Nearly 3 years later and in need of an upgrade!

[losonogo]

Hi guys im somewhat of a noob when it come to pc's and upgrades.
I got my pc built for me nearly three years ago and it has gradually desintegrated over time. It has got to the stage where the side of the case is permanently off to keep the damn thing from shutting down.
I have tried to dump it every 6 months to keep it going however ever since i lost my 'copy' of xp i havent dumped it for nearly a year (gasp)

What i currently have is as follows
cpu-Intel pentium 4, 3.2 ghz
vga-geforce A6600 GT 128mb
ram-2gb, dunno brand soz
HHD-200gb

I recently put a pci sound card in due to no audio
Ive been told i was dumb for doing so, and probably was, but since i got some new speakers i now have sound (your prob thinking it was the speakers idiot but i can tell you i tried all the speakers and headphones in the house and none would work!)

Anyways, with all the constant releasing of new hardware, which do i pick???
Midrange would be preferred as top line is too expensive and depreciates at the moment and i dunno if this be a problem, but im in Australia too

I use my pc for photoshop, illustrator, 3D rendering-usually all three open at the same time. Not so much games anymore. I do however have a monitor and TV with vga port to hook up so if its possible to do the dual monitor thing that would be sweet:)

Sooo if anyone could lend some advice i will be grateful for 3 years until i have this problem again:)

Thanks
Chris

[Ajmukon]

go with XP if possible
Quad-core Penryn ( Release: Jan 08)
not sure on the video card, but ATI has some excellent Multimedia cards (the 2000 series)

[saphalline]

Overheating problem, eh? Not surprising with a 3 GHz+ P4. :rolleyes:

Should be very easy to replace that old thing in the performance department. Any ol' C2D can whiz past that sucker without breaking a sweat! Heck, at that point, a $60 A64 X2 can pound that P4 into the ground!

What's your budget for this? What hardware can you carry over? You looking to buy or build?

[losonogo]

my budget? anything that would make my pc last 3 years again
i will keep or replace anything i have to
I was hoping to get the recommendations off you guys then take it back to the pc custom builders and get them to upgrade it for me
I know your prob thinking do it yourself, but if i get a pro to do it then there is warranty on workmanship

[losonogo]

ok so the cpu upgrade
intel pen 4 3.2> intel c2d q6600
vga
geforce 6600gt>geforce 8600 or 8800gt

hopefully this will stop my pc from dieing constantly!

question though, when it comes to cooling is there a rule of thumb or guide available so i know how many to get?

[Rick]

The new C2D quad is easy to cool.
Most of the new heat pipe coolers will do

The Video on a non gamer system and windows XP ?? or do you intend to get Vista ?
If you intend to stay away from Vista. Then the 8800's are a waste of $$

A new power supply is a must with todays hardware ( 450watt and up)
get one with at least 1 120mm fan
Then replace your old fans with new ones and keep the air flow clean and uninterrupted .

You will need new M/B, CPU, Ram, PSU, Video card
More than likely a new HDD and a new copy of OS

[losonogo]

Damn, looks like i should build a new one from scratch!
I suppose this is what you get when you leave it too long

Y get new ram? compatibility? new tech?

[Rick]

3 year old ram will most likely be to slow for new system build

memory speed is a major factor in system over all performance

[losonogo]

ok so would an A64 x2 compare to a quad core 6600? my mate swears by AMD but I have always had intel.
only reason for the quad is im thinking it wont age as quickly as a duo.
Is there a particular motherboard that you would recommend with the answer to the latter question?

[Ajmukon]

Intel Quad Core is the best CPU right now.

Any motherboard that supports 45NM processors (X38 or X48)
and a Cheap cr@py CPU that will tide you over until JAn 2008 for the new CPUs from intel (the PENRYN! )

An i would get whatever RAM is supported by the motherboard