good P4 mobo for a gaming rig (no o/c) ??

[Ruck]

i'm in the process of upgrading my very old Dell to something that resembles a modern computer. i want something that can play any game out, with room to spare. when finished, i'm shooting for something along the lines of this:

3ghz P4 processor (800fsb)
512mb kingston/corsair DDR ram (more perhaps, funds permitting)
GeForce FX 5900 (the good one... not the "new version" crap) **already purchased**
350-ish power supply
faster hard drive... eventually
and of course, a motherboard to go with it all. (why else would i be here? )

i solved by graphics card problem with the FX 5900. got one of the best "budget" cards out there. now i need to start the search for a good motherboard and processor. the problem is, i know little to nothing about the current mobo's. i don't plan to overclock the processor at all. basically, i want something stable and fast that will fit well with a 3ghz pentium 4 processor. price isn't too huge of a concern, but i'd like to stick to $100-130 or so if possible. $200 or more just seems outlandish for a motherboard.

if anyone can recommend a good motherboard/processor combo that would fit my needs, i would be very appreciative. i've never really tinkered with motherboards or processors, so i have no clue exactly what i'm looking for in all those mountains of specs. i know 800 fsb mobo and chip is good... other then that, its all greek to me.

i did notice these newegg xmas specials. not sure if they're good stuff, good prices, etc... any comments on these?

Pentium 4 3ghz $275

Pentium 4 2.8ghz $210

is it worth $65 bucks to get a 3.0 over a 2.8?

Intell 875P motherboard

thanks in advance.

 

[cockeyed]

I think you could be happy with the Intel 875P mobo and 2.8 CPU you found at newegg. These parts would build a reliable, stable, fast system that you could be happy with. IMO, I don't think the extra .2mhz are worth the $65 extra since you won't really see much, if any, real world performance difference. I would rather use the $65 saved on the 2.8 CPU to buy a new high quality case with PS included. Other motherboards you might consider are the Asus or Abit 865PE/875 models stickified at the top of this forum.

 

[Ruck]

thank you very much for the reply cockeyed. i went ahead and placed my order for the Intel 875P board and the 2.8c chip. i'm going to need a new case for this setup as well, and using the saved $65 from the chip sounds like a grand idea to me.

2 quick questions and my computer shopping will be through....

1) what size power supply do i need? seems 350 is standard in alot of cases. and considering i won't be overclocking, i don't need some monster power supply. would i be good with 350? need more? less?

2) what sort of memory should i be looking for? i know kingston and corsair are the heavy hitters out there right now... but unfortunately, i haven't bought ram since pc133 sdram was the hot thing out. so once again, i find myself lost in the long strings of specs and model types. (when did something as basic as RAM get so confusing?? )

thanks and happy holidays!

 

[cockeyed]

A high quality 350w PS, Antec or Fortron, should be fine and some Kingston HyperX PC3200 dual channel kit (2x256) or (2x512). Another thing you could do is to just buy an Antec case with their 350w PS already in it. It might cost less to go this way. Here are some suggestions:

* Antec Performance Series II Mid Tower Case With 350W Power Supply,Model:SX835II,Retail - $82
* Kingston HyperX Series Dual Kits 184 Pin 512MB(256MBx2) DDR PC-3200 - $125
* Fortron FSP350-60PN 350W - $42 ( if you just want a good low cost 350w PS)

You can get all of these at newegg and read user reviews there. If you like the Antec case I suggested, that might be a good way to go. If not, pick another case/PS combo and save yourself some money. Main thing is; buy quality.

My system I recently built: Asus P4P800 - P4-2.6c - HyperX PC3200 dual channel kit (2x256) - ATI 9800 - Seagate 120gb 7200.7 - old Enermax case with Fortron 350w PS and couldn't be any happier.

An Intel 875 mobo/P4-2.8c/dual channel memory/FX5900 should make a real nice non oc'd system. Good luck and Happy Holiday's!

Edit: Forgot to mention that the timing of the HperX I suggested is fast at 2-3-2-6. Be sure to check the timing for the memory you buy. Lower numbers = faster performance.