new 6400 core duo build, need suggestions for other parts

[bball_1523]

Alright so a friend of mine has decided to go with the Core Duo e6400, but he doesn't know what motherboard to go with.

Do any of you have any suggestions for a reliable motherboard that will work well with the e6400? He is not an overclocker, so OC'ing is no problem.

the other parts he wants are:

7900 GTX 512 mb vidcard
OCZ 2 GB (2x1GB) ram
Antec truepowerII 550 watt psu

he already has soundcard, monitor, cd/dvd drives, speakers.

would everything workout right other than the mobo?

[Mr.Ferrari]

He also needs a case and hdd.

~Does he have any plans for sli?

~What exact ocz ram is he buying?

~I like the Asus P5B good bang for the buck.
http://www.tankguys.biz/audiolansata...728df87c730b3f

[bball_1523]

Originally Posted by Mr.Ferrari He also needs a case and hdd. ~Does he have any plans for sli? ~What exact ocz ram is he buying? ~I like the Asus P5B good bang for the buck. http://www.tankguys.biz/audiolansata...728df87c730b3f

I forgot to mention that he already has a case and 2 harddrives.

As for SLI, I'm not sure, but wouldn't you think it would benefit him if he were to SLI in the future? Or does having an SLI board slow things down if he only uses one videocard for now?

The OCZ ram he's getting is this: OCZ Platinum 2 GB

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16820227089

[Mr.Ferrari]

Eh..the ocz platinum rev.1 stuff has been having a few issues with some boards. I would get some corsair xms or some G.Skill HZ, or wait until rev.2 becomes mainstream.

I like the asus p5b for a good budget board. Does he have a specific price range?

[bball_1523]

so is this corsair any good?

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16820145527

price range for the entire build would probably be $1500 max. I think the cheaper and better quality would be better for him. He was looking at a $220 Asus, but not sure if that board is any good.

He also is looking at a DFI board recommended by pcgamer forums.

DFI: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16813136168

[Mr.Ferrari]

http://www.zipzoomfly.com/jsp/Produc...tCode=85016-16

[blue60007]

DFI's aren't that easy to work with...besides the 975X only supports Crossfire, so it would be a bit pointless to get Crossfire board if he wants an nVidia card...

[newbuilder14]

Mr. Ferrari, didn't someone have trouble with an Asus p5b here? Do you think it would be good paired with an e6400 and a x1800xt? I was thinking about this...

[Mr.Ferrari]

I dont recall. But it would be a great budget mobo to be paired up with those specs. The only motherboard I would get worried about is the Gigabyte ds3..

Just stay away from ocz memory. Rev.1 of their sticks are having issues with alot of boards.

[bball_1523]

Originally Posted by blue60007 DFI's aren't that easy to work with...besides the 975X only supports Crossfire, so it would be a bit pointless to get Crossfire board if he wants an nVidia card...

what is crossfire?

if my friend got a mobo that supports DDR2 800, would a DDR2 667 ram chip work well with it?

[Mr.Ferrari]

Like ati's version of nvidia's sli. Dual card setup.

Yes ddr2 667 will work.

[bball_1523]

Originally Posted by Mr.Ferrari Like ati's version of nvidia's sli. Dual card setup. Yes ddr2 667 will work.

well my friend says he doesn't trust ATI because of bad experience with two of their cards, so he's going with nvidia no matter what, lol.

will nvidia single or sli work with the DFI board I posted above?

[Mr.Ferrari]

Stay away from dfi if your not worried about overclocking. Its just not a good newbie board.

If you want go sli forget core 2 duo and go amd. If theres any card that has had severe quality issues its nvidia. More specifically their 7900GT series.

The only boards that I would trust with core 2 duo and sli is intel nforce 590 boards that should be released next week. As far as stability goes, nforce has always had a bad rep with intel. This might change it, or it might not.

You can run sli on a 975x chip, all you need to do is get hacked drivers. A risk you take since its not official.

And why a dual card 7900gtx setup? If your really that intent on going nvidia, get a 7950gx2.

[bball_1523]

Originally Posted by Mr.Ferrari Stay away from dfi if your not worried about overclocking. Its just not a good newbie board. If you want go sli forget core 2 duo and go amd. If theres any card that has had severe quality issues its nvidia. More specifically their 7900GT series. The only boards that I would trust with core 2 duo and sli is intel nforce 590 boards that should be released next week. As far as stability goes, nforce has always had a bad rep with intel. This might change it, or it might not. You can run sli on a 975x chip, all you need to do is get hacked drivers. A risk you take since its not official. And why a dual card 7900gtx setup? If your really that intent on going nvidia, get a 7950gx2.

the only reason my friend wants that DFI is because pcgamer.com forums recommends it for their high end dual core system.

for some reason my friend likes intel so he wants core duo 6400. And of course there's no way he will get ATI, that's his problem. But will it work anyway?

what problems would the asus boards bring up?

btw here's the asus board he is considering: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16813131031

right now my friend just wants one 7900 GTX. But the possibility of SLI would be cool. What difference is there between 7900 and 7950 besides framerate improvement?

[Mr.Ferrari]

And why a dual card 7900gtx setup? If your really that intent on going nvidia, get a 7950gx2.

Basically its two 7900GTs and then some. Its two pcb's in one. But with much less power consumption and takes up only 1 slot. Right now this card is a bit better then ati's 200 dollar less X1900XT. And will be be beaten by the upcoming single X1950XTX.

~No dont get the nf4 board. Intel plus nforce4 equates to instability and poor performance.

