Overclocking Buyer's Guide - August 2004
by Wesley Fink on July 27, 2004 11:24 AM EST- Posted in
- Guides
Overclocking System Summaries
PERFORMANCE OC Recommended
Our Recommended System for Performance Overclocking should allow you to reach the highest performance levels possible with standard air cooling. The components represent those components that have provided the best overclocking experience in our testing at AnandTech. Those who have thought about building a Socket 939 for Performance overclocking will absolutely love this setup.| AMD Socket 939 Athlon 64 FX53 | ||
| Hardware | Component | Price |
| CPU & Cooling | AMD Athlon 64 FX53 Socket 939 Retail | $811 |
| Motherboard | MSI K8N Neo2 (nForce3 Ultra) Socket 939 | $165 |
| Memory | 1GB (2 X 512MB) OCZ PC3700 EB | $340 |
| Video Card | 256MB eVGA 6800 GT | $389 |
| Computer Case Power Supply |
Coolermaster CM Stacker plus 520W OCZ Power Stream PSU |
$325 |
| Hard Drive | 2x74GB Western Digital 74GB Raptor 10,000RPM SATA RAID (148MB Total) | $386 |
| Bottom Line | $2416* | |
Please keep in mind that the $2416 is an overclocking system core price, and does not include all the components that you will need for a full-blown system.
PERFORMANCE OC Alternative
The Performance Overclocking Alternative assembles the best overclocking components for a top-end Intel 925X socket 775 system.| Intel Socket 775 Pentium 4 540 | ||
| Hardware | Component | Price |
| CPU & Cooling | Intel Pentium 4 540 (3.2GHz) | $288 |
| Motherboard | Asus P5AD2 Premium | $279 |
| Memory | 1GB (2 X 512MB) Crucial PC2-4200U | $364 |
| Video Card | 256MB ATI X800 XT | $550 (EST) |
| Computer Case Power Supply |
Coolermaster CM Stacker plus 520W OCZ Power Stream PSU |
$325 |
| Hard Drive | 2x74GB Western Digital 74GB Raptor 10,000RPM SATA RAID (148MB Total) | $386 |
| Bottom Line | $2192* | |
While $2192 is not exactly cheap for a top Socket 775 system, we have saved quite a bit of money by choosing a great overclocking motherboard in the Asus P5AD2 Premium and pairing it with a 3.2E that is capable of high overclocks with this board. The system also includes an estimated price for the ATI X800 XT, which has been shown to handle the out-of-spec PCIe speeds that we are seeing on all of the 925X/915P motherboards, which have been found to support higher overclocking speeds.
VALUE OC Recommended
Our readers who are already overclockers will most likely have systems that resemble either of our Value Overclocking Systems. Both are proven overclocking performers based on Pentium 4 Northwood and Athlon XP processors that have a solid history of stand-out overclocking performance. You will get outstanding value for your dollar with either Value OC system, and your system will be capable of performing at the top levels of Northwood and Athlon XP performance.| Pentium 4 Socket 478 | ||
| Hardware | Component | Price |
| CPU & Cooling | Pentium 4 2.8C Northwood (Socket 478) | $175 |
| Motherboard | Asus P4C800-E Deluxe | $172 |
| Memory | 1GB (2 X 512MB) OCZ PC3700 EB | $340 |
| Video Card | 256MB eVGA 6800 GT | $389 |
| Computer Case Power Supply |
Coolermaster CM Stacker plus 480W Antec True Power PSU |
$262 |
| Hard Drive | Seagate 200GB 7200RPM IDE (8Mb Cache) |
$119 |
| Bottom Line | $1457* ($1157) | |
The Socket 478 Value OC system weighs in at $1457 for the core components. The Coolermaster CM Stacker may be overkill for some Value overclockers, and you can easily cut $100 of the total ticket with a cheaper Aluminum Case, like a Kingwin. Another place to cut costs would be substituting an ATI 9800 Pro video card at $200 less than the nVidia 6800 GT. These 2 changes alone drop the cost to $1157.
VALUE OC Alternative
Some readers will still consider the Athlon XP Value OC system the king of overclocking, but since its performance would be last in this group, you really should take a look at some of the other overclocking alternatives presented here. There is no doubt, however, that an Athlon XP mobile on a great nForce2 ultra 400 motherboard provides incredible bang-for-the-buck.| AMD Athlon XP and nVidia nForce2 400 Ultra | ||
| Hardware | Component | Price |
| CPU & Cooling | AMD Athlon XP Barton 2500T Mobile $88 Heatsink/Fan $12 |
$100 |
| Motherboard | DFI NFII Ultra Infinity | $91 |
| Memory | 1GB (2 X 512MB) Corsair 3200XL | $300 |
| Video Card | 256MB eVGA 6800 GT | $389 |
| Computer Case Power Supply |
Coolermaster CM Stacker plus 480W Antec True Power PSU |
$262 |
| Hard Drive | Seagate 200GB 7200RPM IDE (8Mb Cache) |
$119 |
| Bottom Line | $1261* ($836) | |
If the final tab of $1261 for the core components of an XP mobile system seems high, three areas stand out for paring. First, go with a cheaper case for $100 less. Second, buy an ATI 9800 PRO for $200 less and overclock the heck out of it. Third, go for one of the CAS 2.5 value DDR400 memories from Corsair, Geil, OCZ, Kingston, and others; this could save you about $125. These three substitutions reduce the price by $425 and get the core system price down to $836.
