*Confused* Too many options! Stick with 939 or go C2D??

Hendrix89

I need help in making a tough decision that I dont want to regret later so this is improtant. I'll explain the best I can. Okay right now I have a 939 system which I have had for only a year and a half and I am thinking about the new Core 2 Duo but I dont like the thought of having to upgrade so much of my computer. New MB, new ram, new CPU and ill be getting an 8800GTX or GTS also... Theres just too much money in that considering that I would only want to get the highest end components... I know C2Ds are great value but along with the neccessary upgrades just makes the whole thing more expensive in my case.
As you can see from my sig I currently have an Athlon 3700+. I want to play the next gen DX10 games on max settings at a smooth Fps. I have the option of waiting till late next Summer and upgrading my whole system to C2D with the 8800GTX, or buying a dual core 939 CPU now along with an 8800GTX next April. I would also be getting a new 21'' monitor in the next month. I currently have a small 19'' monitor (only 1280x1024). Do I really have to upgrade to Core 2 Duo?? Thanks.

Cuddlesworth

Games are gpu limited. But buy a opty 165 from komplett and oc it a little, because games using the unreal 3 engine will run better on a dual core. Should hold you off till Christmas.

Oh, and btw AA and AF were designed to make low res look good. They make a negligible difference on high res games.

conzy

Im in the exact same boat, I think my GPU (X1800XT) will be fine for atleast another few months, but I really need / want a Dual core CPU, But i really want to see what the next few months will bring....

If anyone wants to sell me a X2 3800 or an opteron 165 Ill gladly take it

awhir

might as well get a 939 165 opty of scan.co.uk for around 150e so should just get that

Hendrix89

So you guys think there is no need for me to go Core Duo? If I dont I will be getting maybe an Athlon x2 4800+, 8800GTX and the new monitor I've always needed. Most of you are sticking with your 939's right? I mean if I was to do this 939 dual core upgrade then I would not be upgrading my PC again until another year at least. If you think it would be better for me to go C2D in this case let me know. Like I said its either I do nothin with my system now (cant get monitor) until the end of next Summer and get C2D system or I just forget C2D and keep my 939 system and upgrade that.

awhir

go for 939 its still very fast ,have alook at the lg on komplett nexy week its goin for 280 i think mena be good

Hendrix89

If I was to go for a very fast dual core CPU (to couple with a 8800GTX) then would I really need a new monitor? It took me too long to realise that If thats the case then I may actually change course and go for a C2D setup. After a bit of thinking i've decided I have done stupid things before that caused me to fall behind in the hardware spec wagon! If I just say **** it and go for a high spec Core Duo system then I will be more future proof. Yeah so change of decision im going C2D!! Which of course means no new monitor for a while. Do you have recommendations on what I should get? I already have a case, PSU and HDrive.

I will probably be ordering from ExcaliberPC.com

Sigh.. so expensive:( Heres what I have in mind so far:

CPU: Core 2 Duo E6600 2.4GHz (will OC to hell)
MB: eVGA nforce 680i SLI
Memory: OCZ 2GB DDR2 800MHz
Graphics card: eVGA 8800GTX 768MHz

What do you think? Is there anything I can go less on?
I wont be ordering for at least 2mnths.

TerrorFirmer

If you're going to be oc'ing to hell, you might as well get an 6400 or even an 6300 and overclock it to those speeds, that'll free up a considerable amount of case to invest elsewhere, it'll be the gpu rather then the cpu that'll bottleneck you in games at the moment anyway, and all the c2ds are good overclockers

Hendrix89

Well it would be a big OC for me! Probly to 3GHz. I might go down to the 6400 then. What do you think about the eVGA 680i MB? Is it worth the price or should I go for a cheaper motherboard?

awhir

get it off komplett.

and there are new amds coming out dont know if they will be any good or wa but.............................................

lol bad sentence

Hendrix89

Surely Kompletts way more expensive!? The site Im looking at is a US site and it has cheap shipping too. http://www.excaliberpc.com/

Maybe im wrong and there are some hidden costs...

awhir

not shure but you may get hit with import taxes and there 20% (i think)so ur price will go up and if you need to rma its gona be hard.

we need newegg europe now!!!!!!!!!!!

