PC Upgrade Advice Please!

[digitalfury2248]

So lately I've been itching to upgrade my computer. In the past it hadn't bothered me since the most it was pushed was by WoW or when I'd fire up a whole bunch of stuff at once, but now it really irks me that I barely get by in newer games even with heavily tuned down settings. I was hoping for some advice from the community! :)

A little background so you know my level of expertise so you know what level of moron you're talking to (and I mean just that :) )... I know my way around a PC, but I'm no expert (thats for sure). I used to work in the Geek Squad at Best Buy for a short time before my "office days" began... but that doesn't mean much.

I built my current system almost 3 years ago to the day. My first build. The board & processor were part of Intel's retail edge program if you know what that is.

Current setup:
Pentium 4, 3.4 GHz
Intel 915PBL board
2 GB DDR2 Corsair (4 x 512mb in dual-channel)
Visiontek ATI x1300 512mb (pci express x16)
250gb HD
Antec 480w PS
and other 'side stuff': 1 dvd-rw drive & 1 cd drive ( both memorex), Samsung 215TW widescreen LCD, bose 3.1 speakers, razer diamondback mouse, logitech g15 keyboard
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So here's some of the questions I've been asking myself:
1) I think, and I've been told, my graphics card belongs in the dumpster. I'd like to upgrade it, but I'm pretty sure my processor will then be the bottleneck... and I'm also pretty sure that its not that far behind my graphics card in the "suckiness" category..... basically meaning that if I want to see a chunky performance improvement, I'll need to upgrade video card and processor? Sound valid?
2) I know that if my processor is being upgrade so is my board.... my current one doesnt' support dual or quad cores. Still sound good?
3) If I upgrade my graphics card and/or processor & board, my 480w PS will or won't cut it anymore?
4) I'd like to transfer over as much as I can. Obviously all the peripherals will do fine, as well as the HD (SATA), cd/dvd drives, RAM, and case. Sound ok?
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Here's the possible upgrades I've been eyeing:
Graphics: Radeon 2900XT 512mb GDDR3
Everyone has their favorites I guess... I had a couple bad run-ins with GeForce cards in my earlier gaming days, and ATI has treated me well since then. This ATI card fits in the range of what I'd like to spend (~330). It seems pretty equivalent to the GeForce 8800's from what I've read in the reviews and such. I'm open to all suggestions, and you might even be able to convince me to switch back to the dark side if you're a nvidia fanboy. ;)

(if) Processor: Intel Core 2 Quad Q6600
This price-dropped not too long ago (again, right in my preferred range, ~280), and got very very high reviews from people... I've kinda been watching it for a while, and I'm getting more anxious to jump on it. I know some people prefer the faster Duo's for the same range (like the E6850) instead of the Quad's. My thinking is kinda in-line with what I've read elsewhere... these can be overclocked a bit to compete with the faster duo's speed (which I'm not too familiar with, but I'd like to do), and you still have quad-core tech for the future. And yep, I prefer Intel to AMD.

(if) Board: ASUS P5K-E
I'm much more lost talking about mobo's. This is the one that appealed to me the most based on what I read, and that's about all I can say to justify the choice. Most people who got the Q6600 processor seemed to favor this or the Gigabyte DS3P. I'm not looking to spend a ton of money (trust me), but I was surprised at the prices on these (~150-200)... I expected for them to cost a bit more.
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I know budget matters a lot in these considerations, so I guess I'm looking to spend under or around 1k. The 3 suggestions above came to about 850, and that's without a PS which I'm betting I'd have to upgrade as well. If it takes more to get the appropriate system going, so be it... I just want to justify why.

A big big thanks for reading thru this, and helping me out. Its much appreciated everyone! :)


EDIT:

one thing I forgot to add in here... I have windows xp pro and a vista premium upgrade (which I promptly uninstalled on this system 1 month after release). Question 1: will I need a new copy of windows for an upgraded system? and Question 2: if I do have a fully upgraded system, is Vista finally worthy of being run, or is XP still the better option? I've heard good things about the more recent vista drivers, but I'm not too sure. Thanks again!

[mjc]

Well, in general, yes a total rebuild is probably what you are looking at...for an 'office'/internet only system your current hardware will still be more than adequate, but for gaming...it sucks.

