[gotmaxpower]

So basically ive had this same computer for about 1 and a half years now, bear in mind that it wasnt that good when i first got it anyway, and im just wondering whether i should buy lots of new components and make this one better, or start from scratch and build one myself, or maybe just buy a premade one...

My current specs;

Mobo - Intel(R) 82801FB Ultra ATA Storage 2651
CPU - Intel(R) Pentium(R) 4 CPU 3.06GHz (2 CPU's)
Graphics Card - NVIDIA GeForce 6200 LE 128MB
RAM - 1024MB (1Gig)
HDD - 160GB Internal Hard Drive (Not sure of what make)

The components ive picked to upgrade to;

CPU - Intel Core 2 Duo E6750 Conroe 2.66GHz 4M shared L2 Cache LGA 775 Processor
Graphics Card - Leadtek PX8800GT 512MB Standard GeForce 8800GT 512MB 256-bit GDDR3 PCI Express 2.0 HDCP Ready SLI Supported Video Card
RAM - Something within the region of 2-4GB

By The Way - Im running Windows XP, ive been told that Vista swallows RAM like hell, so i just thought i should tell you guys that.

So what do you guys think, Upgrades or new pre-built computer or build one from scratch?

Thanks in advance..

[CannonBallGuy]

Kind of depends what you want to use it for... I can't help much but I expect anyone who can would be able to give better advice if they knew what you were gonna be doing with it. :)

[Insomnia]

Yeah, its probably best to tell us what you'll be using your computer for, and then we can work it out from there.

[gotmaxpower]

Gaming mostly, Photoshop, Sony Vegas Video Studio, something that can load pretty fast opening stuff..

[alex]

Considering your quoted usage, I'd recommend a new build. Even in XP photoshop is ram and bandwidth hungry and any prospective upgrades for your current setup wouldn't do it justice when you take into account the cost. Old tech, at new prices, is still around the price of new tech due to the market being so small for it. So sellers can get away charging a premium.

If you swapped the cpu for a E6850 (unless you plan on oc'ing) and got 2gb of 1066mhz ram. Matched all that to a 20-22" monitor, then you'd have a killer build for any application.