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[Pachael]

Hmm...experimenting around with it, I'm up to about 2.5Ghz up from the 1.86. Not bad.

Edit: Of course, now I'm getting artifacting in Age of Conan where there was none before. =(

Try setting your PCI-E bus back to 100 Mhz. My guess is that the overclocking is affecting the graphics card, which is getting overclocked on the bus speed and causing the artifacting.

 

[Kintaro]

Try setting your PCI-E bus back to 100 Mhz. My guess is that the overclocking is affecting the graphics card, which is getting overclocked on the bus speed and causing the artifacting.

Thanks, that helped. =)

More questions; Depending on the performance of my incoming video card, I could get greedy and look to SLI. Sadly, my current mobo does not support this. Any good recommendations for a good SLI mobo should I go this route?

Also, since I'm OCing this CPU, the stock fan may not be enough (it's holding fine at the moment, but I'm not pushing the system). Any thoughts on a good heatsink/fan?

 

[brain_stew]

Thanks, that helped. =)

More questions; Depending on the performance of my incoming video card, I could get greedy and look to SLI. Sadly, my current mobo does not support this. Any good recommendations for a good SLI mobo should I go this route?

Also, since I'm OCing this CPU, the stock fan may not be enough (it's holding fine at the moment, but I'm not pushing the system). Any thoughts on a good heatsink/fan?

With a new generation of cards due literally in a matter of weeks, SLIing current cards would be a bad move. Might as well have one card, that outperforms the two in SLI.

 

[Pachael]

Thanks, that helped. =)

More questions; Depending on the performance of my incoming video card, I could get greedy and look to SLI. Sadly, my current mobo does not support this. Any good recommendations for a good SLI mobo should I go this route?

Also, since I'm OCing this CPU, the stock fan may not be enough (it's holding fine at the moment, but I'm not pushing the system). Any thoughts on a good heatsink/fan?

Try these coolers:
Coolermaster Hyper TX
Thermaltake Big Typhoon VX

 

[derder]

Ok, I'm about to finally pull the trigger on a new PC. I need your help though.

I built a PC on Dell Small Business with the 749-300 off coupon, heres the result:

Intel® Core™2 Duo Proc E8500 (3.16GHz,6MB L2Cache,1333FSB)
Genuine Windows® XP Home Edition
1 Year Basic Limited Warranty and 1 Year NBD On-Site Service
1GB Dual Channel DDR2 SDRAM 800MHz - 2DIMMs
Single Drive: 16X DVD-ROM Drive
160GB Serial ATA Hard Drive (7200RPM) w/DataBurst Cache™
128MB NVIDIA® GeForce® 8300GS
Integrated 7.1 Channel Audio

Then I buy a slickdeal set of 2GB 800 Mhz RAM and an 8800 GT 512mb for $30+~$150.

Total=$749-$300+$30+~$150

=$629+tax

I'll end up with:

Intel® Core™2 Duo Proc E8500 (3.16GHz,6MB L2Cache,1333FSB)
3GB Dual Channel DDR2 SDRAM 800MHz - 4DIMMs
16X DVD-ROM Drive
160GB Serial ATA Hard Drive (7200RPM)
512MB NVIDIA® GeForce® 8800GT

Does anyone see anything wrong with this? The PS and case should be able to handle the 8800, as its an option for including in the Dell Configuration(at $250).

Help me GAF, you're my only hope!

 

[radicalbunny]

Bah this thread is the one I shoulda bumped.

Is this card decent if I'm planning on running just 1280x1024? Or should I go 9600GT?

I'm trying to build a budget box for Warhammer this fall and that's a pretty low price.

 

[prodystopian]

Try these coolers:
Coolermaster Hyper TX
Thermaltake Big Typhoon VX

I don't think the TX is available anymore, but I have the TX2 and it is a great cooler for a cheap price even at ~$25. Lucky for me I got it for $5 after MIR!

 

[Cheeto]

Dailytech has more information on Intel price drops.