To go with that new board, you'll probably have to factor in RAM too, along with the power supply, 480 is at the very bottom edge of what you may need...and it may be old enough to not have all the connectors a modern system will need. You may be able to use what you have, but faster RAM will probably be better...

Others will probably chime in on this too, but any ATI card, right now, does not even come close to the latest nVidia offerings...that 2900 will get chewed up like an old shoe in a box of puppies by the lowliest 8800 offering. Yes, it is cheaper...but...

[digitalfury2248]

So after spending my day at work reading up on these forums and elsewhere(can't really call it 'work' then, can ya? :) ), I think I have a good idea for an upgrade. I immediately realized I should have done my research before my original post, but thus is the experience of the 'forum noob'. :)

I'd like to post it for review. Your thoughts/advice/concerns are more than welcome!!!

Processor:
Intel Core 2 Quad Q6600 Kentsfield 2.4GHz 2 x 4MB L2 Cache LGA 775 Processor (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819115017)

Board:
EVGA 122-CK-NF67-T1 LGA 775 NVIDIA nForce 680i LT SLI ATX Intel Motherboard (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813188015)

Graphics Card:
EVGA 512-P3-N802-A1 GeForce 8800GT Superclocked 512MB 256-bit GDDR3 PCI Express 2.0 HDCP Ready SLI Supported Video Card (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814130303)

Memory:
CORSAIR XMS2 2GB (2 x 1GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 (PC2 6400) Dual Channel Kit Desktop Memory (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820145590) ( x2 = 4GB )

Power Supply:
CORSAIR CMPSU-620HX ATX12V v2.2 and EPS12V 2.91 620W Power Supply 100 - 240 V (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817139002)

Case:
COOLER MASTER RC-690-KKN1-GP Black SECC/ ABS ATX Mid Tower Computer Case (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811119137&Tpk=cm690)

OS:
Microsoft Windows Vista 64-Bit Ultimate (http://www.newegg.com/Product/ProductReview.aspx?Item=N82E16832116215)

Other:
HD is coming from my current system for now (250GB SATA), as well as DVD-RW, and peripherals I talked about earlier.


I saw several suggestions for similar systems to get a better fan than stock, especially if you're going to overclock (which I may not do right away, but I'm sure I will down the road- I am aware of the dangers of such activities). Think that sounds about right? And if so, I had looked at these 2... whatta ya think? Any other suggestions?
ZALMAN CNPS 9700 NT 110mm 2 Ball Ultra Quiet CPU Cooler (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835118020)
ARCTIC COOLING Freezer 7 Pro 92mm CPU Cooler (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835186134)
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Thanks again for all the help... you guys rock

[Ajmukon]

the only thing i would change is the processor- the 45nm CPUs are coming VERY soon (JAN 08)

if you need a PC now- get a cheap CPU now and then upgrade to a 45nm CPU later

[George Hallam]

yep all looks good what you said, just be careful and make sure you new MOBO (680i) will support the new Quad cores E9000 series. i advise contacting EVGA and asking them..

for now this CPU will be fine until January
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819115030

[digitalfury2248]

Thanks for the input! I've contacted evga about support for the e9000 series with the 680i T1 board, and I'll post back here to let you know so you can store it away in your 'personal knowledge database'. :)

[George Hallam]

oo cheers mate ive been needing to ask that for a while... i haven't been able to recomend that board 100% because i wasn't sure if it supported the Q9000 series

[digitalfury2248]

Sorry for the delayed response... moved a few days ago. Here is their reply!

It will support (wolfsdale) 45nm dual core 1333MHz FSB CPU’s.

EVGA

[George Hallam]

i did some research as well and yes i found out that it only supports the dual core and not the Quad :(

[saphalline]

Go back to an iP35-based mobo. There are plenty of high-end options there that will support all the upcoming Penryn-based CPU's. Or if you're worried about the loss of SLI/CrossFire, consider iX38 or just waiting for iX48.

Change the OS to Vista Business 64-bit retail if you must have Vista. Business is cheaper without the Ultimate fluff, and the retail version guarantees upgradeability! There's a small chance that OEM versions of Vista could be permanently "stuck" to your mobo, limiting its usefulness.

Thermalright Ultra-90. Those Zalman's you listed are old and behind the curve now. Side-blowing is where it's at!!