Help, I waited to long.

[jkohm]

I finalized my plans about six weeks ago but didn't get around to ordering the parts. Now they seem obsolete.

The P35, DDR2 ASUS P5K PREMIUM/WIFI-AP Motherboard Should be replaced. Any suggestions for a comparable DDR2, X48, P45 or x38 ASUS or Gigabyte board. The WIFI is not important.

Also I settled on the DIAMOND Viper Radeon HD 3870 512MB GDDR4 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready but suspect I'd be better served with a hd4850 or 4870 board. I chose the Diamond because it had VIVO. Any suggestions on a 4850 or 70 board?

I have:
Antec 900 case and 650w True Power Trio PS mod TP3-650
2 - WD Caviar SE16 sata300 500gb HDs
I'll be ordering a Q9450 CPU with 4-8 gig DDR2 memory, a Samsung SH-S203N DVD and Vista 64bit.

My system will be a multitasking unit. My needs in order of priority are:
1. Converting, editing, rendering 35 years of photos (slide, print, digital) and video (film, VHS, various camera formats including some HD) and creating DVDs for my grandkids.
2. Media Center stuff including using a large 1080p TV, streaming video and music.
3. Gaming. I don't do much but would spend a little more to have a more capable system.
4. Surfing, and general purpose work (word processing, spreadsheets, scanning) while doing 1 and 2 above.

I'm not limited by a budget but not interested in wasting $. If spending a little more will provide a noticeable improvement I'll do it. Also I want this system to be upgradeable.

Thanks, I promise I'll order soon.

 

[DaveSimmons]

Why X38 - X48 instead of a P45 for $40-100 less? You don't need crossfire. I'd suggest the Asus P5Q Pro based on its specs.

4850 vs. 4870: the stock cooling on the 4870 is nicer but it costs almost twice as much and you're not building a gaming system. But the Asus 4850 has working fan control software and a bundle discount with P5Q Pro on top of its rebate, so it might be your best choice.

For video capture I'd get a dedicated card with hardware encoding like a hauppage <-- that was the brand to get a couple of years ago, others can tell you if there are better ones now.

 

[DSF]

Since you don't do much gaming, I wouldn't go any higher than the 4850 for your graphics card. It's a perfectly capable board, and there's no reason to spend the money on anything faster for occasional gaming. For what you're doing, I don't think there's anything wrong with a P35 motherboard, and I certainly wouldn't spend the money on X38 or X48, as it offers very little for you. If you want to step up to something newer, I would stick with P45.

 

[BTRY B 529th FA BN]

both good recommendations

 

[jkohm]

Ive decided to go with the ASUS Combo P45 P5Q-Pro MB and ASUS Radeon HD 4850 EAH4850/HTDI/512M Video Card from newegg.

Is there a better choice of memory than
OCZ Reaper HPC Edition 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 (PC2 6400) Dual Channel Kit Desktop Memory Model OCZ2RPR800C44GK - Retail
or $20 more
CORSAIR XMS2 DHX 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 (PC2 6400) Dual Channel Kit Desktop Memory Model TWIN2X4096-6400C4DHX - Retail

 

[DSF]

The OCZ is attractively priced, but be aware that it requires 2.1V to reach its advertised specs. You may need to go into your BIOS and adjust the memory voltage to achieve stable operation. RAM is supposed to have profiles to automatically adjust to operation at the standard 1.8V, but this doesn't always happen.

I wouldn't buy the Corsair simply because there's cheaper RAM available. If you don't want to mess with the voltage on the OCZ, here's a Mushkin kit that runs at 1.8V and is less expensive than the Corsair:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/...x?Item=N82E16820146731

If you're not overclocking, the difference between any two RAM kits is minimal. If you are planning to overclock though, you may want to consider DDR2-1000 depending on how far you're trying to push your chip.

 

[jkohm]

I plan to install 4 gig of memory and maybe later expand to 8 gig. Would that be a problem. Should I get 8 gig now all the same vendor.

 

[themisfit610]

RAM is cheap enough for 8gb to be pretty affordable, relative to a couple years ago.

However, there aren't many everyday tasks that can soak up 8gb of ram. Photoshopping large files is one of them

~MiSfit