$700-800 Dual Core Machine?

[Esquire]

I've always followed this forum, but never registered signed up. I'm not a newb, but I've certainly fallen behind when it comes to computer technology and the last three years or so.

Looks like I've got about $700-800 to spend on the box, as I've already got the monitor (Samsung 226BW)

Case: Open
Mobo: Open
CPU: Intel Core 2 Duo E6750
GPU: Open
PSU: Open
RAM: Open
Optical: Samsung SH-S203b
HDD: 80GB SATA (I already have a media drive, so this is purely OS)

So you've got those suggestions, but I'm pretty ignorant to the rest of it, and if you have better suggestions for what I already have planned - please school me. The computer won't be used for heaving gaming, but I'd like to keep the option open for normal games (nothing ridiculously intensive). It'll mostly be used for average tasks, but I want the ability to play a game (nothing necessarily cutting edge, more like games from 2-3 years ago) if I so choose. I want to be able to multi-task without this computer taking a second to think - multiple documents, media playing in the background, media ripping, downloads, etc. etc. etc.

I want a good video card, but nothing extremely excessive. I doubt I'll ever utilize SLI, but if an SLI mboard could be worked in I wouldn't mind.

Thank you in advance!

 

[attack]

Do you already have the E6750 and 80gb drive?
Do you plan on overclocking?
Is your OS 64 bit capable and do you want to jump to 4gb of RAM right now?

Heres my quick suggestion though assuming you don't have the CPU and HDD.
Q6600 (quad core, you want to multi-task and have plenty of CPU power in the future, I think this is the way to go) 250
Gigabyte DS3L- 90
RAM, 4gb, 100....there is a lot of DDR2 800 available for this price or less, you can hunt for even cheaper stuff if you want.
GPU, find a used 7900 or X1900 card for 100
PSU, coolermaster extreme 650, 50
HDD, guessing 50.

That's 650, you can use the extra cash for a 64bit OS or other goodies.

 

[Esquire]

I assumed the E6750 simply because it's a good compromise between processing power and my budget, plus it's recommended here a lot. The Q6600 is another $80 and while that's fine, it detracts from getting a nicer mobo or GPU.

The HDD is just a quick glance at prices on SATA drives. The jump from 40 to 80 is $15 and it's only for my OS, so I'm not worried about mega storage, but at the same time I don't want something small that would be obsolete for an OS within a year or two.

I already have the OS and everything else. I can choose between Ubuntu, XP, or 32/64bit Vista. Again, this system isn't meant to be something upgraded every 6 months, but at the same time versatility is a must.

 

[jmsanders2]

Are you going to overclock?
Do you game?

If overclock, think about Q6600 for the distant future. In the forseeable future there is little that utilizes four cores and your E6750 is a great choice. The Q6600 GO can overclock pretty high with little effort.

If you game or want something that will last, right now get a 8800GT $270-300. ATI also has a new card that I have heard is amazing, but can't be found. Great price/ performance. Otherwise try and pick up a used 7900GT or something like that.

PSU, look at reviews, PC Power and Cooling or Corsairs are great but a little pricier in the $100-130 range. You don't want to skimp on this component. 500W+ should be fine with a good power supply.

MB- depends on your eventual components and if you want to overclock. ASUS, Gigabyte and Abit lately have been good bets with 975 sockets. I have Abit IP35PRO ($150) and love it but because I overclock.

RAM- http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820146565 , great price/ performance. 2Gb is all that is necessary for right now.

If you can get Vista cheap right now, with this upgrade I would go to Vista and probably 64 bit. With 64 bit you can add more RAM later without any worries.

Without OS, peripherals or HDD, what I have is right around $800 for a very good system. Other people might have some suggestions to bring the price down, or if you aren't gaming or overclocking the price can come down quickly with cheaper, but comparible components.

