Cain needs a new PC January 2008 Edition

[ryanbatc]

DDR3 vs DDR2, for the price (currently), is not worth it, IMHO

http://www.anandtech.com/memory/showdoc.aspx?i=2989&p=7

Sure they say 2-5% gain in Crysis....but you can get 2GB for like 30 bucks, or 4 gigs for 120 dollars (4x1 yummy)

2GB of DDR3 is around 300 bucks!!!!

[juneau]

The reason i said for 750 is for future. what if he decides to get a new video card and some more stuff in the same pc?? Why waste money again down the road. if he does not have the money now I agree but if he does not go for SLI use that to buy the 750.

But the 520 can run two GTX's in SLI. If a single card ever comes out using that much power i'll move to consoles.

[WalkinTarget]

Hahahaa, with ads like this, Nvidia appeals to all of the sexist pig gamers that are looking at buying a new board:

http://www2.techreport.com/ads/xfx_780imobo_728x90.gif

Anyhoo, back on topic ... did we scare off Cain with all of our technogeek mumbo-jumbo talk ?? I get the feeling he is a bit ... overwhelmed ...

Very interesting rumors regarding postponement of the upcoming Core2Quad chips that we were discussing:

http://www.techreport.com/discussions.x/13826

Too many rumors from too many sources that tell me something is afoot. I had a distinct feeling that Intel would drop the ball on this last rollout, as the timing of it was just too early compared to their previous releases. I wish AMD had something to fire back with, as any gap left in the Intel armor can easily be exploited by AMD, but alas, it was not to be.

[WalkinTarget]

Paging Darth Nevus ... paging Mr. Darth Nevus ...

Please report on this thread's contents and inform Cain of any missed or improper information regarding the aforementioned parts list assembled by yours truly.

Your absence over this week has been duly noted, so you have much homework to do to bring the universe back into its proper balance.

[darth_nevus]

Darth's Food for thought:

CPU's: Good Intel 45nm CPU's are going to be delayed, Intel is postponing the good revision until Feb/March due to a respin of the silicon, in light of what i'll call the "Phenom Blunder"(FYI -- to all of those of you worried about the TLB errata, while its a blunder, chances are after alot of research, you will almost NEVER run across the issue, and the patch probably won't be necessary desktop side. serverside is another story. i'll give you the explanation later if you want it) and not make the bad PR event AMD did. That and AMD really hasn't brought anything to the table for Intel to rush the new bad boys on the block out. the Q*9**0 chips will be the way to go in terms of coolness, power requirements, processing power, etc. though. Problem with intel as of late is their QC has taken a flush down the crapper. Cooler chips require decent surfaces for heat transfer, and Intel's chips have been requiring ALOT of "lapping"(smoothing out of the top of the chip, which voids the warrenty, usually involved with sanding the top smooth) so if you get a good smooth one, its great if not, its not going to be able to transfer heat as well, and won't run as cool as you'd like. Downside is the 45nm chips are going to be costly, being setup for first adopters. Intel doesn't enforce the MSRP pricing, so early prices and going to be all over the place, as is availability. Shop around! The new chips will also have FSB's of 1333 & 1600, but don't expect massive amount of speed increased by going with a 1600fsb chip over a 1333fsb chip. ddr3 ram doesn't really start to shine until you pair it with a 1600fsb chip.

With the X48 mobos, YOU WILL NOT NEED AN NVIDIA CHIPSET FOR SLI. but then again, SLI is overkill at the moment unless you plan on playing above the 1900x1600 resolutions. acceptable framerates(everyone has their opinion here) of 30+ can be attained with the current offerings for the next few years.

AMD just hasn't brought good Karma to the table lately. Their 45nm chips are due out in 2009 sometime, and bring native ddr3 support only at that time. AMD's onboard memory controller makes the ddr2 & ddr3 switching nearly impossible. don't expect to see too many "combo" boards out there. while the chip's memory controller CAN support ddr3, it isn't being used due to a variety of other issues. I Like AMD, always have, and right now their chips are priced to compete very well. the performance for gaming just isn't up to snuff(except in UT3 where you'd swear Epic made UT3 JUST for AMD's Phenom chips. and the native full die quad core chips do REALLY well here vs'd Intel's offerings). boards for AMD are also generally cheaper which is a plus.

All for all, i'd say wait until the end of the month to see if the release date for the intel chips are out, and decide what chip then. rumors of price cuts on current chips are expected as well.

