Yet another CPU/Mobo advice thread.

[VonBlade]

Hi guys.

MrsVBs PC has got to the point where it's laughably slow and so I'm looking to upgrade. Cash is extraordinarily tight but luckily even a basic upgrade will be an improvement. Currently a Athlon XP2400 @ 1.9ghz on a Socket A mobo with 1GB of DDR RAM. So naturally, it really sucks lol.

So here are the things that are important :

Brute gaming horsepower is unimportant. Nothing more complex than the Settlers II Anniversary or perhaps Red Alert 3.

Overclockability is extremely unimportant. Much rather have something that just works out the box.

We can't afford SLI/Crossfire so, again, unimportant in the Mobo specs.

An IDE port would be nice, and we'd prefer ATX rather than a mATX design as she's got a few PCI cards and things, so at least two PCI slots.

Needs to be DDR2 (for cheapness) and support 2x2GB sticks.

No video editing or similar, so dual-core should be fine unless you know better.

Budget of about 170 for RAM, Processor/Cooler and Mobo. Could stretch to 190 for some ridiculous power, but would prefer to stick within budget.

The site has to accept Paypal as we haven't got any cards nor know anyone with one.

That said it appears the best choice would be the X2 7750 Black dual-core chappy, on a AM2+ mobo (no idea about these at all) with a couple of sticks of XMS RAM. Advice about a Mobo and cooler (quiet) appreciated.

I understand you can get a E5200 or something but that really shines with OC'ing. My 939 X2-4400 has just about survived for four years now so I'm confident that a similar performing processor should be fine for her needs (how much power can Facebook take? ).

So would I be right with my choice of processor and chipset route? Upgradability isn't an issue so there isn't much point in going AM3 or 775 (as far as I know). Can anyone recommend something better? Or a good mobo for the money? Would that RAM and Processor combo be plug and play or would I need to tweak stuff? Or buy faster RAM?

Has anyone got a proc/mobo/mem setup kicking about they can let me have for a similar price?? (pweeze lol).

Thanks lads. And sorry I've been so quiet lately. Life sucks sometimes.

VB

 

[VonBlade]

No-one with an AM2+ recommendation or an alternative??

 

[Thanh55]

I'm got this in my mine and you can have a look:

CPU: http://www.scan.co.uk/Products/Inte...t-775-Wolfdale-Core-2x25-GHz-2MB-Cache-Retail

RAM: http://www.scan.co.uk/Products/4GB-...-240-Pins-Non-ECC-Unbuffered-CAS-5-5-5-18-DHX

Board: http://www.scan.co.uk/Products/Giga...(x16)-DDR2-1066-667-800-SATA-II-SATA-RAID-ATX

Just about your money and you can look for some second ahnd CPU cooler @ For Sale section. I really think those set up can last for years

 

[Mul.]

I for one would take the AMD route. It'll be cheaper and as fast.

AMD Athlon 64 X2 7750+ 2.7GHz £49

http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=CP-234-AM

Gigabyte 770 Motherboard AM2+ £65

http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=MB-180-GI&groupid=701&catid=5&subcat=805

4GB Kingston HyperX £32

http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=MY-038-KS

Slight price differences but when the performance difference isn't even noticeable, every penny counts.

Hope OC3D doesn't have alliances with certain retailers and posting others is a rule violation. If that's the case, sorry in advance.

 

[VonBlade]

^ Thanks to you both. Mil has picked the exact Proc/Mobo combo I've been leaning towards.

Of course I wouldn't go to Overclockers unless it was the last hardware shop this side of Tokyo, but it's good to know the UD mobos still have a nice rep

Thanks guys.

/wonders if Tom does parts ...

 

[Mul.]

I've actually heard a few stories mentioned about OcUK but they've cleaned up quite a bit, especially with their customer support. RMA's and Order cancellations have been dealt with swiftly and usually I've got through to rather friendly people on the other end of the line. Never had a problem with them but naturally it only takes one bad experience to be put off a retailer, and there's plenty of other retailers to go to

I picked the Gigabyte 770 UD3 as it was well priced and pretty much ticked the boxes of everything that you're after. It also supports 140W CPU's and is fully compliant with AM3 CPU's so upgrading in the near future shant be an issue either. If by any chance you need integrated graphics, there's a few 780G based ATX boards priced on a budget. Also if you find any mATX boards that are well priced and just about have the number of expansion slots that you need, I wouldn't necessarily turn them down.

 

[VonBlade]

Luckily I've got an old 7800GTX PCIe so integrated graphics aren't a problem. Two PCI slots should cover everything that's important because these days you get LANs onboard

Thanks again. I used to use OCUK, but I've found Scan to be fast, cheap and helpful. Which is all I can ever ask from a company

 

[Thanh55]

Glad to know your decided, good stuff anyway. All the best mate