Finally getting around to it...

[kriminal]

So i'm finally getting around to building my new PC. I posted about 2 months ago to get some feed back, and i got some which i appreciated. I have a couple of questions on that matter though.

I keep reading different things that say an AMD 64X2 4400+ has 2gigs FSB or 1 gig FSB, i see them both. I cant come to a common answer. The answer to this question has a lot of load on what motherboard i buy.

Right now im looking at the AMD 64X2 4400+, DFI LANparty ultra-d, Saphire Radeon X1900XT (the xtx's 25mhz raise isnt worth 80 dollars to me), 2X1024 megs os OCZ pc3200 (ddr 400) ram, 150gig 10krpm raptor, 550W power supply. Now, will all this work together? Is there anything i should change for better performance? Any feedback would help immensely.

[Amd_Lover2004]

Re: Finally getting around to it...

Well first off all A64 motherboards and CPU's have 2000MHz hypertransport, which some people call FSB to get you to buy it, and 1000MHz is also right because there is an up and a down 1000MHz up, and 1000MHz down=2000MHz. Again, all s939 motherboards will support this, so get what ever one you desire.

As for what you have chosen already Everything looks great except for the Power supply.... What brand is the one you are looking at?

[matm347]

Re: Finally getting around to it...

Everything looks good, do you plan on doing any overclocking?

[kriminal]

Re: Finally getting around to it...

I wasnt really looking at any particular power supply, but after a brief search i was wondering if this would work? http://www.pricegrabber.com/p__OCZ_T...h=power+supply

I dont know much about how much power each individual part needs, but i did read that if you had an X1900XT that you pretty much need a 550W power supply. I'm not quite sure.

About the overclocking... i may dabble into it a bit.. i had my P4 oc'd an extra 400 MHz, with watercooling, but it started hanging about 3 months after doing it so i put it back to its original clock speed, and ripped the watercooling off. The thing with overclocking is that the frequencies and latency timers mixed with the voltages confuse me some time. I work on electronics for the Air Force, but we dont work in BIOS type programs, ours is all hardware. :/ I dont really foresee myself needing to OC it in the near future, so i think ill read up on all that and then OC it when im certain i know what im doing and when i need a bit of a performance gain to run Quake 8 on high res.

[Amd_Lover2004]

Re: Finally getting around to it...

Quake 8.... LOL

That Powersupply is the exact one I am using and I can say that it will power your system, except if you plan on adding another X1900XT for Crossfire at some point. The only thing that others may bring up is that it does not have dual(or more) 12V rails, but it does have an extremely strong single 12V rail at 33A. I love this power supply. Oh and the great thing about OCZ power supplys is that if your rails are a little low on the voltage side of things you can lower or raise the voltage on that rail using a screwdriver. OCZ's warranty is one of the best and should you have to make use of it you will not be dissapointed.

[matm347]

Re: Finally getting around to it...

Overclocking is very easy, just up the FSB till you get instability (verified with a few programs) and you can either raise voltage, or back off a bit. Do this while keeping an eye on temps and thats all you need.
I have the 4400+ and it is a nice chip, but not the best overclocker. I have mine at a very stable 2.66 watercooled. I've heard the X2 3800+usually gets better overclocks.
I asked because you will want to invest a little more $ in RAM, OCZ GX has been reported to overclock well.

[casecutter]

Re: Finally getting around to it...

If you are not overclocking, stick to the higher CPUs like that 4400+ and get the OCZ Platinum PC3200 2GB ram kit. That ram is perfect to run stock speeds and you will have no issues with speed with any of your chosen hardware, it will scream! As for overclocking later, you will be able to, you would just need to use dividers for the ram/CPU. No big deal and cross that bridge when you come to it. If you can find one, I'd suggest an Opteron 175 over that 4400+ due to the fact Opteron's run cooler and will overclock better, but let your budget decide. You really can't lose speedwise either way when running stock speeds.

[kriminal]

Re: Finally getting around to it...

I appreciate all the feedback and help. Makes me a bit more confident in what im buying. Now to order it all and set it up without having any DOA's or other problems. :)