[jst42day]

Hi.
Bush bucks arrived.
Time to play before my wife pulls my plug.
For now I'm going to use my current case, an Armor jr., old style case.
And I have a fairly new Enermax Liberty 500 watt psu that I'd like to keep, if I can.
I'm building a pc for family use with some on line business use, music, photos, watch movies and a little gaming.

So far I'm thinking of ordering:
Abit IP35-Pro motherboard, $179.00
Patriot Extreme Performance 4G, 2x2, or similar good quality RAM. Patriot is $104.00
Vendetta 2 cpu cooler, $50.00
Core2 Duo E6550, $160.00

I'm still needing a graphics card. Preferrably on the almost cheap side.
Also, would a slower cpu work with this or am I on the right track here?
I'm hoping to order tomorrow.
Thanks for any suggestions/advice.
jst42day

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Slower CPU should work. I put the Celeron chip in the same mobo as the dual core chip, as long as the numbers match up they should be fine. If you don't want to go with the higher end 8800+ graphics card, go with something a little lower, 7200 or something. I don't know what the current prices would range, right off the top of my head. From my distributer I think the 7200 was $30 something? But I'm not sure.

[jt1990]

Slower CPU should work. I put the Celeron chip in the same mobo as the dual core chip, as long as the numbers match up they should be fine. If you don't want to go with the higher end 8800+ graphics card, go with something a little lower, 7200 or something. I don't know what the current prices would range, right off the top of my head. From my distributer I think the 7200 was $30 something? But I'm not sure.

[jst42day]

it1990,
Thanks for the help.
When you say 'so long as the numbers match up', what are you referring to?
And yes, I'll look at the lower speed cpu.
Also, is there a specific memory timing I should be looking at?
I'm not planning on over clocking.
jst42day

[stettybet0]

If you don't plan on overclocking, don't get that aftermarket heatsink. The stock Intel one will do just fine.

Also, I would go with this motherboard over the one you have selected now and save yourself $90.

Could you define "a little gaming" to help us determine what graphics card you need?

Lower memory timings are better, but don't worry about them too much as you won't notice a difference in your everyday computing. Make sure not to confuse timings (ex. 4-4-4-12) with speed (ex. 800mhz). Higher speed is better, of course.

I would keep the Core 2 Duo if you have room in your budget for it (and if you follow my motherboard advice, you should). You will definately notice a difference in overall and gaming speed between it and a Celeron.

Also, keep in mind that you haven't mentioned a hard drive, an optical drive, an operating system, a monitor, a keyboard, or a mouse.

[jt1990]

it1990,
Thanks for the help.
When you say 'so long as the numbers match up', what are you referring to?

No prob! Actually, it's jt1990, but that's ok. People get my real name mixed up all the time...


The numbers, I mean the socket and the FSB. Pretty much any intel chip/mobo you'll get is going to be Socket 775 (also known as Socket T) so you don't have to worry about that. However, you'll want to look at the FSB speed on both the mobo and chip, because those can vary.

Also, make sure that you're mobo will support the speed of RAM that you're putting in.

[jst42day]

stettybet0,
I was just reading a bunch of reviews on the E7200. I think that might do the trick.
As for the mobo, I've been looking at the Abit, the Gigabyte you suggested and the MSI P35-Neo.
All 3 are highly rated.
Of the 2 cheaper ones, the MSI has a bit more to offer for around the same price. What are your thoughts on that?

By a little gaming, I mean that one of us might do some games once or twice a week. Nothing too frame rate intensive.
Also, where do I stand with my Enermax Liberty 500 watt psu? Kepp it or get another more powerful one?

Thanks for your help.
jst42day

[james_8970]

I suggest sticking away from that Patriot memory, the voltages it requries are to high for long term use without active cooling IMO.

Of the 2 cheaper ones, the MSI has a bit more to offer for around the same price. What are your thoughts on that?v

If you don't have an older LGA775 processors, your choice for motherboards will be greatly affected as many will require a BIOS update to support an E7200.
James

[jt1990]

I use Kingston RAM, when I can get my hands on it. Quality RAM for a decent price (at least, it is through my distributer)

Another place to check out would be http://www.datamem.com. They're a company in New Hampshire, and they've got pretty decent prices on their RAM.