Recent roadmaps reveal the company has another cut coming in Q3 2008. Simultaneously, Intel will release new quad-core and dual-core processors. This includes the 3.0 GHz Core 2 Quad Q9650 with a price of $530 in 1000 unit trays. The current Core 2 Quad Q9550 will get a significant price cut from its current $530 to $316.

A few of the older Intel CPUs will be phased out including the Core 2 Quad 9450. The 9450 will be replaced with the Core 2 Quad running at 2.66GHz at $266. Other quad-core processors being phased out include the Q9300 and Q6700 leaving the Q6600 as the only 65nm Intel CPU on the market selling for $203.

Intel will also make some changes in its dual-core lineup. The company will announce its Core 2 Duo E8600 3.33 GHz processor for $266, and discontinue the Core 2 Duo E8300. The E8500 and E8400 dual-core parts will drop to $183 and $163 respectively. A new entry-level Core 2 Duo part will debut called the E7300 running 2.66GHz for $133. The existing E7200 will get a price reduction to $113.

I think the new Quad prices were already revealed, but this article outlines how the dual prices will be affected.

 

[RJT]

Has anyone from Europe ever imported from Newegg? They seem to have great prices, but I'm always scared of importing hardware (mainly warranty or customs issues)

 

[derder]

Has anyone from Europe ever imported from Newegg? They seem to have great prices, but I'm always scared of importing hardware (mainly warranty or customs issues)

I doubt it would be worth it. The best part about Newegg is their return policy (which would probably not be possible in euroland)

 

[SRG01]

I'm still waiting for Newegg to ship to Canada. NCIX is expensive!

 

[Oldschoolgamer]

Quad Core: Q6600
3 gigs of ram
&
8800gt 512 MB

I'm running everything at stock atm, because I'm still kind of nervous that I did something wrong. Just finished building it, setting up the Bios and OS. Now I'm updating the drivers. I now know how it feels to do something like this, and its pretty damned awesome. lolz

In terms of making sure everything is working proper, should I leave it on overnight, or just go about my business?

Also, the actual building part is easy as hell. The only problem comes in when you have to connect everything. That is a bit intimidating to say the least. The manual answered all of my questions though.

 

[AZ Greg]

Quick question guys. I have the option of getting my new PC with XP or Vista. I haven't really ever been a PC gamer so there are games I want to catch up with. Now I've heard that there are some games that don't work with Vista. On the other hand, I read that in order to really see some of the technical accomplishments in games like Crysis you need Vista. So what should I go with?

 

[SRG01]

Quick question guys. I have the option of getting my new PC with XP or Vista. I haven't really ever been a PC gamer so there are games I want to catch up with. Now I've heard that there are some games that don't work with Vista. On the other hand, I read that in order to really see some of the technical accomplishments in games like Crysis you need Vista. So what should I go with?

Vista. It passed XP in terms of performance a long time ago.

 

[Z_Y]

Alright...my socket 478 mobo has been acting funny. And as much as it pains me to have to upgrade my 6800Ultra that I barely used and paid too much for...it appears that I may as well given that socket 478 mobos with 8x AGP are hard to find and not likely worth the effort and cost to obtain. Plus this gives me a good reason to dump my 7(?) year old Pentium 4 (2.53GHz).

In any event...I'm looking to choose between two motherboards for a E8400 Wolfdale and 8800GT.

These two

GIGABYTE GA-EP35-DS3L

GIGABYTE GA-EP35-DS3R

Is there something that I am overlooking that would justify the $30 price difference?

Also...having not upgraded since Doom 3 in March of '04...I'm new to this whole PCI-Express thing. I can't tell if the PCI express slots on these boards are 2.0. Or if there is that big of a difference between 1.0 and 2.0. Thanks in advance guys. This thread is great.

 

[AZ Greg]

Vista. It passed XP in terms of performance a long time ago.

Thanks!

Ordered me and my brother each a rig with the following:

Intel Core2 Duo Proc E8400 (3.0GHz,6MB L2Cache,1333FSB)
Genuine Windows Vista Home Premium, Service Pack 1
2GB Dual Channel DDR2 SDRAM 800MHz - 2DIMMs
160GB Serial ATA Hard Drive (7200RPM)
512MB NVIDIA GeForce 8800 GT

$668 each. Cannot wait to dive into PC gaming!