Anti

your forgetting import taxes.

Order from the uk for the best prices.

Hendrix89

Only have to pay import tax if the item(s) cost more than 600Eu I think. I would should ship them seperately. Two shipments?

awhir

nope thinks its 20e and up they charge from.

Hendrix89

Oh no... Looks like it'll have to be off OcUK then. Its so annoying cause the 8800GTX is over 80eu cheaper than what we have to pay!!! From the US site the total for everything was at about 1000eu. Off overclockers it will cost me upwards 1500!!! :mad: Anyway so do you think my hardware selection is alright? As for the CPU I think I will just get the E6600 just in case I decide not to OC much or I run into anything.

Buzz_Irl

disagree with some of the other posters-

1. ankermann-pc.com is a gr8 site and the chepaest i have found so far - i have got two pc's from them and service is basic but very efficient. they can be a bit slow to respond to emails and dont always speak english on the phone - but otherwise everything was fine. Delivery takes about 10 days from order to delivery via ups. They dont do the very high end specs in terms of mobos or gpu's.

2. dont drop down to a 6400 - the 6600 is the sweetspot - from what i have read it overclocks the best - but i'm not an overclocker so its only what i have read.

i am going with a e6600/2g ram(667)/8800gtx/nforce4sli - will let you know how it goes if u want

thats my tuppence worth !

awhir

oh forgot to say if you are getting a 8800gtx you should get a 20" widscreen with it so you can use the card to its full.

Hendrix89

Buzz_Irl wrote:

disagree with some of the other posters-

1. ankermann-pc.com is a gr8 site and the chepaest i have found so far - i have got two pc's from them and service is basic but very efficient. they can be a bit slow to respond to emails and dont always speak english on the phone - but otherwise everything was fine. Delivery takes about 10 days from order to delivery via ups. They dont do the very high end specs in terms of mobos or gpu's.

2. dont drop down to a 6400 - the 6600 is the sweetspot - from what i have read it overclocks the best - but i'm not an overclocker so its only what i have read.

i am going with a e6600/2g ram(667)/8800gtx/nforce4sli - will let you know how it goes if u want

thats my tuppence worth !

Thanks for the suggestion. Looks like a good site. How is the RMA'ing with the site?


Awhir about the monitor, I can't get a new monitor any time soon cause I want to get this upgrade as soon as possible and I simply wont have enough for the monitor im looking at (21''). It'll have to wait till mid next year. Surely I can do what krazy 8 said. Just crank the AA and AF up full?

Richard Dower

If you wait you'll get the Conroe for around €240 new in 6-8 weeks when the new price drops come into effect, barring the wait try a cheap E6300 with a Gigabyte DS3...good overclocker combo.

Hendrix89

Yeah thats goo to hear. I wont be buying until around 2-3 months anyway. And no I think id prefer to stick to the E6600 cause I am not used to OCing Intels so I just in case. A cheaper motherboard is a good move for me though. I have a couple months to decide. Either way keep the suggestions comming. Oh and if anyone is willing to post up a suggested setup for me feel free Remember I only need the C2D CPU, mobo, memory, gfx card.

L31mr0d

ATM the CPU IS the bottleneck in systems with a G80. I can't find the link, but i'll look, but in tests the G80 only stopped being bottlenecked on a system with a 3.8Ghz C2D. If you can keep an eye out on adverts and ebay and try and get a cheap 6700 or 6800 conroe.

Hendrix89

:eek: 3.8!!! I find that very hard to believe. I have heard the 6600 can reach close to 3.5GHz on air so maybe I can aim for that if this is the case. Im not too worried about this though.

