Opinions on this PC build?

janglypangly

janglypangly

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It will be used for basic family computing (internet, word, etc), as well as world of warcraft.

http://www.newegg.com/product/product.asp?item=N82E16811147001

http://www.newegg.com/product/product.asp?item=N82E16813128328

http://www.newegg.com/product/product.asp?item=N82E16819103194

http://www.newegg.com/product/product.asp?item=N82E16820211188

http://www.newegg.com/product/product.asp?item=N82E16822144456

I'm obviously not done choosing parts. I'd like some opinions. Please don't tell me I need to spend $500 on the cpu/video card to have something decent, as I've had some people tell me that. I KNOW that my needs don't require that! :) Thanks in advance.
 
It will be used for basic family computing (internet, word, etc), as well as world of warcraft.

http://www.newegg.com/product/product.asp?item=N82E16811147001

http://www.newegg.com/product/product.asp?item=N82E16813128328

http://www.newegg.com/product/product.asp?item=N82E16819103194

http://www.newegg.com/product/product.asp?item=N82E16820211188

http://www.newegg.com/product/product.asp?item=N82E16822144456

I'm obviously not done choosing parts. I'd like some opinions. Please don't tell me I need to spend $500 on the cpu/video card to have something decent, as I've had some people tell me that. I KNOW that my needs don't require that! :) Thanks in advance.
 
Buy.com has this deal on an 8600GT 256MB for $50 after rebate.

Or if you want to get a better bang for your buck you can go with Amazon's deal on an 8800GS 384MB for $90 AR.

The cheaper card will work fine with WOW but if you ever want to play more intense games like Team Fortress 2 or Company of Heroes or even Crysis, the 8600GT won't be able to keep up. Unlike the 8800GS.

But if you're really never going to want to play these games, go with the 8600GT. It should be able to max out WOW.

Also, keep your eye on slickdeals.net for cheap memory. They'll have deals on great brands for a lot less than $70 for 4GB. Not that you really need 4GB. 2GB will be enough on XP unless you plan on running virtual machines or something. And Slick will have 2GB for $20 - $25.
 
[quote name='janglypangly']So if I'll be running XP pro, a dual core processor and 2 gigs of ram is the optimal set up?[/QUOTE]

Should be plenty... that's basically my setup and I can play Crysis (using a 3 year old graphics card) on medium settings.
 
[quote name='Vinny']Should be plenty... that's basically my setup and I can play Crysis (using a 3 year old graphics card) on medium settings.[/QUOTE]

Nice :) Can you guys help me find the best mobo for around 90? Some of them come integrated with the hd 3200. Would that be fine for wow?
 
[quote name='janglypangly']I'd rather stick with AMD, for pricing reasons. I have a 5 year old P4 right now, so I'm sure the AMD X2 would be a HUGE difference :)[/quote]

Pricing reasons? Do you already have an AMD cooler?

The total price of the Core 2 Duo + more expensive motherboard was $200.

The total price of the fanless AMD + the first motherboard you posted was $180.

Add a heatsink/fan and they're the same price. Are you getting the AMD components cheaper somewhere else?

Also, you could go for a cheaper Intel CPU like this one.

Whatever, I'm just a raving Intel fanboy. I would have never considered going Intel when AMD had the Athlon XP/64s but now, Intel has the much better chip.
 
Those are just numbers. The old Pentium 4's had clock speeds of 3.0-3.6Ghz while the AMD's had 1.8-2.2Ghz. The AMD processors would run circles around the P4s.

Just type the name of the processor into google with "reviews" and take a look at the results. The AMD's are cheap so you might be able to find one that's more powerful than a core 2 duo of the same price, but don't get caught up in the marketing numbers. It's all about price/performance.
 
Performance-wise, the e2160 is comparable to the Athlon 64 X2 4400 (Brisbane core). On Newegg they are $70 vs $66.

The Intel CPUs are crazy overclockers. A lot of reviews are saying 3.0Ghz on stock cooling (from a 1.8Ghz CPU!!). It seems a few people have been able to bump the Athlon up to 2.8Ghz (from 2.3).

I would take a look at some good motherboards in your price range for both processors. Check Newegg's reviews for some good ones and find out what seems best for you.
 
1. Overclocking is not necessary. Any dual core will run WOW without breaking a sweat.

2. That CPU doesn't come with a fan. You'll need to get an AM2 compatible heatsink/fan to cool it. Newegg should have the same processor with a fan.
 
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