System Weakpoints- Point them out w/ solutions

[monsterman]

I believe my system is pretty fluid and even. I would like to iron out any weak point or keep eyes out for cheap upgrades to possibly improve performance and extend the life of this current build.

E8400 @ 3.8
Sunbeam CR-CCTF 120 cpu cooler
GIGABYTE GA-EP45-UD3P LGA 775 Intel P45
Gskill Pi Black 4gig ddr2 800 @ like ~830 w/ bus at 417ish I think
XFX 5850 Black Edition @ 850/1150 1gig
2 WD Caviar Black 640 gig in Raid 0
Lite On DVD
OCZ stealthxstream 600watt
HP 25.5" 1900x1200 (sweet display)
Windows 7 professional 64 bit

How long will this above system last in its current configuration playing games at max and be comfortably enthusiast?

My only guess is to keep an eye out for cheap DDR2 1066+ memory to overclock my existing processor to 4.0+
or up the memory to 1200 mhz and add a Q9550. But from what I read it wont make too huge of a difference in most games that are out at this point.

I game at max max settings. I install custom UI's and tweak games to look like I want. I hate "medium" or "almost the best" settings. Screw that!

Thanks for the advice.

 

[treefrog07]

Until you want another system?

Looks good! If you're stable - game away!

 

[monsterman]

Until you want another system?

Looks good! If you're stable - game away!

It's very stable. What does mean?

 

[dndhatcher]

If you take up a game like GTA4 you might want to get a quad cpu, but your system is better than most and will be for a few years.

 

[Newf]

...How long will this above system last in its current configuration playing games at max and be comfortably enthusiast?...

My guess is a couple of years.
No SSD yet?

 

[monsterman]

My guess is a couple of years.
No SSD yet?

I don't mind load times. I will get one as a boot/game drive when the good ones fall below $120

 

[Newf]

OK, well don't waste your time and $$$ upgrading a socket775 cpu or memory.
What you have is as fast as it will ever feel.
Only an SSD will give you a noticeable speed bump.

 

[monsterman]

I have been reading benchmarks on SSD's. It wont improve my FPS or image quality. The noticeable perk it would give my system is not worth the money yet. If I got an SSD I would put it in my MacBook Pro and put that hard drive in a portable external case. I use my Mac for internet browsing, facebook, and gaming research. Very often having 10-15 web pages up at once.
Plus the resale value of a Macbook Pro with SSD is very high.

 

[treefrog07]

It's very stable. What does mean?

It's so bright and shiny, I needed sunglasses.
You have a great system, with balanced components and plenty of power. You won't need to do anything to it until you want to upgrade - there's what 3 DirectX 11 games out?

 

[Newf]

My E8400 is getting kinda old, but Win7 still loves it. With an OCZ 120GB it's good until I need to replace my 8800 G92 with whatever's best. The OP does not have the videocard issue. If I were the OP I'd open the case and clean off the fans, filters and heatsinks and call it a day...

 

[blackjellognomes]

Bumping your ram bus up to 422 should put it at a 1:1 ratio with your cpu right? Someone correct me if i'm wrong.
Your system is solid, as others have said, and an upgrade to a quad wouldn't be worth it unless you basically build a new i5/i7/AM3 pc. Though with that heatsink and mobo, you could push your e8400 to 4.0ghz (and ram bus to 445).

 

[MGHolley]

I believe my system is pretty fluid and even. I would like to iron out any weak point or keep eyes out for cheap upgrades to possibly improve performance and extend the life of this current build.

E8400 @ 3.8
GIGABYTE GA-EP45-UD3P LGA 775 Intel P45

I'm about to build a similar system from spare parts...did just order the same motherboard. Quick question for you....do you know what the Intel RAID option ROM version is? 8.x.x.xxxx (Not the version of the storage manager software, but the actual southbridge chip firmware)

i'll let you know if SSD does anything. I've got one on another machine, and I was curious to see if ICH10R would give improvements over previous versions (9x/8x/7x), especially with regards to RAM.

Thanks, and glad to hear that its going to be a great machine even if its 90% parts for me..