~Ok thats pcgamer, this is pcmech, different people will have different opinions and a lower or higher extent of knowledge. Were not here to force anything but in no way is that the best core 2 duo motherboard available. If he still wants it then go for it. Like I said, we're just here to suggest.

***He should be prepared to make some sacrifices if he wants both things. The only time when I would remotely suggest sli with intel is if the upcoming NF590 chipset for intel is proven to be stable. Which will be likely. Be prepared to shell out for the premium chipset. Asus and DFI will be the first mobo manufacturers producing it. Expect it out by next week.

By the way tell him to make sure he atleast gets at 20'' lcd to ever see any improvement over a single card vs. sli. At anything below 16x12 resolutions, sli or crossfire is a total waste.

[bball_1523]

Originally Posted by Mr.Ferrari Basically its two 7900GTs and then some. Its two pcb's in one. But with much less power consumption and takes up only 1 slot. Right now this card is a bit better then ati's 200 dollar less X1900XT. And will be be beaten by the upcoming single X1950XTX. ~No dont get the nf4 board. Intel plus nforce4 equates to instability and poor performance. ~Ok thats pcgamer, this is pcmech, different people will have different opinions and a lower or higher extent of knowledge. Were not here to force anything but in no way is that the best core 2 duo motherboard available. If he still wants it then go for it. Like I said, we're just here to suggest. He should be prepared to make some sacrifices if he wants both things. The only time when I would remotely suggest sli with intel is if the upcoming NF590 chipset for intel is proven to be stable. Which will be likely. Be prepared to shell out for the premium chipset. Asus and DFI will be the first mobo manufacturers producing it. By the way tell him to make sure he atleast gets at 20'' lcd to ever see any improvement over a single card vs. sli. At anything below 1680x14,12,10 resolutions, sli is a total waste.

My friend isn't really looking for the best core 2 duo, but just wants a reasonable priced one that will give him max graphics at a smooth framerate (does not have to be the highest FPS, just smooth).

Suppose he does not go to SLI, but still gets an SLI DFI board. Do you think he will encounter any problems?

[Mr.Ferrari]

Well like I said, with dfi you must be prepared to bios flash or take proper procedures in bios. But otherwise its a stable board.

What sli dfi board? Do you mean the new 590 thats coming out?

[bball_1523]

Originally Posted by Mr.Ferrari Well like I said, with dfi you must be prepared to bios flash or take proper procedures in bios. But otherwise its a stable board. What sli dfi board? Do you mean the new 590 thats coming out?

dfi: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16813136168

that one ^^

why would he have to flash the bios to make it work? It doesn't work right away?

[Mr.Ferrari]

It works right away but if he ever encounters issues, dont expect all that much help from support is what im trying to say. Good boards, good quality but mainly geared toward overclockers.

And no thats not a sli board. Crossfire only. You can get hacked drivers and do sli, but thats at own risk.
Intel 975x=crossfire
Nvidia nforce=sli
Intel + Nforce = bad
But hopefully nforce 590 will prove to be a stable chipset. The boards based on this new chipset for intel will be sli capable. Should be coming out next week. And we are just waiting for test results at the moment.

[blue60007]

That board does *not* support SLI, only ATI's Crossfire. As Mr.Ferrari said there's "hacked" drivers, but that's not something I recommend doing. SLI and Crossfire can be a pain to begin with and using "hacked" drivers is just asking for trouble.

There's nothing wrong with putting an nVidia card into a Crossfire board...I wouldn't even bother with SLI or Crossfire anyways, all it is, is a money maker.

DFI boards aren't friendly...they can be a pain to work with and get working properly, so unless you or your friend has worked with one before, be ready for some work and hair pulling...

The people that recommended the DFI might be experienced with DFI's and have no problems with them, but sometimes people forget to look at things from the less-experienced viewpoint (I have no idea how experienced you or your friend are...)

Personally, I'd just get the ASUS P5B, single card, and be done with it - a single powerful video card is really all you need (unless you want to play at uber-extreme resolutions, etc).

[Mr.Ferrari]

Originally Posted by blue60007 Personally, I'd just get the ASUS P5B, single card, and be done with it - a single powerful video card is really all you need (unless you want to play at uber-extreme resolutions, etc).

Quoted for truth

[bball_1523]

ok so he plays at 1280x960, will that work with one 7900 GT 256 mb vid card and the rest of the setup he wants on a DFI mobo?

Will the Asus p5B work just as good or better?

[Mr.Ferrari]

Yes..If you want 975x for real I suggest something along the lines of Intel Bad axe or Asus p5wdh. Which is usueless if you dont need the extra crossfire capabilites which we have covered.

Asus p5b is a very stable and a great bang for the buck motherboard. 7900GT will work great for his needs.

[bball_1523]

Originally Posted by Mr.Ferrari Yes..If you want 975x for real I suggest something along the lines of Intel Bad axe or Asus p5wdh. Which is usueless if you dont need the extra crossfire capabilites which we have covered. Asus p5b is a very stable and a great bang for the buck motherboard. 7900GT will work great for his needs.

there was one person on newegg that wrote that the Core 2 Duo was only compatible with the p5b after flashing the bios. Is this true? If so, I'd prefer if the motherboard worked out of the package.

[Mr.Ferrari]

All 965's should work out of box.

[blue60007]

Otherwise ASUS will ship you an updated BIOS chip (if it's removable) for $5, if for some reason the shipped BIOS version isn't compatible.

[newbuilder14]

"The Asus P5B does NOT have a removable BIOS chip."