Please help out with a Long Overdue gaming PC upgrade: Pentium 3 to C2D

Update Oct. 13: I've updated my current choices a bit based on the feedback I've received in the last 2 days - thanks a lot guys! Also, about OCing: I do want to have at least 3.0 GHz, even on the Q6600, but I doubt I'll go crazy with like 3.8+ GHz overclocks.
Update Oct. 14 (1st): I've done some more research and looking around, and decided on the PSU(Corsair HX620 w/ 8pin PCI-E), CPU(Q6600 G0), CPU Cooler(Thermalright Ultra 120 Extreme), CPU Cooler Fan(Scythe Sff21f), CPU Cooler Thermal Grease(Arctic Silver 5 3.5g), Mobo (GA-P35-DS3L - slightly unsure about this). Now I just have to decide on the RAM. 2x1gb=2gb or 2x(2x1gb)=4 gb? Crucial or Corsair? CAS4? If I understand correctly, I won't need to overclock ram unless I go past 3.6 GHz on the Q6600, is that correct? At 3.6 GHz the FSB would be 400 Mhz, meaning 800 Mhz for DDR2... eh.. Need to read up more on this. :/
Update Oct. 14 (2nd): I bought the Corsair HX620W PSU, Scythe Fan and Raptor. Couldn't buy the rest because the MoBo I wanted (GA-P35-DS3L) was out of stock. =( Read my last reply for more details.
Update Oct. 14 (3rd): Ordered online the eVGA 8800GTX (for the peace of mind with the step-up program and quality/reliability/brandname hehe), GA-P35-DS3L (cheap but good enough for me, easy to upgrade later), Thermalright Ultra 120 Extreme CPU Cooler (the best), Arctic Silver 5 thermal grease, Corsair 2GB PC2-6400C4 2x1gb kit (much cheaper compared to Crucial Ballistix, and enough headroom for 3.6 GHz OC). Woot! All that's left is to pick up the Q6600 G0 when the order arrives! =D

Hi,

Here's the deal. I'm almost done saving up for a much needed and long overdue upgrade to my gaming PC, and I need some help/pointers. Since I've been out of the hardware side of things for a quite while, I'm not really up to date on everything that's been going on. I know a bit about the current video cards and CPUs, but not much else (nor what's coming soon).

So my current desktop PC is this:
Pentium 3 500 MHz (OCed to 575 MHz)
ATI Radeon 8500 64 MB
512 MB PC133 RAM (upgraded, it was 128 originally)
20 GB 5400 RPM hard-drive (plus another 7200 RPM 10 GB one I've added recently)

Needless to say, it's pretty out of date. I've been wanting it to upgrade it ever since it got slow about 5 years ago lol. But I didn't have any money until now (I got a job, finally). I'm pretty used to playing games from ~2001-2002 and earlier and usually at like 5-15 FPS. So now I want to use this opportunity to get a monster gaming rig so that I can be totally blown away with it, just like I was when I got my first 3D accelerated video card like 7 years ago... Playing SoF1 on it, that was the ****. I want that feeling again heh.

Here are some games I'm planning to try out on it:
Bioshock
Half-Life 2/Episode One/Two
Portal
F.E.A.R.
Prey
GTA 4
Hitman: Blood Money
Rainbox Six: Vegas
Live for Speed, rFactor, some NFS games maybe
(as you can see, I'm mostly into FPS and driving games)

Anyway, I've done a bit of research and tried to choose the parts. My budget is around CAD$2000-$3000 (that's in Canadian dollars, but they're = to USD now), but I'd rather spend as little as possible (it's my own money, after all lol).

I'll list the components and write down what I've picked out, what I'm unsure about, etc. - please comment!

