Upgrading my gaming PC - What do you think?

[criass]

Hello everyone. I'm a programmer and I'm not very experienced when it comes to buying hardware though I did build my own PC 2 or so years ago. When I built it I didn't make a very good choice for my CPU and its plagued me ever since. So I want to be sure this time that everything I get for my gaming rig is a wise decision that wont anger me in the next 2 years. I figured this is probably the best place to ask more experienced people.

I'm using windows XP pro with sp2. I'm stuck with my 8800gts(640mbs) video card for now and upgrading my CPU, memory, and motherboard. I can spend around $400(US) and after a bit of research this is what I am looking at getting.

CPU: Core 2 Duo E8500
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819115036

Memory: 2GB kit (1GBx2), 240-pin DIMM, DDR2 PC2-8500 - I plan on buying this again when I can afford it to give me 4 gigs of memory.
http://www.crucial.com/store/partspecs.aspx?IMODULE=CT2KIT12864AA1067

Motherboard: ASUS P5Q SE/R LGA 775 Intel P45 ATX Intel Motherboard
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813131335

I will appreciate any thoughts or suggestions from you guys.

-Chris

 

[metalweenis]

Those...are actually wise choices. Unless you desire a quad-core cpu(q6600) then that processor will suit you well. I can't really think of any of parts better than what you've choose suprisingly. I would make sure you get for 4GB of ram though, you'll like it

 

[mexpedip]

Get DDR2 800 @ 1.8v for your mem. Here is a 4gb link for $10 more and $10 less after the mail in rebates. DDR@ 1066 is just OC'd DDR2 800. You hsould be able to get faster speeds out of the mem below. Also, I switched from a very good DDR2 800 to a high end DDR2 1066. There is no noticable difference in performance.

mushkin 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 (PC2 6400) Dual Channel Kit Desktop Memory
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820146731

 

[Proximon]

Get DDR2 800 @ 1.8v for your mem. Here is a 4gb link for $10 more and $10 less after the mail in rebates. DDR@ 1066 is just OC'd DDR2 800. You hsould be able to get faster speeds out of the mem below. Also, I switched from a very good DDR2 800 to a high end DDR2 1066. There is no noticable difference in performance.

mushkin 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 (PC2 6400) Dual Channel Kit Desktop Memory
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820146731

+1

You only need 1066 memory for large overclocks.

 

[ahslan]

pretty good setup...i would definitely add 4gb of ram...

just out of curiosity, what is ur current rig?

 

[criass]

Thanks for the quick replies!

With mexpedip's advice and what I've read about Crucial, I have decided to go with this memory kit:
Crucial 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 (PC2 6400)
http://www.newegg.com/product/product.aspx?Item=N82E16820148160

Ashlon, heres my current rig's specs:
AMD Athlon 64 3700+ 2.2 Ghz
2 sticks of CRAP 512 ddr2 memory(forgot the exact specs)
Nvidia 8800gts 640 mbs
Asus Dual Series Motherboard(don't remember model)
3 different hard drives scavenged from various places. I got about a terabyte of space.

Crap, which reminds me does this new mobo support SATA2? Because my main hard drive is SATA II. Newegg says it has SATA 3Gb/s will that work?
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813131335

I'm not going to purchase this stuff for about another couple of weeks or so, so if anyone has anything else to suggest I'm still all ears.

I really appreciate it!

-Chris

 

[dirtmountain]

Keep an eye on newegg combo deals. Right now the E8400 combined with the Asus PQ Pro is $275 and then another $20 in a rebate. Probably won't be around when you buy, but always check combo deals. Yes it will support SATA II

 

[DXRick]

Spend the extra $10 to get the Mushkin RAM, because it comes with heat spreaders. This will definitely help keep them cool.

 

[Proximon]

Also, the Crucial RAM you listed is CAS 6. You can trust us on the Mushkin listed. It's been the favorite around here for months and is being used in a broad range of machines.

The MB choice is just fine, but as stated do look at combo deals before you buy.

 

[criass]

Proximon and DXrick, I did a quick comparison when I first saw and didn't even notice that the CAS Latency and heat spreaders were different. Thanks for pointing that out.

