Domino

Just found out I was posting in the wrong area, so here is a post in the new area :O

I'm trying to spend as less as possible but by getting a good gaming rig that would be good for this summer. After that, it is going to get packed up and then used again maybe in the Winter, then Spring Break, then next Summer. So, here is something that should work good for the that time period, maybe longer.

The games I play are:
Source Games
Company of Heroes
Crysis
Vegas
-Want to Play-
Supreme Commander
Stalker
Bioshock

Anyways, here is my system I would like to upgrade to, any suggestions?

Motherboard:
Asus P5Q Pro Atx LGA775 P45 DDR2 2PCI-E16 Crossfire 3PCI-E1 2PCI SATA2 Sound Gblan Esata Motherboard
http://www.directcanada.com/products...nufacture=ASUS
$139.99

CPU:
Intel Core 2 Duo E8200 Dual Core Processor LGA775 2.66GHZ Wolfdale 1333FSB 6MB Retail
http://www.directcanada.com/products...ufacture=INTEL
$178.46

CPU Cooling:
Coolermaster GeminII Copper Aluminum 6 Heatpipe Cooler 2X120MM LGA775 Socket AM2 S939 S940 S754
http://www.directcanada.com/products...e=COOLERMASTER
$31.32

Other Cooling:
COOLERMASTER PTK-001 PREMIUM THERMAL COMPOUND
http://www.directcanada.com/products...e=COOLERMASTER
$10.07

Cooler Master Neon Blue LED 120MM Case Fan 3PIN 22DBA 1220RPM 42.734CFM 3PINS
http://www.directcanada.com/products...e=COOLERMASTER
$4.97

Memory:
G.SKILL F2-6400CL5D-4GBPQ PC2-6400 4GB 2X2GB DDR2-800 CL5-5-5-15 240PIN Dual Channel Memory Kit
http://www.directcanada.com/products...acture=G.SKILL
$91.80

Would down grading to 3 GB or even 2 GB be worth it to save $40 or so? Only using XP here....

Graphics:
HIS Radeon HD 4850 512MB GDDR3 PCI-E 2XDVI-I Video Card
http://www.directcanada.com/products...anufacture=HIS
$189.99

HIS Radeon HD 4850 512MB GDDR3 PCI-E 2XDVI-I Video Card
http://www.directcanada.com/products...anufacture=HIS
$189.99

TOTAL PRICE: $836.59

Also looking for a good PSU, under $100 please, that would run this, along with an overclock of the Ram, CPU (hopefully 3.4 GHz), GPU (hopefully 700/2200).
PSU: Maybe.....
Corsair TX650W 650W ATX 12V 52A 24PIN ATX Power Supply Active PFC 120MM Fan
http://www.directcanada.com/products...acture=CORSAIR
$91.35

Some parts of my current rig would be switch over, such as the SB X-Fi sound card and the 200 GB Sata Drive. Also have a spare IDE 300 GB Harddrive here too that, if anyone knows, would work in a Raid-1 format? Along with the case and DVD drive and Card Reader.

(Is it worth the upgrade? )
Current System:
AMD Athlon 3800+X2 @ 2.17 GHz Socket 939
EVGA 7600GS (623/918)
EVGA SLi 580i Motherboard
1 GB PC-3200 Ram
Sound Blaster X-Fi Sound Card
200 GB Sata Hard Drive
Samsung DVD Drive
Cooler Master Case
SPI 400 Watt PSU

Chozart

First, all your links are broken. To copy/paste a link, right-click on the link and select 'copy shortcut' or 'copy link location'. Then paste

I am guessing an X38 board like this one is out of budget:
http://www.directcanada.com/products...nufacture=ASUS, even when you drop the CPU down to an E7200?

I am not too charmed with the Gemini II cooler. I'd get this Xigmatek: http://www.directcanada.com/products...cture=XIGMATEK. No need for extra fans, and an excellent cooler.

Meet your new PSU:
http://www.directcanada.com/products...acture=CORSAIR

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Domino

lol, thx, will be fixing those links
That motherboard there might be a little too much. I'm already pushing it when the system went over $800, and making it over a thousand might just be pushing it too far as I gotta think about University too. Thanks though, I'm likely that cooler, though I like the idea of the dual fan pushing straight up idea. Though, hmm... dunno now what to choose.

I'm also liking the PSU Thx for the help!
Any others that might be good to look into?

Whats the huge difference between the P45 and X38 Chip sets?

Chozart

P45 is the newer chipset, and overclocks very well. However, Crossfire will only be at x8, x8. The X38 chipset is still a great overclocker, and runs Crossfire at x16, x16. The X38 will be the (slightly) better pick in your case, but the P45 will be just fine. Note that the PCI-E standard is PCI-E 2.0, and x8, x8 will be more than enough for a pair of 4850's

Given that you're already pushing it, I'd recommend the following:

• Get the E7200. It saves you a bit, and still is a very capable CPU that can hit a high overclock.
• Get P45. It's a great chipset, and saves you some money,.
• Get the Xigmatek cooler. The Gimini II isn't all that great (note that almost no one here on the forum uses it) and takes a ton of space, blocking general airflow in the case(!).

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Domino

Whats the performance decrease between 2x 8xPCI-E and 2x 16xPCI-E slots?

Chozart

Depends on the GPU. With dual HD 4850's, actually not that much.

__________________

ImmortalKenny

Basically you won't see much of a difference with 2 4850's in CF rather than just one.

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Xye

I've been doing some reading up on the best Crossfie boards and i saw some benchmarks for both the P*5 and X*8 chipsets and it showed the X boards perform slightly better in Crossfire.

(if only i could remember where i saw that benchmark)

__________________

British Overclockers


Current project: (To Be Named)

B!ol

Is this what you're looking for?

http://www.tweaktown.com/articles/14...nce/index.html

Domino

alright, thx guys
+rep

Hmm, alright, here are some other boards.....including the one from Chozart

ASUS P5E LGA775 X38 ATX DDR2 2PCI-E16 3PCI-E 2PCI SATA2 RAID Sound GBLAN RAID Motherboard
http://www.directcanada.com/products...nufacture=ASUS
$238.68
Don't like the extra sound card that comes with it. I'm more likely returning this Sound Blaster X-Fi Xtreme Audio and getting the Xtreme Gamer version. Is there the same board but without the extra sound card?

Gigabyte X48-DS4 ATX LGA775 X48 DDR2 2PCI-E 2PCI SATA2 RAID Sound 2GLAN 1394 CrossFireX Motherboard
http://www.directcanada.com/products...cture=GIGABYTE
$228.99

Might just have to spend a little more :\