CPU
My current choice: Intel Core 2 Quad 2.4 GHz and OC it to 3.0 GHZ (Q6600 Stepping G0)
Past choices: Core 2 Duo 3.0GHz (E6850)
I want to spend: $200-300
How sure am I about it: Undecided, most likely the Q6600 if I can OC it to 3.0 GHz
I know I probably should just get a lower clocked C2D and OC it myself to 3.0 ghz, but I really like the sound of 3.0 GHz, and since it's C2D it'd be so awesome... I also know it might be a good idea to get a Quad core (Q6600) in the long-run, but I really want top end performance out of the "current" next-gen games and the highest Fps...
Update: Since I'll be getting cream of the crop CPU air cooling, I think I'll get the Q6600 and OC it to 3.0 or higher. This ought to keep me happy now and further into the future (vs. the C2D which might not be as effective in the multithreaded future).

Video card
My current choice: eVGA 8800GTX 768MB PCI-Express (768-P2-N831-AR)
How sure am I about it: Pretty sure
I want to spend: $600
I just have to have it... The sweet 8800 Gtx, it doesn't care about high resolutions or AA/AF. It's pretty old now (1 year), so I hope it won't be blown away out of the water within a month or two, like it did all other cards when it just came out..
No idea if the eVGA version is the best, but I see it mentioned everywhere and it seems to be good. Hope it is.

Monitor
My current choice: Dell 27" UltraSharp widescreen LCD monitor
I want to spend: $300-1000
How sure am I about it: Not very, depends on what resolutions the 8800GTX can handle..
I want a Dell LCD, they seem pretty good. On the one hand, I can go for a Dell 22" with 1680x1050 for like $300, but then there's the 24" with 1920x1200.. which sounds so awesome. But if I really want to be amazed, maybe I should just go for the 27"... I definitely don't want a 30" cuz the games would run too slow at 2560x resolution without 2 video cards.
Will the one 8800GTX handle current-~1 year from now games all right at 1920x, or should I just get a 1680x monitor for better FPS (I want it to be 100+.. or at least 60+)? I guess I could always play at lower resolution when it gets slow, so.. Dunno, 27" is very expensive too lol.

Motherboard
My Current choice: Gigabyte's GA-P35-DS3L
Past choices: Gigabyte's GA-P35C-DS3R/GA-P35-DS3R/GA-P35-DS3L or ASUS P5K (regular, not Deluxe).
I want to spend: $100-150-ish, unless it's absolutely necessary to spend more.
How sure am I about it: Hope the L model is as good as GA-P35C-DS3R in all other aspects but DDR3/RAID support - if so, I'll be happy with it.
Ok, this is the part I need the most help with. I've done some research and fished out the names of these two mobos... They seem to be all right for what I need, which is:
-1 video card, I don't think I'll be going for SLI
-DDR2 ram support, DDR3 is optional but I guess is nice to have for the future
-4 ram slots
-I've read that the Intel P35 chipset is pretty good..
-Standard features, a couple USB 2.0s, 3-4 SATA ports, LAN, sound, etc. nothing special
Between the two.. I like ASUS, but it seems Gigabyte might be a better choice since it allows me to upgrade to DDR3 in the future. But for now Im defnitely going with DDR2.
Update: I think I'll go for the Gigabyte P35x-DS3x. Now the question is which of these 3:
-GA-P35C-DS3R ($167): has RAID and DDR3 support
-GA-P35C-DS3R ($150): has RAID support
-GA-P35C-DS3L ($106): no RAID support
Those are the only differences as far as I can tell. Since I doubt I'll need RAID, maybe I should get the cheapest $105 one - that way I can upgrade it later on if the need arises, since I won't be losing much. Or maybe spend the $167 and have DDR3 support right away?

RAM
My Current choice: Crucial Ballistix (BL2KIT12864AA804) DDR2 800Mhz PC2 6400 2GB Kit (1GB x 2) 240-pin
Past choices: Corsiar Twin2X DDR2 PC-6400 800MHz XMS2 Xtreme Memory 2GB (2 x 1GB) Dual Channel Kit (and another 2GB in the future maybe)
I want to spend: $100-150
How sure am I about it: I'll probably get the Crucial one, since it uses better chips or something lol.
I know it's better to get a well known brand, but there are quite a few of them.. This corsair pack seems decent, so Ive picked it cuz it's the first one I found. I wanna get 2GB now, and maybe I'll get another 2GB later on if the need arises.
Update: I think I'll need to get something else if I'm going to OC that Q6600, I'll look into Crucial RAM. It seems pretty good too.

