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Cheap CORE2DUO?
FrizzleFried:
Forgive me folks, I've been out of the "computer" look for over 2 years now. My last PC upgrade was to an AMD Opteron processor. My last Intel CPU was a P3-933. I think it may be time to pull and upgrade on my horizontal cabinet. I am building a driver MAME and instead of building a PC for it, it would be prudent to build a faster rig for the horizontal MAME and then move the current AMD64 3200 to the driver.
I want to go CORE2DUO of course...but I don't want to break the bank.
What is the current best bang for the buck core2duo, what's the best bang for the buck motherboard and whats the best bang for the buck memory to run it all?
Also, what is the CHEAPEST route?
Is it reasonable to think I can build a decent core2duo rig for $300 +/-?
jhabers:
check out here for prices
http://www.sharkyextreme.com/guides/WCPG/article.php/10705_3765296__2
Paul Olson:
You can get an e7200 and a cheap motherboard at Fry's for $119(combo special comes and goes, but it has been every other week for a while.. With a good heatsink, it is an easy overclock to 3.17GHz just by increasing the frontside bus. You can usually pick up 2GB of ram for about $20 after rebates. Depending what other parts you need, $300 should cover it. The ECS board doesn't have much overclocking ability, so if you wanted to push it more, you would need another board. That chip and a decent board at Newegg would be a little over $200.
FrizzleFried:
So the E7200 is the "sweet spot" right now or the "buget" chip? I dunno which Core2Duo's are best, etc...I really should do some reading on this crap. I just want to play Blitz and other CHD games without issue.
Paul Olson:
If you up the FSB so it clocks at 3.17, it is the same as the e8500, except for half the cache. At about $50 cheaper, I think it is a pretty good deal.