So, I'm not so good with hardware.

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DarkS7ar

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I've decided I want to take my Christmas money and upgrade my system. Unfortunately I'm not very good at picking good hardware for what I want to do so I would really appreciate anyone who could provide input on any of the current deals on websites.

I will be replacing my motherboard, graphics card, processor, and RAM so it's pretty much a clean slate. I'll be keeping my 500gb SATA HDD, my 40GB IDE HDD, my light scribe DVD, and my 550w PSU. I'll also be running Windows 7 premium.

I would like to be able to run Modern Warfare 2 on it's highest settings without lag, as well as WoW. My one stipulation is I want a EVGA brand card, because their lifetime warranty is a lifesaver. SLI capability would be nice, but not something I think I can afford at the present.

My current budget is $200 which I know will not buy all the pieces but I'm hoping to get suggestions for the mobo, processor, and RAM at least.

I've always been a AMD fanboy but I'm willing to convert to Intel if I can get more power for less money.

So, can anyone help me this Christmas day? Did I not give information I should have?
 
Give us some more info.

What case do you currently have? What RAM you you currently have? Is the DVD SATA or PATA? You might have to start smaller as $200 for CPU/mobo/RAM ain't much.

What mobo/CPU do you currently have? Maybe we can upgrade what is already in place.
 
I currently have a AMD Athlon 64 3700+ 2.21GHz with a Gb of Kingston HyperX PC... 4000? Ram. I'm not sure about that ram though and opening the case currently isn't an option with kids in bed waiting for Santa. I have a GeForce 7900 GT/GTO Graphics card.
I know my mobo is a Asus but I don't know the model number at the present. I do know it needs to be replaced though since it has no PCI-E ports (yep, it's that old) which is why I haven't upgraded the video card.

My case is a standard ATX case, I'm sorry but I don't know the model, it's old and has no bells or whistles. I wouldn't mind replacing it but at the present it's not a priority.
The light scribe is a LG GSA-H10L which uses a IDE interface.

Do you need any more information?

Oh as far as the budget goes, I'm going to add to it paycheck by paycheck but I wanted to take advantage of any Christmas deals currently running on any hardware I could get with the money I have now.
 
What screen size are you using?

That bad new is that it looks like you will have to save alot more.

Maybe 500 total, but this depends on your screen size and what you want to play.
 
I currently use 1680x1050. I like having widescreen and zoomed out for FPS play so I can see more around me.

The motherboard is a ASUS A8N5X and the RAM is PC4000/512R Kingston HyperX

I'm not worried about how much it will be in the end so long as I have pieces to shoot for, or a general knowledge of specs I need to see in pieces I buy.

I've decided I want to take my Christmas money and upgrade my system. Unfortunately I'm not very good at picking good hardware for what I want to do so I would really appreciate anyone who could provide input on any of the current deals on websites.

I will be replacing my motherboard, graphics card, processor, and RAM so it's pretty much a clean slate. I'll be keeping my 500gb SATA HDD, my 40GB IDE HDD, my light scribe DVD, and my 550w PSU. I'll also be running Windows 7 premium.

I would like to be able to run Modern Warfare 2 on it's highest settings without lag, as well as WoW. My one stipulation is I want a EVGA brand card, because their lifetime warranty is a lifesaver. SLI capability would be nice, but not something I think I can afford at the present.

My current budget is $200 which I know will not buy all the pieces but I'm hoping to get suggestions for the mobo, processor, and RAM at least.

Sorry, I don't understand, it's telling me a mod has to approve all my posts now?

ok odd, Moderator if it's showing a bunch of identical posts, I apologize.

The RAM is HyperX PC4000/512R
The mobo is a ASUS A8N5X

I have a 23" LCD monitor running at 1680x1050 and I tend to play games on the widest higher settings because I like a lot of view area for FPS's.
I'm not worries about the overall costs, I'm just trying to take advantage of any Christmas deals that might be going on or getting an idea of what sort of specs I should look for when buying new hardware.
 
^ I think it did that when I first started here.. Can't offer advice on that end.. Forgot what to do for it..