Hard-drive
My Current choice: WD Raptor 150 GB 10,000 RPM (and another WD Caviar 500 or 750 GB or two later on)
I want to spend: $200
How sure am I about it: Already bought, $205.
Just gonna get a fast raptor as my main drive, and get another 1 or 2 500/750~ish GB hard-drive for storage later.

Power-supply
My Current choice: Corsair HX620W PSU
I want to spend: $100-150~
How sure am I about it: Already bought, $130 AR.
It seems pretty important to get a good quality PSU, and I hear this one is pretty good (tier 2). Costs only $130 AR too.

Case
My Current choice: Cooler Master CM 690
I want to spend: $100 or less
How sure am I about it: Already bought, $71 after MIR.
Update: Thanks for the info, I've decided to get a CM 690 as it should suit my needs nicely.

So please let me know if this system sounds good, or if I should wait for something that'll come out sometime soon, cuz I want this new machine to be pretty close to top-end for at least a few months after I get it.

Sorry it's such a long post, but I tend to get wordy and I don't upgrade my PC often - so I have a lot of questions. I really want to get as much wow-factor (not the game) as possible, and I'm really excited, so I don't want to make bad choices (especially in RAM, Mobo, PSU and case - what I'm most unsure about) that I'll regret later.

Thanks to anyone who helps me out, 'preciate it.

 

I forgot to mention, I'll probably be buying all the parts at a local PC shop in my city - I really don't wanna deal with eBay or ordering stuff only from the US and such... I'll just pay a bit more but won't have to deal with the shipping wait and all the hassles.

So if you could pick out (replacement?) parts that are avaliable from here: Canada Computers - Your Neighbourhood Computer Store and Service Centre - PC Systems and Hardware Components, Notebooks, Electronics, and more. - That'd be super. Thanks. That's also where I'm getting my prices from.

Also: About overclocking - I would not mind doing it, as the current hardware seems very overclockable.. So I guess I might need some cooling solution too, what can I get in that department for like under $50? I don't wanna go crazy with OCing, just a bit when it gets slow..

 

But remember, more GHZ = more heat. So, get the additional cooling support for your CPU if you want overclock it. Personally I would get E6750, take something from Ninja cooling solutions and overclock it.

Gigabyte's GA-P35C-DS3R - this should be your right choice. great o/c capabilities, stable mobo. Don't worry about DDR3. It's very expensive now. And it will be for a long time. If you want DDR3 in future - get new mobo


And i don't like those Asus utilities... i always liked something simple, but functional. Adding those utilities to PC might look very good choice, but believe me, you can find everything by going to BIOS and no need to make your PC full of this crap.

I would recommend you Corsair HX620W Power Supply as it's reliable product, you get enough power and quality of course.

HDD - everything is ok here i think. Having raptor 10000 rpm will speed up your system significantly.

Corsair RAM is ok here. This version is for overclocking.

GPU - your choise is great here.

Monitor - I would go for wide. But it's tricky, you never know if you get a good quality product. (Talking about Samsung 22" wide LCD monitors). You may not expect anything good for around 300$. High end monitors begin with pricing like about 700$: NEC LCD 2170NX 8ms 900:1 300cd/m2 DVI BLACK. I would get this.

Case - i have no idea. Maybe others will help you to find out which one can be suitable for you.

Good luck.

 

OnStock, thanks a lot for your feedback!

By Ninja cooling solutions, I'm guessing you meant Scythe Ninja. I'll try to get one of those.