 

[Esquire]

OK so I did a little research, and this is what I've got so far:

Case: Cooler Masters Centurion 532 ($50)
Mobo: Gigabyte GA-P35-DS3L ($100)
CPU: E6750 ($190) - I checked out a comparison between the Q6600 and this chip, looks like this chip will generally do what I need better than the Q6600, and in the few circumstances the Q6600 is faster, it isn't enough to justify $90 more.
PSU: ThermalTake 500w ($75)
GPU: Open
RAM: Crucial Ballistix DDR2 PC2-6400 2gb ($75)
Optical: Samsung S203b ($30)
HDD: Western Digital Caviar 80gb SATA ($50)

That's about what I've found so far. This PC is mainly used and geared towards media, with gaming a secondary thought.

What do you guys think? What GPU should I go for? The 8600GTS has been recommended by a few different sources...

Thanks again!

 

[JamesXP]

No to the 8600GTS, 8800GT/HD3870

 

[Hazaro]

What GPU should I go for? This PC is mainly used and geared towards media, with gaming a secondary thought. The 8600GTS has been recommended by a few different sources...

Thanks again!

8800GT 256MB (when it comes out) or a HD 3850 [Largely depending on what resolution and what games you play]
256MB review: http://en.expreview.com/?p=64&page=8


Look for some cheaper RAM, atm I can suggest these:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231098
$50 shipped

Can run 500MHz and that should be more than enough.

Extra saved $25 leaves you with a total of $545 and should go to one of those two cards I mentioned earlier.

 

[ancalime]

If you are going to multitask..get the quad core. You mention that you aren't going to upgrade every 6 months, so the quad core is even a better choice. If you want to get a dual core, get a cheap Allendale instead and overclock it.

You won't need a 8800GT for those games, a 79xx will do fine.

And I also would opt for the Cooler Master RC-690 case instead. Great budget case overall.

 

[Esquire]

So if I do decide to pickup the 8800GT, will my power supply be stable enough? I keep reading about the rails issues and amperage/voltage issues as well.

 

[White_Pawn]

i wouldn't recommend a cooler master psu.

I'd say try to find something more reputable... ex. corsair 520HX/620HX... antec triopower 650watt, fortron, silverstone etc.

 

[Esquire]

i wouldn't recommend a cooler master psu.

I'd say try to find something more reputable... ex. corsair 520HX/620HX... antec triopower 650watt, fortron, silverstone etc.

Thermaltake 500w? That's what I have now. The Corsair 550vx is only another $15, should I upgrade to that?

I saw that you have the Ultra X-Finity 600w - is it as loud as the reviews claim? The loudness issue is the reason I went to a ThermalTake.

 

[White_Pawn]

Thermaltake 500w? That's what I have now. The Corsair 550vx is only another $15, should I upgrade to that?

I saw that you have the Ultra X-Finity 600w - is it as loud as the reviews claim? The loudness issue is the reason I went to a ThermalTake.

my x-finity was free. i've never really noticed any loud sound from it though. The noise from my other 120mm fans is louder.

 

[Neuromancer]

I have a Xfinity 600W too... was leary of using it too, but it powered my quad core and x1950 XT with no problems whatsoever (plus 6 HDDs and a few half amp 120mm fans)

And no its not loud either...

 

[dipspit]

For only an additional $15 it would be foolish not to go for the Corsair PSU. Don't skimp in the power supply department, it's the largest mistake I see among builders.

 

[Esquire]

Ok so then I'll upgrade the PSU to a Corsair 550vx, per many recommendations in other threads. I see that it has ample SATA plugs, which I'll likely need, so it's a no-brainer. I came to the ThermalTake because its amount of SATA plugs, most other PSUs only having 3 SATA plugs that were comparable on price/wattage/etc.

Now I guess the last part of the system is really the GPU and I keep going back and forth on it. The 7950GT was recommended, and I see that it supremely outperforms any 8600. It hovers around $200. For another $100, I could be into a good 8800GT, correct? I don't game, I leave that for consoles, but I might get into photo/video editing as a hobby in the short future.

Should I just bite the bullet and get the 8800GT? Will the $100 difference only be seen in DX10 gaming, or will I notice it everywhere? I bought (in my opinion) a nice LCD from Samsung, and if spending another $100 is going to make a noticeable difference, I'll spend the money. I just didn't want to get into retarded fast cards that aren't going to offer me much of a benefit for everyday use. Like stated, the primary use is a media-related, and I know a GPU is central to that. I just don't know about GPUs, and everything I've read comes down to the 7950GT v. 8800GT.

