Processor and RAM combination- noob requesting help

[rogueshah]

Hello, I am a noob , intending to build a gaming pc with some possible video mixing stuff.
I have some budgetary restriction
I have decided to buy Nvidia 9800 GT,

I am confused about processor and Ram combination

should I get
INTEL DUAL CORE E5200 2.5Ghz (2MB CACHE - 800 MHZ FSB)

and 2 x 1gb [CORSAIR XMS2 DOMINATOR TWIN2X2048-8500/1066]
i.e. faster ram
or

INTEL CORE 2 DUO E7300 2.66Ghz (3MB CACHE - 1066 MHZ FSB)
with get 2x1gb [CORSAIR XMS CM 1GB-6400/800 BUS]
Relatively slower ram
I am form Pakistan, I will go to another city to get me the desired system
here is the website of the seller, as Ebay would be of little use for me

http://galaxy.com.pk/forms/cpu.htm
http://galaxy.com.pk/forms/mchip.htm

Thanks in advance
PS i wont be able to upgrade the system that I will purchase for around 3~ years

 

[disports]

I would say get the 2nd combination. The DDR2-1066 ram won't really do anything for you if you're not overclocking extremely.

 

[BlueAcolyte]

Better CPU, weaker RAM.

 

[Denithor]

RAM speed/timings have almost no effect on computer performance these days, as long as they don't hold back your CPU overclock needs.

Here's what you need to know about RAM & CPUs:

Keep in mind that the 800 or 1066 fsb listed is actually Intel's "quad pumped" naming system - they multiply the actual fsb by four and report that number (so "1066 MHZ FSB" actually means the chip runs with fsb 266 [4x266=1066]). I've never really understood why they do this except maybe as a marketing ploy.

e5200 runs 2.50GHz with an fsb of 200 (12.5x200 = 2500MHz)
e7300 runs 2.66GHz with an fsb of 266 (10 x 266 = 2660MHz)

Now, on to the memory. The first pair of sticks runs DDR2-1066 speed which is the fsb it can handle doubled (Double Data Rate, remember?). So this memory is guaranteed to handle up to fsb 533 (2x533=1066). The second pair of sticks is DDR2-800 so it will handle up to fsb 400 (which is considerably faster than the fsb of either CPU at stock speed).

The processors you're looking at can probably be overclocked to about 3.5GHz or so (e7300 might make 4GHz if you're lucky with good cooling). To hit this speed you'll run:

e5200 - 12.5x280 = 3.5GHz
e7300 - 10 x 400 = 4.0GHz

As you can see, DDR2-800 memory, which will run 400fsb, will let you max either of these chips without needing to be overclocked. There's no reason to spend more money on the DDR2-1066 memory at all for these particular processors.

There is probably a 5% difference between these two processors - certainly not worth the jump from 6800 to 9300 rupees (37% higher price - get real!). Just go for the e5200 and pair it with the cheapest DDR2-800 memory you can get (or even DDR2-667 if that's cheaper, no difference even for overclocking!).

You're smarter spending more money on the motherboard and/or heatsink+fan so you can get better overclocking performance rather than wasting it on faster RAM. Or if you're a gamer, spend the extra cash on a nice video card upgrade.

 

[rogueshah]

Denithor thanks for that very informative and comprehensive reply.
Now i guess,i can save money, get E5200, 800mhz bus ram ....and instead of 9800GT,get me a ati 4850

 

[Denithor]

Yep, that'll give you the best gaming performance for the money.

 

[rogueshah]

thankyou...
Just one opinion ...it may be off topic from the category...but since we are discussing 'optimum' match for my pc
Should I get ATI 4850 with 4 gb of system memory , or get nvidia 9800GTX with 2 gb of system memory? [with E5200 processor , rams would be 800bus in each case]

if I dont intend to do *any* upgrade to my pc in next 3 years [i am aware 32 bit os, win xp etc will use max 3gb]