Looking for upgrade recommendations

Simplyblue

October 10, 2007 3:30:40 PM

So, I've started looking into upgrading my motherboard so I can buy and use PCI-E video cards instead of AGP ones. I wanted to see if there was any motherboard out there that might support the the Corsair XMS RAM I currently have. I'm pretty sure I'll have to upgrade my CPU along with my video card, but wasn't sure if my RAM, case and power supply needs to be upgraded too. Here are the specs of what I have currently -

ASUS P4C800-E Deluxe 478 Intel 875P ATX Intel Motherboard
Intel Pentium 4 2.8C Northwood 2.8GHz Socket 478 Processor Model BX80532PG2800D
CORSAIR XMS 2GB (4 x 512MB) 184-Pin DDR SDRAM DDR 400 (PC 3200)
ATI 100-713100 Radeon 9800PRO 128MB 256-bit DDR AGP 4X/8X All-In-Wonder Video Card
APEX AL-B450E ATX 450W Power Supply
ThermalTake 10 ATXF XASERII A5000C RT

Appreciate any suggestions/help.

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o1die

Motherboard Master

October 10, 2007 7:23:41 PM

I would part out all of your old system on ebay, except for the case, and reuse your copy of windows. Vista isn't necessarily any better for gaming and overall speed. Your power supply is marginal, so you can use it for a spare. I shop for combo deals at Fry's, since I don't overclock. Today, they have a 6750 dual core Intel with ecs g31 board for $219, and 160 gig maxtor sata II for $50, just some examples. Also available is an antec 500w power supply for $50. If you don't live near Fry's, I would check slickdeals.net for similar deals. And Black Friday isn't far away; only about 6 weeks to go. For video, set a budget and check newegg for rebate offers. The 8600gt has dropped to $120-130 for some brands. The abit ip35-e is also a great board for $71 after rebate at mwave.

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g-paw

October 10, 2007 8:57:05 PM

You'll need both the CPU and RAM because the new cards are using DDR2. Depending on the video card you may need a new PSU. What is your budget? That will dictate your choices.

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Simplyblue

October 11, 2007 11:20:38 AM

Thanks for the suggestions so far. I'm setting my budget to be around $1000 for all upgrades. I'm pretty happy with my setup as of right now but was mainly concerned about my video card not supporting Vertex/Pixel Shader 3.0 for some of the recent games. I could just look for an AGP card and squeeze out another year out of this system and then maybe look to do a complete overhaul. What do you guys think?

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Wolfshadw

Motherboard Expert

October 11, 2007 12:34:02 PM

I think it's time for a complete overhaul

1) Case - COOLER MASTER Centurion 534 - $49.99
2) Motherboard - Abit IP35-E - $94.99
3) CPU - Intel Core2Duo E6750 - $196.99
4) RAM - A-Data Value Series DDR2-667 2 Gig (2x1024Meg) - $49.99
5) Video Card - EVGA Geforce 8600GTS - $164.99
6) Power Supply - Corsair 520HX - $119.99
7) Hard Drive - Seagate 320GB SATA 3.0 - $69.99
8) DVD Burner - LG Electronics Super Multi - $28.99

Total Cost before MIR: $775.92 + S&H
Total Cost after MIR: $715.92 + S&H

This leaves some head room for other options like a new OS or a better graphics card (I checked adding the 8800GTS-640 and it came too close to your $1000 budget), or a different case.

-Wolf sends

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g-paw

October 11, 2007 3:55:31 PM

Wolfshadw said:

I think it's time for a complete overhaul

1) Case - COOLER MASTER Centurion 534 - $49.99
2) Motherboard - Abit IP35-E - $94.99
3) CPU - Intel Core2Duo E6750 - $196.99
4) RAM - A-Data Value Series DDR2-667 2 Gig (2x1024Meg) - $49.99
5) Video Card - EVGA Geforce 8600GTS - $164.99
6) Power Supply - Corsair 520HX - $119.99
7) Hard Drive - Seagate 320GB SATA 3.0 - $69.99
8) DVD Burner - LG Electronics Super Multi - $28.99

Total Cost before MIR: $775.92 + S&H
Total Cost after MIR: $715.92 + S&H

This leaves some head room for other options like a new OS or a better graphics card (I checked adding the 8800GTS-640 and it came too close to your $1000 budget), or a different case.

-Wolf sends

Nice system, very upgradable

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