In a few days I'll be ordering parts to build a new system (replacing a 4-year-old Barton system). I'll be doing some moderate gaming - WoW, CoD2, Medieval II Total War, etc. I don't expect this rig to run Oblivion or upcoming games with maximum eye candy, but I do want it to be as powerful as possible for $900 - $1000. I don't have a firm budget ceiling but I'm looking for maximum value for money.
A few questions before I list the parts:
1. Will current LGA775 motherboards be compatible with Penryn? As best I understand they will be, and I was hoping to upgrade the processor sometime next year.
2. I know it's hypothetical, but assuming the answer to #1 is yes, please comment on whether you think the PSU I've selected will likely be sufficient to power next-year's graphics cards (I will never be using SLI or Crossfire) and a Penryn processor.
Monitor:
ViewEra V202D-B 20.1" LCD, $180 after rebate
Case:
Cooler Master Centurion 5, $50
Power Supply:
OCZ StealthXStream 600W, $85 after rebate
Motherboard:
Gigabyte GA-965P-DS3 (hopefully I get rev 3.3?), $120
Processor:
Core 2 Duo E4300 (I plan to up the FSB to 400 and hopefully OC to around 3ghz), $117
CPU HSF:
Arctic Cooling Freezer 7 Pro with Arctic Silver 5, $40
RAM:
2GB of Crucial Ballistix DDR2 800, $70 after rebate
Graphics card:
BFG 7950GT 256MB, $140 after rebate and twenty dollar combo discount with the Crucial RAM
HDD:
Seagate Barracuda 320MB 7200RPM SATA, $75 (also plan to use a 60GB IDE HDD from my old computer)
CD/DVD combo drive:
Sony NEC Optiarc DVD burner, $31
** Total cost: $910 ** (all parts from Newegg)
I will either use the onboard sound on my mobo or an old Soundblaster card that I have already. Speakers, keyboard, and mouse from my old rig. Any feedback or comments would be much appreciated.
A few questions before I list the parts:
1. Will current LGA775 motherboards be compatible with Penryn? As best I understand they will be, and I was hoping to upgrade the processor sometime next year.
2. I know it's hypothetical, but assuming the answer to #1 is yes, please comment on whether you think the PSU I've selected will likely be sufficient to power next-year's graphics cards (I will never be using SLI or Crossfire) and a Penryn processor.
Monitor:
ViewEra V202D-B 20.1" LCD, $180 after rebate
Case:
Cooler Master Centurion 5, $50
Power Supply:
OCZ StealthXStream 600W, $85 after rebate
Motherboard:
Gigabyte GA-965P-DS3 (hopefully I get rev 3.3?), $120
Processor:
Core 2 Duo E4300 (I plan to up the FSB to 400 and hopefully OC to around 3ghz), $117
CPU HSF:
Arctic Cooling Freezer 7 Pro with Arctic Silver 5, $40
RAM:
2GB of Crucial Ballistix DDR2 800, $70 after rebate
Graphics card:
BFG 7950GT 256MB, $140 after rebate and twenty dollar combo discount with the Crucial RAM
HDD:
Seagate Barracuda 320MB 7200RPM SATA, $75 (also plan to use a 60GB IDE HDD from my old computer)
CD/DVD combo drive:
Sony NEC Optiarc DVD burner, $31
** Total cost: $910 ** (all parts from Newegg)
I will either use the onboard sound on my mobo or an old Soundblaster card that I have already. Speakers, keyboard, and mouse from my old rig. Any feedback or comments would be much appreciated.
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