~$500 CDN Partial System (Mobo, CPU, RAM, Case)

[zarxman]

Background Info:

I currently got an AMD Dual Core 5800+, 2 gigs RAM, some MSI motherboard and an 8800GTX with a 550W PS. Runs good, but my friend (read below) is offering to swap me video cards for a bit of cash. Im thinking that if I get the 285GTX off him, and then replace my mobo/ram/cpu, I'll have a great upgrade for a pretty small amount of cash by recycling parts.

I have a neighbour who knows how to build and put it together but he's not really good with gaming knowledge of hardware, so I've come to you people in hopes I can get some help

Basically, I'm looking to spend around 500 canadian dollars on a motherboard, CPU and RAM kit to upgrade my PC. I guess quad-core and DDR3 is what I'm looking for and am likely going to get.


APPROXIMATE PURCHASE DATE: Most likely sometime this August, maybe even September.

SYSTEM USAGE FROM MOST TO LEAST IMPORTANT: Gaming

PARTS NOT REQUIRED: Alright here is where I also want to ask something. A friend of mine recently got his computer replaced by Dell for basically no reason. Being on the end of his 3 year extended warranty, the new computer they sent him was pretty much decked out and he got a 285GTX with it. He doesn't really play games that require graphics. He's offering to trade me video cards (I got an 8800GTX) plus $100 payment from me. I figure 100 bucks is worth it for the swap. Just want your opinions because if its a good swap, then I won't be needing to buy a video card.

I have a good power supply ( cant remember specifically because im overseas atm but I believe its 550W, specially built for nvidia cards), so don't need one.

My hard drive is fine.




PREFERRED WEBSITE(S) FOR PARTS: I don't really have much experience with this. I'm in Toronto, Canada, and I have a wholesale supplier here for parts which I can compare to any sites that you can direct me to, but preferrably somewhere where the shipping won't kill any potential savings I'd get from going to my supplier.

PARTS PREFERENCES: No preferences. I just want the most bang for my buck.

OVERCLOCKING: Again, my neighbour would be putting it together for me. If you can direct me to some safe ways to overclock that don't run the risk of frying my computer, I'm certain my neighbour could do the required installing and setting up for it, he has a high degree of techinical knowledge, both hardware and software.

MONITOR RESOLUTION: I use my Vizio 47 inch 1080p TV for my computer use.

ADDITIONAL COMMENTS: I figure with the upgrade, I should also look at getting a new case. There's nothing WRONG with mine, but its old, its always open because I don't know where the cover is, and its a bit crowded in there. Im looking at some basic Antec cases that are cheap and look to be spacious and have tons of built-in fans that can keep my computer cool. I'd keep the case cost seperate from the 500ish I'd spend on the upgrades. Any advice for a case would be much appreciated as well.


I hope I included everything, and thanks for the help in advance!

 

[computersss]

if the gtx 285 is working well then go and get it from him quickly the standard Evga gtx 285 is for 405 CDN and the 8800 gtx is in the 100s range so do you really think that the only reason he want to trade it that he doesn't game much ?!!!! make sure that the card is working well and not overheating or something like this because he the 100 you are paying plus about 150 or less=250 CDN that means he is giving it to you with a 150CDN less than the price on newegg.

for the build get

ASUS M4A78T-E AM3 AMD 790GX HDMI ATX AMD Motherboard - Retail

http://www.newegg.ca/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813131366

AMD Phenom II X4 955 Black Edition Deneb 3.2GHz Socket AM3 125W Quad-Core Processor Model HDZ955FBGIBOX - Retail
OCZ Gold 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Dual Channel Kit Desktop Memory Model OCZ3G16004GK - Retail

http://www.newegg.ca/Product/ComboDealDetails.aspx?ItemList=Combo.207124

total=492$

 

[zarxman]

We are good friends, so he isn't trying to screw me. For him, he wont notice a difference in playing 5 year old PC games on an 8800 vs his 285gtx, and he'll pocket 100 bucks.

I was also considering (for now) maybe just buying a quad-core CPU and sticking it into my current computer to replace my old dual-core. My motherboard is:

http://www.msicomputer.com/product/p_spec.asp?model=K9A_Platinum&class=mb

My question is, what is the best CPU that can still fit into this old motherboard?

If there's a decent enough CPU that can go into my K9A, I might just buy it and hold off another year or two and re-do my system almost entirely.

Thanks for the reply, I've bookmarked those sites. The combo deal looks pretty good actually, and I might be able to find the same mobo for cheaper locally.

 

[computersss]

you won't find any decent cpu that this mobo supports,the best to do is to get the gtx 285 and i made some changes for you for 485$ same processor,another mobo but doesn't support more than 1 video card and supports only ddr2 anyway this won't matter and i chose an excellent case for you too

Antec Nine Hundred Black Steel ATX Mid Tower Computer Case - Retail

http://www.newegg.ca/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811129021

G.SKILL 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 (PC2 6400) Dual Channel Kit Desktop Memory Model F2-6400CL5D-4GBPQ - Retail

http://www.newegg.ca/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231122

AMD Phenom II X4 955 Black Edition Deneb 3.2GHz Socket AM3 125W Quad-Core Processor Model HDZ955FBGIBOX - Retail
MSI 770-C45 AM3 AMD 770 ATX AMD Motherboard - Retail

http://www.newegg.ca/Product/ComboDealDetails.aspx?ItemList=Combo.212179

 

[zarxman]

I Can get the Antec Three Hundred for $63CDN, because the Nine Hundred is a bit pricey. I don't care what my case looks like, as long as its functional and my current one is just getting a bit crowded and hot, I don't need an ultra-premium one.


Thanks for all your help. I'll let you know what I decide.

 

[computersss]

i was just drunk when i chose the case lol for that budget of course the antec 300 or the cooler master 590 would be better choice

 

[zarxman]

Oh and I realized if im going with a mobo that runs on DDR2, I can use the 2G of RAM I currently have, and add another 2 gigs for even less.

I was reading Best Gaming CPU's for Money July 2009, and it recommended the E8500 from Intel. It's about 30 bucks cheaper from my supplier (I think getting it locally will be both faster, easier and the same price if not cheaper slightly than Newegg).

From what I gather, quad-core isn't all that important, especially for gaming (yet?). I get that probably in the future, games will be programmed to take advantage of multi-core gaming, but as it stands, most games only use 2 cores?

With such similarity in price, is the E8500 really better than the 955 AMD Phenom II?

 

[computersss]

well i really wouldn't recommend going with socket LGA 775(the core 2 duo and core 2 quad series) as this socket became an outdated and as you see if you wanted to upgrade you won't be able as intel stopped making new LGA 775 processors,they are now working on the I5 processors which would be a cheaper alternative for the i7 so for now i really recommend the the 955 with overclocking it would be on par with the i7 in most games,so amd phenom+770 mobo and gtx 285 and may be a good cooler for overclocking=great gaming pc

 

[zarxman]

Well the thing is, my hard drive is good, so is my power supply and I've got all the other little things that will help keep the cost of my upgrade very low. I'm thinking to do this upgrade now so that I can hold off on buying a completely new system for another 2 years or so.

I've had my current system for about 3 and it's still going great, but I figure a few hundred and it can be a whole lot better.

Also, for overclocking, would you OC both the CPU and video card? And what kind of cooling system and how much would it cost? Can it be done in a safe manner? I'm completely green when it comes to overclocking but I'd be interested in doing it if it could boost performance.