Calculated Build... Input appreciated.

[Kisskerven]

Alright through many hours of research.. some shocking news.. and some big downers... I finally have something to put together.. sort of... but before I go maxing out my Credit card I figured I'd list it here and see if anyone has any input/suggestions for it. One big concern is the RAM, I know the motherboards standard is higher, but would using some ddr2 800 and OC it be better then ddr2 1066 non OC... but anyway-the list

(All in US currency, Before Rebates, Including Shipping, Rounded UP)

CPU: Intel Core 2 Quad Q9450 (TBR) Aprox Cost $ 320.00
Motherboard: ASUS P5E LGA 775 Intel X38 $ 240.00
RAM: CORSAIR XMS2 2GB (2 x 1GB) DDR2 1066 $ 110.00
CDrom: SAMSUNG Black DVD Burner w/LightScribe $ 30.00
Video: Radeon HD 3870 512MB $ 260.00
HDD: Seagate Barracuda 500GB 7200 RPM $ 120.00
PSU: (Still Looking)
Casewill probably be custom made)
Monitor:Newegg.com - BenQ FP222WH Black 22" 5ms DVI Widescreen HDMI LCD Monitor 300 cd/m2 700:1 - Retail maybe?

 

[aetherh4cker]

That seems like a high price to pay for the 3870... My 8800GT was only $270 shipped!

 

[veedubfreak]

NCIXUS.com has 3870s for 224. Personally i'd get a gigabyte x38 board over asus, but thats just me. And yes, ddr800 is fine, ddr1066 is basically the exact same memory with looser timings.

 

[Akubane]

Newegg.com - Crucial Ballistix 2GB (2 x 1GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 (PC2 6400) Dual Channel Kit Desktop Memory - Retail

my suggestion.

or the gigabyte ds4 x38 board. but i have a grudge against asus for 2 bunked motherboards and non existant customer service.

the p5e supposed to be a great board though XD.

 

[veedubfreak]

Ya, i'm still trying to figure out what you get for 100 bucks more between the x38-ds4 and the x38-dq6

 

[Akubane]

lol depends where you live i guess. up here, you get the convenience of availability.

I just ordered the dq6.. only because the ds4 isnt even available in canada, nor anywhere that ships to canada lol. And probably wont be for months. I'm still waiting for the G.Skill ram I want that was released like 8 months ago lol.

well i said the convenience of availability but thats only partly true.. in fact the dq6 is out of stock in all of canada lol but at least its available for sale. aggrivating. i started looking at the maximus formula and then slapped myself heh.

as for you guys.. i dunno the dq6 would be a huge waste of money over the ds4 lol

 

[veedubfreak]

Newegg.com - GIGABYTE GA-X38-DQ6 LGA 775 Intel X38 ATX Ultra Durable 2, Ultra Cooling Intel Motherboard - Retail

Newegg.com - GIGABYTE GA-X38-DS4 LGA 775 Intel X38 ATX Intel Motherboard - Retail

Ok i figured it out. For 80 dollars you get a 2nd ethernet port and 2 more sata connectors. Seems like a great deal to me

Just noticed somethign else. On the dq6 you cant use a cpu cooler that mounts with a backplate. So looks like the ds4 for anyone that has a tuniq or true.

 

[Kisskerven]

actually some of the biggest factor of choosing you guys won't like... lol...
Color.

and uh as for the ballistix- on timings on RAM are smaller numbers over all 4 sets better? Iam rather confused on that.

and check this out vs your ballistix- Cheaper after rebate, same timings and speed and all, black in colour and -.1v difference Newegg.com - CORSAIR XMS2 2GB (2 x 1GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 (PC2 6400) Dual Channel Kit Desktop Memory - Retail

As for video and all that- Id rather not OC my video.. Iam really concearned with it and everything and itll be a brand new build so I won't be OC anything if I don't have to. (at least for the burn-in plus some time to get used to 64 bit, quadcore, over 1gig of ram.. ETC from my current bid which wont even benchmark)

The vid I have is already OC and tested and cooled properly for it, looks kinda neat and reviews are good even though its "Powercolor"

It seems to be already "Overclocked" for performance, Iam pretty sure it wont go any farther (and that doesn't bother me)

Heres stats:
Core clock 800MHz
Stream Processors 320 stream processing units
Memory Clock 2400MHz
Memory Size 512MB
Memory Interface 256-bit
Memory Type GDDR4

and based on those stats alone, aside from Memory Interface, it has the 8800Ultra beat. Not sure how much difference 256-bit compared to 384bit or whatever would do for performance, and 512MB compared to 768MB... but it's also half the price as ultra.. meaning I could get 2 of these for 1 ultra.. and since my board supports crossfire.... it would blow 1 Ultra away for sure.

 

[Vaanish]

So what is your colour scheme? And yes, i understand what you are saying about overclocking video, i never do it either since i freid an old geforce 4 mx (my last ever nv card)

 

[Kisskerven]

Red black and silver of course, the mobo has 2 RAM yellow- easily hidden with ram and a Rheatsink, 2 blue PCI 2.0- even easier to cover with graphics cards theres one asus motherboard that would be even better.. however its roughly 100 dollars more.. and I cannot remember other features besides built in wifi.... and the fact Iam not sure if i want to go DDR3 standard or not... if I can make up my mind on the ram.. then Ill go with it...

I don't plan to upgrade this extensively ever again- where I need a full new computer, so hopefully if I do decide to go DDR3 ram it won't be outdated anytime fast... but its sooo expensive right now ><

Heres an update hopefully you can help me decide is DDR3 is worth it.

Original RAM Plan:

($110.00)
2GB (2 x 1GB)
Speed DDR2 1066 (PC2 8500)
Cas Latency 5
Timing 5-5-5-15
Voltage 2.1V

OR 800
($37.00)
Capacity 2GB (2 x 1GB)
Speed DDR2 800 (PC2 6400)
Cas Latency 4
Timing 4-4-4-12
Voltage 2.1V

and then the DDR3
($255.00 + 100 dollars difference in motherboard)
Capacity 2GB (2 x 1GB)
Speed DDR3 1333 (PC3 10666)
Cas Latency 6
Timing 6-5-5-18
Voltage 1.85V

Iam hoping a RAM expert can clearify things up and all. It's not that the money really bothers me, it'll all eventually be paid off regardless, its just.. is the 1333 DDR3 (futureproofing) worth it at this state.. or will the 1066 DDR2 compete with the DDR3 or not really notice any difference.. etc etc. Id hate to dish out 100 bucks more for a motherboard, and 150ish more for RAM that doesn't compete much better then 1066DDR2 (or OC DDR2)

The real biggy is how far can the DDR2 800 be OC.. and how far can the 1066 be done... if the 1066 can only hit 1333 but the 800 can hit 1066 for example.. id go with the 800.