Computer upgrade dilemma. (update)

[Polarman]

First, i'd like to say hello.

Like anyone here knows, Vista is slowly coming to life and should be up and about at the beginning of next year. And like a lot of people out there. i am considering upgrading my current pc in preparation for the new OS. Another reason for my upgrade is to replace my wifes antiquated Pentium 2 that is still running Win98.

My current Pc specs:

Antec Sonata Case (380W)

AMD 64 3500+

K8T Neo 2 Motherboard

Corsair Twinx DDR 400 1024M

ATI AIW 9700Pro 128Mb

Audigy 2 ZS

2 X WD Raptor 74GB

Plextor PX-708A

Windows XP Home SP2

My Wife Pc specs:

Pentium 2 - 300

128MB Ram (???)

Elsa Riva TNT2 32MB

Maxtor 6.4 GB

Sound Blaster Live

Windows 98 SE

You can see that she needs the upgrade more that i do.

Over the next months, i'm going to buy components to upgrade my current pc. Last week, i bought my new case. I chose the Antec Sonata II. Good case, good PSU, looks great and very quiet. I'll buy another component in a month or so.

Now i get to the hard part... Choosing the rest. I'm not changing my entire rig. Just the board, cpu, memory and the video card. My main concearns are Power comsuption, Heat dissipation and stability. I will never overclock my system and i do not intend to use 2 video cards.

Intel or AMD. I had both working for me without any problems. so i can't really shun one.

For the motherboard i had so many problem with Asus in the past that i crossed them off my list. MSI won my heart. So the next board will be MSI for sure. But wich chipset to choose. Nforce, ATI or VIA. Personnaly i think VIA is going on the endangered species list. Nforce sucks power and is too hot. ATI Xpress on the other hand... i like bit better because of compatibily with ATI video card.

Video Card. I like my ATI AIW 9700pro. I like working on my pc and watch tv at the same time. I will probably stick with an All in wonder model for the next card. But should i wait for a DirectX 10 card or just settle for a DirectX 9 one.

I'll stick with Corsair Memory. 1GB or 2GB... DDR2 667, 800, 1000!!!

So many makes and models to choose from. Diversified technology is giving me a headache.

I'll stop for now before i black out

Edited September 14, 2006 by Polarman

[bonestonne]

stick with a DX9 graphics card. i downgraded the version of vista i run on a different hard drive to 9. acceleration is better for the card i use [a very old Genoa thats loosing its touch]. the specs you've got now are great, better than mine. i do like you're style, one piece at a time, it shows you want something more specific than a computer with a bunch of specs that can only be somewhat modified.

my computer, an HP 7915 is 5 years old now, runs great with XP, Vista and Linux. vista doesn't push anything out, its more of an upgrade. i think its kinda silly to buy new for new stuff, but for some things its important. my dad got XP service pack 1 to work on some ancient Compaq, if i had to guess its got a 466MHz processor. if that.

i've got 1.1GHz processor, 512MB of RAM [for audition 2.0] and a 32bit graphics card that i only use when running vista. can't say anything i've got is new, or even good, but it runs right?

just don't go too crazy, things are only so good. XP is frugal with ram, so having a lot doesn't actually do anything but give higher numbers.

but your wife, i do think that it is time for an upgrade. windows 98, as good as it still is, is old. in fact, its around 8 years old. it may be worth a shot to do one thing at a time, and build your new computer, and let her use it for a while, to get used to it. no need to go all out and do two at once when you can easily do just one. B)

[puntoMX]

Okay...

So you are looking for a computer that doesn´t use so much power? look for the low power AMD CPU´s and change your 9700AIW, that one uses a lot of power.

[ripken204]

well how much money are we talking about? and did ur psu come with the case?... are you a gamer? if not than dx10 will be pointless to you.

[Polarman]

To aswer the previous questions.

The Antec Sonata 2 case comes with a SmartPower 2.0 450W PSU (it has 1 pci-e connector) and it was 135$

Let's say that on a scale of 1 to 10 gamer, (1=solitaire player, 10=Hardcore gamer). I'm a 7.

I will never overclock and i do not intend tu use a 2 video cards on my pc (SLI).

