# Very Low Budget Upgrade Need Help !!



## nta3392 (Jun 21, 2008)

Hello! I need help deciding... 

I have and Hp Compaq and would like to upgrade... currently it's running fine on a 3400+ 2.4 Athlon 64 processor and  K8S-LA (Salmon) motherboard which currently supports only AGP. 

 I wanted to upgrade CPU, Motherboard, and video Card

Here' is waht i have 

Motherboard - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813138111 (52$)

Processor - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819103212 (60$)

and Video Card - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814134035 (152$)

Memory - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820227139 ($50) ($25MIR)

Or

Motherboard - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813138125 (50$)

Processor - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819116052 (70$)

same video card and memory

Which way should i go Intel or AMD ? seems that Amd will give more for my money. I've never overclocked but i'm willing to. will i be able to overclock on these motherboard? I have PC-3200 memory will they run on these motherboard? i heard that CPU can bottleneck my video card, will i be fine with those processor and the video card(i'm plannig to run games like Age of Empires3, Starcraft 2 , COD4 and maybe gta4 if they mkae it for pc)? I wont upgrade computer for another 2 to 3 years.

 what about ebay? i can get those prices cutted down significantly on claimed new products.  Should i go wiht ebay? 

I'll thank any help and suggestion(i'm new btw)


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## Snipermonkey2 (Jun 21, 2008)

save money by using the same cpu you have and buy the am2 mobo video card then buy like 2gb of ram.


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## beyond_amusia (Jun 21, 2008)

I've read all over that this overclocks nicely, up to 3GHz with proper cooling.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819116064

Overclocking is easy, just ask for hlep if you need it,


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## lepra24 (Jun 21, 2008)

amd +1


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## MKmods (Jun 21, 2008)

Like Sniper said but go with a AM2+ mobo so you can use a quad in the future and the other benefits of the AM2+ mobos.
(your CPU will work fine on a AM2+ mobo)

For memory you will need DDR2, no prob as its much less $$ than your DDR1.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820146565

Your video card is an excellent choice, also take a look at the ATI 4850 thats out (I saw them as low as $150) But make sure you have a PS thats able to run them.
(a Corsair 450 would work)


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## Snipermonkey2 (Jun 21, 2008)

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820227139

Super cheap ram


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## nta3392 (Jun 21, 2008)

Snipermonkey2 said:


> save money by using the same cpu you have and buy the am2 mobo video card then buy like 2gb of ram.



So?  is my CPU (754 pin) Compatible wiht AM2?




beyond_amusia said:


> I've read all over that this overclocks nicely, up to 3GHz with proper cooling.
> 
> http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16819116064
> 
> Overclocking is easy, just ask for hlep if you need it.



better than the E2180? I dont know if like Celerons


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## Snipermonkey2 (Jun 21, 2008)

ah its a 754 bummer i thought it was a am2


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## FatForester (Jun 21, 2008)

Both can be upgraded to use quads later on, so don't worry about that. The e2180 is just as fast as the AMD, and when it's overclocked it's even faster. The Celeron e1200 is a last resort IMO. It's pretty worthless unless if you are going to keep it overclocked 24/7.


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## mullered07 (Jun 21, 2008)

FatForester said:


> Both can be upgraded to use quads later on, so don't worry about that. The e2180 is just as fast as the AMD, and when it's overclocked it's even faster. The Celeron e1200 is a last resort IMO. It's pretty worthless unless if you are going to keep it overclocked 24/7.



who doesnt oc 24/7 normally if someone has an oc on their cpu its 24/7 and maybe another/higher one for benchies, even the e1200 oc pretty damn good, hitting 3ghz a lot of times and that would still smoke the x2 at 3ghz as its core 2 architecture with lower cache 2x512k iirc 

if you have a 754 mobo and are upgrading the mobo regardless go with the e2180


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## MKmods (Jun 21, 2008)

nta3392 said:


> So?  is my CPU (754 pin) Compatible wiht AM2?



My mistake also, I misread the OP 754 is not able to be AM2.

Your decision on AMD/Intel should be made by if you OC or not. If you really want to OC that go Intel (higher OC), if you may or are unsure go with AMD(better valve at stock).

