Look at this build

[piXel]

Intel Core 2 DUO LGA775 E6300 1.86GHz Retail / Gigabyte 965P DS3 / 1GB GeIL PC2-6400C4 Dual Channel Kit - Bundle (BU-036-OK)
CP-126-IN Intel Core 2 DUO E6300 "LGA775 Allendale" 1.86GHz (1066FSB) - Retail (CP-126-IN) 1
MB-061-GI Gigabyte GA_965P_DS3 (Socket 775) PCI-Express DDR2 Motherboard (MB-061-GI) 1
MY-057-GL GeIL 1GB (2x512MB) PC6400 800MHz Ultra Low Latency DDR2 Dual Channel Kit (GX21GB6400UDC) (MY-057-GL) 1
£306.97 £306.97
GX-057-HT HIS ATI Radeon X1900 GT ICEQ 3 SILENT Heatpipe 256MB GDDR3 AVIVO TV-Out/Dual DVI (PCI-Express) - Retail (GX-057-HT)
£129.99 £129.99
CA-023-EN Enermax Noisetaker 535W EG565AX-VE(W) SFMA ATX2.0 SLI Compliant PSU (CA-023-EN)
£54.99 £54.99
MO-006-HY Hyundai ImageQuest Q770S 17'' Perfectly Flat CRT Monitor - Black/Silver (MO-006-HY)
£66.99 £66.99
CA-027-AN Antec SLK3000B Midi Tower Case - No PSU (CA-027-AN)
£28.99 £28.99
CD-057-SO Sony AW-G170ASV 18x DVD±RW x12 Ram Dual Layer DVD-Writer - (Silver) OEM (CD-057-SO)
£18.95 £18.95
HD-090-MD Maxtor DiamondMax Plus 10 NCQ 200GB 6V200E0 SATA-II 8MB Cache - OEM (HD-090-MD)
£41.95 £41.95
KB-072-LG Logitech Cordless Desktop EX-110 - Retail (KB-072-LG)
£17.99 £17.99
Subtotal £666.82
VAT £116.70
Total £783.52

Is this good for gaming?

[glc]

Yes, but a few suggestions.

1. Instead of 1gb ultra low latency ram, get 2gb of more mainstream ram. Unless you are SERIOUSLY going to be overclocking that system, even DDR2-667 is good enough, as is CL5 DDR2-800.

2. I'd look at a Lite-On burner instead of a Sony.

3. I'd look at a 16mb cache hard drive, such as the Seagate 7200.10.

[DustinM]

just curious...why a CRT monitor?

[piXel]

just curious...why a CRT monitor?

I'm on a budget is there actualy any difference, no offence but can you stop with all this get more ram and all these other upgrades i just want to know if it is good for gaming, remember i can always upgrade int he future. :p

[glc]

If you are going to post a proposed build here for comments, then snap at people who make suggestions, I think you are in the wrong forums.

I'm quite offended, as a matter of fact, and I'm not inclined to offer you any more assistance.

Before responding, I'd recommend you read the forum rules. Keep in mind I'm the forum administrator.

[DustinM]

Pixel - Flat screen is nicer and I believe they're the about the same price now. Also, why snap at GLC?

[piXel]

If you are going to post a proposed build here for comments, then snap at people who make suggestions, I think you are in the wrong forums.

I'm quite offended, as a matter of fact, and I'm not inclined to offer you any more assistance.

Before responding, I'd recommend you read the forum rules. Keep in mind I'm the forum administrator.

Im sorry mate i didnt realise what i wrote would seem offensive :eek: , i suppose i didnt word it very well and im sorry for that, i kind of just wanted the question at hand answering i cant really afford another gig of ram on top i was just wondering if the pc was alright as it is for gaming, anyway i hope you accept my apology i was not deliberatly being rude or anything i just worded it a bit wrong.

[glc]

I just ran prices at overclockers.co.uk, and if you drop down to the GA_965P_S3 and get a 2gb kit of Corsair Value Select DDR2-667, that's £334.97 for the "bundle". That's less than a £30 increase and doubling the ram will make a BIG difference in games, a lot more than low latency stuff. Switching to a 200gb 7200.10 adds a whole £4 and it's a noticeably faster drive. A Lite-On DVD burner is £3 more, it's a better drive, and it comes with software because it's a full retail kit, and it even comes with 3 bezels - beige, black, and silver.