 

[brain_stew]

Alright...my socket 478 mobo has been acting funny. And as much as it pains me to have to upgrade my 6800Ultra that I barely used and paid too much for...it appears that I may as well given that socket 478 mobos with 8x AGP are hard to find and not likely worth the effort and cost to obtain. Plus this gives me a good reason to dump my 7(?) year old Pentium 4 (2.53GHz).

In any event...I'm looking to choose between two motherboards for a E8400 Wolfdale and 8800GT.

These two

GIGABYTE GA-EP35-DS3L

GIGABYTE GA-EP35-DS3R

Is there something that I am overlooking that would justify the $30 price difference?

Also...having not upgraded since Doom 3 in March of '04...I'm new to this whole PCI-Express thing. I can't tell if the PCI express slots on these boards are 2.0. Or if there is that big of a difference between 1.0 and 2.0. Thanks in advance guys. This thread is great.

The only major difference is the DS3R supports RAID, if you don't plan to have a RAID array then go ahead and save the cash. I have the DS3 (vanilla) and its a great board with tons of overclocking options.

 

[GHG]

Alright...my socket 478 mobo has been acting funny. And as much as it pains me to have to upgrade my 6800Ultra that I barely used and paid too much for...it appears that I may as well given that socket 478 mobos with 8x AGP are hard to find and not likely worth the effort and cost to obtain. Plus this gives me a good reason to dump my 7(?) year old Pentium 4 (2.53GHz).

In any event...I'm looking to choose between two motherboards for a E8400 Wolfdale and 8800GT.

These two

GIGABYTE GA-EP35-DS3L

GIGABYTE GA-EP35-DS3R

Is there something that I am overlooking that would justify the $30 price difference?

Also...having not upgraded since Doom 3 in March of '04...I'm new to this whole PCI-Express thing. I can't tell if the PCI express slots on these boards are 2.0. Or if there is that big of a difference between 1.0 and 2.0. Thanks in advance guys. This thread is great.

Currently no difference. And by the time there is a difference there will probably be a big transition in terms of slot design.

 

[SRG01]

Thanks!

Ordered me and my brother each a rig with the following:

Intel Core2 Duo Proc E8400 (3.0GHz,6MB L2Cache,1333FSB)
Genuine Windows Vista Home Premium, Service Pack 1
2GB Dual Channel DDR2 SDRAM 800MHz - 2DIMMs
160GB Serial ATA Hard Drive (7200RPM)
512MB NVIDIA GeForce 8800 GT

$668 each. Cannot wait to dive into PC gaming!

What's the motherboard?

 

[randomwab]

GAF, I need your help!

I've got an E6600 2.4GHz Core 2 Duo arriving this week. At the minute my rig has a Pentium 4 3.2GHz, and my motherboard supports the LGA775 socket, so I'm planning on pulling the P4 and its heatsink out and installing the E6600 and its heatsink since the new CPU is also an LGA775.

What I need to know is what needs to be done after. I'm guessing it's not as simple as installing some new drivers. Do I need to reinstall XP? Or do I have to change the bios? Any help would be appreciated.

 

[Antagon]

GAF, I need your help!

I've got an E6600 2.4GHz Core 2 Duo arriving this week. At the minute my rig has a Pentium 4 3.2GHz, and my motherboard supports the LGA775 socket, so I'm planning on pulling the P4 and its heatsink out and installing the E6600 and its heatsink since the new CPU is also an LGA775.

What I need to know is what needs to be done after. I'm guessing it's not as simple as installing some new drivers. Do I need to reinstall XP? Or do I have to change the bios? Any help would be appreciated.

It depends on your motherboard. Not all motherboards support newer types of processors, even if it is the same slot. If they do, they usually need to do a bios update before you install your new cpu. A windows reinstall is manditory as well I think.

 

[SRG01]

GAF, I need your help!

