Re-thought build

[RavenGuard]

Alright, here's what I've come up with after about a week of non-stop research.

Intel Core 2 Quad 6600 - $324.99 (Will ensure it is G0 stepping) HERE
Asus P5K-C Mainboard - $163.99 HERE
2x1GB Mushkin XP2-8500 DDR2 1066mhz - $164.99 HERE
Asus EAH2900XT 512mb (radeon hd2900) - $469.99 HERE
Seagate Barracuda 500gb - $115.99 HERE
Antec Quattro 850w PSU - $199.99 HERE
Cooler Master Centurion 534 - $62.95 HERE

Total: $1500 not including alternative cooling solutions (I.E. this will not be overclocked until then.)

Is this the correct centurion case people have referred me to?

At this point I have very few questions:
Is the P5K-C Mainboard any lower in quality and ability when it comes to overclocking etc than the P5K deluxe, or is it simply lacking in the wireless features etc (which is what I assumed).

The Antec Quattro is really the only piece of hardware here that I'm unsure if I can trust. If I plan to run my processor at 3ghz (ofcourse once upgrading to a better cooler) and keep my RAM up to speed, once I upgrade to 4gb or more RAM will I require this much power or should I go for a PSU in the 500-600 watt range?

Other than that, my only question is what exactly does G0 stepping mean? From what I've read, it's a good thing, but I don't know what the actual difference is from the previous versions.

Please give me any questions/comments/advice/alternatives


PS anyone heard of the IFX-14 cpu cooler?IFX-14 heatpipe cooler?

 

[MarcVenice]

G0 stepping ought to run cooler, and be easier to overclock. Yes, go look for something in the 500-600w range, 520w corsair or 500-600w enermax liberty will cost you 100$ less. Unsure about the case. You sure about that ram, you could add some $ and buy 4gb ddr800.

How much is 1 canadian dollar in USD ? In holland 2900's come for 335 euro's, and usually thats what the same product would cost in USD, in America.

 

[Sinn707]

I'd get Gigabye GA-P35-DS3R instead of P5K-C, it's cheaper and a whole lot better in every aspect basically, build quality, stability, features, overclocking. The cheapest I could find was in PC Village for $149, they have stores all over GTA.

You certainly don't need 850W, not anywhere near that. Get Corsair 620HX instead, one of the best PSU's ever made, a clear winner @$150CAD mark. PC Village has the best price on it yet again.

Corsair 620HX video review

Are you certain on the 2900XT? You could get 640MB version of 8800GTS for $70 less, or $100 after rebate in Tigerdirect, but's thats up to you.

G0 stepping runs a lot cooler and therefore is better for overclocking (supposedly)

Centurion 534 is a good case for the price.

Good luck.

 

[Sinn707]

Or you could also get a BFG 8800 GTX for only $59CAD more here

 

[RavenGuard]

What would be the benefit of 2x2gb ddr2-800mhz over 2x1gb ddr2-1066? I want to make sure I get the best performance after overclocking the processor. I will be using Vista Business on this setup so 4gb is acceptable, but will I really need that much?

In addition, I've heard the intel Core 2 Quad 6600 is NOT technically 64bit and must convert 64bit code to 32bit. Technically, doesn't this mean that running 64bit vista on the core 2 Quad will actually hinder my performance?

Thanks for the help on the PSU and case questions, but anyone know if that cooler would be a better choice than the others reviewed on Anandtech?

Thanks tonnes for the help guys.

 

[RavenGuard]

Can anyone help me on the "running a q6600 on 64 bit will slow me down" thing?

 

[MarcVenice]

I have never heard about the q6600 not being technically 64bit, and having to convert to 64 bit. I don't know how all that stuff works, but I sincerely doubt that a q6600 would 'slow' down when using in a 64bit OS.

 

[Diademed]

I'm fairly certain all C2D & C2Q's are 64-bit architectures.

I would like to know where you heard this, if it's from a reliable source. Bunk always makes a good read.

 

[RavenGuard]

Originally posted by: Diademed
I'm fairly certain all C2D & C2Q's are 64-bit architectures.

I would like to know where you heard this, if it's from a reliable source. Bunk always makes a good read.

You would be correct, once again those geeks at the computer store cannot be trusted.


Anyways, again, is there any benefit to running 4gb of 800mhz rather than 2gb of 1066mhz?

 

[MarcVenice]

Let's make it easier for you Ravengaurd. Is there any benefit to running 2gb of 1066mhz rather then 2gb of 800mhz? No, there is not, it's called bragging rights, but will not give the same performance boost oppossed to running 4gb of ddr800, and the performance boost over ddr800 is negligible.

That's the general consensus, qauntity is more important then 'faster' ram, and in XP the sweet spot used to be 2gb, especially for games like battlefield. With Vista being more of a memory hog, you want to have 3gb or more. 4gb of ddr800 costs about the same as 2gb of ddr1066, so there's no reason not to

If you can't or don't want to take my word for it, go look around the forums, google it, ask other people.

 

[RavenGuard]

Alright, that I can completely understand.

Problem is that a 2x2gb kit of 800mhz is usually $100 more than the 2x1gb kit of 1066mhz, in the end it costs me a negligible amount to go for 4gb of ddr2-1066mhz, but again, I don't feel that 4gb is really necessary from the get-go.

What game is out there or will be here within a few months that will really use more than 2gb?

 

[jkresh]

4gb is nice in vista 64, vista makes use of whatever memory you have so unlike xp there is a fairly large difference from 2 to 4gigs. As to the 64bit, I think the reason you were told that was a misunderstanding. Core 2 duo is 64 bit (core duo is not), but its 64bit implemenation is not as good as amd's, so that in most 64bit apps amd gets more of a boost by going 64 then intel (though both get a boost and intel is still faster its just amd catches up a little).