PC Rehaul

[Dead]

ok dudes...are we ready to overclock?

well maybe not me...

after speaking with fad yesterday, my fascination with having a mini rebuild has caught my attention. With games such as S.T.A.L.K.E.R and Clive Barkers Jericho (oh man...if Doom 3 scared you then be prepared :o) coming out I'm looking to tweak my graphics and RAM back up to a level that can run these games with a nice FPS and detail level.

The rest it a Socket 775 gigabyte mother board w. pci express and an Intel Gallatin (it's oringally a server chip that still competes with the Pentium D's in this day and age, so I don't think replacing it is worth it).

Intel Gallatin CPU (forget the cache and fsb but they are still bloody good)

2 x 512mb DDR1 (or 2? dammit I'll have to check) look to go all out to 2gb of ram

Gigabyte 6600GT Graphics card - to 7600GT or higher?? What's something that is going to run high end graphics very well but at a decent price?

etc etc etc...any help appreciated guys (i'm looking at brandon, corey, phil and dennis atm haha)

I need a new power supply (silent pref.) as my current one goes 'TANG TANG TANG TANG' when it's cold lol. Bearing I think. Dennis (fad) seemed to have a bit of a chuckle at this haha.

Cheers guys!

[CHA54]

what clockspeed is your cpu and what chipset does your board use?

If it's compatible with the core2 cpu's they're well worth upgrading to. You then have the added benefit of being able to run quieter fans as you dont have a CPU pumping out as much heat as a Gallatin does.

The 320mb 8800's seem to be a very good video card for the money.

If you're planning to upgrade the OS at some stage to Vista, I'd also recommend 2gb of memory as a minimum for decent functionality.

Edited February 20, 2007 by rollamods

[Dead]

Ah cool. I'll see how I go mate cheers for that.

The Gallatin draws a lot of heat, that's why my mate designed a custom box for us (running a secondary fan etc) which actually does a decent job.

Probably should have mentioned that my budget is anywhere between 600 - 1200 dollars for the supply, ram and card lol. I'll see how I go I guess

Cheers Jason.

[Saiya]

Hey Rob, If your gonna overclock make sure you get a good name brand PSU. Dont get the cheap Yum Cha brands as when they say 500W its doesn't necessarily mean 500W as PSU's arnt 100% efficient.

Good name brands like Thermaltake, Antec, Coolermaster etc are around the 80% efficient range when when you up your FSB and VCore voltages you need something like that to keep it stable.

What you can do download and run this program www.belarc.com what it does it scans your system and gives you a readout in IE on your system. It should tell you everything you need to know about your comp.

Do you know what model of motherboard you have? Cuz if you can update the bios to run a e6600 you can overclock it from 2.4 up to 3.4 on the stock cooling! :D

As Rolla mods said 8800GTS is prity good value for money as there just in the sweet spot for Value:Performance ratio plus you can overclock that baby as well :D

Dont worry about Vista for the moment, its not worth the trouble. Windows XP does everything. Its only good if you want to show off your ePenis to everyone saying "Hey... Im running Vista ;) ".

Ive had soo much trouble with it but I am learning quite a bit from it from the blue screens, continuous reformats from incompatible programs, fun fun!

Get another 1gb of RAM as well i'll help the system out especially when using games and Alt-Tabbing much more faster as it doesn't have to access the HDD. ;)

[Dead]

Ah cheers dude. Yeah not into overclocking overly, would rather something that is whammmm straight out of the box.

This is just to keep things going really. Next year I'm having a new pc built up :D

I'll grab some prices on the 8800 then. Asus is the brand to go for again you reckon? They're pretty good across the board aren't they.

I'll get the specs for my motherboard when I get home man.

What I have to compete with :o

In game screenshot of Jericho...oooo creeeeepy

[Saiya]

Is that based on the TV series Jericho?

[Daz]

Is that based on the TV series Jericho?

lol

looking at the pic i said no...

*runs off to search google*

[Dead]

ROFL

Nah Phill. This game would even make Arnold Schwarzenegger or Chuck Norris sh!t themselves lol. The concept artist that designed and wrote the 'pinhead' character from hellraiser is clive barker fyi lol. He's insane, comes up with the scariest stuff sometimes.

Just spoke with my mate at JB. He's going to sort out some things for me and just put it together on site out the back there. 8800 Asus seems to be the one to go for.

[Strawberryface]

www.msy.com.au - one of the cheapest stores in australia, i found their service to be excellent. the only downside is that due to them being so cheap, the line is so damn big and u have to wait like 30mins to 1.5 hrs lol

[Saiya]

www.msy.com.au - one of the cheapest stores in australia, i found their service to be excellent.

You sure? What state you in? Our Auburn branch is terrible, I ended up going to ITEstate smaller increase in pricing but way better service than MSY over here.

[BigBum]

MSY are great here in Melbourne. In fact it's the only store I go to buy my computer parts these days. Best prices in Australia, definitely. Just download their price list and see for yourself. Most places are expensive compared to MSY (even the place I work at) and they say it's a competitive retail market. No wonder the line is around 30 minutes long every time you go there, and at most branches too.

If your budget is between $600-$1200, let's see what we can work with here. The 8800GTS is not a cheap card. 320mb version will set you back around $475 at lowest price I've seen. For a little more than $1200 (under $1300), you can build a whole new system. What do you wanna do? Your first intention was to upgrade, so lets upgrade.

