I need a upgrade done on the cheap

jozi

I've had this setup for quite sometime, it's plenty for what I use the pc for these days.

AMD athlon 64 3200
Lanparty dfi nf4 mobo
1 gig of some really expensive ram with 2-2-2 timings
ati x800xl gfx (prob keep this)
80+500gig hdd + dvd burner

I was looking at getting a 2tbh storage drive, prob something like the Samsung SpinPoint F4 EcoGreen, something not to expensive anyway. Figured a SSD might be a nice upgrade for a OS drive, something like the OCZ Vertex 2E 60GB. Anyone know if thats the same drive as the OCZ Vertex 2?

Decided to have a look at some ram, the joys of being on a old system 80quid for 2 gig

So now I might go for a new mobo/ram/cpu combo and looking for advice mainly on this. Will need a good cooler as well to keep it all nice and quiet as it is now.

jozi

So nobody has any advice for me then

So how about these for a start:
ASUS M4A77TD, Sockel AM3, ATX
AMD Athlon II X3 440 "Boxed" 95W, Sockel AM3
4GB-Kit GEIL Black Dragon PC3-10660 DDR3-1333 CL7
Samsung EcoGreen F4 2000GB, SATA II
OCZ Vertex 2E 60GB

Robbed from a different thread. Notice the wattage rating for the cpu is pretty high, anything cooler than the above for around the same price point or less?

Also going to need a decent quiet cooler. Where is a good place to buy these days, its been ages!

I will also need 1 pci slot for my SB xfi pro, I'd like to keep that as part of the current system.

Monotype

OCZ Vertex 2E and Vertex 2. http://forums.overclockers.co.uk/showthread.php?t=18152214

Where are you buying from, do as we can see what else is around that price?
The x800XL is pretty dated by now - are you sure you won't be needing an upgrade?

jozi

Not sure where to buy from, hardwareversand or ocuk I reckon.

I can't afford to upgrade the gfx at the min, I'd even be inclined to go for cheaper mobo/cpu/ram combo if someone wants to point me in the right direction.

Monotype

If the budget is tight, that ram could be cut down by €18
http://www1.hardwareversand.de/articledetail.jsp?aid=33951
Timings aren't as good, but probably not hugely noticeable.

You could cut €9 from the MB at the loss of a few extra ports from the back, as far as I can see. I would recommend that you spend a little more here (+€10) to get a board with SATA 6Gbps if you're looking into SSDs (although not necessary for the OCZ V2).
http://www1.hardwareversand.de/articledetail.jsp?aid=38554

jozi

I have to say I'm not a fan of MSI, like Asus on the other hand. What is the reliability of both boards like?

Are there benefits to the SATA 6gb? Going by how often I upgrade anythign at all tha SSD could be with me for a long time, my maxtor must be 8yrs old now, its from when 80gig sata drives were generous.

I'll go with the cheaper ram as per recommendation.

With reference to the SSD, I briefly scaned over the link, is the listed SSD not a good one then?

massy086

un-less your going high-end ie high price mobo,s asus as of late have been muck were msi quality has been great im using msi now after 2 asus boards went bang on me

Monotype

MSI have been increasing in quality over the years. I'd usually aim for Asus myself, but mainly the higher end ones.

The vertex 2 is a popular choice and if you think you'll be sticking to that until the end of your build, then you'll be fine. A lot of those emerging now (e.g., Crucial's SSDs have the full 6Gbps available (although difference would be still pretty small with current SSDs as they're just about on the 3Gbps margin at most).

Monotype

Actually, the difference can be quite significant, as seen here. Don't use this for comparing the different brands as they're using SSDs in differing price ranges.
Again, this won't affect you with the Vertex 2, if you choose that.

jozi

I had concidered the Crucial RealSSD 64gb model but dismissed it because of the OCZ being on "special" offer

I'm probably willing to spend a little more on a good ssd with mobo if there are some sort of gains to be had.

The budget isn't really that tight, I'm just looking to keep it a cheap as possible and use the money saved else where (read: spend on my car)

jozi

Anyone know if this cooler will fir the above cpu: Prolima Megahalems

massy086

jozi wrote: »

Anyone know if this cooler will fir the above cpu: Prolima Megahalems

can i ask why and how much is it costing you

jozi

My whole system is geared towards being silent and a big lump of a cooler like that will allow me to run a very slow fan (or maybe none) while still keeping temps as low as possible.

I don't think it fit anyway unless I can find a bracket for am3 boards, it's under 50 euro from hardwareversandt - but they dont have the bracket... Looking like I'll be shopping in 2 different shops, anyone recommend another online shop?

Tea_Bag

holy **** that Prolima Megahalems is massive. im not sure i'd trust it in a case that stands verticle tbh, could rip appart the mobo.

jozi

Been shopping around a little this evening and have come to the following basket on the scan.co.uk site.

Noctua NH-D14 Dual Radiator and Fan Quiet CPU Cooler
4GB (2x2GB) Corsair DDR3 PC3-10666 (1333) Non-ECC Unbuffered, CAS 9-9-9-24, 1.50V
AMD Athlon II X3 445, Rana, Triple Core, S AM3, 3.1GHz, 1.5MB Total Cache, HT 2000MHz, 95W, Retail
64GB Crucial RealSSD C300, MLC-Flash, SATA3 6Gbps, 2.5" SSD, Read 355MB/s, Write 70MB/s
MSI 870A-G54 AMD 870, AM3, PCI-E 2.0 (x16), DDR3 1800/2000(OC), SATA III 6Gb/s, SATA RAID, ATX
2TB Samsung HD204UI/Z4, SpinPoint EcoGreen F4EG SATA 3Gb/s, 32MB Cache, 8.9 ms, NCQ

They didn't have the cpu mentioned in a earlier post, is this one a good buy or am I better going for the 425 or the 450?

Aria had everything i want and was the cheapest of uk sellers but about 70 moe than hardwareversandt who doesnt have everything i want....

Solitaire

X3-425 is old and slow, and I'm fairly sure the X3-450 is expensive most places, if its more than €5 more than the X3-445 there's no point getting it instead.

The X3 Athlons generally weigh in around 70-80W, not 90W+ like the Athlon/Phenom2 quads, and can be kept in check with just a decent 92mm cooler such as the Arctic Freezer 7 Pro Rev2 so long as they're not running huge OCs (3.6GHz+) and the overvolts to match IIRC HWVS even have a decent 120mm tower cooler for AM3 and LGA775 going for a snip at €15-20, so no need for a pricey Noctua cooler - for a €65 CPU it would be madness! :eek:

jozi

Are AM2 and LGA775 cpu cooler compatible with the am3 socket?

Good point about the cost difference between both the cpu and heatsink. I'm aiming for something decent that can keep temps reasonably low with either no fan or a very slow spinning one. I'll do a bit of reading up on some other heatsinks.

Hoping to order either tomorrow or monday and hopefully get building next weekend.

marco_polo

jozi wrote: »

Are AM2 and LGA775 cpu cooler compatible with the am3 socket?

Good point about the cost difference between both the cpu and heatsink. I'm aiming for something decent that can keep temps reasonably low with either no fan or a very slow spinning one. I'll do a bit of reading up on some other heatsinks.

Hoping to order either tomorrow or monday and hopefully get building next weekend.

The cpu mounting is the same for a AM2 and AM3 board so either would be fine, a LGA775 cooler will not work (unless it has an adjustable clip and AM2/3 support is explicitly stated).