Picking a main board and memory

[Palladin888]

OK here goes.

ok i have a ton of questions and i thought it would be easier to be lazy here instead of spending hours researching the answers to all my questiosn. I am planing to put together a gaming comp on a very tite budget. I already know my bigest exspence will be my motherboard and processor. I'm not gona spend more than $200 on a motherboard processor combo. I want to put together a well balanced system that works as smooth as possable. It will have XP on it. I never plan to overclock. I'm also not sure what chipset would be best for a comp specificly build for gaming.


I want this combo to include PCIE 2.0 at least, DDR2 memoryat least 4gig, At least a duelcore 3000MHz processor, sata HD connections

**I'm not interested in SLI at all**

I have already decided to use the nvidia GeForce 9400 GT graphics card

 

[nerrawg]

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

= $95 or $80 after rebate

and CPU:
Intel Core 2 Duo E7400 Wolfdale 2.8GHz 3MB L2 Cache LGA 775
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819115206
$120

Intel Pentium E5200 Wolfdale 2.5GHz 2MB L2 Cache LGA 775
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819116072
$73

This latter cpu is definitely the best bang for the buck - overclocks to 3.5 Ghz all the time, and sometimes as high as 4 Ghz - just a bit less cache memory, but for a budget system your processor speed will make the biggest difference. Used the saved money on GPU, it is the most important part for gaming.

However you said you don't overclock, so you're gonna be stuck with much lower performance, but then AMD is probably a better choice.

CPU:
AMD Athlon 64 X2 6000+ Windsor 3.0GHz 2 x 1MB L2 Cache Socket AM2 125W Dual-Core Processor
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819103773
$75

Motherboard:
BIOSTAR TFORCE TA790GX A2+ AM2+/AM2 AMD 790GX HDMI ATX AMD Motherboard - Retail
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813138128
$99, $89 after rebate

There are lots of other 790GX AMD boards, but the above is the cheapest and the other brands are really no more dependable, so unless you're a fan boy or looking for specific extra features its a good deal

Again, use the extra money on the GPU, in gaming it is all that counts. You could buy a 2.0 GHz processor and combine it with a Nvidea 9600 GSO - 9800 GT or ATI 4670, 4830. These setups would smash an overclocked core i7 at 4.0 GHz and a 9400 GT for performance in most games. The 9800 GT or 4830 being the best picks in GPU for your above system.

Good Luck!

 

[Palladin888]

Thanks for the info.... one thing I failed to mention is I am trying to build a sustem that is upgradable. The specs I listed are what I can aford now to get the minimum performace required for the current gaming market. I would also like to be able to upgrade to a better processor and vid card some time in the next year or so.

So basicly i am geting minimum everything right now with an eye for upgrading some time in the next 12 months and still be at the current gaming tech lvl at that time.

My goal is to be able to upgrade to the $200 range on the processor and vid card.

 

[nerrawg]

In that case I would definitely say AMD as long as the motherboard is AM2+ compatible. This is because Intel is shifting toward the LGA 1366 socket (Core i7) from the LGA 775 socket (core 2 duo, quad). The current LGA 1366 socket motherboards start from $200s up. AMD motherboards on the other hand will work with their newest chips as long as the motherboards are AM2+ compatible, so look for AM2+ compatible motherboards, these are either 790GX or FX chipsets, however FX are more expensive and not necessary. Then you can upgrade down the line to an AMD phenom II processor and either a beefier graphics card or an ATI crossfire dual GPU configuration.

 

[DiscoDuck]

That 9400gt video card is about the same as an old 6600gt. If you plan on playing any FPS games, that card is worthless, I have one. I do want to sell it though I replaced it with an older 7600gs and its much faster now in games. I wouldnt put anything Ndivia in a box lower than 8600gt or 9500gt for gaming up to 1024x768.

 

[Palladin888]

Discoduck

I don't do FPS games ...ever. I am an MMORPG gamer. I do alot of RTS type games too but nothing so grphics heavy as the FPS games are. I know the GeForce 9400 would suck for FPS but don't think I need anything bigger than a 9400 at this time for games like Darkfall(due to release this month suposedly) , WOW, Eve, Vanguard or Mass Affect.

nerrawg
I don't typycally bother with intel architecture when building gaming machines. I have always prefered AMD for this purpoose.
From all the reading I have done about duel graphics cards I cant see doing that to be much advantage for the types of games I generally play. For now I am gona stick with the 9400 hell its only $50 and it meets my finatial and graphics demands for the time being.

So for now i am looking for a 790gx motherboard and probably a phenom II duel core processor in the 2 GHZ range.

got any sugestions on this?

 

[Palladin888]

Ok so heres what i am thinking of getting

AMD Athlon X2 7750 Black Edition Processor AD775ZWCGHBOX - 2.70GHz, 1MB L2 Cache, 2MB L3 Cache, 1800MHz (3600 MT/s) FSB, Kuma, Dual-Core, Unlocked Multiplier, Retail, Socket AM2+, Processor

This Mobo is upgradable to a quad core processor if i should ever decide to upgrade to one

Gigabyte
Model GA-MA790GP-DS4H

I am gona use the GeForce 9400 as a place hold for a few months till i can aford the Diamond ATI Radeon™ HD 4870

So what do you all think about this rig?

 

[nerrawg]

Good choice there with both the cpu and motherboard. If you ever want to oc the cpu it should be really easy because all you have to do is increase the multiplier. Also gigabyte boards are generally very solid. If you later upgrade the GPU will most likely see the best increase in performance in newer strategy games like supreme commander, world in conflict and the upcoming Empire Total War, however the games you listed above are much older (or use older rendering tech) and should run very well on your proposed rig.

 

[Palladin888]

My only problem now is it seems that none of the local PC shtores have the motherboard or processor. I greatly prefer buying from local shops where i can deal with a person directly. I've heard tons of horror stories from people buying off the internet.

I've found that in many cases the mother board automaticly adapts to new processors. I've never had to do it manually. I'm hoping i wont have to here if i ever upgrade the processor.

 

[Palladin888]

any sugestions for memory for this rig.

 

[nerrawg]

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231122
G skill, excellent memory and cheap, 4 GB is good for Vista, only need 2 GB for XP, although 4 GB can't hurt and is much cheaper per GB. 4GB = $45, 2GB = $34

Actually if you are on a real tight budget get this:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231121

G skill 2 GB for $24