Spec me some quad core

Dreadi · 18 Jun 2008 at 10:37

Think its time for me to upgrade so im looking at going core2quad but need help choosing a motherboard, not sure which chipset would be best?

I'll be keeping my 8800gt, HDD's and my current case for now but would i be able to get away with keeping my 500W modular enermax liberty psu?

So far i have;
Intel Core 2 Quad Pro Q6600 "Energy Efficient SLACR 95W Edition" 2.40GHz (1066FSB) - OEM
G.Skill 4GB DDR2 PQ PC2-8000C5 (2x2GB) CAS5 Dual Channel Kit (F2-8000CL5D-4GBPQ)

I have gone with 4gig DDR2 as its cheap enough and may go to vista soon so sort of future proofing myself.

Any help welcomed

semi-pro waster · 18 Jun 2008 at 11:03

Something based on the P35 chipset would give you a good balance between price and performance, the Asus P5K, Abit IP35 and Gigabyte P35 DS3R are all good options.

The Ram is overkill unless you are overclocking majorly (>3.6ghz) which is unlikely so I'd suggest decent PC6400 such as the G.Skill PC6400 PQ and saving yourself ~£30.

Ben M · 18 Jun 2008 at 11:07

Semi pretty much hit the nail on the head as per usual.

The abit ip35 boards are good, and their range (ip35-e ip35, ip35-pro, ip35pro+) really do cater for all price ranges =]

You'll probably need to think about cpu coolers as well. The tuniq tower and thermalright ultra extreme are the two best. The arctic freezer 7 pro is the best value for money- bear in mind that it is noisy at higher fan speeds. The TRUE is as noisy as you want it- you put your own fan on it, but the true is the same price as the tuniq tower, which has a fan included.

Dreadi · 18 Jun 2008 at 12:10

I plan to overclock as high as possible semi so would the ram i suggested still be a bad idea?? and the p35 boards are still a good choice then? I've just seen the p45 boards which i haven't noticed before and are the x38 boards not worth the money ?

semi-pro waster · 18 Jun 2008 at 12:29

The Ram isn't necessarily a waste of money but you'll need very good cooling and a great chip to get above 3.6ghz which is what PC6400 would let you go to without running the Ram outwith specification (9x multiplier and 400mhz Ram speed).

P35 motherboards are tried and tested, they don't support PCI-E 2.0 but it is backwards compatible and they won't natively support 1600mhz FSB chips but that isn't a huge issue for most people.

X38s are probably only worth it if you need Crossfire or PCI-E 2.0 support.

Dreadi · 18 Jun 2008 at 15:12

well i know its not really essential but the 8800gt is pci-e 2.0 and i wont be able to upgrade for a while again so i'm looking for something that will last me (if thats even possible with pc parts

) so i guess im either looking IP35 or the DSR3 unless theres an x38 board that you can reccomend me

triggerthat · 18 Jun 2008 at 15:15

Thermalright Ultra-120 Extreme CPU Cooler (Socket AM2/LGA775) Thermalright Ultra-120 Extreme CPU Cooler (Socket AM2/LGA775) £27.99
(£32.89) £27.99
(£32.89)
Abit IP35 Pro (Socket 775) PCI-Express DDR2 Motherboard Abit IP35 Pro (Socket 775) PCI-Express DDR2 Motherboard £89.99
(£105.74) £89.99
(£105.74)
Intel Core 2 Quad Pro Q6600 "Energy Efficient SLACR 95W Edition" 2.40GHz (1066FSB) - OEM Intel Core 2 Quad Pro Q6600 "Energy Efficient SLACR 95W Edition" 2.40GHz (1066FSB) - OEM £104.99
(£123.36) £104.99
(£123.36)
OCZ 4GB (2x2GB) PC2-6400C5 800MHz SLI-Ready Edition Low Latency Dual Channel DDR2 (OCZ2N800SR4GK) OCZ 4GB (2x2GB) PC2-6400C5 800MHz SLI-Ready Edition Low Latency Dual Channel DDR2 (OCZ2N800SR4GK) £59.99
(£70.49) £59.99
(£70.49)
Sub Total : £282.96
Shipping cost assumes delivery to UK Mainland with:
City Link Parcel Next Day (Delivered Mon-Fri)
(This can be changed during checkout) Shipping : £8.25
VAT is being charged at 17.5% VAT : £50.96
Total : £342.17