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At what point is buying newer technology not needed


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#1
Ferrari

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Hi everyone,

So I'm putting together my first build on online and I'm loving it, thats for sure. However, at what point is there no need to get better technology for a computer that is just for internet and normal program tasks. I ask this because I don't game, or at least haven't tried it yet. I was over at a friends house the other day and he had a 3ghz hyperthreading single core and it was opening programs faster than I could blink. It was just a basic store bought computer, so I got to thinking, in my build is a core 2 duo overkill?

Where is the line drawn for there not being any noticeable difference when it comes to cpu and other hardware for pc performance and speed?

Here is the processor I am looking at. E8400 Wolfdale Core 2 Duo

Here is one that I think may provide the same results for what I use a computer for. E5200 Wolfdale Dual Core

The price is almost $100 difference, so I thought I should get an explanation for what I will be using the computer for.

Will the Core 2 Duo be noticeable faster on anything at all??? Or just games.
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#2
Magglass

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What is the motherboard you are thinking about putting those into?
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#3
Ferrari

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Well, the motherboard would change obviously because the FSB is much different.

Gigabit for the E8400

And I haven't taken the time to look for a board for the E5200 yet. I was pretty set on the e8400 until I got to thinking I may just be wasting my money.
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#4
Ferrari

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And don't think I'm crazy here, but before someone goes and recommends a new board or something, color, power plug and sata locations matter and all that stuff :)

I'm not just in the process of a build, but more like a design I guess you could say. I really enjoy the design part of it, not just making sure the parts are compatible. See what I'm saying?

Thanks,
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#5
Magglass

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The E5200 should do just fine for normal computing. Do have a couple of GB of memory in the system.
The way I upgrade my systems. Load it with memory, if it gets boggy, then upgrade the proc.
Boggy=System has been cleaned of all junk, it really is the load.
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#6
Ferrari

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Yeah, I mean I'm fairly new at this stuff, but I was noticing that the E5200 probably will suit me just fine. I'll continue to look into it and give it thought. I think for what I mainly do(have a lot of progams open at once and some multi tasking) Memory is what I really need.

Thanks for your thoughts.
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#7
Ferrari

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I wanted to elaborate on my "normal" usage. I would say at a minimum I have openoffice open, notepad, MS Outlook, Firefox with some where between 10 to 20-25 tabs open. And because I am at the computer so much, I usually will run my security scans while I'm working on the computer. I really would like NO hesitation when having to open more programs, bring other programs to the front, or go into my control panel, etc while all these are open. Since I will be running dual monitors, I will be having a movie or tv show going on many times too.

Thanks,
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#8
Magglass

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Haveing Tabs open, is where your memory is coming into play. Running scans is a bottleneck at your disc drive. Watching TV, is going to be memory and CPU intensive. I wouln't consider all of that "normal useage", so I'm glad you upadated your post. I just changed my vote. Get the E8400.
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#9
Ferrari

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I guess it wouldn't hurt to go ahead and list everything I have picked thus far.

Lian Li Case
More details of the actual functions and features of the case Here
Gigabit Motherboard
E8400 Wolfdale
E5200 Wolfdale???
OCZ Memory
Nvidia 9600 GSO
Thermal Take Heatsink and Fan I'm a little weary, reviews say it doesn't cool well, but they are also from people that overclock and use quads and all, will it be ok for me?
Antec PSU 550 Watt Is the wattage high enough?
Western Digital Hard Drive
LG 22X Combo Drive

Any comments, good and bad welcome. Thanks in advance for looking.

Edit: And remember, color and style matters. I just enjoy the design part of it also, but function can take precedence in the end.

I will be adding a 2 part sound card configuration where you have bay with sound control/remote control and all that with a mid grade sound system after the build is complete (eventually). I also would like to add a LCD digital Fan and Temp Bay, a second hard drive with a second operating system, a bay that you can access the a hard drive externally, more ram???, and probably more LOL.

