Hi I need some help with which processor and mother board to go for. Iv had plenty experiance putting together pc's in the past but im a bit out of date as iv never upgraded since 2000 when i got my athalon 1ghz. I want to get the best cpu and mother board for value for money while still keeping some upgradablity. As far as i can make out id be best to go for 3.2ghz cpu But i dont no which is better an intel p4 prescott or an athalon chip. Iv no idea which motherboard to get! What does prescott mean? and i know there are two p4 chip set mother boards at this time. I take it id be best going for the the ones with highest busspeeds ect. And which ram do i go for? All advice welcome cheers... :good:
For that kind of money, you could get a pretty schweet amd 64 system, which really is the way to go now. Take a look for an AMD64 3500 or so, coupled with a decent socket 939 mobo for future upgrades.
AMD Athlon 64 3200+ Winchester 90nm (Socket 939) - Retail (CP-097-AM) GeIL 512MB (2x256MB) PC3200 Value Dual Channel Kit CAS2.5 (GE5123200BHDC) (MY-004-GL) Asus A8V Rev.2 Deluxe (Socket 939) Motherboard (MB-083-AS) Total cost Including Vat: £278.71 £9.00 for next day delivery with Amtrak (Monday - Friday) £287 an AMD64Bit is ALOT better than a pentium 4, bar Video Editing, alot better performance. www.overclockers.co.uk
Ok im starting to see that the amd chips are the better option. Procalx: Does that motherboard support future chips? As id only be getting a 3200+ just now but may want to upgrade the cpu to the fastest the motherboard can handel in the future when the prices drop way down. Also whats the best bang for buck graphics card at the moment?
Yes, the mobo is skt 939, which is gonna be in for a long time, so upgrades will be possible in the future. Depends how much buck you got. If you dont want to spend loads, perhaps a 9800PRO, altho its probably better value to get a 6600GT in terms of performance and cost. If money is no object, 6800ultra without a doubt.
In terms of Value & Performance a 6600GT. 6600GT will cost you about £160, a 9800Pro will cost you about £140-£160 and the 6600GT majorly out performs the 9800Pro in newer games and benchmarks considerably for the cost. A 6800Ultra is not going to be a very good purchase money wise.. However if you want your system to last longer.. I would spend more on an Asus 939 board with PCIe, and get a 6600GT PCIe card.