I'm leaning towards the Gigabyte's GA-P35C-DS3R. But can anyone tell me what the difference is between the GA-P35C-DS3R and GA-P35-DS3R and some other very similar models they have? I can't see what that extra 'C' is for.

The ASUS mobo utilities are probably optional though, right? I doubt I'd want to install them either.

About the Corsair HX620W Power Supply, while it seems pretty good, it's also more expensive, at about $160 ($130 after mail-in rebate). The 520W version is $91 after rebate, but the reviews on newegg seem to indicate it may have some cooling issues. The reviews for the OCZ StealthXStream OCZ600SXS 600W seem to be slightly more positive overall and it costs $80.

Thanks again for your help!

 

Amount of clock cycles dosnt generate the heat, its what is done in those cycles that generates heat. For example, earlier AMD charcoal processors had slower clockspeeds than P3 and P4, however, they was able to do a lot more than Pentiums and thus generated intense heat.

 

I think what he meant is that if you take a given CPU, and overclock it, it will generate more heat than when not overclocked.

Of course, comparing GHz and heat produced across different CPUs doesn't make much sense. But in *general*, higher clocked processors usually generate more heat than lower clocked ones.

 

I've done some more research and looking around, and this is what I came up with.

PSU: Corsair HX620 - most likely with the newer 8-pin PCI-e connectors
I think the local shop has the new ones with the 8-pin connectors. Even if not, I'll just have to get them from Corsair so I won't be missing out on much (just added hassle).

CPU: Q6600 G0 stepping - Woot, the local shop has the G0 version!

Cooler: Thermalright ULTRA-120 Extreme
I found it on Canadadirect.com for $50, so I think I'll grab it. It'll let me OC my Q6600 G0 more safely and probably a lot further.

Fan for Cooler: Scythe S-flex Sff21f - it's a great one - thanks Kamrooz.
Local shop has em for $17.

Thermal grease for CPU cooler: Arctic Silver 5 3.5g - Apparently its really good, and for only $8 why not get it.
Local shop is out of stock, but I'll get it from canadirect along with the cooler. Might as well go for the best CPU air cooling I can, and this'll help.

Mobo: Gigabyte GA-P35-DS3L (wow, I've actually memorized this by now lol)
It's cheap ($105), has all the features I need, fits the Ultra 120 Extreme and will be easy to replace later (since it's cheap) when I need to upgrade (be it DDR3 or PCI-E 2.0 or RAID, etc.). Supposed to overclock pretty well also, if it's the same as the GA-P35C-DS3R anyway (it should be, other than the missing DDR3/RAID support).

RAM: This is the only part I'm still unsure about. 2x1gb=2gb or 2x(2x1gb)=4 gb? Crucial or Corsair? CAS4? If I understand correctly, I won't need to overclock ram unless I go past 3.6 GHz on the Q6600, is that correct? At 3.6 GHz the FSB would be 400 Mhz, meaning 800 Mhz for DDR2... eh.. Need to read up more on this. :/

 

Another update: I nearly bought everything (but the monitor) today. But the local shop had run out of the GA-P35-DS3L mobos, and I can't find it anywhere else in Toronto. So it looks like I'll be ordering it from Directcanada.com, along with the cooler+thermal grease.

I did buy the Corsair HX620W, Scythe SFF21F fan for the future CPU cooler, and the WD Raptor.

Now, I have to find out the following. Does the newer Corsair HX620W PSU that comes with the 8-pin PCI-E connector have a different looking box or any way to find out without looking inside the box? Because on my box it doesn't mention it, and there are no stickers. So does that mean mine doesn't have the newer version with 8-pin PCI-E, or is there still a chance it might have it inside?

I'll keep it unopened for now, and I can exchange it during the next 7 days if they'll have a newer shipment of them, hopefully it'll be one with the 8-pin PCI-E connector. Although this is all very useless at this time, hehe.

 

I opened the Corsair HX620W PSU box (couldn't wait any longer) and it did have the 6+2 PCI-E connectors! So everything's perfect so far. Now I just hope the online shipment arrives.