Hello all. Just looking for some advice on updateing my gameing rig on the cheap. This system was built roughly the time that HL2 hit the shelf. I used it mostly to play WoW, which it ran decent over the years for me. But now I am hitting a wall when it comes to newer games.

I am currently running (dont laugh, it was built long ago):
AMD XP 2500 @ 2.1 ghz
DFI Lan Party nForce 2
1 gig or XMS PC 3500
eVga GeForce 5900
160 gig WD Sata
450 watt PS (forgot the brand since it was painted to match the inside of the case)
NEC 16x dvd burner

I would love to get a new Intel chip but it it currently out of the budget as I am only looking to spend roughly $400 or so on upgrades. So thats leaves me back in the AMD camp. Here is a list of gearI am looking into, please offer any input you can since its been awhile since I really looked into whats out for system building.

AMD 64 X2 (65 W) $65
GIGABYTE GA-M57SLI-S4 Socket AM2 NVIDIA nForce 570 SLi $95
CORSAIR XMS2 2GB DDR 2 800 $107 ( The Crucial Ram is a option as well)

Here comes the big debate:
EVGA 256-P2-N751-TR GeForce 8600GT $114
or
PNY VCG7900SXPB GeForce 7900GS 256MB $139
I normally only run games at 1280x1024 and both cards seem to test about the same at that resolution. I also plan on getting another card and running Sli when money permits.

One last question what Size PS should I go with for these parts, factoring in SLi at a later date, and what would be the most cost efficent PS .

Thanks for looking and sorry for the long post.

Here is what I would look at:

CPU : $61.50
AMD Athlon 64 X2 3600+ Brisbane 1.9GHz 2 x 512KB L2 Cache Socket AM2 Processor - Retail
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6819103046

Mobo : $97 (same mobo you selected)
GIGABYTE GA-M55SLI-S4 Socket AM2 NVIDIA nForce4 SLI ATX AMD Motherboard - Retail
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6813128321

Video Card: Toss up. If you want Dx10 Version 1 than go with 8600gt, but 7900gs will perform much better on most games, so you can decide that. I would go with the x1950pro from ATI, but if that was the case I would go with a crossfire ready board (if you wanted to do duals later). I wouldn't worry about the SLI thing, if your only using 1280x1024. I would just upgrade your video card later, when you need a new one.

Finally if you don't go SLI, which I don't think you would with your resolution, you could get a cheaper board and afford a better PSU and/or video card. Plus you won't have to worry about spending a bundle on a higher powered PSU to boot!

So I would at least get this PSU: $95
FSP Group (Fortron Source) Blue Storm II 500 ATX 2.2V 500W Power Supply 100 - 240 V UL, CSA, VDE, NEMKO, CNS, CE, CB, FCC - Retail
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6817104034

That should get you plenty of good power and with a >%80 efficiency will do your power bill well.

There are alot of other PSU's out there that can run and single video card out there for less $, but it's always good to have a clean and powerful PSU to run things.

P.S. You will probably need a bigger PSU if you go SLI later, so keep that in mind.

My 2cp's