Originally posted by: tigerbalm
Nice deal for budget, but why settle for a mobo that cannot overclock? You already need to buy at least 1 gb PC-6400 (800 mhz) @ $120, $200 video card, SATA drive, etc., so your rig should be able to use all of that cpu power! Why not overclock it too? CPU's only last 2-3 years before you upgrade anyway. So get a Gigabyte DS3 mobo (all solid capacitors) for $145 and unleash the 6300's potential to 3.x+ Ghz(even using stock retail cooling). You can get the 6300 for ~$175 these days.
So bottom line with new upgrades is, don't be so damn cheap, which only causes bottlenecks when using cheap/slow components! The extra few bucks will enable you to build a system with far greater potential over the next few years. After years of upgrading, I've relized that you shouldn't go cheap on the main components! Thanks for posting the deal though.
Originally posted by: crystal
Originally posted by: tigerbalm
Nice deal for budget, but why settle for a mobo that cannot overclock? You already need to buy at least 1 gb PC-6400 (800 mhz) @ $120, $200 video card, SATA drive, etc., so your rig should be able to use all of that cpu power! Why not overclock it too? CPU's only last 2-3 years before you upgrade anyway. So get a Gigabyte DS3 mobo (all solid capacitors) for $145 and unleash the 6300's potential to 3.x+ Ghz(even using stock retail cooling). You can get the 6300 for ~$175 these days.
So bottom line with new upgrades is, don't be so damn cheap, which only causes bottlenecks when using cheap/slow components! The extra few bucks will enable you to build a system with far greater potential over the next few years. After years of upgrading, I've relized that you shouldn't go cheap on the main components! Thanks for posting the deal though.
What the hell you talking about.
support DDR 400 - from your old box $0
support AGP - from your old box $0
Don't know if it supports IDE but if it does - from your old box $0
More than likely you still can use that psu - from your old box $0
Cost for a new core 2 system?
$199 + tax.
Originally posted by: tigerbalm
Nice deal for budget, but why settle for a mobo that cannot overclock? You already need to buy at least 1 gb PC-6400 (800 mhz) @ $120, $200 video card, SATA drive, etc., so your rig should be able to use all of that cpu power! Why not overclock it too? CPU's only last 2-3 years before you upgrade anyway. So get a Gigabyte DS3 mobo (all solid capacitors) for $145 and unleash the 6300's potential to 3.x+ Ghz(even using stock retail cooling). You can get the 6300 for ~$175 these days.
So bottom line with new upgrades is, don't be so damn cheap, which only causes bottlenecks when using cheap/slow components! The extra few bucks will enable you to build a system with far greater potential over the next few years. After years of upgrading, I've relized that you shouldn't go cheap on the main components! Thanks for posting the deal though.
Originally posted by: tigerbalm
If all you have to spend is $200, why even upgrade to Dual core 2 (just get a cheap Dell system)??? Do you really need this new CPU? My point was, you probably need to upgrade a few other components or you won't be getting much out of it. ...If you want more power for games, rendering, etc, you can't just buy the cheapest components. ...
Originally posted by: tigerbalm
It's always funny when money becomes the only issue when it comes to upgrading. If all you have to spend is $200, why even upgrade to Dual core 2 (just get a cheap Dell system)??? Do you really need this new CPU? My point was, you probably need to upgrade a few other components or you won't be getting much out of it. I think a good over-clocking mobo would pay for itself in the long run (2 years before upgrading to faster cpu?). You'll get more out of the cpu. I think most peeps upgrade for performance as well as curiosity. If you want more power for games, rendering, etc, you can't just buy the cheapest components. It just doesn't make sense (to me) to not spend a little more for quality parts that will last, push the envelope, and capable for future upgrades. It doesn't sound like a very intelligent approach to technology that's always changing. I'm not saying buy the newest, expensive parts here...but I think there are certain choices that makes sense...
Originally posted by: uhohs
not everyone wants to overclock.
Originally posted by: AkumaX
Originally posted by: uhohs
not everyone wants to overclock.
everyone wants to o/c
Originally posted by: crystal
Of course the main issue is money when you upgrade. I want that piece of hardware I brought to last as long as possible when it still server my purposes. Take that pc3200, when pc2700 was the norm, everyone likes you saying you should buy pc3200 for "future upgrade". 6 months down the line and DDR2 came out and suddenly that pc3200 became "obsolete". :roll:
BTW, your "upgrade" seems to be to build the whole new computer from scratch.
Originally posted by: djIhcoro
If that ECS mobo bothers you so much, you can return it on the spot after you buy the combo. Fry's puts the two items on the invoice separate.
Originally posted by: Iceboie
I also gave in and bought the combo. At first I was convincing myself that this is just a test and I will be returning the combo when I'm done testing it. Well, it looks like it's a keeper. I'll try to go back and return the mobo alone (citing lack of dual-channel support and it didn't fit the case) but if that doesn't work, I'll just keep the board until the next batch comes out. For now, things are zipping along in this little system I built.
Here's some info. on the stuff I ended up buying today:
C2D 6300 (bare/tray CPU) + ECS P4M800PRO-M V2 $199
Thermaltake Mini Typhoon heatsink/fan $35
Thermaltake Matrix case with 400W PurePower 2.0 $79 - $30 MIR = $49
Total with tax: ~$330 (will be $300 after the MIR).
Went home and added a 200GB PATA drive, a 160GB SATA drive, 2 sticks of 512MB DDR2-533, and a Lite-ON DVD-ROM (all are extra components I was not using except the RAM.
I'll post some benchmarks later.
I also found out that my initial assumption about this board was incorrection--it DOES have overclocking capabilities! However, the max FSB is 300. I was able to hit 2.1Ghz (300x7) without doing anything special. It's not much but this little OC brings my C2D up to 6400 level. Good enough I guess. Hopefully I can return the board and get the ASROCK for more OCing.
Here's the CPU-Z shot.