*budget advice* X2 550 BE stock vs e5200 OC

[Accaron]

APPROXIMATE PURCHASE DATE: ASAP

BUDGET RANGE: 500-600 AUD

SYSTEM USAGE FROM MOST TO LEAST IMPORTANT: low end gaming (Wow), uni/work, internet

PARTS NOT REQUIRED: case, gpu, hdd, optical

PREFERRED WEBSITE(S) FOR PARTS: http://www.umart.com.au/newindex2.phtml?bid=2

PARTS PREFERENCES: see below (you may notice I lean towards Gigabyte for boards but it is more due to good past experience than anything else)

OVERCLOCKING: Maybe (see below)

SLI OR CROSSFIRE: Not really.

MONITOR RESOLUTION: 1280x1024

ADDITIONAL COMMENTS:
My current pc is rather ancient (4yrs) with my cpu dragging the chain. i have upgraded the gpu and added memory over the years but am now limited by the motherboard and thereby the CPU/memory.

my budget is not huge at the moment, but poor performance is starting to become a real pain, and i figure i can buy an immediate upgrade and replace gpu/os/case/hdd down the track.
Current case is a Coolermaster Centurion 5 (CAC-T05) (looking at antec 300)

PRICES IN AUD from above preferred website
I am having difficulty coming to a decision on two options:
1)
Initially i had planned to purchase:
Intel Pentium Dual Core E5200/2.5Ghz/2MB CACHE/800FSB/LGA775 - $88
Gigabyte GA-EP45-UD3L P45+ICH10 FSB1600 DDR2 1366+ SATA2 GbN ATX - $148
Patriot 4G(2x2G) PC6400 800Mhz Viper 4-4-4 - $89
Antec ATX EarthWatts 650W - $149
Xigmatek CPU Cooler S1283(CAC-SXHH3-U02) - $53
Xigmatek Crossbow I7761 LGA1366 Kit - $15
Artic Silver 5 Thermal Grease - $15
TOTAL = $557.00

It would be overclocked and therin lies my dilemma. I have limited experience in overclocking, but am willing to experiment. Gotta learn sometime right?

2)
just recently i considered this as an alternative:

AMD Phenom II 550 DualCore 3.1GHz 7MB CACHE 80W BLACK ED - $139
Gigabyte GA-MA770T-UD3P AMD770/SB700 chipset/DDR3 1600 - $135
GSkill 4G(2x2G) DDR3 1333 PC10666 (F3-10666CL9D-4GBNQ) - $92
Antec ATX EarthWatts 650W - $149
Total = $515.00

Stock cooled - ltd to no OC

Basically what i did was take the cost of the 5200 and the adiitional cooling to see what i could get for a similar price at stock.

The second system also has ddr3 vs 2 and there are options for future upgrades if i find myself with some spare cash in the not too distant future (cooling & OC or a better AM3 socket processor).

I realize building with replacement in mind is a tad pointless, but if there is only a slight performance difference between the two, then wouldn't the one with more options be the better idea.(on that note I'm thinking matching the $550 price of build one by including an sli/xfire board in build 2 may be an idea)

Thanks in advance.

 

[goony20]

the amd 720 has been cut by about 20$US in most places when the new amd line came out. have you considered it? Similar price (in between at least), great reputation, good oc with unlocked multiplier, and additional core for multitasking, and the now multi-threaded WOW (only uses two cores, but prolly more in future due to early adoption of multi-threading). Also, you can oc the 720 a little on the stock cooler.

 

[Accaron]

hmm. It looks to be around $190 here in Aus. havent had my eye on it so im not sure if we have followed suit with the price drop.

That would put #2 up around the same price bracket as #1. would i be right in assuming you agree that #2 is the way to go?

(also in hindsight i think i could probably save a bit by going for a 500W. )

 

[Outlander_04]

Id be willing to bet there are stock coolers for AM3 quads selling fairly cheaply on ebay that would fit your amd rig . They would be a cheap way to add additional cooling , so why limit yourself to keeping the Phenom at stock speeds when its ok to OC the e5200?

 

[Accaron]

Your paying $88 for a E5200 then spending $83 on cooling, yet you cant come up with $20 for a cooler on the 550BE?

I see your point. i guess due to my lack of OC experience i was reluctant to go with anything but high quality aftermarket cooling. guess i should have woken up and realized even a low end cooler is going to be better than stock.


So its pretty much settled that i'll be going for either the 550 or 720. any opinions on the motherboard?