Is it time to upgrade my CPU/mobo/gpu? I have an FX55/7800gtx

VoltronADVoltronAD
edited October 2006 in Hardware
Hello -
I am starting to get the "upgrade" bug - and with all the talk about Core 2 Duos rocking I'm thinking it might be time for an upgrade. I was just wondering what you all think, if it would be worth it. Here are my current specs:

AMD Athlon 64 FX-55 CPU
DFI nForce4 SLI-DR
WD Raptor 74GB SATA
2x Seagate Baracuda 160GB SATA
2x1gig (2gig) Patriot DDR400 (2-3-5-2)
XFX Geforce 7800GTX (oc'd to 490Mhz)
Sound Blaster Audigy 2 ZS
Sony DRU-700A dual layer DVD burner
16X Lite-On DVD-ROM
Windows XP Professional Sp2

Comments

  • edcentricedcentric near Milwaukee, Wisconsin Icrontian
    edited October 2006
    It depends on what you are using it for.
    Yes, C2D is fast, but you box is not slow.

    You could keep all of your drives and the SBA2. That leaves you buying mobo, cpu, and memory.
    Of course you would upgrade your video card too , though maybe not right away.

    And if you do, let me know. I want to buy your old mobo, cpu, and memory.
  • VoltronADVoltronAD
    edited October 2006
    If your serious about buying the old stuff let me know, cause I am pretty serious about upgrading. My problem is that once I start picking stuff on newegg I can't stop - my quickie cpu/mobo/memory upgrade ended up with new case, new HDD, new sound card, etc, etc.

    I'm just wondering how much (if any) performance increase I'd really see.
  • muddocktormuddocktor
    edited October 2006
    Honestly, you really in no "need" to upgrade yet as that machine your presently have is a pretty decent machine even now. Like Ed said, C2D is fast, but the main thing you would notice is that since it's dual core, it multitasks better than your present cpu. But you could go dual core way cheaper by just selling your FX55 on eBay and upgrading to a DC Opteron 165 or 170 or an X2-4400 and have much the same feeling.

    If you do feel the need to upgrade soon, at least hold off until the first part of 07 as then Intel will be introducing a 200 fsb version of C2D (the e4300, which will have a 9 multiplier). That will give you some extra headroom for overclocking without having to spend $300-400 for high clocking DDR2 ram.
  • edcentricedcentric near Milwaukee, Wisconsin Icrontian
    edited October 2006
    I am serious about buying the hardware. Then I could give my wife one of my NF7s and fold with this one.

    There are other reasons to hold off for a bit. C2D prices will drop, and the mobo prices will drop a lot. We are also going to see DX10 video cards.

    The biggest unkown is memory prices. They have gone up a lot in the last 6 months, will they come down?
  • Sledgehammer70Sledgehammer70 California Icrontian
    edited October 2006
    At the rate of DDR2 it will be $300 no matter what :) I paid $150 per GB of Corsair XMS2 and have pushed it form 800Mhz to 1200Mhz :) that pretty impressive in my books.

    C2D is a great chip. But when I upgraded my FX 57 to a 4800 X2 I saw a huge difference in performance, and can say if you got any dual core AMD chip you will to.
  • VoltronADVoltronAD
    edited October 2006
    hmm - well maybe its just time to go from the FX55 to a dual core AMD cpu. And up to 2 gigs. that would probably last me in to next year when I can see where things stand (and see what the newest gpu's are).

    Here is one issue I am having that is bothering me - my computer used to turn on right away, now if I hit the "power" button, it takes about 1 minute for it to come on. I wonder if I accidentally did something in the BIOS? Don't think so - but you never know.

    Sledge - when you went from 57 to 4800 X2, did you also notice a performance boost in games as well? just curious.
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