$2000 to spend

[Plumcuda1]

Sorry if this is the wrong spot but it has been a while since I have been around here and things have changed a bit.

My 3500+ is getting a bit out dated ... so time for a new PC. $2000 is the max I would like to spend for a decent gaming PC. About all I could reuse from this one is my raptor hd. This is going to be a fresh build .. so case and all. I have no clue as to what gfx card is good vs which isn't ... or SLI or 2XSLI ....
SO what I need help with is ... everything.

Quadcore vs AMD X2?
One gfx card vs two?
I would like 4gb of ram.
All I have for a hd now is a 74gig raptor ... so I wouldnt need a huge 2nd hd.

Most important is gaming .... BF2 and world in conflict are my main games ... some MOH.

Thanks for any and all input.
This really belongs in GH as it is not specific enough for CPU forum
--CPU Moderator apoppin

 

[ethugholla]

You're going to have to specify what you you will be doing with the computer.

Encoding, video-editing, a lot of multi-tasking, etc. -- most people will tell you to for a Q6600 G0 stepping.
Gaming -- most people will tell you that dual cores are better. With that kind of spending cash, I think that an E6850 would be best, or perhaps better.

First answer that question, since most of everything else depends on what you plan on doing with the computer.

EDIT: Whoops, just read that you'll be gaming.. Ha, disregard the above. Go with a dual-core.

 

[Plumcuda1]

Originally posted by: Plumcuda1


Most important is gaming .... BF2 and world in conflict are my main games ... some MOH.

Thanks for any and all input.

 

[bryanW1995]

e6850 if you want it for a year or two, G0 stepping Q6600 if you're keeping it longer than that. Stay away from e6750, I'm having h*** getting mine over 3.5.

 

[RussianSensation]

E6850 or Q6600, if overclocking
Cooler will depend if you want silence, vs. overclocking
P35 chipset mobo
4gb of ram
24 inch monitor (say Dell)
8800GTX
OCZ 700 watt or Corsair 620 watt PSU or something similar
18-20x DVD writer
Sound card? Depends if you care for quality sound or onboard is enough.

 

[Plumcuda1]

I wont be overclocking and yes I do care about sound ... thats a big part of some games.

Thanks for all of the input so far!

 

[swtethan]

the 8800 Ultra is like $50 more

it has a bigger better cooler, also is more overclockable

 

[bryanW1995]

no overclocking. I would get e6850 and 8800 ultra in that case.

 

[Plumcuda1]

So a core 2 duo is better than a quad core?

 

[drakore]

stick with the e6850... especially if you don't want to overclock.

 

[Plumcuda1]

so 1 8800gtx or ultra is better than 2 lower quality cards?

 

[Roy2001]

Overclock is so easy, why not?

If I were you, I would say, I will have max $2000 budget, but I would spend less if I can have same game FPS. I would get a good but not expensive OC MB, 2GB decent RAM (4GB RAM is only good for photoshop), 8800GTS SLI. CPU should be $6850. If I have enough money left, I would get a 30" LCD.

Since you said sound quality is important too, I could get Klipsch 2.1 or 5.1 if I have a game room. Otherwise I would be a good headphone.

 

[drakore]

oh god just get the 8800ultra... SLI has issues in vista. look at getting the BenQ 24" or 30", those monitors are most excellent.

The klipsch 5.1 series has problems. A lot of people's amps blow very quickly. I would stick to the Z5500 which are excellent and proven. Headphones are always the best though.

 

[child of wonder]

Intel Q6600 - $320
Tuniq Tower HSF - $70
eVGA 680i SLI mobo - $200
Corsair 620W PSU - $150
Lian Li PCV-1000 case - $225
4x1GB G-Skill PC6400 GHBZ - $250
500GB Seagate 7200.10 HDD - $120
640MB eVGA 8800GTS - $370
Acer 22" Widescreen LCD - $200
18x DVD-RW - $40

Total - $2,040

Then save up a little extra to upgrade to the next gen video cards or pop in another GTS for SLI down the road.

 

[Plumcuda1]

Yeah overclocking may be easy ... if you know what you are doing. Needless to say I dont.

Thanks for all of the info.

 

[jkresh]

Plumcuda1, with the proper motherboard and aftermarket hsf overclocking a core 2 is really easy. Just ask around here and you should be able to get a 20-30% improvement even without knowning what you are doing. Much more then that will require some time/skill but takigna q6600 to 3ghz or so should be fairly simple with the right board.

 

[Plumcuda1]

Originally posted by: child of wonder
Intel Q6600 - $320
Tuniq Tower HSF - $70
eVGA 680i SLI mobo - $200
Corsair 620W PSU - $150
Lian Li PCV-1000 case - $225
4x1GB G-Skill PC6400 GHBZ - $250
500GB Seagate 7200.10 HDD - $120
640MB eVGA 8800GTS - $370
Acer 22" Widescreen LCD - $200
18x DVD-RW - $40

Total - $2,040

Then save up a little extra to upgrade to the next gen video cards or pop in another GTS for SLI down the road.

I think I may use some of these parts listed. I think for a case I will go with Thermaltake Armor Series VA8000BWS Black Aluminum

proably going to hold off on a monitor for a bit. (my 19" lcd is "ok")

PS I was thinking the OCZ gameXstream

and HSF was thinking Zalman CPNS9500

Not sure is I should upgrade to vista ulitamte of stay with XP pro. Vista will see my 4 gigs of ram where XP wont right??

 

[Noobtastic]

You're only going to be playing battlefield, WiC and MOH?


You don't need to spend 2k to play that.


I would spend $1,000 - $1,500 and save the rest for upgrades.

The 9800 series should be coming out soon. Wait for that.

 

[Plumcuda1]

Well it cant hurt to have something that wont need an upgrade when the newest game comes out.

 

[Noobtastic]

Originally posted by: Plumcuda1
Well it cant hurt to have something that wont need an upgrade when the newest game comes out.

Yeah but the 9800 series is going to come out very soon.

Why blow cash on hardware that's going to be second gen in 6 months?

If he has 2K, buy a normal 8800GTS 640mb, 2 gigs of whatever, 500 gig hd, quadcore, 20" monitor, vista, etc. for $1,500 easily.

The other $500 could be spent on the new nvidia or ATI cards.