So if I wanted to get a mobo like Soorena linked to (the Gigabyte) I couldn't use it in this case?

Actually other sites are listing it as compatible with ATX motherbaords.
Eitehr way,I'd suggest a better case such as the Antec 900, Antec P182. Both cases a cheaper and have better build construction.
James

This post has been edited by james_8970: Jan 18 2008, 09:20 PM

James, you're killing me, lol. After all that research ... aiye. I looked at both of those cases you mentioned and it just seemed the m998 was better. Well, let me see what some others have to say. I can always send it back if it doesn't fit my needs.

I updated my post. Yes it works for ATX, though I'd suggest other cases over this one, but that's your call.
James

James could you tell me why you prefer it over other cases? I would like to hear your opinions.

Antec 900
Pros:
Excellent cooling
PSU is on the bottom
Good build construction
Window side
Lots of room
Cheap
Front panel
Pre cut water cooling holes

Cons:
Poor cable management
No removeable motherboard tray
Attracts the dust



Antec P182
Pros:
Great airflow
Good cable management
PSU on the bottom
Front panel
Quite
Pre cut water cooling holes

Cons:
A little bit more money is needed.
Case can get cramps for larger PSU's
There is a hinged door.
No removable motherboard tray

James

This post has been edited by james_8970: Jan 18 2008, 09:37 PM

Thanks. I had checked those cases out and I liked them, but I'm not all that interested in water cooling and having the PSU on the bottom was an issue for me because my current PSU (Ultra X-Connect 500W) would not have a long enough cord to reach the power plug on the mobo.

Word of warning, Ultra makes poor PSU's.
James

I beg to differ. I've had this PSU for over two years and have never had any issues with it. Except for the stiffness of the cables, especially the main power cable which is a big unruly thing.

As fars as RAM goes this looks like an awesome deal here. And as for the case the m998 specs list it as being compatible with ATX, Micro ATX, and EATX form factor boards.

I may save some $$$ and go with the Duo instead of the Quad. And I found an ABIT IP35 Pro mobo that is pretty impressive (although the Gigabyte is a lot cheaper). I know I want a Core 2 Duo CPU, either way. I'm even considering Super Talent PC 5300 for the RAM (much cheaper). Although at $50 for this G.SKILL 2GB (2 x 1GB) DDR2 800 (PC2 6400) that would be a better deal I think.

Basically I'm running around on the Web reading every review I can find and saving links on my USB thumb drive. This way when I get all my components I can refer back to the information I've saved in case I run into any issues or want to tweak something.

Thanks for the help everyone

This post has been edited by dcloud: Jan 19 2008, 02:34 AM

Ok, so here's what I'm considering so far.......

MOBOS:
GIGABYTE GA-P35-DS3L LGA 775 Intel P35 ATX Intel Motherboard
ABIT IP35 Pro LGA 775 Intel P35 ATX Intel Motherboard

CPUs:
Intel Core 2 Duo E6550 Conroe 2.33GHz 4M shared L2 Cache LGA 775 65W Dual-Core Processor
Intel Core 2 Duo E6750 Conroe 2.66GHz 4M shared L2 Cache LGA 775 65W Dual-Core Processor

RAM:
G.SKILL 2GB (2 x 1GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 (PC2 6400) Dual Channel Kit Desktop Memory
G.SKILL 4GB(2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 (PC2 6400) Dual Channel Kit Desktop Memory
OCZ Reaper HPC Edition 2GB (2 x 1GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 (PC2 6400)
mushkin 2GB (2 x 1GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 (PC2 6400)
OCZ Titanium XTC 2GB (2 x 1GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 (PC2 6400)

My new case is going to have a big honking window so I might as well get some components that look cool.

This post has been edited by dcloud: Jan 19 2008, 04:37 AM

Hi dcloud,

Those two motherboards are rather different in price... I was going to recommend this Abit, but it seems to be out of stock! Excellent motherboard for the price. Of course, the Gigabyte GA-P35-DS3L is also an excellent choice

If you want this system for heavy graphics programs, I would recommend looking into a Core 2 Quad Q6600. I do believe the 4 cores help out with these types of programs. Otherwise head for the E6750 if you can afford it over the E6550, I have the E6750 and it's truly a great processor for the $$$

For the RAM choices, they all seem pretty good. Try looking a little further into the specifications, you want low timings. Specifically, look for numbers like this: 4-4-4-12 If you can find DDR2 800 RAM with these timings, it'll be nice and quick If you want components that look cool, I personally like the GeIL Ultra, I have a set of this now. It's orange - my favourite colour

Or quite simply, grab this quick - it's so cheap!

Cheers,

Troy

This post has been edited by troy: Jan 19 2008, 08:10 AM

Troy, thanks for the reply. I appreciate your advice. So far I have decided on the E6750 and the Gigabyte GA-P35-DS3L. The only thing holding me back on the Gigabyte board are a couple negative issues which I'm not sure how big of a deal they'd be for me. I was going to go for the Core 2 Quad Q6600 but it came down to a matter of my budget. As for the RAM do you mean something like this here?

Howdy:

Unless you are going to run XP Pro 64bit or Vista 64bit, 4 gb of ram is a waste of money as the 32bit operating systems will only see a max of about 3gbs of that.

Murray

Yes, I'm aware of that, but thanks for pointing that out. The optimization for 64 bits is clearly a step forward, but only momentarily, the only benefit you can obtain by installing this operating system is the possibility of administering more than 4 GB of RAM.

This post has been edited by dcloud: Jan 19 2008, 04:30 PM

Ok, here are the choices I've made for the following ...

CPU: Intel Core 2 Duo E6750
CPU Cooler: ARCTIC COOLING Freezer 7 Pro
RAM: CORSAIR XMS2 2GB (2 x 1GB)
OS: Microsoft Windows XP Professional With SP2C

The mobo I like is the Gigabyte GA-P35-DS3L. However, tonight I discovered that the board does not offer support for the GDDR3 RAM, which is on a lot of the newer PCI-Express graphics cards. Another board - the Gigabyte GA-P35C-DS3R - supports both Dual Channel DDR2 and DDR3. Although this board costs quite a bit more.

I'm not sure how big an issue this is so if anyone has any information on this I'd appreciate hearing about it.

Thank you.

This post has been edited by dcloud: Jan 19 2008, 10:57 PM