Help: Spec me a mobo + cpu cooler

[803hart]

My previous mobo died on me 2 months ago (AsRock 945g DVI skt 775), RMA hasn't reaped any good results as Im still waiting till now to hear from manufacturer. Anyway I was looking for a good motherboard ( £70-£80 max) suitable for the casual gamer, CAD enthusiast. I was also thinking of replacing the stock cpu hsf any suggestions (£30 max)?

Specs:
CPU: Intel Pentium D 805 2.66GHz
RAM: 2 x 512MB Corsair Value Select DDR2 PC5300
GPU: 256MB Sapphire Radeon X1600 PCI-e
PSU: 480W XCLIO SCF/aPFC/PCIE
Case: Coolermaster Centurion 5
HDD: 160GB Samsung HD160JJ SATA II 7200/8

[BUFF]

oops, a P35 won't support a 533fsb CPU so ignore the below, a 965 will however.

if you don't need RAID & Firewire abit IP35-E £65
need RAID Gigabyte P35-DS3R £73
need RAID & Firewire abit IP35 £85 or Gigabyte P35-DS3P £87

normal prices from SCAN - if they appear on Today Only etc. they may be a few £ cheaper.

[803hart]

A concern about the Abit board is the douple POST issue that some people keep talking about. So a P35 board would be the way forward huh? Whats the difference between Gigabyte GA P35-S3 and the Gigabyte P35-DS3R performance-wise?

[staffsMike]

The IP-35 I had did the double post.. havn't actually read about it yet..is it common then?

Figured it was just a bios issue.

[BUFF]

the IP35-E & IP35 currently do the start-stop-start on a cold boot only (not restarts), the Pro doesn't - mind you there are plenty of posts on forums where other mfrs mobos that aren't meant to do this actually do ....
Apparently it's something to do with strap initialisation.

The differences between the S3 & DS3R are the solid caps (which should only affect longevity) & the ICH9R rather than ICH9

[Pob255]

So a P35 board would be the way forward huh?

it seems to be atm, but not for you without replaceing your CPU as well

oops, a P35 won't support a 533fsb CPU so ignore the below, a 965 will however.

The intell 965 is a exellent chip set and the best for you. (only reason people here are going over to the p35 is it supports faster chips )

How about an Abit AB9 £67.43 or the Pro version at £82.42
Or the fabled Asus P5B

For cooler an Arctic cooling Freezer 7 Pro (£16) is quieter than the stock cooler, but something like a Scythe mine (£25) is better

[803hart]

it seems to be atm, but not for you without replaceing your CPU as wellThe intell 965 is a exellent chip set and the best for you. (only reason people here are going over to the p35 is it supports faster chips )

How about an Abit AB9 £67.43 or the Pro version at £82.42
Or the fabled Asus P5B


For cooler an Arctic cooling Freezer 7 Pro (£16) is quieter than the stock cooler, but something like a Scythe mine (£25) is better

Between the Abit AB9, the Asus P5B and Gigabyte DS3, Which board would you recommend??? As for the cooler, Im thinking of getting between Scythe Infinity, Scythe Ninja Plus or Scythe mine. Hmm which one is the best?

[BUFF]

I guess that you have no need for RAID then?
In terms of features for your money the AB9 wins hands down but it has a somewhat idiosyncratic layout & it doesn't overclock to as high an fsb as the other 2, mind you it does it on the 1067 strap whereas the other 2 switch to the looser 1333.

ebuyer have the DFI Infinity 975X for £83 delivered http://www.ebuyer.com/customer/produ...123034&_LOC=UK & 975X is still the fastest chipset clock for clock.