Is this good for a gaming pc?

[Arcmanov]

'Budget' you say.  That is PRECISELY why you shoulda invest in a cheaper Intel CPU and P35 chipset mobo.
Better performance, and more upgradeability, but allyuh harden. 

The E4xxx and E2xxx series so cheap and powerful now, that 'budget' is no longer an excuse.

[Spazosaurus]

Seriously. Why them does even bother to ask for advice. Anyway, eh my money spend.

[Saxito Pau]

I sense the baka is strong in this one...sigh. 

(Why yuh even bother to ask us for advice, man?)

[W1nTry]

Men beating the man hard, the 5000+ selling for 100USD, what Intel Core 2 based CPU selling CLOSE to that? that ram can be found for close to or less than 100USD and the mobo is also relatively cheap. The Video is the most expensive and it'll be the same regardless of platform. So I ask, how was de man choices that bad? and also other than Crysis, what game is going to tax this rig to the point that it drops below 60FPS @ 1280x1024? Please feel free to provide links and recommendations to support it in the least it will aid the NEXT person building a mid-ranged rig on a budget.

[Arcmanov]

The E2180 is $102 US (a difference of a hot 2 US), and I'm pretty sure it will do MUCH better performance-wise
than the X2 5000.  An Abit IP35-E can be has for about $120 US.  With those prices, the 'budget' argument is now rendered obsolete.
The instant upside to the Intel option is that you can upgrade to a Penryn 'jus so' when you can afford it without having to change anything else.

Check Amazon if you doubt me.  You'll thank me later.

[W1nTry]

Now are you going to advise what cooling and steps are required to get that chip up to scratch? and also extend the warranty service to include overclocking your rig? I believe it's time for an update to the OCing guides on GATT, Intellites do us the favour. Also that botherboard does not support multi GPU which in the least the one he bought does. I too think there are nominal gains with multicard setups with SLI of late, but Xfire seems to scale alot better. I would at least suggest you find a Xfire capable motherboard as the recommendation. Please again provide links.

DISCLAIMER: Overclocking whilst the darling trait of all hardcore and general PC enthusiasts does void your warranty with the manufacturer in MOST cases (save and except Black editions and Extremely expensive editions which have unlocked multipliers). Also Overclocking can cause serious damage to ALL components in the rig and render them inoperable. For those less experienced, its is HIGHLY advisable that you do thorough research and take small steps in the process.

[Spazosaurus]

Actually the 2180 is wasting $10us extra. There's the E2160 that probably overclocks better. Pair that $90 CPU and this $100 board, you've got a combo that kills any of AMD's dual core offerings.

Also, he DID say he was planning on overclocking the system. There are also good coolers for 775 that can be had for a very good price, aka, the Arctic Freezer 7 for $20. If he really on a budget, he wouldnt NEED to have dual card support. Also, if the argument is that "Well at least he can if he wants to", well, we already know the winnder between SLI'd previous gen and single next/current gen.

As far as xfire support is concerned, he didnt get an AMD card, so that thought is out the window.

If he did though, then that board would not be suitable if considering an xfire setup.

[W1nTry]

I did some more digging and i've found via intels site a comparison of the E2160 vs. E4300 and other Core 2 and Core 2 Quad offering and though all mostly based on 65nm tech, the major difference is FSB and Cache. Can anyone first hand attest to the performance deficit of having a much reduced cache? the E2xxx series has 1MB, the E4xxx series has 2MB and others have 4MB and up. Also on what basis does the E2160 have better overclocking headroom vs. the E2160? generally with BINing CPUs they clock them up or down depending on the quality of the chip. Chips that are not as frequency friendly get lower clocks than ones with higher ratings. What evidence is there to support your claims Captain Awesome.

Would someone verify if THIS GIGABYTE mobo is feasible in terms of upgradeability and Overclocking capabilities? its the lowest price mobo on newegg with 1066/1333 FSB support and SLI. Or should a person tighten their belt and get THIS. This is the startings of a RIG buidling thread (hence why i'm asking all these questions)

[Spazosaurus]

Overclockability has to do with the stepping. Some steppings are better than others. I dont know which stepping is better for each cpu and I won't pretend to. You have to pretty much determine that by reading user reviews and review sites.

That said, the E2180 link Arc provided there has one lone review from a user claiming that the stepping of that particular chip is non oc friendly. A quick check on Newegg indicated that the e2180 is to the e4400 that the e2160 is to the e4300. The latter is clocked lower but has the same, if not greater oc ability than its faster clocked stock bretherin. Again, in all cases, you have to be dealing with the right stepping(s) for overclocking as you know two identical model cpu's can carry different steppings.

As for the cache, the impact of less of it is only apparent when performing media encoding wit very large files, as the extra cpu cache helps. AFAI remember, gaming remains relatively untouched. I read this some time ago when I was doing my research into building an intel rig. I cant remember the details nor the site of the said review article though.

As for the board, I prefer going for an intel chipset for an intel cpu because they provide that extra oomph that you dont get with nforce unless you go very high end. The only reason I would go with one is for multi gpu support. A 650 nforce will support anything out right now with plent overclocking options, as long as its 65nm.   6 Series would not support 45nm though so with 45nm coming, you'd have to upgrade to a...yip, you guessed, Intel p35 chipset or higher, or wait for nvidia to release the 8th generation of nforce. Overclocking capabilities are there.

[Notnice]

GUYS i got my mobo,ram,and cpu,But guest what guys there is vat on cpus.I was charge $133ttd of vat on my cpu.Just letting u guys know theres vat on cpus.