulting speed bins the chips get filtered into.

Let's use some numbers. lets say X.X is 3.4 GHz and Y.Y is 3.0 GHz (I know these aren't realistic, but bear with me). So, when you are overclocking a chip, you are not paying a certain amount for a certain speed. You pay your money and know you're going to get a chip that will go at least 3.0 GHz. So, now the real deal becomes how much more cash are you willing to spend for a better chance at 3.4? Knowing a 6300 will hit at least 3.0 and costs X, you could spend some more for a 6600 knowing you have a better shot at 3.4, but also knowing your 6300 has a smaller shot at 3.4.

Now, your big deciding factor here is how different X.X is from Y.Y. If they are as close as the example above, the added chance at only 400MHz doesn't justify the cost difference between the 6300 and the 6600. if X.X were 5.0 GHz, then it just might, because the chance for performance increase would be better. It's really just another way of looking at the economics behind it. I don't overclock, so I know exactly what speed I'm getting for what I pay, there's no gamble involved.

To answer your question, a 6600 is a good overclocker, yes. So is a 6300, or any other C2D. You stand the chance to get a bigger speed bump (and more return on your money) with a 6300 than with a 6600 because Y.Y is closer to X.X.

If you're going for maximum speed, then you'll be happier with the 6600, or the 6800, whatever the fastest bin chip is, because it's that group that is most likely to contain the "perfect" C2D. Instead, if you want maximum bang-for-buck, you may want to try a 6300 or even 4300 in this case, because they have a pretty good chance to get close to the speed of that "perfect" C2D at a quarter the cost.

Sorry, I ramble. I hope that's useful to you.

 

[purdueguy]

Video Card: The Sapphire X1950XT is the same price as the ASUS 7900GS at Newegg. The X1950XT stomps the 7900GS. Get the X1950XT. Though, you may want to wait 2 weeks until the HD2900XT comes out. This might cause video cards to drop in price some more.

CPU: The E6600 has a higher multiplier and is only 39 bucks more than the E6420 or E6400. I'd get the E6600 for such a small difference.

I currently say Intel because you say you want to overclock. If you weren't the AMD chip would of been fine as it comparable to the E6400.

Motherboard I'd get the ASUS P5B-E or Gigabyte GA-965P-DS3. I have the Gigabyte version which overclocks well and so does the ASUS model from reviews I've read.

Memory: Corsair XMS2 2x1GB. Same price, better specs and less compatiability issues than the Titanium brand.

Note: If you go to OCZ's website for the Titanium brand, it says it's optimized for nForce 590 boards. If this really means anything, I do not know.

PSU: Since you are not a gamer, the 600W PSU should be fine.

HDD: Personally I like the Seagate 7200.10 Perpendicular Drives. The 320GB version of the models is the best bang for the buck.

Cooling: Two of the best inexpensive aftermarket heatsinks are the Arctic Cooling Freezer 7 Pro (which I have - dropped my temps by 20 deg from stock) and the Cooler Master Hyper TX.

You can get the ACF7 Pro at Ebay for 28 bucks which includes shipping. Easily, the best deal.

I am assuming you already have an OS.

Everything else is fine.