suggestions on build plz:

cooler master centurion atx form factor case
delta 500W psu
sapphire ati radeon hd 3870 512mb gddr5 dual layer
intel core 2 duo e7200 wolfdale
seagate barricuda HDD 320GB
crucial ballistix 2GB ddr2-1066 dual channel kit
asus P5KC mobo
generic dvd R/W dual layer
onboard sound
price cap: $600 canadian
www.newegg.ca for links plz

If you are going for a video card such as that, a 600W PSU should be your MINIMUM. You will run into issues otherwise.

mmk anyone else got anything too add? mm question the hd 4670 single layer is cheaper is it superior though?

the HD4xxx series are a superior series to the hd3xxx series. I run an HD4850 and that's just as powerful as an HD3870x2.

mmk so ill swap up price wont change much as the 600W psu is eq. to the diff between the two cards. and it isnt always a matter of newer is better case in point an hd 3870 is superior to the 4550 which is more recent.

I know that. It's not all about brute power either. It's about efficiency and power per dollar.

Yup, but now hear this...
The 3870 and 4850 series are decent, fast cards, but there are troubles in ati land, and there are troubles in asus p5kc land as well..

There's 10 pages of good and bad reviews of the p5kc at newegg, mainly issues with random non booting, random memory issues, and specific memory issues with higher frequency ddr2. needing to update the bios etc.. you should be OK with slower DDR2, in the 600 to 800mhz range, but you will probly need to geek out on the memory timings with 1066 n higher ddr2.

I'm going to put the suggestion forward that in lue of driver instal issues, system crashes/random MBR corruption from the above mentioned issues, leading to re-installation of windows etc... Avoid the P5kc.. Look for a better PSU from corsair, or OCZ, if you still looking at an ati card, even though there's alot of driver issues with the new cards, make sure the PSU is on the ati list of certified PSU's.

I would go with an nvidia 790i or some other less expensive intel chipset, without the ihc8 or 9r southbridge? or northbridge, or whatever it's called, then a single HD4850/70?, or a new single nvidia factory OC version.

I would even go as far as avoiding a board that includes a sata "raid" controller, that way you can upgrade to a "real" sata raid controller, that has onboard cpu and expandable cache/ram, if you need RAID. The IHC9R is a software raid controller, most of the IHC raid controllers are based on software, these consume CPU resources, which will effect your game play.

The non OC version 8800gts cards are going for between 150 and 175 dollars, you'll get like 90 to 100 fps in crysis, little higher in the 125fps range with a 4850/70? but you won't get these FPS unless you are using a high refresh rate 100 to 120hz CRT or LCD.

The new core ati cards use less power than the older core due to smaller DIE interconnects etc, but they still suck it down, and extensive 3d gaming will suck power from three main area's of the system, data throughput from storage to processor, to vga, the processor working 80-100%, and the GPU working 80-100% for extended periods of time.. This will draw ALOT of juice.. Do not skimp on the PSU, they need to be 5-10 amps "convert this to peak watts RMS" over the max load per voltage line for your sytem, just so you have enough overhead on the duty cycle of the PSU for extended game play.

My brothers computer using a 3870, crashes alot, probly the x38 chipset or the ati drivers, or the e8400 OC'd to 3.6 ghz? or inadequate PSU? we don't know what the issue is, possibly bad ati card, or bios, or bad drivers, bad motherboard chipset? it's an x38 board...

I recommend going through and investigating which power supplies, which motherboards, which memory modules and such are "tested" with appropriate WHQL drivers...

Cauzomb - I've never had my system maxed out on the CPU b/c of my GPU. You've got other issues with your bro's PC. My 4850 just cranks endlessly.

Cauzomb - I've never had my system maxed out on the CPU b/c of my GPU. You've got other issues with your bro's PC. My 4850 just cranks endlessly.
nono, it's just the issues that I mentioned, it crashes, alot in 3d games after a few hours. ATI vpu recovery, overheating or bad ati bios, or something with the ati drivers. Or the CPU overclocking> but it's related to the ATI card or the ATI driver, It doesn't do this with my nvidia card installed in his machine.... I told him to RMA cards until it starts working like it should, without having crashes or needing to re-install anything..

