New PC Questions

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Transform

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Hi,

I'm looking into getting a new PC soon and thought I would look into what there is ahead of time to get an idea of what I want. I'm not a hardcore gamer or anything but may play the occasional game or two now and then. I mostly use it for browsing the net, video playback etc.

I have found the following so far and was hoping to get some feedback on if it is suitable or overkill for what I will use it for:

I want a dual core processor and I'm looking at the E8400 right now. I found that ASUS has a good rep for mobo's and possibly looking at the P45 chipset? I am also looking at the G45 although do you think this would not be wise as the gfx are integrated?

I read up on crossfire and don't think I will be needing this...

I also read that DDR3 has little difference in performance and is buggy with anything other than a quad core. Is this correct and should I go for DDR2?
 
for now i don't have a budget. I think an external graphics card would be better. I don't think a gaming build is a good idea. I would call myself a 'light' gamer. The only recent game I would play is perhaps GTA4.
 
GTAIV is a pretty demanding game. What resolution would you be playing it at? Are you looking to buy a pre-built machine, or will you build one yourself?
 
well right now my monitor supports 1920x1080 which is what windows is set at. I was contemplating a pre-built but then I thought I would be able to spec it out better to my own preferences.
 
I'd recommend a 4870 or a gtx260 with that resolution. But I suppose if you're not graphic friendly and dont care for them much you could get something cheaper and keep the detail low.
 
I agree with supersmash. We can give you specific recommendations if you give us a budget to work with.
 
I'll set myself between $800-$1000 NZD for now then.

with the E8400 processor in mind, I have been looking at the ASUS P5Q series motherboards. Would you recommend these boards? Is the Intel P45 chipset adequate for a light gamer?
 
Yes Transform, the E8400 is a fantastic processor and the ASUS P5Q series boards are good. How much do they come for (roughly translated to US$)?
 
I recommend the following system for you:
Grand Total = $860 approximately, not including shipping and GST (the latter applies everything except the case and PSU).

If you want a bit more power, get the X3 710 or X3 720 instead of the X2 550, whichever better fits your budget.
 
Yes Transform, the E8400 is a fantastic processor and the ASUS P5Q series boards are good. How much do they come for (roughly translated to US$)?

Thats good to hear that they go well together. From what I've seen, the P45 chipset is one down from the X series which is for gamers. I was looking on the ASUS website and found that there are quite a few different boards. However I will only need 1 ethernet port, 1 graphics slot which narrows it down a bit. There are so many different types its hard to choose. I know the P5Q matches my needs and seems to be the basic option of the P5Q series. But is there any others I should be looking at from that series?
 
I'll set myself between $800-$1000 NZD for now then.

with the E8400 processor in mind, I have been looking at the ASUS P5Q series motherboards. Would you recommend these boards? Is the Intel P45 chipset adequate for a light gamer?

I may have to raise my budget a little to $1200. Heres what I have so far (all prices approx in NZD:

OS: Windows 7 Home Premium $190
Processor: E8400 $270
Motherboard: ASUS P5Q $213 or P5Q-PRO $218 (only difference I can see between these 2 boards is the dual graphics?)
RAM: DDR2-800 - Crucial 4GB Ballistix Tracer $125

I have heard good things about Crucial and this was recommended for the P5Q. Will the 800 be ok or will I see better performance from 1066 RAM?
 
Oops. Didn't notice. Apologies Transform.

So you've decided on the P5Q. It's a good mobo. And I personally don't think you'll notice any difference between the 800 and 1066 RAM. :)
 
No worries at all :)

Do you know if there are any advantages of getting the PRO version of that board?

Also, is that crucial memory I mentioned a good choice or should I consider other options?
 
Unless you need 2 PCI-E x16 slots, the P5Q is for you. The Pro has 2 PCI-E x16 slots to support ATI Crossfire. :)

For most purposes I think the Crucial would be good.
 
IMO, it isn't worth spending that much on an Intel system now, since the X2 550 performs identically to the E8400 (they have identical specs too; 3GHz stock frequency, 45nm process, 6MB L2 cache on the E8400 & the same amount of L3 cache memory on the X2 550) and has an unlocked multiplier to boot. Also, the Corsair RAM I posted has a higher frequency than the Crucial kit.
 
I agree Rage. However, Transform is probably settled on the Intel system. Also, will the Corsair 1066 make a noticeable difference over the Crucial 800?

Another thing Rage, the OP should be able to get himself a decent video card also if he decides on the specs you recommended as his budget is roughly 300$ more. :)
 
i would go with rages build over the intel build because the 775 socket intel chips are on there way out and AMD has made almost all of there ships compatible with almost all the boards as in its more upgradeable in the future where as the intel system is not. Also go with the X3 720 to get the 3 core system and grab a little better video card as in maybe the ATi 4870 :) would make for a pretty nice system IMO.
 
I agree Rage. However, Transform is probably settled on the Intel system. Also, will the Corsair 1066 make a noticeable difference over the Crucial 800?

Another thing Rage, the OP should be able to get himself a decent video card also if he decides on the specs you recommended as his budget is roughly 300$ more. :)

I'm looking at the Geforce 9600GT. Would you recommend?
 
Rage gave you about the best card for being a 'light gamer' the ATI HD 4770. its only $100 and when you do game it will give you good performance up to 1680 x 1050 on most games.
 
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