Your recommendations please.

SiriusB

SiriusB

SiriusB

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Okay, in a few weeks I plan to upgrade my current system to a C2D rig.

I have already chosen the E6600 to be the centrepiece but I would like some recommendations on RAM and Motherboard.

A few months ago I would have known for sure what to go for, but there seems to be new RAM and motherboards flying about and I no longer know what RAM compatibility issues, if any, still exist.

I don't have a fixed budget just yet but don't go crazy and spec me a DQ6 and Corsair Dominator :p

I plan to overclock the nuts out of the E6600, so i will be going for the Scythe Ninja rev B - unless someone can suggest better. RAM has to be up for some clocking also.

Provisionally I think I will set my budget to 500 quid, just to give you all an idea.

Thanks for helping :D

SiriusB
 
Maybe try something like this, the Abit uses the 975 chipset which is supposed to be better for overclocking 6600 and above chips. I don't know if there are any better motherboards in overclocking terms though but the Ram is at a great price at the moment. :)

CP-128-IN Intel Core 2 DUO E6600 "LGA775 Conroe" 2.40GHz (1066FSB) - Retail (CP-128-IN)
£187.99 £187.99
MY-058-GL GeIL 2GB (2x1GB) PC6400C4 800MHz Ultra Low Latency DDR2 Dual Channel Kit (GX22GB6400UDC) (MY-058-GL)
£139.99 £139.99
MB-107-AB Abit AW9D Intel 975X (Socket 775) PCI-Express DDR2 Motherboard (MB-107-AB)
£119.99 £119.99
Subtotal £447.97
VAT £78.40
Total £526.37
 
Seconded on that ram. Don't know a thing about that motherboard though so cannot comment.

With the ram any of the 6400 kits are good (just check the motherboard compatibility here and/or at the manufacturers website if you go with something not commonly used), that Geil is especially popular as it performs as well as much more expensive kits. 6400 ram = 400FSB if you stay 1:1 ratio (recomended by many) 400FSB at 1:1 = a 50% overclock on your 6600 up to 3.6ghz, generally considered about the best you can expect from an average 6600 on air while staying on the safer side of 1.5volts.
 
Thanks for the replies so far. I think I am pretty much sold on the RAM. It's a great price and it seems GeIL are on top form when it comes to their DDR2 stuff.

Will have a think about the Abit motherboard. Custom PC magazine did a massive C2D motherboard hardware test so I will have another look at those and see what is said about the Abit.

More suggestions are welcome :)

SiriusB
 
Yes read that Custom PC, not sure what to make of it, the give their top place to the Asus P5B, which is fair enough, but gave the Giga DS3 a very low score, but many users here rate it very very highly.

And CustomPC didnt even feature the GeiL in last months massive RAM Sets test, not a mention anywhere.

Would go by what people here have to say. They have them, own them, use them every day, thats a more realistic test IMO.
 
Don't get me wrong, I do not intend to take CPC's word as gospel. It will however give me some insight as to its stability and how well they generally overclock.

The major flaw with their hardware test was it taking into account everything from how many SATA ports it had to how they could push the FSB. I think the reason the DS3 didn't score highly was due to it not having a myriad of useless or unimportant features.

Besides, I wont really be looking at the final scores, I will be more interested in specific info within the descriptions.

So far though it looks like E6600, 2GB PC6400C4 GeIL and either the DS3 or the Abit AW9D.

SiriusB
 
I agree about reviews, most mags get 'persuaded' to give some companies better marks than others so everything is to be taken with a pinch of salt.

OCUK forums is where I always check for recommendations.
 
I'm in the same boat i'm going for that Ram and CPU but motherboard i'm stil not sure on.
Here's a review of the Abit AW9D-MAX Intel 975X

Review link


Hope it helps it's between that and the Asus P5W DH. Seems 975X chipsets work better on the 6600 from what i've picked up around here anyway.
 
Yeah, I think a 975X is what I will be going for, just need to decide. I need to figure out what I am doing with my old components too lol.

SiriusB
 
Okay, still haven't decided! Been a tad busy too so haven't had much time to make up my mind anyway.

I would love to go for a 975X Motherboard but seems the cheapest one is about 150 quid with VAT. Bit too expensive really.

I have come up with this spec, but it is a whopping 600 quid! I know I can get perhaps 100-150 quid from the sale of my old RAM and Mobo [CPU is going to my bro] but still, it is a bit expensive.

Intel Core 2 DUO E6600 "LGA775 Conroe" 2.40GHz (1066FSB) - Retail
£194.99 (£229.11)

Gigabyte GA_965P_DS4 (Socket 775) PCI-Express DDR2 Motherboard £104.99 (£123.36)

GeIL 2GB (2x1GB) PC6400C4 800MHz Ultra Low Latency DDR2 Dual Channel Kit (GX22GB6400UDC)
£169.99 (£199.74)

Scythe Ninja Plus Rev.B Heatpipe CPU Cooler (478/754/939/940/AM2/LGA755) £32.99 (£38.76)

Sub Total : £502.96
Shipping : £8.25
Vat : £89.46
Total : £600.67

I deffo want the E6600, but is there any other RAM/Mobo combo that would give good OCing results and be cheaper? I know it is unlikely but I have been surprised before on these forums :D

SiriusB
 
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