• Competitor rules

    Please remember that any mention of competitors, hinting at competitors or offering to provide details of competitors will result in an account suspension. The full rules can be found under the 'Terms and Rules' link in the bottom right corner of your screen. Just don't mention competitors in any way, shape or form and you'll be OK.

No Brainer?

Big.Wayne said:
Excellent! I do like a rational challenge! :)

By virtue of the fact you are posting on OcUK forums it is safe to assume you are part power-user part uBer-Geek, hopefully I got that bit right!

Now if my assumptions are correct you do indeed like to get the best value from your purchases but are not 100% up to date with the latest silicon hence why this thread exists!

For your information the Chipset you are using is nearly one year (born Oct 2007 I think?) and I believe was outmoded in record time by the Intel® X48 Express chipset a few months later. As already stated the *only* good reason to be running an X38 now is to provide a good platform for a CROSSFIRE gaming system (not a single 8600GT!).

Personally I feel dual card set-ups are not for everyone, Pro-Gamers yes, Pro-Benchers yes, Pro-ePennies yes, but for the average Real-Life-Gamer you should always use the best single card you can afford.

As it appears you haven't taken advantage of your boards key strength (Crossfire) there is no reason not to sell it, the Intel® P45 Express chipset is a much better motherboard for someone using a single beastly graphics card so apart from severe lethergy why would anyone not pull their finger out and get an effectively *free* motherboard swap and end up with a more power efficient and better overclocking platform? :confused:

Now motherboard aside we talk about the graphics card, you been using an 8600GT connected to a 1680x1050 monitor? :eek: seriously that is really sheet! :D

A 256MB 8800GT for £50 would deffo be an upgrade for you, but double the budget to £100 (+selling your old mobo and GPU) and you end up with an uber gaming system(P45+HD4850) that will last a lot longer than an 256MB 8800GT shoved in an Intel® X38 Express chipset motherboard! :o

Lol I hope this is helping you! :)
Click to expand...

Wayne, I appreciate what you are saying ... in theory, but I`m a suck it and see kind of fella I`m afraid. I don`t care for benchmarks, hearsay, "oh, this supersedes this so therefore everything that became before it is rubbish" etc. Really, x38 boards are still great and in fact, would still be way out in front of most other rigs out there. What does for me does for me. Sorry but I ain`t gonna sell it because in real terms, a P45 board would give me nowt :)


A better card would though. Looks like a toss up between an HD3850 and an 8800GT. 3850 wins by virtue of being better with respect to double the memory for same price.

Could I have spent more and got a better rig? Hell yeah, but this rig is quite fine as it is, apart from the fact that it could do with a GPU boost. If an 8600GT can give a more than adequate experience with Crysis at 1680 x 1050, medium to high, DX10 (no AA though), then a smart upgrade might future proof me for a year I reckon and enhance the experience. :)
 
Big.Wayne said:
The P5E has one trump card and that is standard x16/x16 Crossfire support, apart from that the newer INTEL® P45 Express is superior in everyway. If you are not using CROSSFIRE than there is no reason to *cling* to your old board and sell it on while the price is good.

The newer INTEL chipsets are better overclockers, use less electricty and are priced extremely well. In your scenario I could probably sell the X38 and bag a nice P45 and still have some money to put towards the new GPU. On the other hand your GPU is not worth a great deal.

For £100 spent and a bit of hustling of your old kit (Mobo&GPU) I think you would be very happy running an INTEL® P45 Express combined with the budget champion HD4850.

For your information the Chipset you are using is nearly one year (born Oct 2007 I think?) and I believe was outmoded in record time by the Intel® X48 Express chipset a few months later. As already stated the *only* good reason to be running an X38 now is to provide a good platform for a CROSSFIRE gaming system (not a single 8600GT!).
Click to expand...

Thats silly advice.

The P5E is a great board offering Dual PCI Express 2.0 x16 graphics. Unless he is running a high FSB Quad ( Q9450 ) the upgrade will achieve nothing overclocking wise either. Some boards are good for 475 anyway.

The difference in power consumption at best is a few watts and pales once you add a graphics cards.

FYI X48 is a speed binned X38 with different timings in the bios. On my Maximus Formula I could easily upgrade it to the Rampage version ( X48 ) with the Rampage Bios.

--------------

Mate keep the board. The Dual PCI Express 2.0 x16 will keep options open for you if you do decide to go XFire. Only thing I would say is try to get a 512MB card. If you can afford it go for a 4850 you can always Xfire later. The other option is a 8800 GTX which can be bought 2nd hand on the MM for £60 inc.
 
Last edited:
Get a 4850, keep the x38 board and then you have the option of adding another 4850 cheaply when they drop in price :)

I built the system in my sig a few weeks back and went for the x38 board as I'm going to be adding another 4870 sometime.
 
auraindigo said:
I have an 8600GT and was looking at an upgrade. As I have an x38 X-fire ready board, I was contemplating 2 x HD4650s in X-fire config., however, I spotted this 8800GT for under 50 notes.