I would Pass on Celeron and Sempron no matter what

PS: does your case have room for a full size mobo or do you have to go with mATX?


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## nta3392 (Jun 21, 2008)

MKmods said:


> [/url]
> 
> Your video card is an excellent choice, also take a look at the ATI 4850 thats out (I saw them as low as $150) But make sure you have a PS thats able to run them.
> (a Corsair 450 would work)



Will my Antec SmartPower 2.0 400 WAtt ATX12V v2.0 do?  ;.I"ll look for that 150$ 4850!



So will there not be any bottlenecking between cpu and the video card?
thanx for the memory imputs i'll buy the one of 18$



MKmods said:


> Your decision on AMD/Intel should be made by if you OC or not. If you really want to OC that go Intel (higher OC), if you may or are unsure go with AMD(better valve at stock).



I dont know if should but i'm willing to.  I want it to run for atleast 2.5 years, and i dont know if those cheap mobos will allow me?.


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## Snipermonkey2 (Jun 21, 2008)

nta3392 said:


> thanx for the memory imputs i'll buy the one of 18$



Yeah man no problem I run OCZ and love the stuff.


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## MKmods (Jun 21, 2008)

your PS should be fine for 1 video card (no SLI or Crossfire) as long as you dont OC much

Hurry
http://www.pdxlan.net/forums/viewtopic.php?t=5456


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## From_Nowhere (Jun 22, 2008)

Dunno if this is out of your budget, but I hope this configuration helps:

EVGA 8600GT Video Card http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814130290

MSI P45 Motherboard http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813130181 

G. Skill 2x1GB DDR2 800 RAM http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231098

Intel Pentium Dual Core E2220 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819116070

Adds up to $334.96

Or if you need more Graphics Power:

PowerColor Radeon HD 4850 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814131111 and it's $199.99


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## calvary1980 (Jun 22, 2008)

if you choose allendale you should go with the E2180, they overclock very well (M0) supposably the E2200+ comes with the new heatsink that is different than the previous allendales it could be the 45nm one. anyways here is a really good deal on memory. 

- Christine


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## xu^ (Jun 22, 2008)

E2xxx for sure ,i run a E2160 @2.5ghz (board limits it) and tbh it wipes the floor with my old amd x2 4200+ ,im sure that cpu oc to 3ghz would make any AMD u can afford look a bit poor.


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## nta3392 (Jun 22, 2008)

MKmods said:


> your PS should be fine for 1 video card (no SLI or Crossfire) as long as you dont OC much
> 
> Hurry
> http://www.pdxlan.net/forums/viewtopic.php?t=5456




 I missed it! I just couldnt buy it yesterday. 


From_Nowhere said:


> MSI P45 Motherboard http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16813130181
> Adds up to $334.96


hmmm.. idont know if i should sacrifice video card for a good motherboard? wouldnt the other way around be better?
I still dont know if those motherboard will overclock fine?


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## flyin15sec (Jun 25, 2008)

*On Super tight Budget? Super suggestion*

Since you're on a super tight budget, This is what I just bought last week.

EVGA 650i Ultra $49: http://www.evga.com/products/bstock.asp it came out to be about $55 /w shipping

Then I ordered a E2180 from Newegg for $69, but you can find it cheaper at Microcenter for $59: http://www.microcenter.com/single_product_results.phtml?product_id=0287623

As you can see, I got to 3Ghz easy. It is on fairly low voltage 1.28v in BIOS and 1.26v in Windows. Temps didn't get over 49C in Coretemp. Not bad for $109 and I'm sure it can do fairly good gaming with 16X PCIe, with a new HD4850 or 9800GTX. I haven't decided yet, but I will definitely get one of those choices.


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## MKmods (Jun 25, 2008)

thanks flyin for the good link.