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rwinder - Tuesday, August 3, 2004 - link
I think it is a wonderful guide. Kudos for having the nads to do it, knowing that there would be "experts" that would give you crap about your recommendations. Don't let them deter you.One suggestion: Could you benchmark the performance of your recommendations (and alternatives) so us readers can make the price/value judgements?
mindless1 - Monday, August 2, 2004 - link
Seems kinda like we had to read whole article to get to the end, no?The point is, primary suggested parts were NOT appropriate for a "value o'c" system. Value does not mean merely not to choose most expensive parts in one or two areas. FOr the described value system there would be zero benefit to spending the extra $150 (over what needed spec parts would cost) on fancier case/PSU, and only a half-dozen %, at best difference in memory costing twice as much... that's not value at all, it's much higher than avg cost for new system in the market today.
lazerasa - Monday, August 2, 2004 - link
You people whining about the case, memory, and video card on the value selections... read the systems summary page, there are other, cheaper recommendations there. Read the whole artice before you start your whining.mindless1 - Monday, August 2, 2004 - link
CM Stacker is a nice case but c'mon, who's going to build a value o'c system and spend $262 on case + PSU?Likewise, someone would have to be kinda stupid to spend $300-odd $ on high end memory for the value o'c system unless /required/ by the particular 'board just to get 1GB or more stable. Other suggested systems would be a more appropriate platform for that memory.
BTW, the OCZ 520W PSU is not all that great. It IS fancy, but the base design (including after the cosmetic tweaks) cannot support 520W. Sadly it may be no better than a Sparkle 350W yet priced 3X higher. Don't be fooled by a $3 big anodized heatsink or "good" reviews where they don't subject it to a heavy load... after all that was the whole point of 520W, no? TO someone who knows PSU, it only takes a very short glance at that PSU to know why it can't support 520W.
cnq - Saturday, July 31, 2004 - link
Wesley,I agree with many of the comments: we may not agree with all your picks, but we really like the enthusiasm and obvious energy that you've poured into your picks and your writeup.
Now for a little more feedback :)
There wasn't any "value" video card pick.
Was that intentional, or an oversight? I can understand that the next gen vid cards are *so* far ahead in performance that you would urge your readers to spring for one, but still it seems that you should toss in a value pick.
So, thinking of the Athlon2500 buyer who (presumably) can't spring $400 for a next-gen vid card, what would you recommend in the $175-$199 price range? My picks would be a 9800pro followed by a 5900XT. (True, the 5900XT was born to overclock [390-->500 seems the norm ], but that doesn't mean it catches up to an overclocked 98pro in absolute performance.)
rjm55 - Saturday, July 31, 2004 - link
29 and WesleyThanks for clearing up the Athlon XP mobile info. I was a bit confused with the difference in the specs with desktop Barton, but now its clear. If you gotta have a XP, it looks like the 2600+ Mobile is now the one to get.
Wesley Fink - Friday, July 30, 2004 - link
#29 - You are correct and I actually do know better. The multipliers and FSB have been corrected in the Athlon XP section on page 6.#31, #32, and #33 - I fully understand that many look at overclocking to bring more value to their computer buying. There are also others who use overclocking to bring new performance highs to their computer platform. As I stated in the review, these 2 goals are often at odds. That is exactly the reason I have done BOTH Performance OC and Value OC recommendations and alternates.
If Value is your main OC concern, then throw all the rocks you like at my Value picks, but please don't assume the Performance OC buyers don't exist or don't matter. I can assure you from emails and discussions on Forums that Performance OC is also an important concern for many buyers who OC their systems.
WheelsCSM - Thursday, July 29, 2004 - link
I agree with Z80. While I understand that different people view value differently, I can't see how a $390 video card or $175 case can be considered value in anyone's book. Other than that, I think this was an excellent article, and I look forward to future overclocking system recommendations.Z80 - Thursday, July 29, 2004 - link
I'd say that most of your readers, like me, see overclocking as just another means to squeeze more "bang-for-the-buck" out of our PC dollars. We like to run well in the benchmarks but at the same time spend half of what a typical Dell customer might spend for the same performance. In my opinion, you missed your "Value OC" goal by a mile. If it wan't for your last statement "go with a cheaper case for $100 less. Second, buy an ATI 9800 PRO for $200 less and overclock the heck out of it. Third, go for one of the CAS 2.5 value DDR400 memories from Corsair, Geil, OCZ, Kingston, and others; this could save you about $125. These three substitutions reduce the price by $425 and get the core system price down to $836" Maybe you should look at factoring in a bang-for-your-buck cost comparison factor like you did with a recent video card review.Z80 - Thursday, July 29, 2004 - link
I'd say that most of your readers, like me, see overclocking as just another means to squeeze more "bang-for-the-buck" out of our PC dollars. We like to run well in the benchmarks but at the same time spend half of what a typical Dell customer might spend for the same performance. In my opinion, you missed your "Value OC" goal by a mile. If it wan't for your last statement "go with a cheaper case for $100 less. Second, buy an ATI 9800 PRO for $200 less and overclock the heck out of it. Third, go for one of the CAS 2.5 value DDR400 memories from Corsair, Geil, OCZ, Kingston, and others; this could save you about $125. These three substitutions reduce the price by $425 and get the core system price down to $836" Maybe you should look at factoring in a bang-for-your-buck cost comparison factor like you did with a recent video card review.