$600 system, does this look right?

[gnarmis]

Allright, so, although I'm not committed to this fully, here's the specs...


GIGABYTE GA-EP43-DS3L LGA 775 Intel P43 ATX Intel Motherboard - Retail $94.99

Intel Core 2 Duo E7200 Wolfdale 2.53GHz LGA 775 65W Dual-Core Processor Model BX80571E7200 - Retail $124.99

Rosewill R5601-BK 0.8mm Japanese Cold Rolled Steel Screw-less Dual 120mm Fans ATX Mid Tower Computer Case - Retail $52.99

SAPPHIRE 100226L Radeon HD 3850 512MB 256-bit GDDR3 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready CrossFire Supported Video Card - Retail $99.99

Seagate Barracuda 7200.10 ST3250310AS 250GB 7200 RPM SATA 3.0Gb/s Hard Drive - OEM $54.99

Sony NEC Optiarc 20X DVD±R Burner Black SATA Model AD-7200S-0B - OEM $25.99

HEC ACE-580UB 580W ATX12V Power Supply - Retail $59.99

WINTEC AMPX 2GB (2 x 1GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 (PC2 6400) Dual Channel Kit Desktop Memory Model 3AXT6400SE5-2048K - Retail $39.99

Microsoft Windows Vista Home Premium SP1 32-bit English 1pk for System Builders DSP OEI DVD - OEM $

ARCTIC COOLING Freezer 7 Pro 92mm CPU Cooler - Retail $31.99

The total w/out MIR or shipping is $581.92.


Should I invest in a mobo that supports crossfire? Can the PSU handle it? ALso, how much of a jump would it be? ~50 is ok I think...

 

[genzeleam]

I'd personally go for 4GB of memory. Other than that, after a quick look, sounds good.

 

[spunks]

I would up the power supply to a corsair 650tx (currently on sale at newegg for 79.99 after $30 rebate). It has a single massive 52 amp 12volt rail, so your video card will never have to fight for power. The HEC hasa 18 amp and a 17 amp 12v rail, but you rarely know how they divide it up in the cables .You would assume that the PCI-E connector would have a dedicated one, but it usually doesnt. Also, the cosair is 80+ percent efficent, where this one is only greater than 75%, which will save you some power and make less heat. Your obviously intending to overclock, so a strong foundation in the motherboard and power supply is important. I think that gigabyte board at least has all solid state capacitors, but one with a heat pipe across the voltage regulators would be nicer (but more money). only worry about the heat pipe if you intend to really push the cpu voltages (and memory and north bridge as well).





spunks

 

[roadrunner197069]

Instead of a xfire mobo spend the extra on a 4850, you wont be sad.

 

[gnarmis]

I agree, there needs to be less heat if I can help it...
This OCZ stealthxstream is pretty impressive, and 54 after MIR:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817341010

I also think I should upgrade to Asus PQ5 mobo, as it's stable and OC'able. I'm a newb at OC'ing, but there's enough resources here and so many other places to read up...

 

[zipz0p]

^ That isn't an xfire mobo. It's a P43 chipset.

I'd look for a better PSU. You don't need that many watts, but a higher quality unit will be better in the long run. The 650tx is more than you will need. Try the 450VX.

Edit:
If you can spare a little more, step up to a 3870, or 8800GT

 

[spunks]

the OCZ looks like a better choice, at least in power efficeicny. The cosair 450vx mentioned is also pretty efficent and cost a similar amount. It also sticks to the single twelve volt rail (33amp), which I tend to favor because I've had artifacting issues with video cards that were on dual rails. Either ones is a good choice, though i would stick with my first choice if you think you'll ever upgrade to something like a hd4870 x2 (dual gpu video card)






spunks

 

[WR2]

Your "other" thread;
http://www.tomshardware.com/forum/253945-31-newbie-build-upgradeable

 

[th_username]

omg another thread

 

[shadowthor]

+1 get a better psu, and quit posting everywhere.

 

[gnarmis]

yea lol...wish I could delete this thread....
refer to the other one...