Also, I will be wanting to constantly tinker with this computer. Add stuff, replace stuff, etc. It's not just going to sit there, I want it to be an ongoing project of sorts.

Edited by Ferrari, 21 March 2009 - 10:15 PM.

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#10
Ferrari

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Thanks!!

Yeah I got to thinking AGAIN and thought that I better put down exactly what I use it for and what I generally have going on with the computer. I am new enough not to fully understand what affects memory and cpu or just memory etc. I think I like the E8400 just because it only puts me behind 3 technologies, Extreme, Quad and i7 :)

As fast as things change, its pointless to attempt to keep up. :)
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#11
Nimwe

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For the sake of scalability, with what you've said, If I were building it I would install a motherboard with 2 PCIe slots. This gives you a cheaper upgrade in the future if you decide to try gaming on the system and find it lacking for graphics.

That being said, a single core proc would generally be fine for a machine used strictly for browsing the internet,but a multi-core proc is better for programs that run multiple threads (which is most nowadays). The threads will be split between the cores, effectively speeding the work along.

I'm looking at IE in Task Manager right now. It's using 269 MB of ram and 66-70 threads with 6 tabs open. I would agree that the E8400 would be better in the long run. And with that many tabs open, I will also agree that you will definatly need to be sure to have plenty of ram. With the 4 GB that you have listed, you'll also want to choose a 64 bit OS.

As far as the heatsink and fan, if you don't plan to overclock the Thermaltake should be fine. And the powersupply will also be fine. I would go so far as to say you could actually go for a lower wattage if you wanted to, though I wouldn't go below 450.

Edited by Nimwe, 22 March 2009 - 12:18 AM.

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#12
Ferrari

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Yeah, I am unsure about the 2 PCI-e slots, I had first planned on running a SLI configuration, however, I didn't know if I had a real need for it since I don't game. I may give it a try, but between eventually starting to go to a Tech School along with Geek U and my normal social life, I don't know if I will really have time to Game. I will think about it.

With that said, this is the original Mobo I had picked out for the SLI configuration, but is ASROCK any good? I would like to keep the cost around $100 for the board.

ASROCK Board

I really like how it has room to upgrade the cpu and upgrade to DDR3 memory, it seems like a very flexible, upgradeable board.

Let me know, thanks,
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#13
Nimwe

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It does seem to be a fairly flexible board, and actually seems more geared toward the DDR3 standard as it has more slots for that standard. I can't say I've ever used an ASRock board, but I don't recall hearing anything notably bad about them. And if you do go with that board and have issue, Newegg is good about replacing DOA parts  :) , so there shouldn't be too much of an issue there.
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#14
stettybet0

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If you don't game, SLI is absolutely unnecessary. Even if you do game, SLI is typically unnecessary. It is always better to get a single high-end video card than to SLI two low-end video cards.

In any case. that ASROCK motherboard you mentioned doesn't even support SLI... Just because a motherboard has two PCI-E slots does not mean it supports SLI. A motherboard supporting SLI will cost more. You will not find one for under $100.

Continuing on that ASROCK, never get a motherboard that can't decide what technology it supports. Either get a motherboard supporting DDR2 or get one that supports DDR3. Getting one that supports both ends up being a hassle, and it limits you in the total amount of RAM that you can have because you can only use DDR2 or DDR3, but not both at the same time. For your uses, DDR2 will be fine. The speed of RAM is not typically a bottleneck in modern systems.

For your uses, integrated graphics would probably be fine. That Gigabyte motherboard (which you keep calling a Gigabit motherboard for some reason :)) doesn't have integrated graphics, but you could probably get one that does for a few dollars more and save yourself the money from having to get a dedicated graphics card. However, you say that you might game. In that case, sticking with a dedicated graphics card would be best.

Also, speaking of that Gigabyte motherboard, you would not need to change it if you got the E5200. Though in any case, I would change it to the GA-EP45-UD3R, which is a higher end version of the GA-EP45-UD3L you originally picked, as it is only $1 more after mail-in rebate.