Just some things to think about - we try to maximize value here with our recommendations, we don't just want you to spend more money.

If you want to save £5, you can get a FSP Blue Storm 500w power supply and save another £15 with the Sapphire version of the X1900GT.

[andper10]

Sorry to barge in, but I had a question that pertained to the topic. And I agree with glc, 2GB ram is a very good idea for a gaming system. I was looking into the GA-965P-S3 as a possible upgrade down the line so that I can get a C2D Processor. Does the Intel 965 Chipset have any big disadvantages over the Asus PB5 series or the Intel 975's? I like the board b/c it supports Intel P4, Pentium D, Core 2 Duo, and Core 2 Extreme, and DDR2, 800, 667, and 533. -Thanks

[glc]

The P5B series uses the P965 chipset, same as those Gigabyte 965P's. The 975X chipset is older but higher end, it has 2 video card slots for Crossfire.

The only way to go cheaper than a P965 board for C2D is with a refitted 945 chipset, I think I'd only do this for a basic nongaming build - such as an office machine that's going to be doing a lot of heavy multitasking. There are Via chipsets that support C2D, but I wouldn't touch those with a 10 foot pole.

[piXel]

I just ran prices at overclockers.co.uk, and if you drop down to the GA_965P_S3 and get a 2gb kit of Corsair Value Select DDR2-667, that's £334.97 for the "bundle". That's less than a £30 increase and doubling the ram will make a BIG difference in games, a lot more than low latency stuff. Switching to a 200gb 7200.10 adds a whole £4 and it's a noticeably faster drive. A Lite-On DVD burner is £3 more, it's a better drive, and it comes with software because it's a full retail kit, and it even comes with 3 bezels - beige, black, and silver.

Just some things to think about - we try to maximize value here with our recommendations, we don't just want you to spend more money.

If you want to save £5, you can get a FSP Blue Storm 500w power supply and save another £15 with the Sapphire version of the X1900GT.

Alright then looks like you have sorted me out then thanks very much, just three questions does the Mother board have a head phone jack?... would i be better off getting a Connect 3d 1900 XT?... and the CRT monitor is there really any difference between that and a TFT?

[Alaron]

Motherboards have onboard sound, you can indeed connect headphones to them.

The X1900XT would be stronger then an X1900GT.

CRT monitors work fine, but LCDs offer sharper pictures, no radiation, no glare and take up much less space on the desktop. But if you're on a budget, nothing wrong with a CRT. They still work. :)

[newbuilder14]

With the price of LCDs now, I'd seriously look into a 17", though. From what I've seen they aren't THAT MUCH more expensive than CRTs, but it is your choice and your budget.

[nicolaus corelius]

dont forget that CRTs are a shipping price hog. is an average crt is about 20-25 bux for shiping, whereas some LCDs ship for free

[piXel]

dont forget that CRTs are a shipping price hog. is an average crt is about 20-25 bux for shiping, whereas some LCDs ship for free

Yeah i will probably consider it.

[glc]

If you really have to sharpen a pencil and keep the price as low as you can, you can cut back a bit more on the video card and still have a decent gamer. Then a year down the road you can look at DX 10 cards and Vista.

[piXel]

If you really have to sharpen a pencil and keep the price as low as you can, you can cut back a bit more on the video card and still have a decent gamer. Then a year down the road you can look at DX 10 cards and Vista.

Not really sure i want to cut back on the GPU really i will obviously get a DX 10 card next year but if you suggest a card i will take a look, ive read that the E6300 processor can be over clocked by a GHZ im not really to bothered about over clocking at the moment but maybe in the future im a total begginer at over clocking ive never actualy done it, i would imagine if it got over clocked a GHZ it would need a different cooling system but is there a certain speed it can be clocked too just with it's stock fan and heatsink this isnt really something i want to do but im just curious.

[flanzig1]

With the stock HSU that comes with the CPU, you probably could OC a few hundred mHz. before you start running into heat and PSU problems. To do a gHz OC, you would need a monster PSU and a cooling system that would cost more than the whole PC.

[dogdude16]

no, you can get very good OC on core2duo's with stock cooling.

http://www.techspot.com/article/13-intel-core2duo-e6300-e6700-overclocking/

[glc]

One does not use budget components with the idea of overclocking them. Overclocking is not really a *free* way to increase performance.