I've got an E6600 2.4GHz Core 2 Duo arriving this week. At the minute my rig has a Pentium 4 3.2GHz, and my motherboard supports the LGA775 socket, so I'm planning on pulling the P4 and its heatsink out and installing the E6600 and its heatsink since the new CPU is also an LGA775.

What I need to know is what needs to be done after. I'm guessing it's not as simple as installing some new drivers. Do I need to reinstall XP? Or do I have to change the bios? Any help would be appreciated.

You can usually check the motherboard's officially supported CPUs (and any firmware necessary) by going to the manufacturer's website.

As for reinstalling XP, I don't think so. I could be wrong. I know for sure going from Intel->AMD and vice versa will force a reinstall.

 

[randomwab]

Just checked and my motherboard doesn't support anything except Pentium 4, despite the LGA775 socket. I'll need to order a new mobo too. Le sigh.

 

[VictimOfGrief]

GAF, I need your help!

I've got an E6600 2.4GHz Core 2 Duo arriving this week. At the minute my rig has a Pentium 4 3.2GHz, and my motherboard supports the LGA775 socket, so I'm planning on pulling the P4 and its heatsink out and installing the E6600 and its heatsink since the new CPU is also an LGA775.

What I need to know is what needs to be done after. I'm guessing it's not as simple as installing some new drivers. Do I need to reinstall XP? Or do I have to change the bios? Any help would be appreciated.

You MAY have to re-install Windows so please consider all of the following below:

1.) Make sure you have a current backup of ALL data you care about before doing anything.
2.) Check your vendors website and download the latest BIOS and flash your motherboard.
3.) If step 2 is possible and your board supports C2D's then proceed to step 4. If step 2 is NOT possible skip to step 2a below.
---2a.) If by the off chance that your board can't support the C2D, don't fret. There are a LOT of system boards out there now, namely the P35 boards which support DDR2 and the C2D's that can be had for cheap. Just look on tigerdirect or newegg and purchase one today, should have it shipped out to you in a couple of days and then proceed with your upgrades.
4.) If your motherboard can be flashed to the newest BIOS and support the C2D, then after you've followed the steps above, power off your system, make sure you have a ground wrist strap to not ESD any components, carefully remove the heatsink and old CPU, place new CPU in, spread new thermal grease. NOTE: Before placing the heatsink on the new CPU, make sure that the old thermal grease is completely wiped off so it can make a good seal with the new CPU.
5.) Pop the heatsink on, fasten the connections and get the system ready to power on.

Some links to help you out:
http://www.michaelstevenstech.com/moving_xp.html
http://www.theeldergeek.com/replace_motherboard.htm
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/249694

The reason I said "May" have to re-install Windows is because you can try and run a repair on it of which will "amend" the HAL to the new hardware and rendering Windows able to boot. What we don't want to have happen is you get knee deep into doing this little upgrade project and find this info out.

All the best.

 

[randomwab]

All the best.

I've a lot of work ahead of me. :lol

Thanks for the advice guys. It's a great help for me.

 

[aznpxdd]

Mhmm, just got my 4x Yate Loons Low RPM fans. Cools much better than my stock Lian Li fans and quieter too. I will post some pics of the rig once I go home.

Accelero S1 + 2x 120mm Yate Loon's, time to push my 8800GT even further (its at 700/1750/2000 right now). Also changed my case and Tuniq Tower's stock fans, also time to push my e8400 (3.6@1.184v right now).

New fan controller installed, nice and clean. <3 Lian Li.

 

[Crovax33]

Currently I have a 250GB, will switching to a 750GB add any performance hit to my PC since now it needs to look up for things in a bigger address space?

 

[SRG01]

Currently I have a 250GB, will switching to a 750GB add any performance hit to my PC since now it needs to look up for things in a bigger address space?

Not really.

 

[jet1911]

I want to change my graphic card in the next couple of weeks. Or maybe I should wait for nVidia and ATI to release their new cards and wait for some price drops?

 

[Crovax33]

Not really.

not really or not at all? What change besides more space I am supposed to expect?

