Hardware Upgrade Assistance Plz

[Kyllian]

Birthday is coming up and I figure I might as well put computer parts on the list.
Seeing as I've completely lost track of what's good anymore, I need advice
*Note: I just might finally say "smeg it" and switch to Win7

Current rig:
CPU: AMD Athlon X2 6000+
RAM: 2GB SuperTalent DDR2 PC2-6400 (400MHz)
Mobo: Asus M2N-SLI Deluxe
GPU: Asus GeForce 8800 GT
PSU: Antec TP3-550 (550 watts)

At the very least I want to swap out the CPU*/GPU, at most either the whole nine yards or whatever the PSU will support
Not looking to go supah-top-of-the-line**, just want a nice boost, quad-core is probably a good idea

*Probably wouldn't hurt to swap out the heatsink too. Preferred CPU maker is AMD, but I'll entertain Intel if given good enough reasons. Pref GPU is nVidia to save on driver headaches
**Assume a max of $150 per component


Also, cross-posting between here and my clan forums: http://www.clanaod.net/forums/showthread.php/37678-Hardware-Upgrade-Assistance-Plz (You'll have to register if you want to read it, same text as here tho)

 

[BITE_ME]

SSD.
They be very cheap now.

 

[Kaleena]

SSD.
They be very cheap now.

depends what he does with his pc though

 

[Kyllian]

Not in any hurry to go with SSD

 

[Deathmaker]

I'm sure I read that your mobo will take a Phenom II with just a bios update. Add another 2GB of ram, a speedy & large hdd like a Samsung 1TB F3 and throw in a GTX 460 1GB & you'll be good to go with minimal fuss/cash.

 

[Kyllian]

The wiki page on AM2 sockets say that AM2+/AM3 are backwards compatible but it seems that AM2+ will take a gimping in the area of hyperthreading, no idea if AM3 will

 

[dragonfliet]

Yeah, your board will support phenom with just a bios update, so I would recommend you pick up an x4 955, a gtx 470 (or 460 if you REALLY must keep the per-item cost down) and another 2GB of RAM and you'll be set. Since you really only need to upgrade 3 pieces, I would recommend getting a better GPU than just $150 worth, because all told, you would have a system capable of tearing through today's games for about $450, whereas for $150 you will get the RAM limited version of the gtx 460. It's not a huge deal, but that's my rec.

~Jason

 

[Kyllian]

Yea, clanmate posted the list of supported CPUs from Asus's website and the X4 955 was definitely on the list, tho it would seem that the BIOS update is a beta

http://www.asus.com/Product.aspx?P_ID=szSFtrap7crpBaQE
Phenom IIX4 955 (HDX955WFK4DGM),3.2GHz,95W,rev.C3,SocketAM3,Quad-Core
beta, please note this version has removed LAN option ROM

Reading your link, sounds like I'd have to jump through a few hoops to get it all working properly if I go with the 955
Been poking around TomsHardware too and one of their "Best for the money" articles said the Black Edition was a good choice, tho I have no clue between reg/BE

I would like the get a big beefy vid card, but like I said this is going on a birthday wishlist, so I don't wanna push my luck by aiming for a $200+ card
I barely even know what makes one card better over another anymore, let alone which manufacturers(always trusted eVGA, Asus and MSI tho)

Poking around Tom's Hardware it seems the GTX 460 might be a good buy, dunno how much better the 1GB is over the 768, but it's only a $20-30 difference on Newegg

 

[dragonfliet]

Reg v BE is that BE is unlocked for overclocking, which is quick and easy, even with only a cheap heatsink. As for the issue of hoops, yeah, you would definitely have to jump through some hoops to get your board working with modern CPUs, but it saves you a good $70 for a decent newer board.

As for GPU, yeah, since you're trying to get it for a wishlist, that's understandable and the 460 is a very solid card. As for VRAM, the extra is WORTH it as games are pushing bigger and bigger textures (ie: DA2 high-res texture pack recommends at least 1GB VRAM).

~Jason

 

[Kyllian]

Eh, never cared much for overclocking so if the BE offers the same performance stock as the Reg, I'll probably put Reg on the list
Never updated the BIOS before so that will be an interesting venture, not to mention the possibility of having to tweak the voltages and such

Hey, it'll punch out more performance than my 8800. Probably put the 1GB on the list

 

[Capt.Toilet]

The wiki page on AM2 sockets say that AM2+/AM3 are backwards compatible but it seems that AM2+ will take a gimping in the area of hyperthreading, no idea if AM3 will

The only "gimping" that you get is not being able to take advantage of DDR3 triple channel e-peen memory. Other than that it is the same pin set. Just double check your mobo's tdp rating for the processor and you should be set. Hell I recently found out my mobo supported 125w tdp instead of 95 so I will probably replace my phenom II 555 with the 975 in a few months.

 

[Kyllian]

From what I've dug up when an AM2+ CPU is put into an AM2 board, the HyperTransport gets cut down to 2.0 from 3.0

Jebus christ tho... poking around Newegg on vid cards and the number of options is... irritating
There's 4 MSI ones alone and from what I can tell the only difference is the fans/heatsink and minor differences in the core clock

Don't know jack about Galaxy and I've always heard that Gigabyte is low-end
Yikes, 2 of the Asus ones have the lowest core and shader clocks of all I've looked at
eVGA has one that's boosted all to hell

 

[Capt.Toilet]

From what I've dug up when an AM2+ CPU is put into an AM2 board, the HyperTransport gets cut down to 2.0 from 3.0

Jebus christ tho... poking around Newegg on vid cards and the number of options is... irritating
There's 4 MSI ones alone and from what I can tell the only difference is the fans/heatsink and minor differences in the core clock

Don't know jack about Galaxy and I've always heard that Gigabyte is low-end
Yikes, 2 of the Asus ones have the lowest core and shader clocks of all I've looked at
eVGA has one that's boosted all to hell

Oh I was speaking mostly on AM3 processors being stuck in AM2+ sockets, never thought about AM2.

Also eVGA is a good brand. Their products always seem to be "super boosted" or whatever lingo is being used these days to show overclocking.