Going to join the Intel camp AGAIN ram question

T

tesfaye

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Apr 17, 2003
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Hey guys,

I didn't think I would do it this year but since some friends are taking most of the parts of my current rig off my hands I'll move to the Intel platform and go with a Core 2 Duo setup. The sale of my processor, ram, motherboard, 1900XT and 850XT will fund the purchase of an Intel E6600, Zalman 9500 (I hear the 9700 requires a little modding to fit on the 680i), EVGA 680i motherboard and 2x1GB sticks of either Corsair XMS2 800 or G,Skill 800 5-5-5-12.

After doing a bit of research and looking at the OC chart I see that folks are getting some pretty decent overclocks with the Corsair and G.Skill memory which are 800mhz chips. These chips can be found for under $220 and with a rebate in some cases. Obviously the EPP stuff and 1000 or 1100 mhz chips will give me some more bandwidth but is it worth the extra $150? Will I really notice the difference between a possible OC of 900-950mhz with the 800mhz chips and 1000-1100mhz using the epp 1000mhz+ chips?

Personally I think it's overkill since at stock speeds this setup will kill my current rig anyway so everything else is just icing on the cake so to speak, but if it will make that much of a difference I'll spend the extra cash. I have an extra $500 to play with but I'd rather not spend it and wait to see how this video card war plays out later this year and keep saving for one or two of the next latest and greatest gfx card.

So, do I go crazy and get a set of insane ram or just go with some 800mhz stuff from the aforementioned brands, hope for the best and be happy with a mild ram overclock and possible awesome CPU overclock?

For those of you that are about to ask what I use my computer for, I play games, convert music and video files very often, work in Visual Studio 2005(Intellisense is a hog but indispensible), Virtual PC running DB servers, and I have a bad habit of leaving 20 browser windows open.

Thanks in advance for your input.
 
you would really need to oc the cpu if you would want the extra headroom of the ram to be used. i think its a waste of money and bandwidth so those good 800MHz rams will serve you well
 
romeozor said:
you would really need to oc the cpu if you would want the extra headroom of the ram to be used. i think its a waste of money and bandwidth so those good 800MHz rams will serve you well
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Thanks. The G.Skill chips I'm looking at now are the 6400PHU2-2GBHZ. These are higher quality but don't break the bank @$269. These are supposed to overclock really well. Ugh, too much reading. I'm going to bed. My eyes are killing me.
 
Consider a mobo with and Intel chipset too , EVGA 680 seems to be a hit or miss.
In the Intel world Nvidia is like VIA for AMD...:)
 
wee96 said:
No, in the Intel world VIA is like VIA.
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Ha, I'll look it up but I don't remember the Intel board OC'ing like the 680i boards. I like the fact that the CPU overclocks independantly of the RAM. What is so hit or miss about these boards? I thought they 1) revised the boards and 2) the issues were with the initial run when they launched.

I hear the Striker is a great board but let's get real here $400 for a motherboard is just out of control. That is a last resort. I want to purchase parts today so I can have my new system ready by next weekend. I have to anyway since I committed to selling my parts and they will be picked up next Sunday.

So, what is the Intel equivilant of the 680i?
 
tesfaye said:
Ha, I'll look it up but I don't remember the Intel board OC'ing like the 680i boards. I like the fact that the CPU overclocks independantly of the RAM. What is so hit or miss about these boards? I thought they 1) revised the boards and 2) the issues were with the initial run when they launched.

I hear the Striker is a great board but let's get real here $400 for a motherboard is just out of control. That is a last resort. I want to purchase parts today so I can have my new system ready by next weekend. I have to anyway since I committed to selling my parts and they will be picked up next Sunday.

So, what is the Intel equivilant of the 680i?
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Its still not fully known why some people have issues, I myself have zero with my 680i and its one of the most stable motherboards ive ever had, and ive had ALOT.
 
Another person with 0 issues on the 680i here as well. Personally, I would never toss my opportunity to run SLI, so for me, its NVidia for better or worse. I love the eVGA board. Picked it up for $210 with a rebate and its been awesome.

Also, I had no issues at all getting the 9700 onto the eVGA. No modding or anything. I didnt even think about it. Retention bracket and clip just went right on.
 
mlambert890 said:
Also, I had no issues at all getting the 9700 onto the eVGA. No modding or anything. I didnt even think about it. Retention bracket and clip just went right on.
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Yeah, I noticed some posts where it was pointed out that the resistors weren't present on the newer revisions of the eVGA 680i. I placed an order for the 9500 anyway just to be sure. I think the difference between the 9500 and the 9700 was about 3-5c and the 9500 still owns everything else.

I ended up ordering the following from NewEgg:
eVGA 680i with Lifetime warranty which comes with GRAW OEM $250
2GB G.Skill F2-6400PHU2-2GBHZ $269
Zalman 9500 (no led) $47.99
Intel C2D E6600 $319

From what I have been reading it seems that at the very least I will have a kick ass system but I am praying for an awesome overclock.
 
For Intel...

YOU can get up to at least 400FSB with a P965 board while keeping your RAM at 800mhz

YOU can go up to your chip's limit with a 680i board while keeping your RAM at 800mhz...

So, yeah. You can get a HEFTY OC with even cheaper RAM easily.

I have NO idea why non-LN2ers buy those expensive DOMINATOR RAM banks...

From what I have been reading it seems that at the very least I will have a kick ass system but I am praying for an awesome overclock.
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Your limiting factor will be the Zalman 9500 cooler... It's just not great for these intels. If you can cancel and order a Tuniq Tower or the Zalman 9700 you'll get a MUCH better OC
 
Arcygenical said:
Your limiting factor will be the Zalman 9500 cooler... It's just not great for these intels. If you can cancel and order a Tuniq Tower or the Zalman 9700 you'll get a MUCH better OC
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Wow, the Intel OC database gave the impression that the 9500 was a good heatsink. My order has been charged already (I think using Mastercard SecureCode speeds up the process) so I can't change the order. I guess I'll order a 9700 and sell the 9500 on ebay or something. Shit happens.
 
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