I have been thinking about upgrading my system and have a good idea about what I want, but I would like your input and opinions on some of the components. Right now I have an older Intel 875 board with AGP graphics card, so I will probably need everything except the PS and case.
I know the Core Duo 2's are coming out, but I'll probably be more likely to purchase an AM2 system, unless Intel's prices are low, and performance is as expected. As of right now, nothing is set in stone, so I might just hold off on buying anything for awhile.
Here's what I have been looking at:
Motherboard: Asus M2N-SLI Deluxe or M2N32-SLI Deluxe/Wireless Edition
CPU: AMD Athlon 64 X2 (AM2) 4000+ 2x1MB Windsor? Or should I get a cheaper version until K8L comes out?
GPU: 7600GT or 7900GT? or should I wait for the DX10 cards?
Hard Drive: Western Digital Caviar SE16 WD3200KS 320GB
Memory: ??? I'm lookin' for middle range DDR2 800 (2 Gigs). Don't plan on overclocking.
Thinking about upgrading...need some input
Moderators: NeilBlanchard, Ralf Hutter, sthayashi, Lawrence Lee
I just built my new system which is somewhat similar to what you're considering. Here are my choices:
Motherboard: M2N-SLI Deluxe. I didn't want to pay $60-75 extra for the M2N32-SLI Deluxe for Wifi that I'd never use, or the dual x16 that I'd probably never use. If the non Wifi version were available I would have given it some consideration.
CPU: AM2 X2 4200+. I've read that the 2x1MB cache models don't offer much if any performance increase, depending on what you're doing, so I went with a 2x512KB cache.
GPU: 7900GT. The games you want to play should dictate whether a 7600GT or 7900GT is appropriate. In my case I wanted Oblivion and its eye candy. I wouldn't wait for a DX10 card. I don't plan on upgrading to DX10 until I see a must-have (for me) game that requires it. I doubt that will be for another 2 years, although it could be sooner for you depending on what DX10 games are released in early 2007. Windows Vista by itself isn't enough to wait for a DX10 card.
Hard drive: your choice is probably pretty good given the recent SPCR review of its bigger brother. I went with a Samsung SP2504C 250GB and am very happy with the lack of noise.
Memory: I went with 2GB Corsair DDR2-800. After rebates at Newegg it was only a few dollars more expensive than OCZ Gold. Either should be a good choice.
Motherboard: M2N-SLI Deluxe. I didn't want to pay $60-75 extra for the M2N32-SLI Deluxe for Wifi that I'd never use, or the dual x16 that I'd probably never use. If the non Wifi version were available I would have given it some consideration.
CPU: AM2 X2 4200+. I've read that the 2x1MB cache models don't offer much if any performance increase, depending on what you're doing, so I went with a 2x512KB cache.
GPU: 7900GT. The games you want to play should dictate whether a 7600GT or 7900GT is appropriate. In my case I wanted Oblivion and its eye candy. I wouldn't wait for a DX10 card. I don't plan on upgrading to DX10 until I see a must-have (for me) game that requires it. I doubt that will be for another 2 years, although it could be sooner for you depending on what DX10 games are released in early 2007. Windows Vista by itself isn't enough to wait for a DX10 card.
Hard drive: your choice is probably pretty good given the recent SPCR review of its bigger brother. I went with a Samsung SP2504C 250GB and am very happy with the lack of noise.
Memory: I went with 2GB Corsair DDR2-800. After rebates at Newegg it was only a few dollars more expensive than OCZ Gold. Either should be a good choice.
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whoatethepies
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The M2N-SLI has a much smaller cooling solution than the M2N32-SLI so you should be able to fit a larger CPU heatsink. However, the M2N-SLI is a 570 board (I believe), whereas the M2N32-SLI is a 590. Take a look at nVidia's site for an explantion of the differences (they've got flash animations and everything..) Basically, there's a few extra gubbins, but overclocking seems to be the big plus due to the extra heat sinks.
AMD will not be producing any AM2 or S939 Athlon 64 X2 CPUs with 2x1MB cache.
Update: AMD To Ditch Initial AM2 2x1MB Cache Desktop CPUs
They are streamlining thier production lines because of their announced price cuts. That means the 4000+, 4400+, and 4800+ will not be produced.
No idea when DX10 cards to supposed to be coming out. But first generation cards tends to be a bit buggy. The GeForce FX series was the worst thing nVidia ever inflicted on the general public. I believe the Radeon 9700 had image quality issues with Doom 3.
DX10 is only compatible with Windows Vista. Stick a DX10 card in Windows XP and it will act like any typical DX9 card. With the exception of Halo 3, there will hardly be any games that will be required to be played on Vista, unless M$ decides to release more "Vista only" games.
Update: AMD To Ditch Initial AM2 2x1MB Cache Desktop CPUs
They are streamlining thier production lines because of their announced price cuts. That means the 4000+, 4400+, and 4800+ will not be produced.
No idea when DX10 cards to supposed to be coming out. But first generation cards tends to be a bit buggy. The GeForce FX series was the worst thing nVidia ever inflicted on the general public. I believe the Radeon 9700 had image quality issues with Doom 3.
DX10 is only compatible with Windows Vista. Stick a DX10 card in Windows XP and it will act like any typical DX9 card. With the exception of Halo 3, there will hardly be any games that will be required to be played on Vista, unless M$ decides to release more "Vista only" games.