OH sorry to hijack your thread! but yeah, I just don't want you to wind up going through the same troubles without knowing how to head them off first thing, do not wait until it's too late to return/RMA anything that doesn't work as it should out of the box if you followed the instructions and instal config is good to go, including adequate PSU, cooling etc..

okay heres my changes ive had good history with asus so ill stick with them and ive down cut my GPU a bit from a 4580
cpu C2D e7200 wolfdale
PC POWER & COOLING (PPCS500) SILENCER 500 ATX / 500W POWER SUPPLY / BLACK
crucial ballistix 2GB ddr2-1066 dual channel kit
asus P5K/EPU mobo
sapphire ati radeon hd 4670 (512 mb, single layer)
cooler master centurion case
cooler master 775 socket CPU fan (couldnt pull a model #).
seagate barricude 350GB HDD

looks good, ensure that you have bios version 0401 or higher, prior to installing your e7200. If it doesn't ship with the latest bios version, you may need a different CPU to boot the machine, just to update the bios. Cons: The P5K EPU I received from NewEgg on 7/22 failed to post because the Bios (0305) does not support the Intel Q9450 CPU. I realize after reading between the manual lines and contacting ASUS, that this particular Mobo may not be factory-ready for the newer 45nm CPU's and requires a Bios update (to 0401 or 0501) prior to using the Q9450. Ideally if I had another 775 socket, 65nm CPU I would update the Bios and attempt to make it work. The PROBLEM is that all the literature, and even the ASUS package indicates "support 45nm" and it simply will not work unless you update the Bios.

Here's another suggestion regarding the audio drivers that are included with the board.

The HD sound drivers doesnt work well, after 2 calls to Asus Techs, I finally figure the fix on my own,through research. Dont install the Audio driver from the Driver CD. Download Windows HD Audio Codecs R1.98 from the RealTek.com works perfect for XP/Vista

Your power supply is not listed in the amd/ati product support page "certified by ati"
the following PC Power & Cooling PSU's are listed as "certified" for use with a single ATI GPU:


Product Retail Name Power Connectors Products Supported
2x3 2x4

Silencer 750 Quad (750W) 2 2 Radeon™ HD 4870 X2
Radeon™ HD 4870 & 4850
Radeon™ HD 3870 X2
Radeon™ HD 3870 & 3850

Silencer 610 EPS12V (610W) 1 1 Radeon™ HD 4870 & 4850
Radeon™ HD 3870 X2
Radeon™ HD 3870 & 3850

Turbo-Cool 1200 (1200W) 2 2 Radeon™ HD 4870 X2
Radeon™ HD 4870 & 4850
Radeon™ HD 3870 X2
Radeon™ HD 3870 & 3850
Turbo-Cool 1KW-CrossFire 2 0 Radeon™ HD 3870 & 3850
Radeon™ HD 2XXX

Turbo-Cool 1KW-SR (1000W) 4 0 Radeon™ HD 3870 & 3850
Radeon™ HD 2XXX

Turbo-Cool 860 (860W) 2 2* Radeon™ HD 4870 X2
Radeon™ HD 4870 & 4850
Radeon™ HD 3870 X2
Radeon™ HD 3870 & 3850

* Adjustable to 6-pin connectors


Your memory selection does not show up in the asus p5k epu qualified vendors list;
The following 1066 modules are listed as "supported"

okay then well off this site what would u suggest because im not outsourcing for parts im trying to find a set that works. case, cpu fan, and HDD, and OS are already chosen so work from there.
site (http://www.computeravenue.ca/index.php).
my history with online shopping wasnt a positive one so yeah dodging that. the only reason i had said give em on newegg is because they sell some of the similar hardware and it wasnt like i was shopping for a primo corei7 rig haha. and the only other 1066 memory they sell its the OCZ reapers which are too expensive for my $600 budget.

okay then well off this site what would u suggest because im not outsourcing for parts im trying to find a set that works. case, cpu fan, and HDD, and OS are already chosen so work from there.
site (http://www.computeravenue.ca/index.php).
my history with online shopping wasnt a positive one so yeah dodging that. the only reason i had said give em on newegg is because they sell some of the similar hardware and it wasnt like i was shopping for a primo corei7 rig haha. and the only other 1066 memory they sell its the OCZ reapers which are too expensive for my $600 budget.