So I took yalls advice and checked out all of the combo deals and found I can save 5$ on a deal with the E8500 and this Corsair memory kit. 5$ doesn't really matter to me but when i clicked on it the memory kit had a 35$ mail in rebate, making it slightly cheaper, and it has CAS latency of 4, making it slightly faster. So to my noob eyes it appears to be better than the Mushkin kit, with the only difference I see being that the voltage is 2.1V instead of 1.8V.

Does voltage matter a whole lot? Does it just take up a little more power from my power suply, and maybe run a little hotter? Should I still go with the Mushkin kit suggested or would the Corsair kit be the way to go?

Corsair Kit: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820145194

Mushkin Kit: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820146731

-Chris

 

[Proximon]

The real problem with 2.1V is that it tends to be less compatible. Sometimes you have to put a different stick in to get to the BIOS and manually change the voltage to get 2.1V to work.

I think you would likely be happy with either.

 

[xantech22]

if it's for gaming then just keep your cpu and your video card they have more than enough juice. keep your ram also, just add more memory, i need to know your motherboard's model so i can tell you to throw it away or not, or at least tell me that it has 4 DImms (4 memory slots)

if you are using SATA Drives than your mobo is modern enough, any motherboard today supports sata drives, its the standard.

how many watts is your power supply? if it doesnt say and if the casing looks like cheap gray plastic than its time to change man.

Please, don't waste too much money

 

[ahslan]

well the difference between ur current one and the one u build will be like light and day...when i upgraded to a dual core, I finally saw the light!

 

[criass]

xantech22, I don't know if you have ever played games like Crysis on high settings but it requires A LOT of CPU power and the current CPU I have for sure cannot handle this(I don't want to overclock, but I bet if I did, it still wouldn't be able to handle it).

Anyways, its getting close to buy time and I have been keeping my eye on the combo deals. I was surprised to spot that I can save 35$ on this mobo:

ASUS P5Q Pro LGA 775 Intel P45 ATX Intel Motherboard:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813131299

Which is nice because in the future I might buy another 8800gts card and use both cards to do SLI and improve performance.

Ive looked over all the specs and to my n00b eyes it looks like it might work with all my other stuff(not 100% sure about the memory). Just to be safe, I want to get yalls opinion on the decision to go with this board.

To recap this is what I am getting as well as what Im keeping:
________________________________________________________
CPU - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819115036

Memory - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820145194

Video card - Nvidia 8800gts 640 mbs

3 hard drives - 1 is sata II others are connected with the flat wire thing that's wide(forgot what its called, sorry)

1 DVD writer/ 1 CD writer / 1 DVD reader
________________________________________________________


What do you guys think?

-Chris

 

[SiliconX]

With DDR2 prices at the rock-bottom point they are right now, I might try to look for a PC-8500 set, because the prices aren't much different. The E8500 overclocks nicely, and being able to bump that memory up with it is great, and will provide you with some great performance for your dollar.

 

[Proximon]

The motherboard you chose is not an SLI board. P45 is a crossfire chipset.

If you want to run two video cards on that board you will have to use 4850s, or 4870s.

 

[nick3318]

Everything looks good man, just know that like Proximon said you wont be able to run 2 nvidia cards at once on that board. Which isn't that big of a deal as SLI is a huge waste of money in my opinion. But if its going to bug you I'd recommend a EVGA nvidia board.

Once you get that figured out you're looking at a nice set up

 

[criass]

Aw man, I figured that every board with two pci-e slots supported SLI. I'm not sure what crossfire chipset means but i'm guessing it is probably the capability of using two ati cards at once. That's too bad that it doesn't support SLI.

I think I might just go with the second mobo that I looked at then and just upgrade to a better video card when needed. Hopefully my 8800gts can run things on high settings(or close to high) for few more years.

ASUS P5Q SE/R LGA 775 Intel P45 ATX Intel Motherboard - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813131335

I am most likely going to make my purchase tomorrow, so I should get it by the end of the week, and I can begin building it. Hopefully, my build will go ok, and Ill post how it went when its finished.

Thanks again for all of your replies! I have learned quite a bit from this experience.

-Chris