That`s a canny upgrade for not a lot of cash really, isn`t it?
Click to expand...

Wow... a 256MB 8800GT for gaming at 1680*1050? A 3850 will also not power the latest games at that res, it really would be money wasted. About as canny as an uncanny thing that's just lost a canny competition. Crossfire 4650's would also be an exercise in pointlessness. The only no brainer would be buying them. :p:D

Stretch a little and get the cheapest 4850 you can find and then you will be fine for a good while.

Big.Wayne said:
As it appears you haven't taken advantage of your boards key strength (Crossfire) there is no reason not to sell it, the Intel® P45 Express chipset is a much better motherboard for someone using a single beastly graphics card so apart from severe lethergy why would anyone not pull their finger out and get an effectively *free* motherboard swap and end up with a more power efficient and better overclocking platform? :confused:

Now motherboard aside we talk about the graphics card, you been using an 8600GT connected to a 1680x1050 monitor? :eek: seriously that is really sheet! :D

A 256MB 8800GT for £50 would deffo be an upgrade for you, but double the budget to £100 (+selling your old mobo and GPU) and you end up with an uber gaming system(P45+HD4850) that will last a lot longer than an 256MB 8800GT shoved in an Intel® X38 Express chipset motherboard! :o

Lol I hope this is helping you! :)
Click to expand...

Wayne what on earth are you talking about... how would a P45 be a worthwhile upgrade to an X38? All that would be would be a ton of invonvenience for no discernible gain. A 4850 shoved into that X38 will not only be 10x more sensible than what you suggested, but will last just as long as a 4850 shoved into an "uberubercrazymonsteroverclocklolP45". He has an X38, it's still a high-end mobo with dual PCI-E 16x lanes!
 
Last edited:
I concur, really don't see the need to switch the mobo since he's obviously looking at the low/midrange segment of the market anyway. It's just not worth the cost and hassle of not only buying and selling, but also having to rebuild the rig. The money could be better spent on gfx card and the time could be better spent on playing games. I've been upgrading my PC for over 10 years now and in all that time I've never (RMAs aside) changed motherboard without changing my cpu at the same time (i.e. a new slot/socket).

Sure if he could somehow swap mobos for free then it might be something worth considering, but I suspect that is unlikely once shipping costs etc are taken into consideration.
 
HangTime said:
Sure if he could somehow swap mobos for free then it might be something worth considering, but I suspect that is unlikely once shipping costs etc are taken into consideration.
Click to expand...

Some might argue that the X38 is the better board depending on what you want out of the board. :)
 
Some good advice in there, thanx! :)

I`ve whittled down to 2 options methinks, either 2 x 3850s in X-fire or a 4850. Maybe the latter as VTR mentions adding a second later on, and I`m deffo keeping my mobo. Only had it since just before Xmas and it`s keeping an E6550 very stable at 3.4Ghz :)
 
Well, I`ve plumped for this 4850 which will be quiet as it`s passive. Unfortunately, I had to go to a competitor on this occasion but couldn`t go past a 1Gb version for £129 delivered. Cheapest 512Mb version delievered I found was ca £112 so an extra £17 for 512Mb was indeed a no brainer.

Maybe I can get a 2nd for Xmas ;)

Thanks again for all the help :)
 
I think you made the wright decision mate should give you what you are looking for. Dual cards are nice but they are not without there problems. Anyhow don't want to start a new thread thinking of upgrading my card to a 4870. Is there anyone with a 4870 and a hiper type r 580 heard so many bad things about the psu that i don't trust it fully. Had it 2 years with no problems would just like some assurance. Any other opinions are welcome.
 
auraindigo said:
Well, I`ve plumped for this 4850 which will be quiet as it`s passive. Unfortunately, I had to go to a competitor on this occasion but couldn`t go past a 1Gb version for £129 delivered. Cheapest 512Mb version delievered I found was ca £112 so an extra £17 for 512Mb was indeed a no brainer.

Maybe I can get a 2nd for Xmas ;)

Thanks again for all the help :)
Click to expand...

Please let us know what you think of it and any temps you can record would be great.
 
auraindigo said:
Well, I`ve plumped for this 4850 which will be quiet as it`s passive. Unfortunately, I had to go to a competitor on this occasion but couldn`t go past a 1Gb version for £129 delivered. Cheapest 512Mb version delievered I found was ca £112 so an extra £17 for 512Mb was indeed a no brainer.

Maybe I can get a 2nd for Xmas ;)

Thanks again for all the help :)
Click to expand...

Good choice, always the option for a 2nd card should you need/want one :D
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top Bottom