Mobos: i am still REALLY on the wall here. DDR3 is still VERY expensive compared to ddr2. Thanks to AMD's AM2+ mobos & chipsets, DDR2 is going to be around for at least another 2 years, and still inexpensive. the 7x0 nvidia boards are being coming soon and while better than the 6x0 mobos, it just seems more like less. to Fully utilize the the 1333 & 1600 FSB's on the new and upcoming Q9xx0 chips, you'll need ddr3 ram running at high speeds. there are already ddr3 1333 & 1600 modules out three, and as i said before, GOD AWEFUL expensive. the X38 the X48 chipset from intil WILL support MULTI GPU combos(4), with FULL 16x pcie2.0 on the lanes. BUT IT WILL REQUIRE DDR3. some of the x38 & x35 chipsets will take both. but the X38 chipset is overall a better choice than the p35's. While i see alot about the GB-P35C-DS3R mobos, i will err on the side of caution, and say stay away. the X48 chipset is really going to be for the multi GPU gamers, runnig expensive rigs until everything else catches up. $300 is a bit much for my tastes. but for a decent x38 mobo, yoyr going to pay it. and you'll need it for the 1600fsb chips. the southbridge tied to most of the X38 boards though doesn't like WD's raptor drives so be forewarned.

In regards to amd's 7x0 new chipset, they are STILL using the old 590 southbridge. BIG mistake IMO. intel isn't doing any better using the ICH9R with a majority of the boards, but what can you expect?

Asus hasn't fixed their QC issues IMO, and i hate their tech support in the US. but thats just my opinion. they do have some highly regard boards though!

Gigabyte makes some great boards, but some of them are plauged with issues. it seems to be almost at random, the p35 boards were good. but the p35c boards were junk. your milage may vary.

Abit i have had no experience with, but out of the lot seem to bring the right stability/preformance of the group. someone else will need to comment on this.

that muck e muck being said. the X38 offerings are very nice. and right now, those would be the ones i'd suggest. if you have the cash. otherwise the p35 motherboards are good if you need it now.

with all the new thing comings out in the next month or so, i am more inclined to recommend waiting the 3 weeks or so to get the full picture.


Video Cards: This is exciting. rumor of coming out is the 8800gs with 96 stream processors, slower ram, and core clocks, but based on the same G92 core as the 8800gt. ram will come in at 384 & 768 mb with a 192bit memory bus(wth right?) for $149-$209. Nvidia wants to put the nail on AMD's coffin here. priced very nicely, with good performance based on the very nice G92 core, will surely make things look dim for AMD. i have't heard much out of AMD as of late as i'd like to. either they are worried and trying not to show it, or they have an ace up their sleeve.

Also with a Feb 14 release date is the fabled 9600GT from nvidia. no release date for the 9800 cards though, and no real reason for them to push them. The 9600 GT is alleged to feature 64 stream processors, a 500MHz core clock speed, and 512MB of 1000MHz memory hooked up to a 256-bit memory bus. i can't wait to see what its going to bring to the table, but considering the 8600gt didn't raise any eyebrows compared to the 7600gt, it MIGHT be intresting.

Ram. Corsair FTW. Since Corsair is owned by micron, they get first dibs at THE best chips. and because of that, their XMS2 chips are some of the best out there. not to say other folks can't do better, but after averging it all out, being the son of a chip maker has its perks.

Ok, All that being said. i have to agree to disagree.

Asus P5KC P35 LGA775 board - $140
Crucial Ballistx DDR2-1066 2gb - $111
Intel Q9450 - 2.66Ghz Penryn - $316
Nvidia GeForce 8800GT - $300

This is good, but i'd swap the Crucial for some good corsair. just my opinion.

FYI -- DDR2- 1066 ram does not play well with this board with all versions of of the bios. this *might* need to be updated for the motherboard.

If the processor release at the recommended price, i'll be surprised.good choice though.

CORSAIR XMS2 2GB (2 x 1GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 1066 (PC2 8500) Dual Channel Kit Desktop Memory Model TWIN2X2048-8500C5 - Retail

That stuff is SWEET, if you can find it in stock.

The video card? get the 512mb OC copy if possible. they are being removed from production, possibly due to the 9600 release.

PSU? the HX520 should be more than sufficient from corsair, but if you plan on running dual higher end cards(gtx/ultra), the 620 might be another option.

Sorry, this post is ALL over the place. i hope it helps.

[tupinambis]

Heres the mobo I am currently looking at.....

http://www.newegg.com/product/produc...82E16813131200

[YetiChamp]

Wicked case

This is a case that i would go with. Only $75, full tower(so there's room to expand) and it looks wicked awsome.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16811166004

[YetiChamp]

Also just a note look for a motherboard that is SLI ready. so if one day you feel like getting 2 8800 gt's and making your comp a beast, then you can do it no problem.

[Gremlin_flg]

Tupin go for a gigabyte than for an asus

[tupinambis]

Tupin go for a gigabyte than for an asus

I dont know about gigabyte... I like the 3pci-x16 and the 1 pci-x2.0 slots on here...

[Gremlin_flg]

Asus support sux.

[Cain]

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16819115028

[{CLR}geneSW]

Asus support sux.

never had a problem with their support.... their USB controllers yes, but not their support.

[tupinambis]

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819115028

Very nice! great find

[Duke{CLR}]

Good choice. If I were building from scratch now that is the chip I would go with.