Buzz_Irl

l31 - thats something i have never read

i have a e6600 and 8800gtx - just setup to-day

the 6600 is not bottlenecked but i believe that cod2 (the game) is very cpu dependent due to crap programming

havnt any real gameply experience yet but will do over weeked - bf2142/coh

ur dead right to hold on for a while if u can - ur spec of e6600 & 8800 gtx/s is spot on - like i said b4 - dont drop down from the 6600

ankermann delivered pretty good - no experience of rma but wouldnt like to try it

my spec and price was
Order
Item: 1
Article Nr: cpu_intel_duo
Article Name: System: INTEL Core 2 Duo 1,86Ghz<br> E6300 FSB1066 S.775 2MB
Equipment:
- INTEL Core 2 Duo E6600 2,40Ghz FSB 1066 S.775 2x2MB: EUR 149.99
- ASUS P5NSLI - nForce4 SLI (P/S/GBL/R/SATAII/DDRII): EUR 98.50
- PCI-e 256MB NVidia GeForce 6200 TV-out & DVI: EUR 0.00
- IDE 300 GB MAXTOR 6L300R0 (16MB cache-7200rpm): EUR 51.90
- 256MB DDR-II RAM G-Skill CL4 533MHz
- DDR-II upgrade from 256MB to 1024MB TRANSCEN PC667: EUR 79.90
- DDR-II RAM 1024MB TRANSCEN PC667: EUR 99.90
- LIGHTSCRIBE SAMSUNG 16x DVD-RW DL SH-S162L/BEBN (CaseColor): EUR 32.90
- CD-RW Liteon 52x/32x/52x LTR-52327S & Software: EUR 30.00
- Aspire X-plorer Midi-Tower - Black: EUR 69.00
- Intel CPU cooler
- 550W LC-Power LC6550H 12cm: EUR 25.00
- Realtek ALC888 8 channel audio
- 10/100 Ethernet LAN
Amount: 1
preis: EUR 1.036,00

Total value of goods (Net): EUR 893,10
VAT (16%): EUR 142,90
Total value of goods (Gross): EUR 1.036,00


i got the 8800gtx from komplett

cost a f**king fortune but wtf !

John

Hendrix89

Hmm yeah I think I might drop the pricey eVGA 680i and go with the mobo you have there Buzz. I've been hearing alot about it and its much cheaper.

L31mr0d

here is one of the threads about it, there are a few others out there about this also. A few of them say to have a true nonbottlenecked you'd need a c2d at 4Ghz

zappb

Hendrix, assuming you do upgrade i would like to take your ram!

2GB Corsair XMS mem - How much would you want for it approx?

Hendrix89

zappb wrote:

Hendrix, assuming you do upgrade i would like to take your ram!

2GB Corsair XMS mem - How much would you want for it approx?

Sorry mate I'll be keeping my current parts including the RAM cause Im thinking of eventually making it a second system. I'll be sure to let you know if I change my mind though;)

TerrorFirmer

L31mr0d wrote:

here is one of the threads about it, there are a few others out there about this also. A few of them say to have a true nonbottlenecked you'd need a c2d at 4Ghz

I wonder how that really affects games though. I can't see an E6400 or the like being insufficent to play any game below high settings as long as you have a good card for a year or two, unless you're playing at very very high resolutions on big monitors...I just got an E6400 very recently for the sole intention of it lasting for such purposes for at least 16 months.

Buzz_Irl

thats what i think - reading today about an e6300 oc'd to within a hares breath of an extreme 6800 - and i understand that e6600 is the optimum one to oc - but i have little practical experience

new sys running fine here - some issues with games not detecting the 8800gtx - like oblivion, which reset itself to min settings - but everything i tried so far runs at max settings - oblivion/bf2142/coh/fear

funny thing is that the nvidia site has no driver updates for win xp ????

do u think they are going to screw people for vista? yes i know the card is dx10 but the performance under dx9 is terrific and no games (ex flight sim) are dx10 ayway?