I hadn't checked the prices of RAM in awhile, so I checked out some online retailers here in Canada and was blown off of my chair. Not only did I find that RAM was dirt cheap, but the prices here are finally very close to US prices.
I figured this was a good time to check out what a complete system overhaul would cost me. The last time I did this I stopped after the price hit $1000.
The first thing I decided was that it was once again time to go with Intel over AMD. I looked around online for the best motherboard/CPU combo for great performance versus price and built a system around this.
Here's what I came up with:
Gigabyte LGA755 P35 Motherboard $92.99
Intel Core 2 Duo E8400 3.0GHz Wolfdale $198.99
Antec Sonata III case with 500W PSU $93.98
Corsair XMS2 2x2GB (4 GB) 6400 RAM $92.99
Western Digital 500GB SATA2 HDD $82.99
LG 20X DVD writer SATA $26.99
Total = $588.93
You'll notice that this lacks a video card, but I'll be using a XFX nVidia 7900GS I picked up for cheap around Christmas. I'll be on the lookout for something nice in the 9X00 line in the future, but I think the 7900GS will do for now.
The only items I was wavering about were the Antec case and WD hard drive. I have an Antec case right now, and while it's a nice case I really disliked the PSU it came with. It developed an annoying high-pitched whine after a while and I had to replace it. The 500W Antec PSU is apparently a very good one, so I'll give it another go. I can always replace the PSU if I have to, I guess. The case looks nice to work in, and it's supposed to be very quiet with the large 120mm case fan. The lockable doors will be fun too.
I went with the Western Digital drive because I've been very happy with the last 3 WD drives I've used. I almost went with the 640GB model, but the price difference was just too great.
I almost went with 4 sticks of 2GB RAM for 8GB total, because I could've done that for less than $200. Then I wizened up and remembered that even 4GB is kinda overkill these days. It would've been nice to brag about 8GB of RAM though :(
Questions, comments, drooling?
EDIT: stupid grammar stuff
I figured this was a good time to check out what a complete system overhaul would cost me. The last time I did this I stopped after the price hit $1000.
The first thing I decided was that it was once again time to go with Intel over AMD. I looked around online for the best motherboard/CPU combo for great performance versus price and built a system around this.
Here's what I came up with:
Gigabyte LGA755 P35 Motherboard $92.99
Intel Core 2 Duo E8400 3.0GHz Wolfdale $198.99
Antec Sonata III case with 500W PSU $93.98
Corsair XMS2 2x2GB (4 GB) 6400 RAM $92.99
Western Digital 500GB SATA2 HDD $82.99
LG 20X DVD writer SATA $26.99
Total = $588.93
You'll notice that this lacks a video card, but I'll be using a XFX nVidia 7900GS I picked up for cheap around Christmas. I'll be on the lookout for something nice in the 9X00 line in the future, but I think the 7900GS will do for now.
The only items I was wavering about were the Antec case and WD hard drive. I have an Antec case right now, and while it's a nice case I really disliked the PSU it came with. It developed an annoying high-pitched whine after a while and I had to replace it. The 500W Antec PSU is apparently a very good one, so I'll give it another go. I can always replace the PSU if I have to, I guess. The case looks nice to work in, and it's supposed to be very quiet with the large 120mm case fan. The lockable doors will be fun too.
I went with the Western Digital drive because I've been very happy with the last 3 WD drives I've used. I almost went with the 640GB model, but the price difference was just too great.
I almost went with 4 sticks of 2GB RAM for 8GB total, because I could've done that for less than $200. Then I wizened up and remembered that even 4GB is kinda overkill these days. It would've been nice to brag about 8GB of RAM though :(
Questions, comments, drooling?
EDIT: stupid grammar stuff