Ok so some final questions.. (PSU/HDD)

Right.. seen as most people seem to think my choice of components is ok & I'm quite happy with my decisions now.. just have some final questions whilst I await the free delivery option from Scan :)

A64 San Diego 3700+
Abit Fatal1ty AN8 SLi
Sapphire X850XT PE PCI-E
2x 80Gb Hitachi (IBM/HGST) Deskstar 7K80 SATA IO (striped RAID hopefully..)
Geil (Value 6-3-3-2.5) PC3200 2x512mb (already have this)
430w Tagan EasyCon

The only worries I have:
430w enough? (I was assuming it is..) the EasyCon version looking at the datasheets has slightly lower amps than the standard version as far as I can tell, for some reason - but the lack of cables appeals to me.
And what are the Deskstar 7K80 SATAII's like? I've had two IDE IBM Deskstars in the past and both eventually died on me.. which is why I'm worried :) can't seem to find many SATAII drives.

Also seems a shame to be spending more on SLi when I won't actually be using it.. but the non-SLi boards don't seem as good in general, suppose at least I'll have it should ATI introduce support with their new range in the future (in which case I bet the X850XT will drop in price & I'll be gutted heh). Also have the new AMD socket to worry about.. but guess thats a while off.

Thanks for any comments :D

edit: one more thing; are SATAII cables different from SATA? - if so.. where will I get one from? or does the Fatality board come with some?

Not sure about SATAII, but pretty much all motherboard these days come bundled with the necessary cables, be it HDD, FDD or otherwise, have you checked the ABIT website regarding the motherboard bundle?

The Tagan will do your needs fine.

You MAY need to upgrade it if you do go Crossfire or SLi at a later date, but I have seen SLi on the Zen PSU (350W)

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Originally Posted by Fatboy

Not sure about SATAII, but pretty much all motherboard these days come bundled with the necessary cables, be it HDD, FDD or otherwise, have you checked the ABIT website regarding the motherboard bundle?

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It comes with 4x SATA cables.. but I'm sure I read somewhere that SATAII use a different (slimmer) cable... :|

http://www.cooldrives.com/sata-cables.html

Theres some SATAII cables on here - looks like a different connection to me.

$70 for a cable!?!?!?!?!? WTF!?

The seek time of these SATAII drives is 8.8ms too..
I'm thinking I might go for the 80Gb Seagate Barracuda (NCQ).. as the Deskstars aren't listed as NCQ either (even though SATAIO specifies they should be).. that and if the cables are different.....
Also: by the looks of it SATAII 3gbit/s only comes into play when you have around 6 HDDs :rolleyes:

doh.. 7800GT.. hmm considering being a traitor to ATI now and going to NVidia, especially after reading the hexus review ...
gah.. another decision... dammit.

I've always stuck with nvidia. No logical reason for loyalty but I've never had problems and you may as well stick with either ATI or Nvidia. No point going for the best company as they're always outdoing each other from one month to the next.

true.. but I'm considering roughly £300 for a graphics card... it may aswell be the best bang for my buck as they say.. and currently, after reading the hexus review.. that seems like the 7800GT.. so.. it's a good choice I reckon, even though I'm an ATI fan.

Scan have Silverstone SATA IO cables for just under a fiver each I think I saw around about here, thats if the Motherboard doesn't cover them as on the Abit site they only class them as "4x SATA cables"

Then there is the PSU, as I am sure you know the price difference between the 430W and 530W is something like £20, or £14 between the 430W and 480W but are modular cables completely neccesary? £64 for the 480W 2Force... I'm sure you can find some space to hide the cables somewhere in your case... or you could always rely on a good old pair of scissors... or maybe not..

And the Graphics? If you go for the SLI motherboard... its got to be the SLI capable Graphics card... come to the Darkside.... you know you'll like it.

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Originally Posted by superscaper

No point going for the best company as they're always outdoing each other from one month to the next.

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What the? No point in getting the best card for your money?

I flip between NVIDIA and ATI every product cycle (some times more often). They are constantly out doing each other, and I always make sure I have the best card for my money regardless of who makes it.

I just went PCI-E, so I sold my Gainward 6800GT GS for $250 and got a sapphire X800Pro PCI-E (I hardmodded it to an X800XT) for $230 (was on sale and had a rebate). Ended up makeing 20 bucks and having a slightly faster card. It would have been moronic to spend 300+ bucks to get an equivalent NVIDIA card.

Right now it's rather foolish to spring for an X850XT-PE when a 7800GT can best it for the same price. If you are going spend 400+ (dollars or pounds) for a video card at this very moment, there is no reason to go ATI. If you are going to spend 150 (under 350 for PCI-E) there is no reason to go NVIDIA (unless of course DOOM3 and riddick are the only games you play). The situation might change in a few weeks/months when the R520 finally gets out the door, but this is how it is right now.

SLI is mostly worthless. There is single card that will out do any two SLI cards for less money, except at the very top where you have to spend 800+ to get two of the best cards (7800s) for SLI. 6800GT or X800XL/XT out does 6600GT SLI more often than not, for the same or less money. A 7800GTX will match 6800GT/Ultras in SLI, for alot less money.

Fancy SATA cables are a waste, unless you need to reach a drive more than a meter away.

Modular PSUs are nice, but hardly necissary. If you are on a budget you are better off with a non modular PSU of equvalent performance.