Need help with an upgrade

[siddanth3]

hey guys, long time no see. TF has changed a lot

well, my rig is in my signature. i was thinking of upgrading the processor to a quad core maybe. my current mobo supports only LGA 775, so i want to stick to something thats compatible. also maybe be looking for a memory upgrade. any suggestions guys???
i was looking at the Q8200 CPU, tell me what you guys think of it.

Newegg.com - Intel Core 2 Quad Q8200 2.33GHz 4MB L2 Cache LGA 775 95W Quad-Core Processor - Processors - Desktops

any memory suggestions?? and why are they so expensive, i thought DDR2's were cheaper these days.

thanks guys, appreciate any help.

 

[aliasaid]

it looks like your motherboard does support the new quad cores, but it may need a bios update, depending on how long you had that board for...

As for the cpu you picked out, it seems decent enough, and it should give you a considerable boost over your current prescott. Your motherboard only has two ram slots, so you'll have to replace your current sticks with either 2X1Gb, or 2X2Gb. If you have 32bit windows, you can't go for 2X2gb (4gb of ram) because 32bit windows can only support a maximum of 3gb of ram; so you'll either have to upgrade your windows to a 64bit version as well, or just get 2gigs... which should still give you a nice boost over what you're currently using... but i recommend you get 4gbs of ram and get 64bit windows.

With those upgrades, your overall computing should improve considerably.

 

[Nubbleet]

How much are you willing to spend? And RAM recently rose in price. It will probably stay high for a while. And he can go for 4GB and use it with 32 bit, but it will only recognize anywhere from 3-3.5GB, which will do no harm, and give him the option for 64-bit later.

 

[siddanth3]

i was thinking of upgrading to windows 7 soon , so i wanted to go with the 4gb (2X2GB).
i've had the board for a year, but i dont really know how to update my bios.
The only reason that I was looking at the Q8200 is because it is the cheapest quad core out there. i dont know if i should go for a cheaper one or a more expensive.
About the ram, i was thinking 2x2gb, but dont know which one to get, and they are pretty expensive. do their timings matter??? any suggestion on which ones to get?

initially, my budget is about $200 US, but i am flexible with my budget, and if you guys can convince me in getting a better deal/performance, i can go higher or lower.
i want to use my computer as a minor gaming + minor video editing.

so let me know guys.
any help would be appreciated

thanks.

 

[alexsabree]

OCX Flex II - It's currently on sale @ $80.

No matter what quad core you get, its going to blow away what you had before. Q8200 is fine if your on a tight budget.