Thank you to everyone for all of the help. I've had a lot of help from another site, which led me to most of my choices, but I value second opinions just as much.

 

[Neuromancer]

At 200 bucks if that is your TOP limit... then definilty go with a 38X0 from ATI...

A little more and get a 8800GT

Definetly do NOT get a 7900 series card.. .if you want a cheap dx9 card that performs grab a 1950xt, one of the TOP dx9 cards (only 2 beat it.. .the XTX and the 7950GX2.. which is technically 2 7950s) im happily playing crysis on mine... I bought mine from the egg at 170 back in january.. im sure they are much lower now...


Also the Ultra PSU mentioned earlier... if its under 50 bucks I would grab it up... great psu for the price (they were actually giving them away before with cases... because of all the bad rep other ultra psu's got) gets a 7.5 on the jonnyguru scale... which is nothing to sneeze at not great... but didnot fail any tests...... the VX550 though gets a 9.5 (albeit different reviewer) still if Enabling Wolf gives it a thumbs up its a solid piece of electronics.


Also... surprised no one mentioned it....

You dont need a smoking CPU to build a gaming machine... vid card is the most important part... you can always clock a lesser chip, also... dont forget a good heatsink ...

To heck with a single 80... get 2 and raid0 them load times will drop dramatically...

I recently went back to a single drive, (at the same time installed a quad core at 3.6GHz) and am dissapointed at how slow my pc feels... (not that intels feel fast regardless, they do benchmark like nothing else though )

 

[Esquire]

The board I preliminarily selected doesn't support RAID. It's another $20 or so. Getting another HD will only push the cost of the machine higher, which I'm not necessarily trying to do. I will consider it, though.

The 80gb is used solely for the OS and programs. I rarely fill up even close to 15gigs of space. I've used this method quite a few times, on various different machines, and it has worked well for me. Load times don't seem to bother me at all, very quick. I'm not doing anything too intense on this machine, like I said, media first, gaming second. The media drive is independent of the OS, which has served me well in the past.

As for OC'ing, probably not going to. I'm content with the price/performance of the E6750. Could I spend $50 less on something else and overclock it beyond the E6750? Probably, but then I'd be spending even more on cooling. This board looks like it has room to upgrade, considering the 1333fsb, so if something quad core comes out that I absolutely must have, I'll jump on it, but probably not. I've been running a 1.6ghz 8200 Dell laptop for the past 5 years and it runs fairly smooth and without issue, as good if not better than most "economical" desktops I've been on recently.

 

[White_Pawn]

I have a Xfinity 600W too... was leary of using it too, but it powered my quad core and x1950 XT with no problems whatsoever (plus 6 HDDs and a few half amp 120mm fans)

And no its not loud either...

the x-finity is actually quite decent. ULTRA has come a LONG way in making psus. Their X3 psus are definitely very good quality.

 

[Esquire]

Ok so then I'll upgrade the PSU to a Corsair 550vx, per many recommendations in other threads. I see that it has ample SATA plugs, which I'll likely need, so it's a no-brainer. I came to the ThermalTake because its amount of SATA plugs, most other PSUs only having 3 SATA plugs that were comparable on price/wattage/etc.

Now I guess the last part of the system is really the GPU and I keep going back and forth on it. The 7950GT was recommended, and I see that it supremely outperforms any 8600. It hovers around $200. For another $100, I could be into a good 8800GT, correct? I don't game, I leave that for consoles, but I might get into photo/video editing as a hobby in the short future.

Should I just bite the bullet and get the 8800GT? Will the $100 difference only be seen in DX10 gaming, or will I notice it everywhere? I bought (in my opinion) a nice LCD from Samsung, and if spending another $100 is going to make a noticeable difference, I'll spend the money. I just didn't want to get into retarded fast cards that aren't going to offer me much of a benefit for everyday use. Like stated, the primary use is a media-related, and I know a GPU is central to that. I just don't know about GPUs, and everything I've read comes down to the 7950GT v. 8800GT.

Thank you to everyone for all of the help. I've had a lot of help from another site, which led me to most of my choices, but I value second opinions just as much.

Bump.