New build help

[NewbieBuilder]

Hi

i dont know whats good or not anymore i havent built a computer for about 4 years but sadly its just died, im looking to build a new one.
im looking for some suggestions on a build.
i need
CPU AMD or Intel not really fussed so much, what ever is better
MOBO
RAM 2+gig
GCARD (PCI-E)

possibly a power supplie unit depending on whats required i need to check whats currently in my case. im based in the UK so any good webbies for components would also be good.

Budget is determining factor looking to spend about £500 but not much more can stretch if necessary

thanks

[Dave21]

ASUS P5K
E8400
CORSAIR XMS2 DDR2-800 2GB
NVIDIA 8600

What vendor do you use to shop at?

[Katreat]

Dave's build looks like a good starting place but have no idea what that costs over there. If you are looking mainly for gaming try to up the video card to a ATI 3870 or Nvidia 8800 GT. The 8600 is a great card but a little on the light side for newer games.

Kat

[NewbieBuilder]

Originally Posted by Dave21 ASUS P5K E8400 CORSAIR XMS2 DDR2-800 2GB NVIDIA 8600 What vendor do you use to shop at?

Nvidia 8800 GT - was thinking of going for this.

whats the E8400 - cpu? can someone eloborate?

was thinking mainly for gaming really

was looking at ebuyer.com or overclockers.co.uk to get bits from

[Masaki 7-11]

Product Name Qty Price Line Total
Intel Core 2 Duo E8400 LGA775 'Wolfdale' 3.00GHz (1333FSB) - Retail Intel Core 2 Duo E8400 LGA775 'Wolfdale' 3.00GHz (1333FSB) - Retail £125.99
http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showpr...odid=CP-192-IN

Corsair 2GB DDR2 XMS2-6400C5 TwinX (2x1GB) (Deal Product) Corsair 2GB DDR2 XMS2-6400C5 TwinX (2x1GB) (Deal Product) £30.99
http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showpr...odid=MY-092-CS

Antec EarthWatts 500W PSU Antec EarthWatts 500W PSU £46.99
http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showpr...odid=CA-087-AN

Asus P5K Intel P35 (Socket 775) PCI-Express DDR2 Motherboard Asus P5K Intel P35 (Socket 775) PCI-Express DDR2 Motherboard £66.99
http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showpr...odid=MB-235-AS

Asus GeForce EN8800 GT 512MB GDDR3 HDTV/Dual DVI (PCI-Express) - Retail Asus GeForce EN8800 GT 512MB GDDR3 HDTV/Dual DVI (PCI-Express) - Retail £139.99
http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showpr...odid=GX-142-AS

Sub Total : £410.95
Shipping cost assumes delivery to UK Mainland with:
City Link Parcel Next Day (Delivered Mon-Fri)
(This can be changed during checkout) Shipping : £8.95
VAT is being charged at 17.5% VAT : £73.48
Total : £493.38

[Masaki 7-11]

The E8400 is a new processor from Intel which is made on a 45nm process, so it's a decent amount faster than similar priced processors and is one of the best dual core processors. In the list I've also added a 500W power supply which should work fine and is of good quality. If you already have a good power supply, then it won't be necessary to buy a power supply.

[NewbieBuilder]

Thanks a lot for the help.

is it true that Win XP doesnt recognise more than 2gig of ram, i would like more but if its not gonna be used then ill stick with 2gig.

Also is it possible for a slightly more expensive build as well just to be a apin.
im just thinking of attemtping some future proofing the PC

thanks a lot again.

[NewbieBuilder]

Originally Posted by Masaki 7-11 The E8400 is a new processor from Intel which is made on a 45nm process, so it's a decent amount faster than similar priced processors and is one of the best dual core processors. In the list I've also added a 500W power supply which should work fine and is of good quality. If you already have a good power supply, then it won't be necessary to buy a power supply.

cant find this on ebuyer and its not due in tell next week on overclockers. is there a similar product or is it really worth waiting for this processor?

thanks

[Katreat]

Nothing similar out for the price. The Q6600 is a nice entry level quad and games well and the slightly older E6750 was the duel core of choice before the E8400 came out so either would be a good choice if the price was right. But right now I think the E8400 was released for a lower price than either, so you would be money and performance ahead to wait unless you find a great deal.

XP and Vista 32 recognize somewhere between 2.5-3.5 GB of ram. The average or norm is about 3.2 GB but it can be different depending on your set up. I have heard that after sp1 Vista 3.2 will recognize more, but have not seen that in a specific review so not sure how accurate it is.

Right now 2 GB will handle just about any game. But ram is cheap so putting in 4 will give still give you a boost and you want to put in matched sets.

Kat

[shadowpr]

Originally Posted by Katreat I have heard that after sp1 Vista 3.2 will recognize more, but have not seen that in a specific review so not sure how accurate it is.

http://forum.pcmech.com/showthread.php?t=193136

[Katreat]

Thanks Shadow, that clears that up. I had been hearing rummers but had not actually read anything to support them. To be honest I kind of doubted it because it just does not sound like a patch fix. 32 bit OS have always been limited on how much ram they could read and if they could just fix the situation I would think they would have done it a long time ago. So now you have put the world back in order

Kat

[shadowpr]

Yeah, the world is good again, and my Vista 64 makes sense, and wasn't completely useless. LOL