Putting together a new setup. I need some advice :(

[EZ-Spidey]

Hello guys

I've been liquidating pretty much every computer related stuff in order to finance one solid AMD X2 2D/3D workstation.

My budget right now is $1200 CAD. This is the hardware I held on to over the last few weeks in preparation for this project:

- Antec Sonata with a pair of 120mm case fans + 5v low rpm fan adapters
- Thermalright XP-90 + low rpm 90mm Panaflo
- Coolermaster Purepower 550w SLi Ready power supply
- DFi Lanparty SLi-DR motherboard
- Opticals and hard drives
- (2) MSI 6600gt PCIe video cards

At this point I'm not quite sure which path to take. I basically need an X2 processor and a 2GB memory kit.

I started to shop around and this is where things got complicated.

Processor
I originaly wanted a good ocee'ing X2 3800+. But then I got an offer on an X2 4800+ that does 2.8GHz,3GHz @ 1.55v for $700 CAD. Should I go for it?

Memory
For the RAM, I'm looking at a 2GB kit of OCZ PC-3200 Performance Serie. That roughly goes for about $200 CAD. I'm not sure how well they overclock though but I think they can do 230+ if I'm not mistaken.

Mobo
My DFi is brand new in box. I have some potential offers for it. Would it be worth it to sell it to finance a newer SLi board like a DFi expert or an Asus A8N32-Sli?

Case
Pretty much the same scenario has the mobo. I like this case but I'm debatting if I should dump it in favor of a case that offers more room and potentially better airflow.

Your suggestions are more then welcomed at this point and thanks ahead of time

EZ

 

[MVC]

The only thing in that mix that I have experience with is the Sonata. If you can off-load it without taking a huge financial hit, do it. The cooling in that case leaves much to be desired.... I'm personally partial to Lian-Lis, but there are other good cases and the dual-core AMDs run almost as hot as Intel Prescotts so you want good airflow.

 

[EZ-Spidey]

Thanks for the input. I really appreciate it.

This is the case I was originaly thinking of getting has an alternate route: http://www.modthebox.com/review440_1.shtml

I think at this point I'm better off not cheaping out on the case.

 

[dawei213]

if you can stretch your dollars a bit more or unless you can get the 2x 6600gt really cheap, i say go for the 7800gt. 1 7800gt > 2x6600gt

 

[fuzzba11]

For rendering, SLI should render 3D scenes faster than a single card. I would get the 4800+ for sure if you have a good deal on it. The XP90 should be able to cool it just fine, RAM sounds good, I would price out the 4800 and the two 6600s, and then see how much you have left for a good case & cooling. It's totally up to you if you want to trade out your motherboard, the A8N32 is expensive and would put a dent in your budget, but it's got lots of next gen features(like the externalSATA connector). If you want your rig to be totally future proof then consider getting a top of the line motherboard, otherwise I'd say you were good.

 

[EZ-Spidey]

Thanks again guys.

For the vidcards, a 7800GT is nice allright. I never looked into it but now I'm sold.

What is the purpose of external SATA? I know my DFi came with a control box that has a SATA connector on it.

 

[dawei213]

What is the purpose of external SATA? I know my DFi came with a control box that has a SATA connector on it.

I'm sure there are some external enclosure with SATA connectors (for HDD that is).