Originally Posted by
Gr44
Hello fellow hexians...
I need some help from the more technical and up to date chaps among you. My pc is slowly falling to pieces... the P4C800-E has served well... the 2.6Ghz P4 has certainly done it's time, however - it's time has definatly come... and gone.
I knew ~9 months ago this thing was on it's last legs as far as games were concerned. I got an Xbox360 in an attempt to delay the PC-making.... I suppose in a way it saved me money... in a very roundabout way!
Anyway guys, I don't keep upto date with tech as much as I would like to these days, partly because I'm a lazy sod and partly because it's a futile effort, always something else around the corner that is a must have goodie for your machine.
My case is being modded at the moment and should be back soon... next ~2weeks. I will be watercooling this and have already bought some parts ( listed below )
PSU: ( Enermax 720w )
Pumps: 2x Ultra DCC
Rads: 120.3 + 120.1
DVD: 2x... dvd-rw. ( SATA )
This was in an effort to keep the costs spread out a little. I don't have blocks yet, but depending on the motherboard I will use the 120.3 to cool the CPU and GPU and the 120.1 to cool the NB/mosfets etc.
I play games... this is the main reason for the new PC, but I also enjoy overclocking - I've done it with my P4 - albeit some time ago most of the principles are the same so I shouldn't struggle too much! ( help always welcome of course - yes have read through Clunks guide )
Basically I would like some help on what PC spec to purchase, budget is not too much of an issue... if it's DDR2 and non-SLI It's within my range ( unless you get stupid and add SAS or something ) but would ideally like to keep it low, of course.
I have been looking at something similar to this:
Intel Core 2 Quad-Core Q6600 G0 SLACR, 95W, S775, 2.40 GHz, 1066MHz FSB, 8MB Cache, Retail
£149.99 £176.24 Looks good to me.
Asus Blitz Formula Special Edition, iP35, S 775, PCI-E (x16), DDR2 1066/800, SATA II, SATA RAID, ATX
£138.89 £163.20 You can save a few quid by grabbing a P5K deluxe. If you arent too fussed about the saving, then this should do fine.
2Gb (2X1Gb) Corsair TwinX DDR2 XMS2 Dominator, PC8500, 240 Pin, Non-ECC Unbuffered,CAS 5-5-5-15, EPP
£107.85 £126.72 I would go for Ballistix 8500 for a similar or cheaper price.
768MB BFG Technology 8800GTX Overclocked PCI-E(x16) Mem 1800MHz GPU 600MHz 128 Stream HDTV/2 x DVI-I
£294.89 £346.50 Just be aware of all the driver issues with the 8800 series at the moment (see the thread about it).
250 Gb Seagate ST3250620AS Barracuda 7200.10, SATA300, 7200 rpm, 16MB Cache, 8.5 ms, NCQ
£37.29 £87.63 - I dont understand this bit. The price looks wrong.
£911.95
How does this sound? ( add anything I have missed - bar the CPU block etc )
Couple of questions:
a) Better to get a Q6600 G0 or a E6850 ? Personally I would say the quad. It will become more and more useful, but you do need good cooling if you are going to overvolt it (D-tek Fuzion/Apogee GTX type thing)
b) What RAM, I've heard Corsair aren't as good as they used to be... recomendations? Is the speed of this ram enough to overclock a C2D/Quad nicely? Again, the Ballistix. I killed mine recently, and I posted it back to them by special delivery on tuesday, and on thursday morning, a new set arrived by special delivery. That doesnt happen much with other brands.
c) Is the GTX worth it, or would I be better with a high-ram GTS ? ( 24" dell ) I would say that if they sort the drivers in the next month, then they will be ok, and on your screen, the GTX will do it justice.
d) Should I wait for the DFi P35 board... or get a P5K - if so which P5K ? Baring in mind I'll probably end up taking the stock heatpipes off anyway - would a lesser P5K model be more suited? Personally, I think DFI have serious quality control issues, and their RMA process is a joke, so on that basis, I wouldnt recommend them.
As for the P5K, well, the board itself is rock solid, there is plenty of help and support about for them. They arent perfect by any means, but in my opinion, the P5K deluxe is the best all rounder at the moment, with huge overclocks and excellent stability. Just make sure that you dont use the supplied SATA cables because they are kack, as is the Asus support. :)
Many thanks for reading and look forward to feedback!
Gr44