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## black light burns (Jun 25, 2008)

mullered07 said:


> who doesnt oc 24/7 normally if someone has an oc on their cpu its 24/7 and maybe another/higher one for benchies, even the e1200 oc pretty damn good, hitting 3ghz a lot of times and that would still smoke the x2 at 3ghz as its core 2 architecture with lower cache 2x512k iirc
> 
> if you have a 754 mobo and are upgrading the mobo regardless go with the e2180



I wouldn't say smoke the X2. I have seen benches that JR and POS have ran.JR has a E1200 POS have a 5000+BE the BE is behind the E1200 but it doesn't get ass raped by it just gets finger f***ed


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## francis511 (Jun 25, 2008)

The 2180 is a great chip. I clocked one past 3.4 ghz to see how fast it would go. By comparison an e6300 crapped out just past 3 ghz on the same board. Rly good value for money


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## nta3392 (Jul 1, 2008)

I've been having problem, so i  still Havent bought anything but i'm doing that either tonight or tomorrow definetly.  Thanks everyone for their inputs


			
				flyin15sec said:
			
		

> Since you're on a super tight budget, This is what I just bought last week.
> 
> EVGA 650i Ultra $49: http://www.evga.com/products/bstock.asp it came out to be about $55 /w shipping
> 
> ...



One Thing, that motherboard you suggested, will it come with the i/o plate, it will definely be my first choice if it does, cause  I found out recently that i need a new i/o plate for my upgrade.  with that in mind i also changed my original plans

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813138125 (50$) new Biostar Intel Motherboard

Can anyone tell me if this is will overclock that e2180 just fine to around/atleast 2.5 GHZ


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## flyin15sec (Jul 1, 2008)

No. You won't get anything. Just the motherboard, since it is EVGA's B-stock.

I'm not too familiar with older Intel chipsets, but if you want a Biostar board and 31 Chipset, go for the P31 instead. It's near the same price.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813138116

Gseries chipset have intergrated graphics, and probably wont' have alot of OC features in their BIOS.


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## nta3392 (Jul 1, 2008)

Yeah i've been looking motherboards with onboard graphics.  is this bad in any way?


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## flyin15sec (Jul 2, 2008)

nta3392 said:


> Yeah i've been looking motherboards with onboard graphics.  is this bad in any way?



Theres nothing wrong with motherboards that have onboard video, for the most part they will work just fine. In my experience most do not have alot of overclocking features in the BIOS.

***Edit***At this point I think you should consider the 9600GSO aka 8800GS, instead of the 8800GT, that way you can opt for a much better motherboard, whether it is AMD or Intel.


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## francis511 (Jul 2, 2008)

Cheap mobo with functional chipset

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813138098&Tpk=biostar+p35d2-a7


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## nta3392 (Jul 2, 2008)

First I thank to all posts

I've delayed once again to tomorrow the purchase of this upgrade! i'll first get the mobo, cpu and ram, and from there buy a video card later.   I've attached the bios manual for that biostar mobo(50$), it seems like a really good deal, so can anyone please   chekc out page 30, where you find the overclocking options and tell me if it is good enought for a decent overclock or a definite no-no


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## francis511 (Jul 2, 2008)

Short answer no. The board I mentioned lets you change cpu voltage , dram voltage and all the other basics. A proper board would cost a bit more.


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## flyin15sec (Jul 2, 2008)

nta3392 said:


> First I thank to all posts
> 
> I've delayed once again to tomorrow the purchase of this upgrade! i'll first get the mobo, cpu and ram, and from there buy a video card later.   I've attached the bios manual for that biostar mobo(50$), it seems like a really good deal, so can anyone please   chekc out page 30, where you find the overclocking options and tell me if it is good enought for a decent overclock or a definite no-no



You can change bus frequency and cpu voltage. This will allow you to overclock some. There will come a point in which your FSB is too high for your processor and will need voltage to the NB to keep it stable. When that comes, you will have reached your max overclock.

Also there is no option for changing the voltage on your memory module. The OCZ that you plan on getting is default at 1.9v-2.1v. If your board defaults to 1.8v only and cannot increase it, then you may encounter problems keeping your system stable. If that happens you may have to run the memory at a slower speed.


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## lemonadesoda (Jul 2, 2008)

With the s775 intel E2xxx there is a VERY NICE upgrade path in 12-18 months. Just buy a Q6xxx for $50 off ebay.


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## nta3392 (Jul 3, 2008)

, I cant make any descisions, it seems i'll wait another day to order!! i've looked those mobos you guys gave me, but idk! i really want to stay in the 50s$ or less for the mobo
What about this open box P35
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813138075R

Is I/o shield/ or any of the other accesories important? where woudl i find one i/o for this mobo?


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