Memory and Mobo Questions for this Build

[vizx]

I have 10 days to complete this build, so I need to order the hardware soon- it's for a guy who will not be going with SLI, but does want 45nm support for the future...and also insists on an X38 chipset (he's not much of a geek, but he was told by someone, somewhere not to go P35 and I'm not going to argue with him)...

I have some questions that maybe you guys could help me out on...

the build so far, all from Newegg...

GIGABYTE GA-X38-DS4 LGA 775 Intel X38 ATX Intel- $199.99

Intel Core 2 Duo E6750 Conroe 2.66GHz- $189.99

G.SKILL 4GB(2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800- $89.99

CORSAIR CMPSU-520HX- $124.99

Seagate Barracuda (Perpendicular Recording) 320GB 7200 RPM

SATA 3.0Gb/s Hard Drive - OEM -$84.99

MSI GeForce 8600GTS 256MB GDDR3 PCI Express x16 HDCP Ready

SLI Supported Video Card - Retail- $139.99

COOLER MASTER RC-690 Case- $69.99

SAMSUNG 20X DVD±R Black SATA- $29.99

ZALMAN 9500A 92mm 2 Ball CPU Cooler- $48.99

WinXp Pro 64-bit OEM- $139.99

Artic Silver
3 SATA cables 18''

$1,131.76 with shipping...

i've always been kind of foggy on the complete story with memory...with that Gigabyte mobo, the FSB is 1600 or 1333mhz, and the memory standard is DDR2 1200, but I chose DDR2 800 because the price helped me stay within budget...

how much of a difference will that make in performance for him if he's a moderate, mostly non-FPS gamer?

what memory takes full advantage of that FSB speed? and DDR3, when it becomes reasonably priced, would it matter if that board with that FSB happened to support it?

there is a Foxconn board that supports DDR2 and DDR3, 45nm and PCI express 2.0...should i go with that for about 20 bucks more?

also, I called Microcenter here in NY, but I couldn't get a straight answer from the dude on the phone if they still have E8400s for 189.99 (which is weird because MC has usually been good to me)...i'm in the city and i don't want to drive out to long island for nothing...anyone know if MC still has these for that price?

if so I would substitute that in place of the conroe 6750, which is the same price at the egg...

He DOES use illustrator, photoshop and Flash on a near daily basis, but doesn't want to pay for a Quad-core CPU just yet (or a mac, he has that at work but games at home and his wife wants windows)...

is this build good for the price? does anyone see any bad buys on the list?

is 64-bit winXP pro worth it? driver issues?

thanks for any opinions anyone cares to give....i'd appreciate it...

 

[Dangman]

Since I'm lazy, I'm not going to go into a whole anti- X38 speal.

Anyway, to answer your questions:
Core 2 Duo CPUs do not see a significant performance increase with faster RAM or having the FSb and RAM ratio at anything other than 1:1. Remember now that the FSB of Intel CPUs are quad-pumped. So when you see an Intel Core 2 Duo with a stated FSB of 1333Mhz, it's actual FSB is 333Mhz (1333 divided by 4). RAM speed is calculated as twice the actual FSB speed if you keep the FSB:RAM at ratio of 1:1. So basically, with a CPU that has a FSB of 1333Mhz, all you really need is DDR2 667 RAM.

So to sum things up:
Stated FSB/4 = Actual FSB
Multiplier x Actual FSB = CPU Speed
2 x Actual FSB = RAM Speed

E6750:
Multi x FSB, RAM Speed = Clock Speed
8 × 333Mhz = 2.6Ghz, DDR2-667 << Stock speeds
8 × 400Mhz = 3.2Ghz, DDR2-800 << Easy OC

However, since DDR2-800 RAM is so cheap, might as well get it since it would allow for some overclocking if neccessary.

Core 2 Duos do not need DDR3 RAM. They don't see a significant performance increase with DDR3 RAM. So no point with going with that Foxconn mobo.

Now onto the parts critique:

First of all, ditch the Zalman. There are much better HSF in terms of cooling performance for close to the price of that Zalman:
Scythe SCNJ-1100P Ninja HSF - $36
Tuniq Tower 120 HSF - $45
Thermalright Ultima-90 HSF - $46 & Panaflo FBA09A12M 92mm Fan - $3

Second, you can get that Corsair PSU cheaper from zipzoomfly.com, clubit.com and buy.com. Any of those sites would be a better choice to buy that Corsair PSU.

