Thoughts on this build

mcfrosty · Dec 19, 2006

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16814150205
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?item=N82E16813131073
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16819115003
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16820134009
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16817121001
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16811103010

First off, Hello to everyone. I am beginner when it come's to this but that's why I am here

. This is the system I would like to build but it is around a $1500 build so not sure if I am going be able to get it all. The case has actually already been ordered as an X-Mas gift so no turning back on it. I do play video games, program, 3D Modeling and Animation among other things. So this should be plenty of power. At least I hope so. I am just wanting an opinion about it and if maybe I should upgrade something or be able to downgrade something and still get the same performance. I am also planning to over clock it. This will be my first ever over clock so I am going to do a lot of reading on this site. Let me know if you have a recommendation or anything.

McFrosty

HeavyD · Dec 20, 2006

That's a pretty nice build you've got there :drool:

I'm no expert on Intel builds or DDR2 memory (yet), but I'm pretty sure you're going to want some good Dual Channel memory. In your case, instead of one 1GB stick you would want a dual kit that has two 512MB sticks. You should be able find some dual channel kits from Kingston, I prefer Corsair myself

Both sets of memory in my sig are Dual Channel - 2 X 1GB and 2 X 512 MB.

HeavyD · Dec 20, 2006

Here's a page with 11 good choices for DDR2 800 Dual Channel kits, 2 of them are Kingston.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produ...2416064+1052508081&Submit=ENE&SubCategory=147

mcfrosty · Dec 20, 2006

Just curious on why you suggested 2x512mb sticks instead of just 1 stick? Not sure if there is an advantage or not.

HeavyD · Dec 20, 2006

Every modern motherboard has the Dual Channel feature built into it. It automatically kicks in when you have a "matched" pair of sticks in the correct slots and gives you a major performance boost.

You don't want to buy 2x512 sticks separately either, you want a matched pair that comes in a Dual Channel kit. I'll see if I can find you a good link that explains dual channel.

mcfrosty · Dec 20, 2006

I have heard of that before but I thought it was just buy 1gig stick now and if I want more memory just buy any other 1gig stick.

Hope you find that link

orion25 · Dec 20, 2006

What size monitor are you going to be using? If it is not huge you may want to go with an 8800gts for the video card and use the saved cash for a 2x1gb set of DDR2. Also, if you are not going to be running SLI take a look at the Asus P5B Deluxe mobo. It will save you about $100 and OC's very well.

mcfrosty · Dec 20, 2006

I have 2x21in CRT monitor's that are kind of old but hoping to eventually upgrade to some 19in+ LCD Monitor's.
EDIT: The 2 monitor's are old but have both a DVI and VGA connector.

On the SLi part I was thinking I might get around to doing in the future but not sure if it is really necessary. I will look up that board and check because even if I don't go with the SLi or 2gb of ram it will still save money.

Still working on convincing my girlfriend to let me spend this much LOL. I got her up to about $1000 as of today. So working on it.

HeavyD · Dec 20, 2006

Boy, I didn't think finding a good (simple) explanation of dual channel would be so hard. Here's a couple that do a pretty good job, the 2nd one mentions a 10% increase in performance, I believe that's pretty under-rated:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dual_channel
http://www.pctechguide.com/14Memory_Dual-channel_DDR.htm

You can also look here on this forum, a little bit down the first page (info is a little old):

http://www.ocforums.com/showthread.php?t=257741

fabulouscoops · Dec 20, 2006

You have come to the right place. Lots of knowledge here for the asking and the folks are downright friendly. Your proposed rig is close to what I am planning to build in the next few months.

I will echo the replies for getting two matched memory modules. Dual channel operation will double your bandwidth whether you get 1 GB or 2.

