Budget = USD $1600.
Gaming = yep, I am a gamer, not the bleeding edge "my FPS is teh r0XX0rz" that requires liquid nitrogen to cool my overclocking, but I do play shooters and a lot of online graphic heavy stuff.
Requirements:
1) Want to get 3 years minimum with the only upgrade being a new video card when the DirectX 10 thing settles down, maybe in a year or so. Maybe I drop in some more RAM at some point.
2) Must be Intel C2D, and must have 2 Gb DDR2. I was thinking DDR2-800 because this forum and other forums on overclocking have the DDR2-800 as the best memory to match with an E6300/6400 OC build.
3) Want to overclock to a nice stable speed, but don't want to get into a liquid cooling rig, so I want to have a rig that can run air cooled with a good HSF setup, but still push good speed.
OK, so right now I have the following list, and I am hoping some folks around here can help me get the most for my $1600. So any and all advice is appreciated...
CPU = Intel C2D E6400
Memory = thinking Corsair DDR2-800 4-4-4-12, but am willing to hear any advice on why I should go with another brand.
MB = Considering the Asus P5W DH, and am typically brand loyal to Asus, but MSI and Gigabyte both make a good C2d capable MB that is good for OC, so I'd like to hear some debate here, since this is the one part that always makes me 2nd guess myself the most.
HDD = Seagte 300Gb SATA. I don't really need a lot of hard drive space, and I currently have 70 Gb remaining on a 120 Gb hard drive I've been using for almost 4 years. So I might come down form this if the savings gets me better components elsewhere.
PSU = I figure 600W would be good for existing video cards, and hopefully still work for the DX10 monsters that will be coming out in the next year, but I could ramp this up, since swapping PSUs is a pain and I'd like to just build once and only swap the card when the time comes.
Video card = Right now, it might be a GeForce 7900GT, but I am not decided firmly, and any suggestions would be welcomed. Remember, I plan to upgrade in about a year, and I am running right now on 128Mb AGP (can't even recall what card I am running), so I don't need the X1950 XTX or anything, since I see the price of that and every other card dropping.
No monitor, speakers needed, and I would be fine with onboard audio, since I am not the bleeding edge type for sound, and most games don't require going crazy with sound cards. Also, no wireless needed, since I am 3' from my DSL router, and I like using cables over wireless anyway.
So there it is. My wife is fine with $1600 as a budget, and I think I have some good ideas, but feel free to conjure a configuration. The only non-negotiable things are core 2 duo and at least 2Gb of RAM.
Thanks in advance for all advice/suggestions.
Gaming = yep, I am a gamer, not the bleeding edge "my FPS is teh r0XX0rz" that requires liquid nitrogen to cool my overclocking, but I do play shooters and a lot of online graphic heavy stuff.
Requirements:
1) Want to get 3 years minimum with the only upgrade being a new video card when the DirectX 10 thing settles down, maybe in a year or so. Maybe I drop in some more RAM at some point.
2) Must be Intel C2D, and must have 2 Gb DDR2. I was thinking DDR2-800 because this forum and other forums on overclocking have the DDR2-800 as the best memory to match with an E6300/6400 OC build.
3) Want to overclock to a nice stable speed, but don't want to get into a liquid cooling rig, so I want to have a rig that can run air cooled with a good HSF setup, but still push good speed.
OK, so right now I have the following list, and I am hoping some folks around here can help me get the most for my $1600. So any and all advice is appreciated...
CPU = Intel C2D E6400
Memory = thinking Corsair DDR2-800 4-4-4-12, but am willing to hear any advice on why I should go with another brand.
MB = Considering the Asus P5W DH, and am typically brand loyal to Asus, but MSI and Gigabyte both make a good C2d capable MB that is good for OC, so I'd like to hear some debate here, since this is the one part that always makes me 2nd guess myself the most.
HDD = Seagte 300Gb SATA. I don't really need a lot of hard drive space, and I currently have 70 Gb remaining on a 120 Gb hard drive I've been using for almost 4 years. So I might come down form this if the savings gets me better components elsewhere.
PSU = I figure 600W would be good for existing video cards, and hopefully still work for the DX10 monsters that will be coming out in the next year, but I could ramp this up, since swapping PSUs is a pain and I'd like to just build once and only swap the card when the time comes.
Video card = Right now, it might be a GeForce 7900GT, but I am not decided firmly, and any suggestions would be welcomed. Remember, I plan to upgrade in about a year, and I am running right now on 128Mb AGP (can't even recall what card I am running), so I don't need the X1950 XTX or anything, since I see the price of that and every other card dropping.
No monitor, speakers needed, and I would be fine with onboard audio, since I am not the bleeding edge type for sound, and most games don't require going crazy with sound cards. Also, no wireless needed, since I am 3' from my DSL router, and I like using cables over wireless anyway.
So there it is. My wife is fine with $1600 as a budget, and I think I have some good ideas, but feel free to conjure a configuration. The only non-negotiable things are core 2 duo and at least 2Gb of RAM.
Thanks in advance for all advice/suggestions.
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