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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danidentity - Wednesday, July 28, 2004 - link
...for sale either online or in stores, I meant.danidentity - Wednesday, July 28, 2004 - link
Wes, do we have ANY idea when we'll start seeing PCIe X800's?Pollock - Tuesday, July 27, 2004 - link
I would have expected to see the 3000+ in there with the recent price drops... And I'll second #6, even if you did mention CAS 2.5 ram on the summary.I also think that you shouldn't focus on clear cut categories, but perhaps design one for each of the sockets that appeals at the time. Basically what I'm saying there is that you've got to get socket 754 in there but you don't have to cut anything else out.
Pumpkinierre - Tuesday, July 27, 2004 - link
Agree with #15 Wesley, you've added passion to the buying guides.Wesley Fink - Tuesday, July 27, 2004 - link
#15 - The price in the Guide has always been $389, which is certainly close to $390. New Egg shows the eVGA 6800 GT expected tomorrow 7/28 at a price of $410. Pricewatch shows this link for $389 with an ETA of 7/30 - 3 days away - at http://www.buyxtremegear.com/vc129114.html. The PHY brand is also shown at $389 with an ETA of 8/10 at http://www.futurepowerpc.com/scripts/details.asp?P...kherman - Tuesday, July 27, 2004 - link
Awesome article! Love the concept even though I'll never do an OC rig. It's interesting to read about though.RobJ - Tuesday, July 27, 2004 - link
But the 6800GT is not listed in the real-time pricewatch list because eVGA's website says that the GT won't be available until September 2nd and that it will cost $390, not $380. I have been able to find it on some websites for markups as high as $460. I'll wait until the price comes down to $380. Other companies are even selling the GT for $500 and above. That's crazy.Wesley Fink - Tuesday, July 27, 2004 - link
#12 -The only reason I did not list this in the guide is because we will be making some HSF recommendations in the next OC Guide. The HSF I had in mind for $12 was a "SPEEZE 80mm LED CPU Cooler for Socket A, Model "5F353B1L3GL" -OEM" which has an 80mm fan. A quick check shows you can now buy this Speeze for $9.99 from a reputable on-line retailer. I have found the 80mm fan HSF move more air and do a better job of cooling than the more common 60mm fan models - even the expensive ones. The 80mm are also normally lower noise.
trexpesto - Tuesday, July 27, 2004 - link
Wonder what 12$ HSF is used for the DFI Infinity?"Overclockers will also be happy to find the 4 mounting holes around the CPU socket for heavy-duty cooling; although, we do find the CPU area has too many components around the socket that could interfere with some of the larger cooling solutions." - http://anandtech.com/guides/showdoc.aspx?i=2138&am...
Zebo - Tuesday, July 27, 2004 - link
#9 Thanks....While only a couple mobos seem to have found a work around I appologise for my ignorance Wes. Still have issue with the presshot not because of heat, the northwood/canterwood is so much more mature and even a bit faster clock for clock,. The price factor of course.