raga_usmc Posted July 12, 2004 Posted July 12, 2004 I'm working on a upgrade overhaul and was wanting some advice on what I had in mind. I was going to eventually work into a 450W P.S., A7N8X-E deluxe mobo, w/ a amd xp3200 cpu 400Mhz FSB, 1 gig 2(512) dual channel, a couple western dig serial ata 80 gig drives in a raid-0 array, and ideally a radeon 9800 pro 256mb video card. Now, I'd appreciate any feedback on the whole setup, but my two questionable areas would be first, the ddr ram, what brand? Will be used mostly for work with the occasional weekend U.T. binge. Not too much super serious gamming, but some. and secondly, the video card. I'm trying to decide between the radeon 9800 pro, $250ish, and maybe something more economical like the radeon 9600 pro $100ish. Both w/ 256mb ddr. I'd like some serious advice on bang for the buck in teh $100-150 range and not be too far behind in the years to com. Thanks for any help..... Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
InvaderTrax Posted July 12, 2004 Posted July 12, 2004 128MB 9800 Pro - $199 XP2600 mobile - $99 Everything else is good Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nerm Posted July 12, 2004 Posted July 12, 2004 I would say go with Cosair VS for the ram, and the 9800 Pro. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
raga_usmc Posted July 12, 2004 Posted July 12, 2004 with the 9800pro, would dropping the $50 be worth dropping 128M of ddr video memory? And why the xp 2600 moble instead of the xp3200+? Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nerm Posted July 12, 2004 Posted July 12, 2004 with the 9800pro, would dropping the $50 be worth dropping 128M of ddr video memory? And why the xp 2600 moble instead of the xp3200+? well none of the games out right now even need 256mb, so the 128mb would be better. and the reason for getting a 2600-m over a xp3200 is the 2600-m will OC way better than the xp3200. but if you don't plan on OCing then I say stick with the xp3200. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
raga_usmc Posted July 12, 2004 Posted July 12, 2004 how much further could you get a 2600-m than a 3200+? And doesn't the 3200+ have more L2 cache? Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nerm Posted July 12, 2004 Posted July 12, 2004 they both have the same L2 cache(512k)....well the 3200 stock runs at 2.2ghz and the 2600-m is 2ghz stock, but for some reason the mobile chips just simply OC further. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Xavirious_ Posted July 12, 2004 Posted July 12, 2004 Nerm once again speaks the truth. The Mobile XP2600 will OC to almost a stock XP3200. If you are looking to save money then thats where you can cut back. However you might consider going with a AMD64 and cutting back to a XP2800 of sorts. Either way stick with the 9800 Pro. You can get the much acclaimed Sapphire 9800Pro for $202 on Newegg and you have about a 75% chance of getting a card that has the 9800XT chip and memory with the 9800Pro BIOS on it...*like me w00t*..which you can then flash to a 9800XT if you so choose. Happy OC'ing and as always Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nerm Posted July 12, 2004 Posted July 12, 2004 Nerm once again speaks the truth. Don't I always? lol Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
raga_usmc Posted July 12, 2004 Posted July 12, 2004 what about brands of Ram? And should I consider 2(256) or stay w/ 2(512)? Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Xavirious_ Posted July 12, 2004 Posted July 12, 2004 Welll.......ok fine...i'll settle for most of the time. Back to the subject at hand. The Mobile XP's are designed for laptop so they use less power cause they can shut themselves down when not in use therefor conserving energy (not a big deal in a desktop) and lowering temps (BIG DEAL!!). And I forgot to mention the memory but i'm a fan of the Kingston Hyper-X. As you can tell from my sig I have quite a OC with my beloved Intel (yes i'm a fanboy) and the chips are sweet looking as well as great performers Happy OC'ing and as always.... Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
InvaderTrax Posted July 12, 2004 Posted July 12, 2004 ...The Mobile XP2600 will OC to almost a stock XP3200... Almost??? What are you talking about? They'll blow it away. We've all seen (or should have) exeter's 250MHz fsb. That's not almost. That's pwning it ( www.pwned.nl ). As for RAM, if you think you'll really use the 512x2, go for it. If not, save yourself a lot of money and just get 256x2. I'd suggest you look at PMI. They're the current choice RAM (there's a review of some in the "Reviews" section of the site) Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
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