Check my spec please

OpenToSuggestions · 17 Mar 2010 at 20:30

Hey all,
I know I did an i5 spec the other day (one was for a friend who did actually buy it!) but the one for me has fallen through as I do not have the funds due to one reason or another.

I am now looking at:

Intel Core i3 530 2.93GHz (Clarkdale) (Socket LGA1156) - Retail £98.00
G.Skill Ripjaw 4GB (2x2GB) DDR3 PC3-12800C8 1600MHz Dual Channel Kit (F3-12800CL8D-4GBRM) £88.99
Gigabyte GA-H55M-UD2H Intel H55 (Socket 1156) DDR3 microATX Motherboard £77.98
Arctic Cooling Freezer 7 Pro Rev 2 CPU Cooler (Socket 939 / AM2 / AM3 / 775 / 1156 / 1366) £15.99

£282 inc VAT.

Now I will never use eSATA, so can I get the cheaper S2H motherboard? AFAIk this is the only difference. I also have never (and probably never will) RAID.
I currently have a decent ASUS P5Q, but as my ram is 800mhz and I have an e6600, in order to overclock to 3.6-4ghz I need a new cpu (would get quad) and faster ram.

I intend to overclock to 4-4.2ghz. Is the above spec a decent, cheap upgrade, considering I will sell my e6600, P5Q and 4gb.

PC is used for internet, HD material and gaming. Never encoded or anything like that. Intend to keep the rig (with something like a 5850) for 18-24 months.

RJC · 17 Mar 2010 at 20:35

Spec looks good

OpenToSuggestions · 17 Mar 2010 at 20:36

RJC said:
Spec looks good

Thanks.

Any other comments anyone??

The i5 rig I wanted did not have sata3 or usb3. but with this I don't care as it is hugely cheaper.

Anyone used this ram? I see it is new to ocuk.

McstylisT · 17 Mar 2010 at 20:38

Good spec really for the price.

The cooler should be more than enough , however with high clocks targeted then its the area you might be able to improve on to keep things cool as can be.

Regards

McT

SteveB · 17 Mar 2010 at 20:39

Similar spec to me, I've gone for the option of making my board/RAM last a bit longer by purchasing the Xeon X3360 on offer today. My sig says 3.6 but I've dropped my E6600 down to 3.4 as something was unstable, maybe my PSU. Have you considered the same as me? It might let you save funds for a bit longer to get your i5 spec.

OpenToSuggestions · 17 Mar 2010 at 20:42

SteveB said:
Similar spec to me, I've gone for the option of making my board/RAM last a bit longer by purchasing the Xeon X3360 on offer today. My sig says 3.6 but I've dropped my E6600 down to 3.4 as something was unstable, maybe my PSU. Have you considered the same as me? It might let you save funds for a bit longer to get your i5 spec.

I thought the cpu on offer is a server chip. I checked the ASUS website and did not mention the compatibility of server quads.
Another thread says these chips are C1 steeping, which I thought weren't the best clockers.

CAT-THE-FIFTH · 17 Mar 2010 at 20:48

mglover070588 said:
I thought the cpu on offer is a server chip. I checked the ASUS website and did not mention the compatibility of server quads.
Another thread says these chips are C1 steeping, which I thought weren't the best clockers.

The X3360 is basically a Q9550.

The Q9550 at stock speed is faster than even the Core i5 661:

http://www.anandtech.com/bench/default.aspx?p=50&p2=117&c=1

The Core i5 661 also has Turbo Boost which the Core i3 530 lacks.

SteveB · 17 Mar 2010 at 20:59

There's no official support as its a 'server' chip, but as CAT-THE-FIFTH say it's basically the same as Q9550.

Yes the C1's are the earlier version, but I still think it's a good deal. If you look for the X3360 elsewhere you can find it at significantly higher prices and not stating which version it is.

OpenToSuggestions · 17 Mar 2010 at 23:30

cpu (server one) out of stock :-(

OpenToSuggestions · 18 Mar 2010 at 19:00

Any other comments anyone?

I realise I could buy a quad core2duo, but with 800mhz ram I would need to buy faster ram. To me this all just seems a bit daft on what is now old tech (which is really overpriced imo), which is why I want the i3. The only time I need cpu power is for games.

SteveB · 18 Mar 2010 at 19:43

I'm not sure about your OCZ RAM, but my Corsair XMS2 800MHz will run at 1066 (or higher) if I drop the timings from 4-4-4-12 to something like 5-5-5-18, it gives a better score on the Windows Experience Index. However I choose to run it at 1:1 ratio with my FSB. Which was 400 until recently. Have a play and see what yours can do.

OpenToSuggestions · 18 Mar 2010 at 21:07

SteveB said:
I'm not sure about your OCZ RAM, but my Corsair XMS2 800MHz will run at 1066 (or higher) if I drop the timings from 4-4-4-12 to something like 5-5-5-18, it gives a better score on the Windows Experience Index. However I choose to run it at 1:1 ratio with my FSB. Which was 400 until recently. Have a play and see what yours can do.

I had one attempt and it passed memtest at 6-5-5-18 at 1000mhz. Ram is rated 5-4-4-15 at 800mhz.