• Welcome to Overclockers Forums! Join us to reply in threads, receive reduced ads, and to customize your site experience!

p4p800 what?

Overclockers is supported by our readers. When you click a link to make a purchase, we may earn a commission. Learn More.

chicagochick

New Member
Joined
Oct 27, 2003
Location
Chicago
hello...
i'm new to all this so i don't really understand all the jargon :D anyway, i'm planning on buying a P4 3.2 ghz CPU, (don't want to buy a pre-made Vaio) and someone suggested for me to get a P4P800...so i looked online at pricewatch.com and all of a sudden there's different types of that model, like a plain p4p800, an S version, and a VM version. umm...let's see...i'm planning on installing a geforceFX 5600 video card, and an s.b. audigy 2 platinum sound card (i'm going to use pro tools so i'd like a nice sound card). and god only knows i'm absolutely going to cry when it comes to selecting RAM and a hard drive. someone suggested PC3200 DDR 512 MB and i'm guessing that's generic and i'll need to select a brand, as for the HD...something like 160 GB EIDE (dunno if I said that right) and I need to select a brand for that as well. IN SHORT, i'm only 100% sure about the CPU, sound card, and video card. can someone please help me out???
hehe...wasn't sure the person who suggested all the stuff for me knew best since he's just a beginner himself. sorry for the long post.:)
 
If you want onboard Firewire or RAID functionality, then opt for the P4P800 Deluxe. Otherwise the Standard P4P800 will do nicely. Ignore the VM and S models. Just stick with the standard or Deluxe versions.

You might want to check out the Radeon 9600 pro. It is at a similiar pricepoint as the GeForce FX 5600, but has proven to have better performance.

Are you going to overclock at all?

If so, don't skimp on the RAM. Get some PC3500 or up. Get a brand like Mushkin, Corsair, OCZ, or Kingston.

If not, still don't skimp. You won't need the frequency headroom that PC3500+ will offer, so just get some PC3200 of one of the brands I listed above.

I would also highly recommend you get your parts from Newegg.com. They are the best hands down. Also, the layout of the site will make it easy for you. Good luck.
 
Back