A few hardware qustions

[Chaos2003]

I plan on buying an MSI P4N Diamond Socket T (LGA 775) Nvidia nForce 4 SLI Intel Edition ATX Intel Motherboard, and the specifications read that the memory modules have to be DDR2 667. I read up on DDr2 667s and found out the they come in two models, PC2 5300 and PC25400. I'm wondering if this motherboard needs one or the other, or doesn't matter.

I don't plan on using SLI to it's advantages just yet. But, when i'm ready, i want to know if the machine can handle it power wise. So, what would be a good case, so that I don't need to install any more powerful power sorces or cooling sytems, if possible?

[Spongebob]

Re: A few hardware qustions

As long as its 240pin DDR2 667 ram it will work for that board. Finding a case that comes with a good power supply would really limit your options. Your best bet would be to buy a power supply seperatly from the case and don't skimp in that department becuase a good PSU is very important for a stable system.

Look at the Newegg reveiws from their customers and do google searchs for reveiws on the case of your choice, then let that determine if it's a good case and wether or not it has good airflw. You could also check out the systems Building guide here at Tweaktown, it looks like they did there reseach. http://www.tweaktown.com/sbg_intro.php

[Yawgm0th]

Re: A few hardware qustions

You could also check out the systems Building guide here at Tweaktown, it looks like they did there reseach.

For the most part, anyway...

Out of curiousity, why have you chosen an Intel LGA775 system? An AMD system would cost less and outperform it in pretty much everything.

Your case and your power requirements have nothing to do with each other. Your power supply should be purchased seperately. Regardless of the rest of the system, you'll want something well over 500W for an SLI system.

[DigitalDD]

Re: A few hardware qustions

if you are going with a SLI rig and actually putting 2 video cards in it I recommend either

OCZ PowerStream 520W or the SLI:600W Enermax Noisetaker SLI both are good. if you got he money the pc power & cooling 850Watt mofo is nice but a little larger than most PSU's so make sure it fits your case before buying it..

[Chaos2003]

Re: A few hardware qustions

Well, thi s project has been pushed WAY back. So, lots of things i've changed but, to anwser your question Moth. Why LGA? Because, i have family members who refuse to change from Pentium, wasn't my choice. Give me a couple of things to prove AMD is better and I'll try to talk my way into one. Also, do you need a large tower to house an internal water cooling system?

[Yawgm0th]

Re: A few hardware qustions

Let's see... An AMD processor will perform much better and cost much less. You might spend $200 more on an equivelent Intel system. Also, explain to them that marketing doesn't mean much. Because it says "Intel inside" and they have some stupid commercials doesn't mean it's a superior processor.

You don't need a huge case, but don't go out of your way to get something small, either.

[Chaos2003]

Re: A few hardware qustions

Times change, along with that, so does my plans for a computer. So moth, what do you think of the new setup I have?

New Parts:
Case- Cooler Master Praetorian Black All Aluminium Alloy ATX Mid Tower ($109)

Motherboard- ASUS A8N-SLI Premium Socket 939 NVIDIA nForce4 SLI ATX AMD Motherboard ($160)

CPU- AMD Athlon 64 X2 4400 ($526)

PSU- OCZ PowerStream ATX 520W ($89)

OS- Microsoft Windows XP Professional ($139)

Video Card- BFG Geforce 7800GTX OC ($509)

Memory Modules- OCZ EL Platinum Revision 2 1GB (2 x 512MB) DDR 400 (PC 3200) ($153)
Hard Drive- Western Digital Raptor 74GB 10,000 RPM ($169)

Media Drives-
Plextor Black 2M Cache IDE DVD Burner ($79)
Sony Black 1.44MB 3.5" Internal Floppy Drive Model Black ($11)

Salvage:

Sound Blaster Audigy 2
17' Dell LCD
100 Watt 4.1 Altec Lansing Speakers

Another thing is the x64 edtion of XP. Is it worth it? And do you think some of my older games will work on it?

[Yawgm0th]

Re: A few hardware qustions

Unfortunately the OCZ Powerstream 520W, if I'm not wrong, uses a 20-pin ATX connector. You'll need a 24-pin. I'd recommend this.

If you plan to play Battlefield 2, I'd suggest you get this instead of that RAM. You'll want 2GBs. Even if you don't, it wouldn't be a bad idea as some upcoming games may also be able to use such a large amount of RAM.

I'd also recommend you get a DFI board instead of an ASUS. There's nothing wrong with the ASUS, but DFI's board will overclock significantly better, if and when you decide to overclock. Even if you don't want to now, the option will be there, and the ASUS has no advantage over the DFI.

Another thing is the x64 edtion of XP. Is it worth it? And do you think some of my older games will work on it?

Not yet; probably.

[Chaos2003]

Re: A few hardware qustions

PSU- I understand, but do you think this one would be better?

RAM- No conflict.

Motherboard- does it matter that it says that the motherboard says that it can handle 64 but not X2 (since I am getting one) or is the fact of it being a 939 socket prove this false?

[Yawgm0th]

Re: A few hardware qustions

Actually the two PSUs are of very similar quality, except Fortron PSUs seem to be more reliable, from what I've seen. Newegg is also a lot more reliable than Tiger Direct, so between the two it's not really a choice I'd even think about.

Any socket 939 board should work with Athlon 64 X2s, including any DFI or ASUS board.

[Trinimookster]

Re: Q for Spongebob re: setup posed by Chaos2003

I was thinking to buy the board (MSI P4N Diamond Socket T (LGA 775) Nvidia nForce 4 SLI Intel Edition ATX Intel Motherboard) he (chaos2003) was looking at on Aug. 22, 2005.

This is the processor I'm looking to buy, is it ok?

I'm looking at this PSU, please let me know if it is ok.

This will be my first build.

Thanks for the help.

Trinimookster

[Amd_Lover2004]

Re: A few hardware qustions

Unfortunately the OCZ Powerstream 520W, if I'm not wrong, uses a 20-pin ATX connector. You'll need a 24-pin. I'd recommend this.

The Powerstream 520 has a 20+4 pin, that you can take off and hide in the case somewhere if you olny require a 20 pin. In the box it comes tie wrapped together with the 20pin connector. It also has a 4+4 pin plug. Again, if required, you can detach one of the 4 pin connectors and use a single one. Very stable and very user friendly.



Also reguarding the last post, as stated by Yawgm0th, it would be better to go with a s939 system. It would be cheaper and faster in pretty much everything except video/audio encoding/editing.

[Yawgm0th]

Re: A few hardware qustions

No, as I've said, socket 939 systems are faster in everything, including video encoding. You can still find a couple video benchmarks with LGA775 and even socket 478 being competitive, but AMD wins the ones that matter (e.g. TMPGEnc and Adobe Premier).

[Trinimookster]

Re: A few hardware qustions

Thanks for the help, to all you AMD guys, but I'm not really all that concerned with the Intel vs AMD race, but I certainly do want a kick-ass machine so I understand why you point one out over the other. I'm really pretty sure that I'm getting this mobo - MSI P4N Diamond Socket T (LGA 775) Nvidia nForce 4 SLI Intel Edition ATX Intel Motherboard.

Now I'm asking about compatibility of a video card with the mobo I've chosen.

I was looking at this card, and it's cheap but looks good by most reviews. I just want to make sure it will be compatible. What do you guys think?

Thanks again for all the help, I need it.