Would this make a good base unit?

Rubberhead

Rubberhead

Rubberhead

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7 Jul 2006
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I am going to start building my dream pc.
I will use it for gaming, multimedia, sound production, and 3d / video editing.
Im on a slight budget, so the items I buy dont have to be 'the best', hence I wont be going for the top items.
I am not a noob with computers, I will sort all the peripherals out myself, I just want any thoughts or suggestions on the 'base' unit, ie mobo/cpu/memory.
Here is what I have planned....
Cpu
Intel Core 2 Duo E6850 "LGA775 Conroe" 3.00GHz (1333FSB) - Retail
http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=CP-156-IN
Mobo
EVGA nForce 650i Ultra (Socket 775) PCI-Express DDR2 Motherboard (122-CK-NF66-T1)
http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=MB-003-EA
Memory
OCZ 2GB (2 x 1GB) PC2-8500 1066MHz SLI-Ready Edition Dual Channel DDR2 (OCZ2N1066SR2GK)
http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=MY-082-OC
And they will all live in...
Antec P190 Gaming Case - 1200 Watt Neo Link PSU (Gun Metal Black)
http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=CA-072-AN

Ignore the case.... is this a good 'bundle' to build upon?
I will be getting a top notch soundblaster, a medium range 6800GTX
and extra bells and whistles, but Im just wondering things like....
Is it worth getting faster 1333mhz memory?
Is the mobo a good one, and will it do well with the cpu and memory?
Are there any alternative mobos worth considering?

Many thanks for your time in reading this

The Heed

*edit* I have just noticed that the mobo only seems to support 800fsb max for the memory, and doesnt have onboard gfx. I will be buying 'in pieces' as my pay-checks come in, so the 8800GTX will come a few months after the base unit. I basically want some combo I can use straight away, even if the sound and graphics are onboard for a month or two. Any suggestions as to a good mobo? Ideally I would like an IDE connector on it, as I will have to use my existing HD and DVR-R till I can afford to upgrade them
 
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I'm pretty much in the same boat as you, as in I am buying in bits and pieces. But on the advice of others have changed how I am buying.

Basically dont buy CPU/MOBU/RAM/GFX untill you have CASE/PSU/HDD/DVD etc the reason to buy CPU etc last is that their is always a newer model coming out and always price reduction. So essentially as soon as you buy one of these items it will very quickly go down in value.

Currently I have a Case, PSU, waiting on HDD's to arrive. Next buy will be OS then im going to purchase all the expensive stuff, that way I should get the best deal.

Otherwise safe up a lump sum and buy all at once.

Hope this helped.
 
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Good advice there chemical, but the kid in me wont have a bath,
will not brush my teeth, and I want it NOW!!!!!! lol
I know that everything is basically obsolete as soon as you buy it, thats the
nature of the game, my PC is now creaking where as it was top-notch 3yrs ago.
So any performance gain is a bonus, yet I dont want to go 'bleeding edge' cos there are savings to be made.
and to stickroad...
would going quad-core at 2.4ghz give me significant gains over a duo-core at 3ghz? I wont always be using multi-threaded applications.
And yes, I'm planning on buying that case, it has a snake light inside, lol
I admit I'm being a bit of a 'kid in a sweet shop', but buying a lesser PSU
(in comparison to the 1.2kw of the case to a decent 1kw PSU) and a decent case can easily run me into spending an equivalent amount.

As always, any suggestions gratefully recieved, and thanks for taking time to reply

The Heed
 
Some people think the E6850 would be a better choice over the Quad Core, i don't necessary agree. If you look at the AnandTech Benchmarks you can see that the E6850 beats the Quad in most of the games right? The reality is though the Quad isn't far behind and you certainly wouldn't be disappointed with the Quad. Along with this if your doing any kind of Encoding, Multitasking etc... then the Quad wins hands down. :eek: :p

Also about that case, their really is no need for it to be honest, something like this will be more than efficient:

http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=CA-005-AK&groupid=701&catid=7&subcat=507

And that PSU that comes with it is such an overkill, this PSU would be better overall:

http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=CA-004-CS
 
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Thanks stickroad, thats a good idea, and cheaper too
I admit in the encoding/rendering side of things a quad core is probably
the way to go, but im still thinking that the ratio of programs I use that
are multi-threaded to the ones that arent, that maybe a 3ghz 2core would
be better suited as an all-rounder.
Like I say, I dont want the best, but I want something that will last another
3yrs, and I AM willing to go a little extra on some things...
ie. the case is the BASE, and oneday I might want SLI gfx, and raid arrays, so
1.2k watts starting power seems more attractive than 620, when one day I might upgrade and find the psu lacking, that case could last more years than
the bits inside it....
anyways I said ignore the case, I'm treating myself here ;-)

*edit* oh, and thanks very much for the ideas, it is MUCH appreciated
 
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Rubberhead said:
Thanks stickroad, thats a good idea, and cheaper too
I admit in the encoding/rendering side of things a quad core is probably
the way to go, but im still thinking that the ratio of programs I use that
are multi-threaded to the ones that arent, that maybe a 3ghz 2core would
be better suited as an all-rounder.
Click to expand...

I agree that the amount of programs that you probably will use wont be multi threaded but a Quad core running at 2.4GHZ is certainly not slow is it?

The E6850 at 3GHZ is 600MHZ faster than the Q6600, 600MHZ vs an extra 2 Cores? :cool:
 
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If you buy a decent CPU Cooler such as the Tuniq Tower if you quite easily overclock the Q6600 to the E6850 speeds and beyond, me personally would go with the Q6600 its a bargain.

I also agree with Stickroad about the case & PSU.
 
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truebluecfc said:
If you buy a decent CPU Cooler such as the Tuniq Tower if you quite easily overclock the Q6600 to the E6850 speeds and beyond, me personally would go with the Q6600 its a bargain.
Click to expand...

But the Quads run soooo hot!
 
BAMBI said:
But the Quads run soooo hot!
Click to expand...

They have been designed to cope with extremely hot temps, with a decent aftermarket cooler such as the Tuniq Tower, the heat will not be a problem especially at stock Vcore.
 
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truebluecfc said:
with a decent aftermarket cooler such as the Tuniq Tower, the heat will not be a problem.
Click to expand...

Ive seen them run toasty even with great air cooling. Though as long as it doesnt stop them clocking well it doesnt matter.
 
As you are doing Audio/Video/3D work I think you'd be crazy not to at least consider quad-core. When overclocked it won't be that far behind a dualcore in games. That said the E6850 looks to be priced extremely aggressively at the moment, I was expecting it to be well over £200 before I checked! :eek: In single threaded apps it's the fastest consumer cpu on the planet (along with the QX) and tbh I'm struggling to think of that ever being available for £170 in the past.... maybe the 1.4ghz tbird.

Regarding looking for a mobo with onboard gfx, I think you'd be shooting yourself in the foot a bit there. Generally speaking proper 'enthusiast' boards don't include that so you would be severely limiting your options.
 
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