Help me move to the Dark Side.

Well, I've decided I want to make the switch from AMD to Intel. The problem is I know next to NOTHING about chips, chipsets, boards, features, etc. So I'ld like to know what would be the best chipset and board for me.

I want this chipset/board to:

1. Be 100% stable even when OC'd. I dont care if its not the highest OCer, as long as it is STABLE.

2. Work with my Kingston HyperX 3000 BH-5 ram. I want to know if there are any stability issues with certain boards and this ram. I know on my Abit AMD board, this ram wont even run in dual channel without giving errors.

3. Have onboard LAN.

4. Hopefully have usable onboard SATA raid. This one really isn't a must, but it would be nice. Again, on my Abit AMD board, the SATA raid is complete crap that requires bios reflashes and driver hacks just to get running. Even then it's not stable.

5. Fit a SP-94. I dont want to go back to watercooling, I dont like it.

6. I DONT care about onboard audio. I have an Audigy 2 that I use with my speakers.

That's all I can think of right now. I'ld really like a good board that meets the top 5 criteria. I plan on using this with maybe a P4 2.6C or 2.8C? I really dont know because again I know nothing about Intel. Hopefully get it running at 3.2+. If anyone wants to help out with this too, great. I'm hoping I can get the board + chip for under $300.

Thanks a lot!

Judging from what you require for the mainboard I would recommend an IC7-G

It is stable with OC, and can get very good results
Has onboard 100/1000 LAN
Can use up to and greater than ddr400
Will fit the SP-94
Has good onboard SATA RAID (4 SATA ports)


need I say more ?

befor i read the last reply i was thinking of the ic7-g too.

it fits all your needs...and i am getting the ic7-g from abit for just about your same needs.

its a good board but from what i heard. the bios temp reading can be a few °C off....usely higher, but besides that its a relly good mobo

heres some linkage

i also would recomend a P4P800 Deluxe .... is a great board... it meets all of your needs... has SATA through the ICH5R... reaaaally good with BH-5 chips

True, both the Abit and the Asus are excellent boards (I personally havn't used a P4P800 myself, but everyone raves about them), the Abit uses SATA through an ICH5R channel as well I believe. In the end the choice is yours, just make sure its a board with a 875 chipset and you can't really go wrong for p4 boards

Both the P4P and the Abit IC7 series have their SATA RAID through the IC5R southbridge. I would personally recommend either the AI7 for a budget board or the P4C800E as a top solution. I have an IC7 Max3 and am pretty satisified with it but it still has its fair share of problems and its definitely not worth the money.

Thanks for the replies. I'll be checking out both the Asus and Abit boards then. What kind of chip would run good with these? I'm thinking maybe a 2.4C or 2.6C? Not really sure about steppings on Intels or anything.

If you're going for overclocking I would say the 2.4c as most people tend to hit ~3-3.2 Ghz with it, i havn't really looked into the 2.6c but i think their results tend to be the same

Welcome to the wonderland that is Intel! You have redeemed your soul and cleansed yourself of all the evil AMD has laid upon you. You are forgiven for your transgressions my son. Be at peace.

Anyhow, the IC7-G and the P4C800-Deluxe are probably your best bets as far as Stability-while-OC'd. They've both got on-board LAN, SATA-Raid and will work fine with your memory. Don't spring for the IC7-MAX3 because your SP-94 won't fit on it. There's this "OTES" duct that keeps the mosfets cooled off, on the board and it'll get in the way of your heatsink. I had a rough time just trying to get my Vantec AeroFlow on there. Plus, it's REALLY not worth $40 extra.

Another few boards you might want to look out for are the springdale boards. Those are almost half the price of the canterwood boards. I'm talking about the Abit IS7 and the Asus P4P800. They supposedly aren't as powerful as their big brothers, but for $100 less, you make the call.

As far as the CPU goes, go with a 2.4C with the M0 stepping. Most people have been getting M0's now, as intel has been pushing more and more of them out and the previous D1 steppings have been all purchased.

So what really is the difference then between the Canterwood and Springdale boards? I see on newegg the P4C800 delux is $172, and the P4P800 $105, both look they have the same features. The P4C800 delux has 2 more SATA controllers. I really dont mind spending more to get a superior product, but if there isnt much difference between them...

Amino said:

Welcome to the wonderland that is Intel! You have redeemed your soul and cleansed yourself of all the evil AMD has laid upon you. You are forgiven for your transgressions my son. Be at peace.

Anyhow, the IC7-G and the P4C800-Deluxe are probably your best bets as far as Stability-while-OC'd. They've both got on-board LAN, SATA-Raid and will work fine with your memory. Don't spring for the IC7-MAX3 because your SP-94 won't fit on it. There's this "OTES" duct that keeps the mosfets cooled off, on the board and it'll get in the way of your heatsink. I had a rough time just trying to get my Vantec AeroFlow on there. Plus, it's REALLY not worth $40 extra.

Another few boards you might want to look out for are the springdale boards. Those are almost half the price of the canterwood boards. I'm talking about the Abit IS7 and the Asus P4P800. They supposedly aren't as powerful as their big brothers, but for $100 less, you make the call.

As far as the CPU goes, go with a 2.4C with the M0 stepping. Most people have been getting M0's now, as intel has been pushing more and more of them out and the previous D1 steppings have been all purchased.

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The SP-94 fits fine on the IC7 Max3...its my current setup at the moment. However I totally agree that its not worth the extra $40 premium.

Rocko[DPC] said:

So what really is the difference then between the Canterwood and Springdale boards? I see on newegg the P4C800 delux is $172, and the P4P800 $105, both look they have the same features. The P4C800 delux has 2 more SATA controllers. I really dont mind spending more to get a superior product, but if there isnt much difference between them...

Click to expand...

The P4C800, being of the 875p chipset, would naturally be faster than the P4P, however not by a big amount. It also has the advanced ethernet controller that has its own channel on the southbridge, but this is probably not worth the price premium between the two.

rogue3092 said:

The P4C800, being of the 875p chipset, would naturally be faster than the P4P, however not by a big amount. It also has the advanced ethernet controller that has its own channel on the southbridge, but this is probably not worth the price premium between the two.

Click to expand...

Thanks for the info i was thinking about going with the P4C