More power for less money isn't the Intel motto.. MoAr power for twice the price is more like it.. :lol: *Hides*




$200 isn't gonna get ya much, but here's a start.. :) Newegg doesn't have the most CPU/MoBo deals right now.. All Micro ATX boards.. (I'm not a fan of those.)
I'd like to see you with a PII X3 720, but that will blow the budget way out. The X2 here is spec'd at 3.0g.. and for a dual core, that's pretty beefy!

MoBo @ $80 (I've had this board.. Still do. not a bad deal)
Newegg.com - ASUS M4A78 Plus AM3/AM2+/AM2 AMD 770 ATX AMD Motherboard - AMD Motherboards

CPU @ $93
Newegg.com - AMD Phenom II X2 545 Callisto 3.0GHz 2 x 512KB L2 Cache 6MB L3 Cache Socket AM3 80W Dual-Core Processor - Processors - Desktops

RAM @ $55
Newegg.com - G.SKILL 2GB (2 x 1GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1333 (PC3 10666) Dual Channel Kit Desktop Memory Model F3-10666CL8D-2GBHK - Desktop Memory

GPU @ $80
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814150449

Case: Pick one from newegg or wherever you want...
 
^ you cant use ddr3 ram on an am2+ mobo there.

$200 is a real tight budget, but you could take a look at these. these are probably your best bet for a cpu, mobo, ram and a decent gfx card for your budget.

Newegg.com - Computer Parts, PC Components, Laptop Computers, Digital Cameras and more!
Newegg.com - BIOSTAR MCP6P M2+ 6.X AM3/AM2+/AM2 NVIDIA GeForce 6150 / nForce 430 Micro ATX AMD Motherboard - AMD Motherboards
Newegg.com - Crucial 2GB (2 x 1GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 667 (PC2 5300) Dual Channel Kit Desktop Memory Model CT2KIT12864AA667 - Desktop Memory

total $204 w/ free shipping on everything. and for the gfx card, xfx also has a lifetime warranty.
 
^ I think it did that when I first started here.. Can't offer advice on that end.. Forgot what to do for it..


More power for less money isn't the Intel motto.. MoAr power for twice the price is more like it.. :lol: *Hides*




$200 isn't gonna get ya much, but here's a start.. :) Newegg doesn't have the most CPU/MoBo deals right now.. All Micro ATX boards.. (I'm not a fan of those.)
I'd like to see you with a PII X3 720, but that will blow the budget way out. The X2 here is spec'd at 3.0g.. and for a dual core, that's pretty beefy!

MoBo @ $80 (I've had this board.. Still do. not a bad deal)
Newegg.com - ASUS M4A78 Plus AM3/AM2+/AM2 AMD 770 ATX AMD Motherboard - AMD Motherboards

CPU @ $93
Newegg.com - AMD Phenom II X2 545 Callisto 3.0GHz 2 x 512KB L2 Cache 6MB L3 Cache Socket AM3 80W Dual-Core Processor - Processors - Desktops

RAM @ $55
Newegg.com - G.SKILL 2GB (2 x 1GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1333 (PC3 10666) Dual Channel Kit Desktop Memory Model F3-10666CL8D-2GBHK - Desktop Memory

GPU @ $80
Newegg.com - XFX HD-467X-DDF2 Radeon HD 4670 1GB 128-bit DDR3 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready Video Card - Desktop Graphics / Video Cards

Case: Pick one from newegg or wherever you want...

You can't use DDR3 on that board.

With a SB750 board and a Phenom II X2 550, he has a really high chance of unlocking.
 
Sorry, I forgot to mention I would prefer to stick with GeForce over Radeon.

Don't worry about the budget, it's getting increased, it's just getting increased little by little. My question is with the $200 I have now, what should I go ahead and purchase, if anything, with the current sales/deals?

The suggestions posted are helpful but someone keeps pointing out something wrong with each build, i.e. can't use ddr3 etc. Any other suggestions then? Also what do you mean by a good chance of unlocking?

oh, also, someone is selling a Nvidia 9600gt for $45 locally, should I pick this up?
 
the 9600gt isn't that much better than your 7900gt. but it is better than the 4670 the fellas are linking ^ up there, so if you're content with that level of performance then go ahead, its pretty decent and cheap for $45. just make sure its functioning 100% before you buy.
 
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