I want to change my graphic card in the next couple of weeks. Or maybe I should wait for nVidia and ATI to release their new cards and wait for some price drops?

Patience. Prices will go $100 soon.

 

[SRG01]

not really or not at all? What change besides more space I am supposed to expect?

I'm 90% certain that there will not be a performance hit.

At the same time, I have about 10% reservation about my own knowledge on this stuff. Call it healthy skepticism.

 

[brain_stew]

Currently I have a 250GB, will switching to a 750GB add any performance hit to my PC since now it needs to look up for things in a bigger address space?

Well as its a newer model it'll likely be a little faster than your current drive. Other than that, no, there won't be a difference.

 

[jet1911]

Yeah... I don't think I'll wait.

Does this looks like a good card?

http://www.ncix.com/products/index.php?sku=27704&vpn=512-P3-N801-AR&manufacture=eVGA

 

[momolicious]

cpu bottleneck

http://www.firingsquad.com/hardware/$500_gaming_pc_upgrade/page5.asp

I dunno, this page shows that CPU speed upgrade wouldnt make much of a difference with the 8800GT

 

[Spiderjericho]

I finally got my desktop up and operational last week. My biggest problem is I got a PC Power and Cooling 750 Watt Power supply and a Coolermaster 690 case. Bad combo for cable management. I got a ton of zip ties but due to the number of cables (and the fact the power supply isn't on top or the cables are routed through the side of the motherboard), it is a mess.

 

[Labombadog]

Im thinking about getting a 8800GT 512mb graphic card, but I currently have an 8800 GTS 320. Is it worth the jump, or just wait till later and get two and sli them?

 

[derder]

Im thinking about getting a 8800GT 512mb graphic card, but I currently have an 8800 GTS 320. Is it worth the jump, or just wait till later and get two and sli them?

Wait until June 18th. Both the new ATI cards and Nvidia cards will have been released. You could either get the 8800 on the cheap or get the new GTX260. Actually, you could also consider the new ATI card, as its supposed to be a considerable leap forward.

 

[MoxManiac]

Wait until June 18th. Both the new ATI cards and Nvidia cards will have been released. You could either get the 8800 on the cheap or get the new GTX260. Actually, you could also consider the new ATI card, as its supposed to be a considerable leap forward.

Is there going to be a $200-250 range product in the new line?

 

[derder]

Is there going to be a $200-250 range product in the new line?

The GTX260

Can someone recommend me the cheapest mobo that features:

Doesn't need SLI
Can support the newest Core2Duo's (45nm E8500)
Doesn't need DDR3
4 PCI slots
1 year warranty
**PCI-E2.0 (I'm going to be using a 8800gt, followed by the GTX260, so it *may* need to have PCI-E2.0.)

I think that I'm going to upgrade my cpu one last time before I ditch it for the new Intel chip coming out Q4, so it needs to be able to support 45nm's coming out Q3.

It's the last piece in my custom rig that I've created, I just can't figure out all the mobo specs.

 

[derder]

Someone should make a new thread w/o a banned OP:lol

 

[zoku88]

What, he got banned AGAIN?

He'll come back...

 

[MeowMeow]

OK guys, i need a TABLET TOUCH SCREEN LAPTOP PC

Here are the minimum specifications that I need:

4 GIG of RAM minimum

AMD Turion 64 X2 Dual-Core Mobile Technology TL-60 operating at 2.0GHz (or higher in Ghz) [is it possible to use a QUAD CORE in laptops?]

Windows Vista Ultimate with service pack 1 (best version of vista)(designed for 64-bit applications not just 32)

100 GIG of hardrive space or lower (not too worried about hardrive, considering i will be getting external hardrive)

DVD/R/RW + CD/R/RW (given duh)

Built in Web Cam and speaker
Lots of USB ports

Graphic Card: 512MB GeForce 8800M GTX (with possible HDMI output)

Im sure it will be expensive, but i am willing to pay for it, and no i dont want a desktop.