So you need RAM, P/S, and G/C. Ok.

RAM, you should really go 2G especially if you are gaming. Not to mention the inevitable upgrade to Vista in the future in which you'll really need it. A 2G kit (2 x 1G sticks) is around $300 for DDR2 type. Little less for DDR400 type.

P/S, as Saiya mentioned, you want a reputable brand and this is a good area to put more of your leftover change into. Silent type will set you back a little more, but not so much. I recommend a Cooler Master Real Power 550w silent type for $155. BFYB.

G/C, I'm not so updated with the newer models but if going with what the guys above mentioned, you are still within your budget quite easily. Say lay down $500 for that card.

So that's around $950 for your upgrade. Not so bad.

If you're willing to push to the limit of your budget, it leaves you with $250 for a nice 19" wide screen LCD to enjoy STALKER & Jericho :)

[Dead]

MSY are great here in Melbourne. In fact it's the only store I go to buy my computer parts these days. Best prices in Australia, definitely. Just download their price list and see for yourself. Most places are expensive compared to MSY (even the place I work at) and they say it's a competitive retail market. No wonder the line is around 30 minutes long every time you go there, and at most branches too.

If your budget is between $600-$1200, let's see what we can work with here. The 8800GTS is not a cheap card. 320mb version will set you back around $475 at lowest price I've seen. For a little more than $1200 (under $1300), you can build a whole new system. What do you wanna do? Your first intention was to upgrade, so lets upgrade.

So you need RAM, P/S, and G/C. Ok.

RAM, you should really go 2G especially if you are gaming. Not to mention the inevitable upgrade to Vista in the future in which you'll really need it. A 2G kit (2 x 1G sticks) is around $300 for DDR2 type. Little less for DDR400 type.

P/S, as Saiya mentioned, you want a reputable brand and this is a good area to put more of your leftover change into. Silent type will set you back a little more, but not so much. I recommend a Cooler Master Real Power 550w silent type for $155.

G/C, I'm not so updated with the newer models but if going with what the guys above mentioned, you are still within your budget quite easily. Say lay down $500 for that card.

So that's around $950 for your upgrade. Not so bad.

If you're willing to push to the limit of your budget, it leaves you with $250 for a nice 19" wide screen LCD :)

F*CK!!!

*grovels on the ground like a subversive peon*

You are a G.O.D.

PS:

Phill you're a g.o.d too

PPS:

You too Jason

[MT]

only thing i have to ad to this conversation

Dennis (fad)

His name is Dom loser

[Dead]

only thing i have to ad to this conversation

Dennis (fad)

His name is Dom loser

Dennis, Dom, Tom, Brian, David, Ryan, Aaron, Phisophelise, Jiao Xing it's all the same.

Nah sorry Dom, I was at work and typing stupidly fast. I was preparing an information pack for a prospect client whose name was Dennis Howitz rofl. Probably why hahaha.

I seriously know your name is Dom, Fad don't worry about that. I'm loose in the head at work.

[Dead]

Ok guys, been looking at the Leadtek 8800GTS (both the 320mb and the 620mb).

Now to my knowledge these two should have the same GPU and clocking ability, and the extra ram is once again a marketing tool used by card manufacturers (the 620 version is 300 - 400 dollars more expensive).

Comments? :P

[Saiya]

If your gonna keep that CPU get the 320mb GPU version. No need to pay extra for the setup you have.

You could probably put that money into getting more RAM or even a Raptor 10,000RPM HDD. Ive got one of these baby's and they fly especially in loading times in games.

[Dead]

ooo...hmmmm

Will have to see. I'm actually seeing if Brandon can hook us up with a niiiceeee 19 in widescreen monitor hahahaha

[Saiya]

Get a 24inch wide screen Rob ;)

http://pserd.gallery.netspace.net.au/album...bum21/after.jpg

[Dead]

Too big dude lol. I'd need to sit back further and I can't haha.

Which reminds me, have to buy a leather easy-back computer chair...mmmm

[CHA54]

you get used to the big LCD's ;)

You could always get two 20" widescreen ultrasharp LCD's for the price of a 24 though...

[MR22ZZ]

Too big dude lol. I'd need to sit back further and I can't haha.

Which reminds me, have to buy a leather easy-back computer chair...mmmm

get a bucket chair :D

http://www.justjap.com/parts_nseats.htm

[Dead]

Too big dude lol. I'd need to sit back further and I can't haha.

Which reminds me, have to buy a leather easy-back computer chair...mmmm

get a bucket chair :D

http://www.justjap.com/parts_nseats.htm

:o :o :o :o :o :o

[Saiya]

Too big dude lol. I'd need to sit back further and I can't haha.

Bigger the better Rob! :D

Dont worry LCD computer screens are much more sharper than your normal LCD TV. Its actually easier on the eyes are your eyes are scanning a bigger area instead of a small one.

[Dead]

Money though lol.

If I had the money I would ay.

My mate told me he has a $400 computer chair that is leather and adjustable in every way. He can even sit cross legged in it :o

That'd be awwweesommee.

[smileys]

Get a 24inch wide screen Rob ;)

http://pserd.gallery.netspace.net.au/album...bum21/after.jpg

Are you on PcPowerplay cos i think it was your comp that won the pc thingy a month where you get something for free if you are in the mag

Badboyz...

i'd be happy to help you out with pc configs as im in canberra :)

althought im a little rusty on recent(ie 2-3months) hardware.