help with new system build - RAM and PSU

[ik9000]

Hi, just ordered most of the components for my new system. Could do with some help re RAM and PSU:


1) Mistakenly ordered 8-8-8-24 1333MHz so switching it to 1600MHz but wondering whether to pay the same and switch to 9-9-9-24 1600MHz or pay extra for 8-8-8-24 1600MHz.

Does latency 8-8-8-24 RAM offer any advantages over 9-9-9-24 RAM? Heard it might help with overclocking?



2) Any recommendations on PSU? Only one graphics card at present, but 2nd going in once got paid a few more times so the PSU will need to allow for future SLI load. Prefer 90%+ efficient and it must be quiet + durable. Guessing modular is the better way forwarded to avoid the cabling spaghetti. Provided it ticks those boxes then obviously the lower the price the better.

What capacity PSU do I need + any recommendations?

System ordered so far is:

Asus P6X58D-E, Intel X58, S1366, PC
LG BH10LS30.AUAR 10x Blu-Ray Writer
1GB Gainward GTX 460 GS GLH, 4000MH
1TB Seagate ST31000528AS Barracuda 7200.12 HDD
Intel Core i7 950 Bloomfield 45nm,
6GB (3x2GB) Corsair XMS3, DDR3 PC3-10666 (1333MHz) CAS 8-8-8-24
Prolimatech Megahalems Black Anodised
120mm Noctua NF-P12 Vortex-Control Fan
BitFenix Survivor CORE, Black, Mid Tower Case
200mm BitFenix Spectre All Black Fan
60GB OCZ Technology Vertex 2E, 2.5" SSD

[dfour]

Get one of these:

NZXT HALE90750M Hale90 750W Modular Power Supply £108:99 until tommorow on today only
http://www.scan.co.uk/products/750w-...-12v-140mm-fan

As to the ram I would say it depends upon your budget.
Cas 9 tripple channel £67.12
cas 8 tripple channel £88:27
Cas 7 tripple channel £103:54
http://www.scan.co.uk/Shop/Computer-...-%281600Mhz%29

Having faster timings can speed things up but you would not notice them as you wont be directly testing cas 9v7 for intance you will just be using the one kit. If you can afford it then get the fastest cas you can, also it will overclock to higher levels as you will be able to lower the timings to get more speed.

[ed^chigliak]

Latency will have negligible impact on performance. The corsair Vengeance RAM seems to be good value and at should run cooler at 1.5V instead of the more common 1.65V. RAM specs change over time so I tend to buy more than I need at the outset. I would probably opt for a 12gig (3x4gig) kit on a x58 board.

The Antec true power new 650W is a solid good value modular PSU or the non modular Antec gamer series PSUs.

[Predator]

Why tripple channel ram? isn't it rare for a mobo to be able to utilise the fulll 'tripple' channels over double channel?

JW

[Ulti]

1) Mistakenly ordered 8-8-8-24 1333MHz so switching it to 1600MHz but wondering whether to pay the same and switch to 9-9-9-24 1600MHz or pay extra for 8-8-8-24 1600MHz.

Does latency 8-8-8-24 RAM offer any advantages over 9-9-9-24 RAM? Heard it might help with overclocking?

2) Any recommendations on PSU? Only one graphics card at present, but 2nd going in once got paid a few more times so the PSU will need to allow for future SLI load. Prefer 90%+ efficient and it must be quiet + durable. Guessing modular is the better way forwarded to avoid the cabling spaghetti. Provided it ticks those boxes then obviously the lower the price the better.

What capacity PSU do I need + any recommendations?

As ed^chigliak stated, latency has almost no effect on real world performance, it's only benchmarks that will show the difference so you may as well save your money and go for the cheapest you can get. I'd suggest the 1600mhz CL9 ones. Even overclocking the RAM is not worth the time and effort IMO. Only things worth overclocking are the CPU and graphics card IMO. CL8 compared to CL9 differences would be close to non existant with the same speed, you would have to compare something like 2133mhz CL9 to 1333mhz CL9 to notice even the slighest of difference in programs. The money is much better spent elsewhere on the system.

The PSU ed^chigliak suggest is great and is only £59 on Scan's Today Only! It has 2x 6 pin PCI-E and 2x 8pin PCI-E connectors so it's plentiful for 2 GTX 460s in SLI provided you do not go into extreme overclocking. If you want a 90%+ efficiency PSU you're going to have to go with 80+ Gold rated PSUs and their price point is simply too expensive to be worth paying for.

Why tripple channel ram? isn't it rare for a mobo to be able to utilise the fulll 'tripple' channels over double channel?

JW

The X58 platform uses triple channel memory and does have advantages over dual channel memory.

[ik9000]

thanks for the advice, upped the RAM to 1600 cas 9 and got the NZXT PSU - only 20dB and min 89%efficiency across the board = WIN.