The two main choices for motherboards are the Nvidia chipset which you will need if you go to SLI in the future (not my cup of tea) and Intel chipset, which has the option of running Matrix RAID to give your hard disk array a speed boost. You did not specify hard drives, but my preference would be to go with an Intel board and two hard drives. You can always upgrade your video card to beat an SLI pair unless you have two top of the line cards, and top of the line changes every 4-6 months.

mcfrosty · Dec 20, 2006

The whole reason I didn't mention harddrive's is because I do have a budget. I already have an IDE 300GB Seagate. I am hoping to switch to 2x160GB SATA but since I already have the 300GB I figured those could wait a while.

I really doubt I will be running SLI anytime soon but I want the board to support it for when I am able to run it. (By then though I might be ready to upgrade to a new motherboard

)

EDIT:
Just wanted to say thanks for the links on Dual Channel.

orion25 · Dec 20, 2006

mcfrosty said:
I have 2x21in CRT monitor's that are kind of old but hoping to eventually upgrade to some 19in+ LCD Monitor's.
EDIT: The 2 monitor's are old but have both a DVI and VGA connector.

On the SLi part I was thinking I might get around to doing in the future but not sure if it is really necessary. I will look up that board and check because even if I don't go with the SLi or 2gb of ram it will still save money. Still working on convincing my girlfriend to let me spend this much LOL. I got her up to about $1000 as of today. So working on it.

The 8800gtx and the 8800gts should be able to handle both of those monitors with no problem. The reason I suggested 2x1gb of ram is you do 3D modeling and animation. Besides, the more ram the better for most tasks beyond web browsing and word processing.

The P5B Deluxe will OC very well and you could drop to an E6400 to save about $90 more. The 6400 should be able to hit 3.4 to 3.6 with decent ram. On the other hand the 6600 should get to the same speeds with almost any ram so the cost savings on the processor may be a wash out.

I am sure many others know more about these things than I do. My 6400/P5B Deluxe computer is sitting in my closet waiting to be built after the Holidays when I have time. This is my first walk on the intel side since my P2 500............

orion25 · Dec 20, 2006

mcfrosty said:
The whole reason I didn't mention harddrive's is because I do have a budget. I already have an IDE 300GB Seagate. I am hoping to switch to 2x160GB SATA but since I already have the 300GB I figured those could wait a while.

I really doubt I will be running SLI anytime soon but I want the board to support it for when I am able to run it. (By then though I might be ready to upgrade to a new motherboard )

If you have a CompUsa near by keep an eye out for Seagate 160 deals. I got 1 for 29.99ar and another for 39.99ar. The rebates were the online variety and I have had good luck with them in the past. Last time I was in CUSA (yesterday) they still had a lot of them so I am thinking there will be another deal soon.

mcfrosty · Dec 20, 2006

I might check CUSA while I am home for x-Mas break because don't think there is one near my college in Kansas.

Question: If I just go with the 2x512mb ram and then later add 2x1gb ram, will I see any type of decrease from the dual channel?

mcfrosty · Dec 20, 2006

Searching on newegg.com and the ASUS P5B Deluxe reviews don't seem all that good. Any suggestion on why this is a good replacement board. (Besides the cheaper cost

)

orion25 · Dec 20, 2006

mcfrosty said:
I might check CUSA while I am home for x-Mas break because don't think there is one near my college in Kansas.

Question: If I just go with the 2x512mb ram and then later add 2x1gb ram, will I see any type of decrease from the dual channel?

Both the 2X512 and 2X1gb will run in dual channel. If you are asking could you add the 2x1gb to the 2x512 I do not think that would be ideal. You could add another 2x512 as long as it was the same as the first 2x512 with no problem though.

orion25 · Dec 20, 2006

mcfrosty said:
Searching on newegg.com and the ASUS P5B Deluxe reviews don't seem all that good. Any suggestion on why this is a good replacement board. (Besides the cheaper cost )

Try searching these forums for info on the P5B Deluxe. Many here have it and love it. Here is one thread I found quickly .

It is a good board and can OC very well. Trust me, I researched it a lot before I bit the bullet and bought it!

mcfrosty · Dec 20, 2006

I will do some searching on the forums about that board. Seems like it highly recommended if I am not going to be running SLI. Getting some sleep now. Looking forward to reading more and learning more.

Thoughts on this build

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