Third, ditch that graphics card. Even if he's a moderate gamer, that 8600GTS is CRAP. Especially when for just $30 more, you can get video card that absolutely demolishes the 8600GTS:
VisionTek Radeon HD 3850 256MB PCI-E Video Card - $170

Fourth, IIRC, Windows Vista 64bit is actually better supported driver wise than XP 64bit. So you might want to go with that, especially since it's cheaper than XP 64bit.

And finally, also, what's with the 18" long SATA cables? The RC-690 isn't that tall of a case and the mobo comes with all the SATA cables that you need.

 

[tiraides]

I'm going to save Danny the trouble and explain X38 in one sentence:

If you don't need CrossFire -- and you definitely don't need DDR3 RAM -- then there's no reason for you to spend more money on an X38 board.

Here are some alternatives:

Gigabyte GA-P35-DS3L Intel P35 Motherboard - $90
MSI P35 Neo2-FR Intel P35 ATX Motherboard - $120
Gigabyte GA-P35-DS3R Intel P35 Motherboard - $127
DFI LanParty Dark P35-T2RS Intel P35 Motherboard - $135
Gigabyte GA-P35-DS3P Intel P35 Motherboard - $151
Abit IP35 Pro Intel P35 Motherboard - $168
Gigabyte GA-P35-DS4 Intel P35 Motherboard - $175

Just to help you out: If you don't need RAID, more than 4 SATA ports or legacy ports, then the DS3L is a good choice. If you need 5 SATA ports, 2 eSATA ports, and a second PCI-E x16 port, then get the Neo2-Fr. If you want 8 SATA ports, RAID, and legacy ports and high overclocks, than the DS3R is a good choice. If you want the DS3R but need Firewire, then go for the DS3P. If you want a mobo with a ton of overclocking options, go with the LanParty. If you want something that can overclock pretty damn high along with eSATA ports and firewire connections, than the IP35 Pro.

(And you can thank Danny for that. )

As for the E8400, Mwave has it available for $219. Right now, you're not going to see the E8400 cost under $200 for a while.

Also, check out other stores... you can find a list here. Shopping at two or more places could save you quite a bit of money with the different stores' various rebates and free shipping offers.

 

[Markyip1]

If you're in the NYC area, I suggest checking out the Microcenter in Paterson, NJ instead of the one in Long Island. It's a much better store. Last time I was there (two weeks ago,) they had a very nice stock of E8400s.

I agree with everything Tiraides and Danny have said. I think its worth it to at least make a case for getting the best components in terms of price / features / and what he actually needs. If he's not going Crossfire, there is no reason to go X-38. P35 boards perform just as well. All that he's giving up is two X-16 PCI-E lanes (in favor of 1 X-16 and 1 X-8) and PCI-E 2.0, neither of which matter much because even the most powerful cards can't saturate that kind of bandwidth.

 

[engiNURD]

He'll pay $200 for a board, but doesn't want to shell out for a quadcore? Drop down to a $100 board, and put the extra $100 leftover towards a Q6600. I agree with Danny, tiraides, and Mark as well... take their advice into serious consideration.

 

[vizx]

wow...thanks so much for the info guys...i honestly, sincerely appreciate it...

i sort of fell into building systems (on the side) by accident, and i obviously have a lot to learn...i only do it occasionally and have found myself in need of a crash course or two..

the info on the CPU/RAM was great...thanks so much...

i'm taking all the suggestions seriously and will overhaul the build...

 

[vizx]

in case anyone is interested, Micro Center B&Ms in Garden City, New York and Paterson, NJ still have E8400s in stock for $189.99, as of Friday, Feb.8th, 2008...

i referenced that processor above and thought I'd mention this...

Markyip1, the NJ store is certainly better than the LI store, thanks for the heads up on that...

 

[tiraides]

Here's one more board to look at:

Abit IP35-E Intel P35 ATX motherboard - $90 (with $30 mail-in rebate)

Go ahead and get the E8400 from Microcenter (if it's still available... you won't find it cheaper anywhere else anytime soon...), but if you can, try to convince your friend to pick a quad-core processor, either now or when the new 45nm C2Qs arrive.

 

[silent-circuit]

In short, I second everything already said, and put my vote toward getting one of the slightly higher end boards (Not an IP35-E or DS3L) due to RAID support, more SATA ports, and generally better cooling.