My actual gear works decently playing Oblivion (not in high res of course). I'm more of a RTS person. BTW... Can't wait for Supreme Commander

Budget wise now! i expect to spend about 150$ for the board, memory should be between 200$-400$ depending on amount of ram i get. CPU prices will go down, so let's say around 300$ near december. Video card is another story, but i'm sure to put around 300$ there too. Vista home premium 300$.

Note that $ is Canadian dollars.

[Jeremy]

Ok, you seem very confident and decisive on what you want, so I think you don't need to post anymore. You need reassurance?

[ripken204]

well this is what im thinking for you right now. you dont need great ram since you dont plan on overclocking.. now i know this is newegg but prices shouldnt range too much for you at ncix or whatever you want to use. a 7900gt plays oblivion on full specs w/ hdr but ati can do hdr and AA which nvidia cannot, so you can get an x1900xt if you want. now if you plan on getting this at christmas time then some nice ati dx10 card will be out but im not sure about the prices. if you're getting vista then i guess that dx10 would be a good decision. also by then the n590 chipset should be out, hopefully nvidia will make the best chipset for the core 2 duo's.

cpu : Intel Core 2 Duo E6300 Allendale - 193$

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?...N82E16819115005

mobo: Gigabyte GA-965P-DS3 Intel P965 - 143$

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?...N82E16813128012

vid card: evga 7900gt -240$

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?...N82E16814130032

ram: Patriot 2GB (2 x 1GB) 240-Pin DDR2 667 - 169$

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?...N82E16820220095

[Polarman]

I finally made up my mind.

I've been looking at ratings, reviews, spec and all kinds of data for a quite a while now. So here's my decision. Sorry but the next part is going to make some people upset i guess. So what!

1st is Screw Vista... I'll wait for them to come out with Vista SP2 before i get rid of XP wich will be SP3 way before that happens. It's going to take them at least a year to get all the flaws out and the same for all the drivers that are still waiting for the final product to come out before they actually do anything.

2nd Screw new thecnology... What's the point in upgrading my 939 to AM2. the difference is barely noticible with same processors (X2-4600 for exemple). What's the point of changing my AGP for PCI-X. I bought an ATI AIW X800XT today. I would need a X1800GTO to be able to beat it and i'll loose my tv on my pc.

My previous card was a AIW 9700Pro. I played Doom3, HL2, Oblivion and much more. No problems here. Ok, i don't have max details but i can play all those games and finished them all. I scored 2502 in 3Dmakr05. I'll redo this test when i get my new card. I'm pretty sure i'll have around 6000. I play some 3D intense games but i'm more of a RTS person. So i don't need a card that will score 25,000 in 3dmark05, burning holes trough my case and sucking a 1000 watts per hour.

3rd Money... It does'nt grow in my back yard. I've got to work hard for it. So why go on a spending spree to have new thecnology that is expensive and has bugs. My board is fine and up to date. Some mobo makers wait for ages to get a new bios out to correct flaws. DDR2-800 is still more expensive then DDR-400 and by the way there's not too much diffrence with benchmarks. Video cards a way too expensive especially if you get 2 for sli ofr crossfire.

So my new build will be the following:

Motherboard MSI K8T Neo 2-F (No change) = 0$

AMD X2-4600 (New) = 280$

Memory Corsair Twinx1024 3200C2 (No change) = 0$

Video ATI AIW X800XT (new) = 185$

Sound Audigy 2 ZS (No change) = 0$

Case Antec Sonata 2 (New) = 150$

Hard Drive 2 Raptor 74GB (No change) = 0$

CDR/DVDR Plextor PX708A (No change) = 0$

XP Home (No change) = 0$

My wife will have this build:

Motherboard Asus A8V (Got from my brother in law) = 20$

AMD 3500 (from my old pc) = 0$

Memory Corsair 512M (New) = 100$

Video ATI AIW 9700Pro (from my old pc) = 0$

Sound (On board) = 0$

Case Antec Sonata (from my old pc) = 0$

Hard Drive Maxtor 40GB (from my old pc) = 0$

DVD-Rom LG (New) = 28$

XP home = 100$

Total Price tag is 863 Canadian Dollars. I'm very satisfied and she's overjoyed!

Please feel free to rant if you wish.