Also one of the things i noticed about tablet pcs was the lag time in writing,..

pretend that you are drawing a straight horizontal line and going at a moderate speed
the line that you are drawing is catching up to you by the time you reach the edge of the notebook
I dont want a tablet notebook where it feels like one of those electronic signatures that you sign for for your credit card receipt at target or best buy or whatever,..i mean.. i want minimum lag time...how do i know that a tablet laptop doesnt have those problems?

edit: what are some good websites where i can build my own pc?

 

[SRG01]

OK guys, i need a TABLET TOUCH SCREEN LAPTOP PC

Here are the minimum specifications that I need:

4 GIG of RAM minimum

AMD Turion 64 X2 Dual-Core Mobile Technology TL-60 operating at 2.0GHz (or higher in Ghz) [is it possible to use a QUAD CORE in laptops?]

Windows Vista Ultimate with service pack 1 (best version of vista)(designed for 64-bit applications not just 32)

100 GIG of hardrive space or lower (not too worried about hardrive, considering i will be getting external hardrive)

DVD/R/RW + CD/R/RW (given duh)

Built in Web Cam and speaker
Lots of USB ports

Graphic Card: 512MB GeForce 8800M GTX (with possible HDMI output)

Im sure it will be expensive, but i am willing to pay for it, and no i dont want a desktop.

Also one of the things i noticed about tablet pcs was the lag time in writing,..

pretend that you are drawing a straight horizontal line and going at a moderate speed
the line that you are drawing is catching up to you by the time you reach the edge of the notebook
I dont want a tablet notebook where it feels like one of those electronic signatures that you sign for for your credit card receipt at target or best buy or whatever,..i mean.. i want minimum lag time...how do i know that a tablet laptop doesnt have those problems?

I am sure there are no tablet notebooks with the 8800M GTX.

 

[Peru]

Just ordered this from Dell:

Dell XPS TM M153

Intel® Core™ 2 Duo-processor T8300 (2,40 GHz, 800 MHz FSB, 3 MB L2-buffer)
Windows Vista™
4096 MB 667 MHz Dual Channel DDR2 SDRAM [2 x 2048]
NVIDIA® GeForce™ Go 8600M GT 256 MB dedicated
320 GB (5400 rpm) SATA-harddisk
15,4" widescreen WXGA+ (1440 x 900)


A few discount coupons later and it turned out to be a great deal (8400,- NOK), probably my best electronics purchase yet.

 

[brain_stew]

I am sure there are no tablet notebooks with the 8800M GTX.

Even if there was, you'd end up both breaking and melting your arm everytime time you tried to use it.

 

[SRG01]

Just ordered this from Dell:

Dell XPS TM M153

Intel® Core&#8482; 2 Duo-processor T8300 (2,40 GHz, 800 MHz FSB, 3 MB L2-buffer)
Windows Vista&#8482;
4096 MB 667 MHz Dual Channel DDR2 SDRAM [2 x 2048]
NVIDIA® GeForce&#8482; Go 8600M GT 256 MB dedicated
320 GB (5400 rpm) SATA-harddisk
15,4" widescreen WXGA+ (1440 x 900)


A few discount coupons later and it turned out to be a great deal (8400,- NOK), probably my best electronics purchase yet.

Not bad. 32-bit Vista or 64-bit?

 

[MeowMeow]

Even if there was, you'd end up both breaking and melting your arm everytime time you tried to use it.

Why?

 

[NintendosBooger]

I've asked this before but no answer:

Can any of you recommend http://www.cyberpowerpc.com/ for PC/notebook purchases? Are the prices just right, or should I look elsewhere?

 

[Outdoor Miner]

I've asked this before but no answer:

Can any of you recommend http://www.cyberpowerpc.com/ for PC/notebook purchases? Are the prices just right, or should I look elsewhere?

AVOID.

 

[No6]

Dailytech has more information on Intel price drops.


I think the new Quad prices were already revealed, but this article outlines how the dual prices will be affected.

When is Q3 08? Is it Jul-Sep or some other crazy fiscal ordering?

And from what I'm reading, I should wait until late June to buy a new system?