You're not getting a super graphics card, and unless you're going to be running 3+ hdds, I think a 500W psu is fine. I think I'm putting a 400W in most of the comps I build, and I usually only put a 2.0GHz Dual Core CPU, and an Nvidia 7200 256MB card, and a single hdd. Now, someone else may have a different opinion, but personally, I think 500W is fine.

[AnonPC]

Is the ram 1066mhz? if it's only 800mhz you can get it for around 65 - 75 after rebate and shipping and handling for the same ammount.

[jst42day]

james_8970,
I'll have to look at some other more appropriate memory.
I checked the web site for MSI. The E7200 apparently works on the Neo already.
I'm going to check the Abit, Asus and Gigabyte boards in this price class too.
What memory voltages should I be looking at? This is my first build from scratch.

@jt1990,
Thanks for the help.

@ Anon Pc,
Are you talking about the 'Memory Standard' ?
If yes then where did you get RAM for that price?

Any suggestions for a half way decent graphics card anybody?

THanks to all of you for your help.
jst42day

[jt1990]

Through my distributer, a MSI Nvidia GeForce 8500GT card with 256MB RAM is about $60. An MSI Nvidia GeForce 8500GT with 512MB RAM is about $65, so there's not a whole lot of price difference.

I'm not sure what either of these cards would cost through somewhere like newegg.

[AnonPC]

http://www.newegg.co...GeForce 8 serie they are pretty close i price. Just watch out because there are differnt bit sizes on them too. The cheapers ones are only 64 bit. I have no idea which one you would need though.

the ram was on newegg also.

http://www.newegg.co...e=4GB (2 x 2GB) General link to DDR2 800, 4GB(2x2GB)

http://www.newegg.co.....chnology, Inc. Same list but isolated to OCZ brand. You'll notice it is 90 dollars plus, but currently many have 30 - 40 dollar mail in rebates.

If the standard your refering too is the DDR2 800 part, yea that is what I meant. If I'm not wrong the usual smaller non parenthesised part is the byte size(8 bits per byte or hte bits diveded by 8) the longer number is the 800 or 533 times 8 or the bit number in mhz if I'm not mistaken with the last numberes cropped to zeros. So, DDR2 800 (6400) is DDR2 that is 800MHz or 6400 using bits I think in Megahertz. I could be wrong. I have to look that up.

Edited by AnonPC, 21 May 2008 - 11:55 AM.

[stettybet0]

jt1990, referencing your nameless distributor's prices isn't helping anyone, as we don't have access to your nameless distributor. However, I'm not sure that we'd want to, as Newegg has this EVGA 8600GT for only $50 (after MIR). For casual gaming, this is what I'd recommend. However, if you (jst42day) plan on playing more intensive games, such as Crysis, Call of Duty 4, Bioshock, Gears of War, etc., then this choice would need to be re-evaluated.

As for the motherboard, you'll find that most techs around here agree that the Gigabyte I linked to earlier is the best motherboard choice for the price. I strongly recommend it.

I disagree with James on the RAM. I find Patriot memory to be very cool, and it typically doesn't require the full 2.2V to run at stock settings. I have the exact same RAM, except in 1GB sticks, and they handle stock speeds at 2.0V. However, even at 2.2V (which I have them on because I overclock), they've lasted me over a year and have shown no signs of overheating.

To AnonPC, the 6400 in DDR2-800 (PC2-6400) stands for the peak transfer rate of the module. So, DDR2-800 RAM has a peak transfer rate of 6400MB/s.

Edited by stettybet0, 21 May 2008 - 12:44 PM.

[jst42day]

Everybody,
You've all been great.
I apologize for my lack of knowledge.
I found out that James is right about the E7200 cpu. I don't have the bucks for an expensive mobo nor do I have the knowledge to oc in order to get everything running properly.

So please somebody help with the following so that I can place my order.
If I get a Core2 Duo E6550, will it work properly with the GA-EP35-DS3L?
And please tell me which is the proper memory for this combo.
Thanks.
jst42day

[jst42day]

I'm ready to order the following:
GA-EP35-DS3R
EVGA 512-P2-N756-TR GPU (same price as the 256)
Core2 Duo E4600

I've got my power supply, new SATA dvd, cables, connectors etc..
But when I look at all the different ram at Newegg I get lost.
I'm not looking to overclock and don't need super performing stuff. Good and reliable will do it.
I want 2x2G.
Which of all those at Newegg is best for my purpose? Patriot, Corsair, GSkill or another?
Thanks again for your help and patience. This build is special for me. It's for my wife.
jst42day