You don't need an aftermarket CPU heatsink/fan if you buy a retail CPU and won't be overclocking. A retail CPU will come with a heatsink/fam.

Let us know what you actually will be using the system for (will you end up using it for gaming after all?), and we can go from there. Also, looking through the topic, I don't see your budget listed anywhere. That would be useful to know, as well.

Edited by stettybet0, 22 March 2009 - 11:08 AM.

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#15
Ferrari

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Hi stettybet0, thanks for jumpin in. The more opinions I get the better I think.

I would like the budget to be in the neighborhood of $700. I am willing to spend as much as it takes to get what I want, but I don't want to get crazy with the money. I am saving up for a car this Summer as well.

Edit: $700 is just for the tower, doesn't include monitor, keyboard, mouse, or even the OS.

I like the board you recommended, and I think I have changed my mind...the blue heatsinks will probably look rather nice especially since the board itself is blue. With that said, please read this post from earlier in this topic.

And don't think I'm crazy here, but before someone goes and recommends a new board or something, color, power plug and sata locations matter and all that stuff laughing.gif

I'm not just in the process of a build, but more like a design I guess you could say. I really enjoy the design part of it, not just making sure the parts are compatible. See what I'm saying?

and

Edit: And remember, color and style matters. I just enjoy the design part of it also, but function can take precedence in the end.

This is solely for me, there isn't really anyone in my life that I will be "showing this off" to. I enjoy design, even home decor interior design. So changing one thing, may mean changing other things, if not everything. I don't expect anyone to go and do all that for me though, and I had thoughts of just posting the stuff right before I buy it just to make sure it's compatible, because again, I don't expect someone to go hunting and searching for a RAM that matches the video card and heatsink, ya know?

Anyway, I know I don't need the aftermarket heatsink and fan, it will be for the "style" and "design" part, so it just has to at a minimum function as good as the one that comes with the cpu.

The same goes for the graphics card too, I can get a real cheap one since I WON"T BE GAMING(decided that now) but I prefer it to be black and have the outer rectangle enclosure of the card(don't know what you call that). When I eventually buy a sound card, I will want it to have as similar look to the video card as I can find.

This is also why I picked the RAM it has silver heat pipes and is black which will match the video card and heatsink and fan. I have some other heatsinks and fans I'm looking at too.
Here they are.

Tuniq
ASUS
Edit: Xigmatek I would really like to hear what someone has to say about this all in one cooling unit.

If you noticed, they all have the fan somewhat hidden, I don't want one that has the fan on top or even on the side, I like it in the middle. However, some of them come with fans that have blue LED's and I am almost decided that I want the lighting to be white, but subtle. So I may need to find out if I can replace the fan that comes with the heatsink with one that doesn't have lights, or if I want the heatsink to have that inner white glow, then a fan with white LED's that I can use on the heatsink.

So, I understand if you aren't willing to help, but I can't help but repeat myself. I enjoy the "design" part just as much as the actual "build" but I do want it to meet my needs also. If I have a few programs open with 15 tabs and there is hesitation when I go to search in the control panel or have to open another program up, then I might as well not even build because the computer i use now already hesitates LOL. Ya know?

Well, I'll stop there, let me know what you think. I will listen to anything anyone has to say and will consider all hardware recommendations, you can leave it up to me getting things to match it all.

Remember this is some of the things that will be added down the road...

I will be adding a 2 part sound card configuration where you have bay with sound control/remote control and all that with a mid grade sound system after the build is complete (eventually). I also would like to add a LCD digital Fan and Temp Bay, a second hard drive with a second operating system, a bay that you can access the a hard drive externally, more ram???, and probably more LOL.

Also, I will be wanting to constantly tinker with this computer. Add stuff, replace stuff, etc. It's not just going to sit there, I want it to be an ongoing project of sorts.


Thanks!

Edited by Ferrari, 22 March 2009 - 03:17 PM.

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