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How good is this mobo/cpu/ram build?

L

LW07

Golden Member
Alright, here's what i'm getting:

Phenom II 940- $230

Mobo:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/...x?Item=N82E16813128360
GIGABYTE GA-MA78GM-S2HP -$80

http://www.newegg.com/Product/...x?Item=N82E16820231122
4 gigs DDR2 800 Gskill ram(should i get a second pair and make it 8 gigs?)

I currently have windows XP Home Edition, so should I get windows vista? And if so, should i get the OEM version or a boxed retail(or upgrade, but only Ultimate comes with the 64-bit version without the fee)?

Total: $360 with 4 gigs, $403 with 8 gigs, and around $640 if i got windows Ultimate, and if I wen OEM Home Premium, it would cost me $460/503(4 gigs/8 gigs of ram, respectively).

 
You've missed the best of the combo deals but ...

Phenom II 940 / ASUS M3A78-T 790GX: $338

Phenom II 920 / ASUS M3A78-T 790GX: $298

Your G.Skill RAMs are most likely on the Asus QVL list.

As far as your OS it's up to you. 4Gb will handle Vista and most tasks just dandy but 32-bit will subtract you down to 3.25 or so. No real biggie unless you need all the RAM for alotta Photoshop or something - then you should definitely go 64-bit/6-8Gb.

An OEM license is tied to your hardware and you are not supposed to upgrade substantially (i.e., change out the motherboard to something new and improved).
 
Can one just change the CPU, add more ram, or upgrade the video card and be OK if they have OEM vista?

And if you reformatted and reinstalled, would OEM vista give you any trouble?
 
Originally posted by: heyheybooboo
An OEM license is tied to your hardware and you are not supposed to upgrade substantially (i.e., change out the motherboard to something new and improved).
Click to expand...

An OEM license is directly tied to the motherboard when doing initial activation. In other words, after that first install and activation:
- you can swap out just about anything in the box, and still be able to activate Windows after a clean re-install of the OS (for a limited number of activations before needing to call them, that is)
- you can keep all original hardware except for the motherboard, and Windows activation will fail on a clean re-install of the OS (don't bother calling, they won't re-up you on activation)
 
So what if the motherboard dies on you? will that kill your OEM license?

And would jumping down to a Phenom II 920 2.8ghz be alright?
 
Originally posted by: LW07
So what if the motherboard dies on you? will that kill your OEM license?
Click to expand...

Precisely.

If the mobo dies, the company that built your computer will need to swap out the mobo and provide you with a new OEM license...assuming the machine is still under warranty.

However, there is no company for your situation. You built the machine, so if the mobo dies, you need to get a new OEM license on your own. Just one of the pitfalls of going with an OEM version of the OS instead of a Retail version.
 
guess i'll be sticking with XP or using an upgrade version of vista.... how do you get the 64-bit version as an upgrade? do you have to buy the 32-bit upgrade version and then pay Microsoft more $$$ to send you the 64-bit DVD?
 
If you have no attachment to Windows XP Home, I would definitely upgrade to Windows Vista either Home Premium x64 or Ultimate x64. At a very minimum upgrade to windows xp pro x64. As mentioned before no 32bit operating system will recognize that you have 4GB of ram. 8gb of ram is overkill unless you are going to try and tax every resource you have at one time.

I have heard however you can tell Microsoft that your motherboard died (even if it really didn't) and they will reactivate it. That even came from the lips of somebody I know that use to work for them
 
How would i go about getting Home Premium x64? The upgrade version that you find on newegg and in retail stores is 32-bit
 
you can buy OEM versions of both 32bit and 64bit and if you buy the retail version it has both. I believe the retail version of the upgrade should be both although I am not sure., Otherwise you will have to buy the OEM version of x64 or the retail version.
 
from what I read if you buy the retail version of the upgrade you can get the 64bit version for 10 dollars from Microsoft, although it does not let you do a clean install. So you might be better off getting the 64bit OEM version of Home Premium.
 
Originally posted by: UMfanatic
it is actually cheaper than the upgrade version
Click to expand...

i know that, i just don't want to have a bad mobo and have to pay $100 more for another OEM version
 
Originally posted by: UMfanatic
from what I read if you buy the retail version of the upgrade you can get the 64bit version for 10 dollars from Microsoft, although it does not let you do a clean install. So you might be better off getting the 64bit OEM version of Home Premium.
Click to expand...

If you have the 32 bit disc you can get the 64 bit version from Microsoft for about $10 shipped.

From what I have read you can't do an upgrade from 32 bit to 64 bit. It has to be a clean install. I didn't try it I took another route.

You can do a clean install with a 64 bit Upgrade disc. I did it yesterday and it activiated fine. You can Google "Vista upgrade clean install" (or something to the effect) and find guides on it.
 
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