X2 4400

[Lanracer]

I am upgrading from an Pentium 2.8, Asus P4P800 and have a couple questions. I already got me a X2 4400 and BFG 7800GT card on the way. I am looking to put these in a Antec Performance II SOHO File server case that I ran the Pentium in. It includes a 400 watt Antec Smartpower PSU. I would like to overclock up to around 2500 or 2600 from 2200 MHZ if possible. Will this power supply be ok or should I get a new one? OCZ 520 watt a good choice for the money?

I would like to get a motherboard that is stable and allows overclocking. Would the Asus SLI Premium be a good choice? I doubt I would ever go SLI with all the issues with it. Is there another Asus motherboard that would be better for me since I wont probably go SLI in the future or should I just spend the extra and get that mobo? I would just get the DFI Ultra D mobo but am kind of scared if I could get it running easily without a lot of trouble.

How about Ram? I saw where people get good results with the Crucial Ballistix PC4000 but that is pretty pricey. Should I spend the dough on that ram or go with some a little cheaper to get about the same results?

 

[biff 24 2000]

I think you should really upgrade to a better PSU like the OCZ 520 wich is a good choice for overclocking. For the mother board i would get the DFI Ultra-D. I didnt have any trouble with mine and if you do just go over to dfi-street.com. Ram is not a good place to skimp on but the Ballistix is really good and another good choice of ram would be some OCZ EL Platinum REV2.
hope this helps a little

 

[kyp275]

Yes, I would get a new power supply if I were you. I would also recommend the DFI board if you're planning on doing OC, it's really not all that hard to get it running.
As for the ram, are you going for 2x512mb or 2x1gb? If you're going for 2x1gb, the Ballistix and the new OCZ pc4000 platinum EB are the best out right now. Personally I perfer the OCZ for it's tighter timings 🙂

 

[silentvois]

You won't go wrong with the dfi ultra d, I got that same board paired with an x2 3800 and overclocked fine without any difficulty at all. It's my first time overclocking too. As long as you've looked up some info about the bios settings and understand what to do then you won't run into any difficulties at all.

 

[silentvois]

Btw, does that antec smartpower in that case have dual 12V rails? If not then it could effect stability especially if you're overclocking and have other things in the case that drain power. If you want a solid and cheap powersupply you could also look for the Enermax 535W SLI Certified.

 

[daniel1113]

Originally posted by: silentvois
Btw, does that antec smartpower in that case have dual 12V rails? If not then it could effect stability especially if you're overclocking and have other things in the case that drain power. If you want a solid and cheap powersupply you could also look for the Enermax 535W SLI Certified.

Dual 12v rails is the biggest marketing hype of the year. Kudos to PS manufacturers.

 

[lopri]

Originally posted by: daniel1113
Dual 12v rails is the biggest marketing hype of the decade. Kudos to PS manufacturers.

Fixed & agreed 200%. OCZ Modstream 520W is probably one of the best OC-friendly PSUs and it has a single 12V rail. (not sure about SLI though) Actually I even think single 12V is better than dual 12V since the whole wattage can be used as per each component's need. Dual 12V was introduced soley for a safety reason. That is, it matters, if ever, only if you have a space problem and run your machine next to your laundry machine AND you like to touch inside the PC while you're doing laundry.

While I think your Antec PSU will fine (seriously), if you must get a new one I have 2 recommendations.

1. Low-noise: Seasonic
2. I-am-deaf: PC Power & Cooling

Well, as far as the mobo is concerned, I'd say the A8N-SLI Premium is a great board for stock speed or oc'ing under stock voltage. (X2 OC's well under stock voltage) But once you become greedy (like me), you will regret not getting the DFI. ASUS has a terrible VCore fluctuation problem.

lop