Kamikaze_Badger Posted July 29, 2011 Posted July 29, 2011 It's finally time that I bit the bullet and decided to upgrade, but I'm going to do it right and ask here first. I'll be moving up from an MSI K8N Neo 4 and AMD Athlon 64 3500+, I'm planning on keeping my drives and video card as all I ever play now is WoW. I'm looking to do get the best bang for my buck while still trying to keep things below $175 or $200 between the CPU, motherboard, and RAM. I'm not looking for anything extreme, just something for World of Warcraft and the occasional Source engine based game. Right now, I'm looking at an AMD Athlon II X2 250 Regor. I honestly don't know if it's a good value or not, so feel free to shoot it down and recommend something else. For a motherboard, as I'm not going to be doing a whole lot, I'm thinking this BIOSTAR A870. RAM, feel free to suggest what will be the best value. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Smith Posted July 29, 2011 Posted July 29, 2011 If I was you, I'd go for a better motherboard. You won't regret it. USB 3.0 can be great you know... Support for Bulldozer will allow you to upgrade down the road, too. 4GB of RAM is enough in my opninion, and luckily the cheapest 2x2GB kit is a DDR3-1600 one. Finally, I'd suggest a bit more CPU power. Many games benefit a lot from an L3 cache, too... http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813131767 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820104203 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819103652 Total: $200. Edit: If you really think you have enough of the Athlon II and mobo you listed, which are also good choices IMO, I'd just add the Kingston HyperX kit and call it a day. Edit 2: There is however the same board with USB 3.0 going for the same price: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813138318 Edit 3: If you like low-power things, I have an Athlon II X4 610e available in my FS thread. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Syngensmyth Posted July 29, 2011 Posted July 29, 2011 ASRock 870 EXTREME3 AM3 AMD 870 SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 ATX AMD Motherboard $89.99 AMD Phenom II X2 555 Black Edition Callisto 3.2GHz Socket AM3 80W Dual-Core Desktop Processor - C3 Revision HDZ555WFGMBOX 0.875-1.40V $89.99 G.SKILL Ripjaws Series 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) 1.5v Desktop Memory Model F3-12800CL9D-4GBRL $49.99 I was happy with the above. It unlocked and was stable MHz 3902. Unlock is a risk but still at only dual it is a good cheap rig. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Drdeath Posted July 29, 2011 Posted July 29, 2011 I would look at the AMD A8-3650 with on die 6550D GPU. A inexpensive A75 motherboard and some inexpensive RAM..... Share this post Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Smith Posted July 30, 2011 Posted July 30, 2011 I would look at the AMD A8-3650 with on die 6550D GPU. A inexpensive A75 motherboard and some inexpensive RAM..... Depending on your graphics card, that wouldn't be a bad idea. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kamikaze_Badger Posted July 30, 2011 Posted July 30, 2011 I believe it's a Sapphire X1950GT in there right now. How does the 6550D compare to that graphics wise? And thanks for the suggestions, I'm leaning towards what Syngen has posted, having the possibility to overclock in the future sounds like a good idea right now. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Smith Posted July 30, 2011 Posted July 30, 2011 I believe it's a Sapphire X1950GT in there right now. How does the 6550D compare to that graphics wise? And thanks for the suggestions, I'm leaning towards what Syngen has posted, having the possibility to overclock in the future sounds like a good idea right now. My guess is they would be somewhat even, maybe the APU having an edge. You get all the better features though... Share this post Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Drdeath Posted July 30, 2011 Posted July 30, 2011 (edited) The on die 6550D GPU is much better and best of all it supports DX 11. You can always add on a 6770 Radeon. This is cutting edge as you fan crossfire a 6650 or 6670 and it will crossfire with the 6550D on die GPU sometimes doubling or tripling the frame rates in certain games. This may he the best solution considering your budget and Llano is very efficient. Using Cool n Quiet the A8-3850 idled at .8 volts. If your considering it, I have a few A75 motherboards. PM me...... Edited July 30, 2011 by Drdeath Share this post Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
NikolaT Posted July 30, 2011 Posted July 30, 2011 Yeah, the APU would give you a fairly potent processor + GPU upgrade and modern features. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
pkilway Posted August 4, 2011 Posted August 4, 2011 Ram doesn't get much cheaper than this; Patriot Signature 8GB (2 x 4GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Desktop Memory with heatshield Model PSD38G1600KH - $38.99 AR/FS Share this post Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
VaporX Posted August 5, 2011 Posted August 5, 2011 I would agree since you are basically trying to shoe string this the A8 would give you some solid base to build around and then drop a 6670 in it and you will have all the horsepower you will need for WoW to play at decent detail even as high as 1680. Personally thought I would shoot for 1440x900 at max detail. If you can swing it I would up to an A8 3850 but the 3650 would do the job if money got tight. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
DnaAngel Posted September 1, 2011 Posted September 1, 2011 If I was you, I'd go for a better motherboard. You won't regret it. USB 3.0 can be great you know... Support for Bulldozer will allow you to upgrade down the road, too. 4GB of RAM is enough in my opninion, and luckily the cheapest 2x2GB kit is a DDR3-1600 one. Finally, I'd suggest a bit more CPU power. Many games benefit a lot from an L3 cache, too... http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813131767 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820104203 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819103652 Total: $200. Edit: If you really think you have enough of the Athlon II and mobo you listed, which are also good choices IMO, I'd just add the Kingston HyperX kit and call it a day. Edit 2: There is however the same board with USB 3.0 going for the same price: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813138318 Edit 3: If you like low-power things, I have an Athlon II X4 610e available in my FS thread. I second this set up and dont forget you might be able to unlock that disabled 4th core in that phenom Share this post Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
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