stonezippy

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Jul 13, 2008
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Currently i'm using:

AMD X2 4400+
2GB corsair ddr500
Asus a8n-sli deluxe (i believe)
evga 7800gt oc 256mb pci-e
74gb raptor
pc-180 antec with 650w antec neo (had to swap this in for an antec noisetaker 480w that just died)
Vista 32bit home premium

I'm going to be upgrading the ram, mobo, cpu, os, and video with:

Intel Core 2 Quad Q9450 Yorkfield 2.66GHz 12MB L2 Cache LGA 775 95W Quad-Core Processor - Retail
OCZ Platinum 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 1066 (PC2 8500) Dual Channel Kit Desktop Memory - Retail

ASUS P5E Deluxe LGA 775 Intel X48 ATX Intel Motherboard - Retail
VisionTek 900244 Radeon HD 4870 512MB 256-bit GDDR5 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready CrossFire Supported Video Card - Retail

and windows vista 64bit home premium

My question is.. is this going to be a decent upgrade? My previous components lasted 2.5 years which is good for me lol.

Thanks
 

dagger

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Consider waiting for 6 more month for the Nehalem to come out. While your rig is old, it's still not that bad, and should be good enough for 6 more month. Nehalem comes with a new socket.
 
If you're looking for the best bang for the buck upgrade it's probably the 4870 GPU and one of the faster AMD CPUs.
(Q9450 missing from the THG charts so use the 2.66Ghz Q6700 as a close estimate)
snag10vm8.jpg


The bulk of any performance improvement in gaming will come from the 4870 video card upgrade.
 

radium69

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I'd rather chose a Q6600 and save some cash,
There are a lot of questions
Will you actually USE the 4 cores (video encoding etc)
If NOT, then go for a cheaper dual core with higher clock speeds.
2nd, It's your cash, I've got a Q6600 and it's very smooth.

Save some money on DDR2 1066, it's just actually overclocked DDR2 800. DDR2 800MHZ is very affordable these days.
Save money, and get a P35/P45 or cheap x38 motherboard. If you want crossfire (2 ATI cards) I suggest you buy a x38 motherboard.

Hope this helps a bit,
Radium
 

stonezippy

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Not sure if i'm going to overclock or not. Also since i'll be using this system for 2/3 years hopefully, i figure a good quad core would be nice to have. atm I prefer intel over amd, price isn't much of an issue. I really like what intel is doing.

Thanks for the ideas guys! Was a member of sharky forums but can't get logged in for some reason, glad to be back on a good computer forum :D
 

groo

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Feb 3, 2008
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your system is similar to mine. I'll be upgrading the gfx first, then mobo and CPU in about 6months to a year. probably a year as I'm thinking about upgrading to a 24" or larger LCD around Christmas.

I think I'd rather have a 9450 over the 6600, but its probably not that big of a difference. you could alway get a dual now, and a quad later on after Nehlem has pushed down 775 prices. maybe hold out for a 1gig version of the 4870. I think it will last longer as more and more non-graphical computing get put on the graphics card (physix), you'll still want 512 for the graphics.

you might want to consider keeping the old box together and selling it as a whole.
 

aznguy0028

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Dec 14, 2007
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well if money isnt' an issue for you...

then +1 to the Q9450 just cuz i own one myself x)

but its a solid cpu, even tho nehalem is gonna come out in ~6 months or so? it'll be priced like crazy cuz of mark ups and such.

not only is the chip itself gonna be expensive, but it'll be DDR3 memory only, and plus you have to buy a new x58 board. all that = tons of money

it won't be at least a year or more, till the price drops down to be affordable or buy-able for most of us.

your upgrade is more than decent, its pretty damn good if i say so myself. i upgrade my computer every 2-2.5 years as well, and im happy w/the one i got now, i think you will be too :)
 

stonezippy

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I like the 9450 reviews i've been reading, also the 90w or whatever is nice. As for the 4870.. i'm honestly thinking about crossfiring this rig once the prices go down a smidge more.. since i'll have to upgrade the antec 650w more than likely. I figure a xfire 4870 combo would last me well into 2/3 years with what i do.
 

aznguy0028

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if you're gonna xfire the 4870, might as well wait a little while longer till the 4870x2 come out, it'll be cheaper than buying two 4870...

and if all the articles are true around the web bout the 4870x2, there will be no microstuttering.
 

stonezippy

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True true.. i'd like to leave it as an option though and i'm ready to upgrade yesterday hehe.. :D