i have a p5bd + 6400 upgrade now?

[markreflex]

Hello this is my first post and i done abit of research but i still got questions and love some advice. I own a Asus P5B Deluxe with 965 chipset and a 6400 Conroe with 4x1Gb Corsair DDR2 667 taking up all 4 slots that i had since 2006. I was heavily into overclocking upto 2007 but a so called long time friend(****) betrayed me so my heart wasn't into it anymore. I now like to upgrade again. I now see the P35, X38, 45mm has passed me by during that time and the X48 is due out next month not to mention the Nehalem which i don't think be out end of year but next year. I am wanting to upgrade to a quad core as i play chess alot but am unsure what to do. I know i want Nehalem when it arrives and don't want to shell out a fortune now but i like some decent performance increase. I know it make good sense to wait for X48 as the X38 should drop. I want to keep cost down if i can but want a decent performance % increase. I don't think i need to buy DDR3 right now as it far too expensive vs. performance. I'm in the Uk so i quoting £ not $. Just double it to get $.

Can i fit a 45mm in my Asus 965 P5BD as it still says 775 socket? I got a feeling i can't.

Can i flash my bios of my P5BD to make it 1333FSB?

If i can't do the above What should i do? Should I...

Buy a Q6600 65mm quad core to fit my existing m/b? £147
http://www.scan.co.uk/Products...sp?WebProductID=702631

Buy a 45mm Q9450 and a motherboard to match? £218 for chip alone.
http://www.scan.co.uk/Products...sp?WebProductID=743028

What m/b chipset should i get?
I seen X38 m/b is too expensive and scan only list 3 is there so few out for X38?
http://www.scan.co.uk/Products...tegories=235&OrderBy=3

I heard great things mentioned about a certain Gigabyte P35. As i understand it the X48 is the chipset the X38 should of been and only slight improvements. They overclock about the same.

What is confusing will the X48 take DDR2? I read 2 different answers.
It will won't take DDR3 as the Asus P5E3 Anandtech article mentions just DDR3 and the end of DDR2. http://www.anandtech.com/mb/showdoc.aspx?i=3229
It will take DDR2 but only 2 slots can be used.
So whats the crack?

I am thinking buy the Q9450 and a cheap motherboard and use my existing 4x1gb DDR2 Ram to get good performance and not have expense of a top range motherboard. If you think this is the best idea what motherboard should i get? Now i'm reading the X38 isn't much better over the P35 and only needed if you use crossfire which i won't be. You think i should get a P35 for now? I need Raid btw.

What i like to see is some performance differences of my 965 chipset over the 45mm quad core.

What i really like to know is there much performance difference between 65mm Q6600 and 45mm Q9450 to be worth the expense of buying a new motherboard for it.

Sorry for all the questions. I been out of it and getting upto speed.

Many Thanks and great site and forum.

 

[markreflex]

Ok well i guess the contributions are not like they used to be. I go for the Foxconn Mars and the Q9450 when it comes out.

 

[kirilus]

Originally posted by: markreflex

Can i fit a 45mm in my Asus 965 P5BD as it still says 775 socket? I got a feeling i can't.

45nm in 775 socket? yes, you can.

 

[markreflex]

I think i get a 6600 instead of buying a new motherboard and watercool it and get better DDR2 like a 1000 over the exisiting 667mhz and overclock it as far as i can and save some money.

 

[Vixx]

The P5B Dlx is still a great board. If you want the best price vs. performance boost, I'd update to the latest BIOS and install a Q6600.

The X38 and X48 chipsets are great, but there is too little an difference between the Q6600 and Q9450 to justify the additional cost of a motherboard upgrade. Go with the CPU upgrade, wait for Nehalem and wait for DDR3 prices to drop.

 

[markreflex]

thats good advice thanks Vixx. I wonder though how far i can overclock the 6600 on a P5B Dlx though. It seems the bios on the Foxconn is a little off even on the newest updates and the Abit IP35 Pro be the better bios. I seen 500fsb on those boards i'm sure i cant get that on the P5B. I wait till March and see how the new chips perform and maybe pick up a cheaper 6600

 

[markreflex]

and this is good advice too

Intel is on that "Tic-Toc" Cycle system now.. So the question is.. Would you rather Tic or Toc?
The current releases are "tocs".. Upgrades to current products..
The Tics are really the "leaders"..
I say a persons best bet is this,
Stick with the "Ticks" and always have the latest technology when it comes out, leave the "Tocs" alone as your period to ride it out..

OR,

ALWAYS buy the Top-Tier Part and Sell your current part for 50%-75% of your purchase price.. That way, Every 6-months to a year, you are only spending about 25%-50% on upgrades..