$350 bucks, Upgrading for HL2

[xerotheory]

What processor and mobo shud i get with $350 total bucks. Im getting payed tomorrow and will have that, should i just wait and save up a bit more? Or should i just get a new mobo for my P4 2.4ghz C and oc it? If so, what kind of overclock do you think i can reach with corsair pc 3200 value ram? Then again i can buy the mobo for the p4 and spend the rest of the money on better ram...

Need help.

 

[iNterBeiNg]

do you already have a good video card?

 

[xerotheory]

dont concern the vid card into this,a s when i gather enough ill get the 6800gt nomatter what (i have the 5900se right now, oced to 5900non ultra)

 

[confuzzedintel]

I would say go with the 3200DTR 208 bucks http://www.newegg.com/app/ViewProductDesc.asp?description=19-103-443&depa=1 at newegg and git the DFI Lanparty UT NF3 250gb 134 http://www.zipzoomfly.com/jsp/ProductDetail.jsp?ProductCode=246478

 

[xerotheory]

Any place where the 90nm 3000+ can be found in stock? since newegg took it off for some reason.

Also i heard that board is a good overclocker, but my ram is lakish, what speeds you think i can reach?

 

[Xenocide]

don't worry about the 90nm 3000+, get the DTR definatly, i wish i knew about them when i bought my proc

 

[iNterBeiNg]

dont concern the vid card into this,a s when i gather enough ill get the 6800gt nomatter what (i have the 5900se right now, oced to 5900non ultra)

cool, good choice with the 6800gt

I would agree that it would be a good choice to go with an a64 setup for gaming, they're simply the best there is right now

 

[xerotheory]

yea, all my lan buddies have amds, i feel left out....x(

would it matter that much between the 3000+ and the 3200+

also to what do you think i can oc too with my Corsair Value Ram pc 3200??

 

[confuzzedintel]

EDIT:lol sorry little slow to post with that ram i think you could hit 220-230 FSB which is good for cheap ram you might be able to git higher the lanparty board has ton of features so it should be easy to squeeze every little last bit out of it

 

[xerotheory]

512mb Corsair Value PC3200

dont know the timings off my head.

EDIT:Lets say 220 is lowest, thats 220x11=2420?

So say id get the 3000+ you think i can reach 2.4ghz? Wow sounds good. Would that be at stock vcore? or higher?

 

[confuzzedintel]

sorry /\/\/\/\/ edit/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\

 

[c627627]

nForce4 mobos are out in 2 weks or so but I don't know if that's when we'll see them being available to ship. By that time 90nms should be in stock again at newegg. Monarch is still the only place that stocks 90nms but at a premium.

 

[unreal]

xerotheory, welcome to the forums... i would also say a dfi lanparty for a mobo, for the cost

 

[J So]

I'd agree with Xenocide.. esp if money is an issue. Go socket 754 130nm. I am in the midsts of building a system and I went with the DFI lanparty and an A64 3000+ just because I plan to OC it to the max and the 3000 and 3200 hit the same speeds when oc just different multipliers.

6800 GT is just pure sex.. It reminds me of when I went from a 2D Number 9 card to a Voodoo 2. In Farcry I will play levels just to look at things

 

[sargelarge]

STOP read this before you go out and buy an AMD system! :=)

You already own a p4 2.4c that will do 3ghz or more easily. There are reports of this beast doing 3.8ghz. Its no question a great cpu that easily goes over 3ghz with stock cooling. Its normal to get advices to buy a a64 system because you posted this in the AMD forums. Hell i even feel to give you advice to buy an A64 system, i am an AMD Fanboy, but rationaly, stay with your cpu, its perfectly ok.

Imo just get a good board that can utilize the capabilities of your cpu (like the asusP4P800SE and then get the best gpu you can afford. Boards that are decent are in the 100$ range. 250$ left.

On the GPU side you can always go for an vanilla 6800nu and try to unlock pixel pipeline and the vertex shader to get to gt specs. Even if you fail you will be left with a very good card that will serve you well the next year. 6800nu are below 250$ with a bit of a luck. Or wait for a good 6800gt deal.

 

[xerotheory]

Well that $350 is only for the cpu and mobo.

The video card is going to be a 6800gt and that has its own budget set aside. I know you can overclock the nu and unlock the pipes with rivatuner, but the mems only 700mhz and getting that to 1.1ghz will take quite a bit. So ill go with the gt for sure.

Ok, lets say i do get an intel mobo, how far will the 2.4 be pushed with my ram? Consider that its value ram, and as suggested earlier it will go 220-230, so thats 220x12=2.640ghz and amx 230x12=2.760ghz. So i dont think i will get a decent overclock.

So i believe the performance and oc on the 3000+ will be better overall.