I didn't find anything to my likings at that site, nothing for LGA775 as being listed on any of the MFG's "certified" "compatible" lists, except if you went with an AM2+ board and CPU, but you're not gonna get the graphics performance you want by going with an AM2+, unless you get a Freaky fast CPU and overclock it to like 3.8ghz..

This IS over your budget; BUT this is what I would buy, if I were shopping; you'd have to scrap up some more money to buy the stuff listed; if you can't, read the last line in this post instead ;)

Gigabyte GA-EP45-DS3L (rev. 1.0) need bios version 4 or later $142.99
there's a note about CPU phase power control? VRD11.1? will not use Power phase VRD10 CPU's ~CPU compatibility chart lists core2 7300 since bios version 4

Intel Core 2 Duo E7300 Processor BX80571E7300 $149.99CAD

"motherboard needs to be bios firmware version 4 or later, Most recent is 10"


Corsair TX650W 650-Watt Power Supply "nvidia certified" "ati certified for HD 4870" $142.99CAD -$20CAD MIR Final price $122.99
"you can get by with a 520 or 550W with a lesser video card, but the price/performance break isn't impressing me on anything except the deal on the below listed GFX card, and I wouldn't recommend a PSU any lesser for that card.

OCZ Reaper HPC Dual Channel 2048MB PC9200 DDR2 $64.99 CAD
"certified compatible with motherboard listed" list price.

Western Digital Caviar SE16 250GB Hard Drive $71.99 CAD

Ultra M923 ATX Black Full Tower Case list price 103.98 CAD "price on cases are HIGH for some reason, if you can get a cheaper case, like 30-40 dollar case, since you have a PSU, just make sure it's built well and FULL ATX to fit the below listed GFX card...

XFX GeForce 9800 GTX + Video Card - 512MB DDR3, PCI Express 2.0 ** "virtually same performance as ati HD 4870" within 20FPS on the very GPU intensive games" list price $293CAD -53 instant savings, =240.99CAD -30CAD Mail in rebate good till 12/31 Final Price: $210.99CAD

This is a good deal, and would be worth it to me, I'd be disapointed with a slower graphics card and newer games, still over your budget, and not many games will be any better than with the cheaper card, some games will only be about a 30-40 FPS advantage, The ATI card that you are considering would be running graphics intensive games at around 12-15fps, this 9800gtx+ would be running the same game at 28-35fps... but not ALL games will be like this..

Between all the deals and the latest/greatest "buy me" ads.. The old HD 2900XT would be your best budget card.. Will be on par with the 4670, if not better in most things, it is similar in performance to the Nvidia Geforce 9600GT You could find a good used one, I'd stick with "visiontek" for the 2900 series as this is the only certified MFG for Radeon HD 4670 1GB DDR3 PCIe (900251).

High end graphcis cards are processor/databus limmited!

If you take away the expensive graphics card, expensive case, but keep the rest of the stuff, you can pop in the 100 dollar 46xx ATI card, " or find a good used Geforce 9600GT, or ati HD2900XT

as it sits, all the good stuff listed would run $917.92CAD from tigerdirect.ca before a couple 20 and 30 dollar MIR's that will drop the price a bit.

I can't really recommend anything else in this budget range, without rubbing my fur the wrong way.... Maybe someone else will chime in to help you out with this.

okay to clarify a little so far i have the following which is carrying over that CANNOT be changed
350GB seagate barricuda sata2
socket 775 cooler master CPU fan
cooler master centurion case.

i did some re thinking and setled on a less glamorous change set:
intel pentium dual core e2200
sapphire ati radeon HD 4670
PC power& cooling 610W PSU
asus P5KPL-CM motherboard
kingston DDR-667 memory 2x 1GB. ive already check the table this time the two match just fine. and as for the PSU problem there recommended no required. and 610W is ample to run most hardware of this level. escpecially when u consider at min. it req. 500watts or better and more importantly will not be crossfired.

grand total comes to $473.75

sounds like a good compramise, settle for a bit slower CPU, with room for some OC-age :) Any idea what stepping the CPU is?