New case, mobo and processor - need advice, opinions...

[ticks-&-leeches]

specs of mine amd-64 3200 thermaltake silent boost cpu fan overclocked to 3400,gig of 3500 corsair xms platinum ram,wd sata rapture h/d 10,000 rpm,ati 9600 xt overclocked to 650 mhz =)...iam in the process of piecing together a 2500 barton system msi mb with a 9600 ati aiw waiting on the board and cpu right now =D - lan rage -

/dreams of transparent case full of all sorts of funky lighting...

Ahem.. anyhow, what's some good mid-range RAM? Is 400 worth all the $$?

[ticks-&-leeches]

all depends on how much performance u want man if your gonna put a nice barton chip a kick ass graphics card in the machine u might want to top it off with some 400bus duel channel ram optimized for gaming look into duel channel and see if the board your getting supports it. and when buying ram id say buy a gig package deal cause they usally knock off like 25 40 bucks if you get 2 and thats almost half the cost of a stick anyway... depending on where you buy it from so in the long run its totally worth waiting or savin that lil extra more to get the gig package,this also prevents any future issues u might get matching up any ram u would pick up later.

[Evan]

My twin sticks of 512 MB Dual Channel Samsung DDR400 cost me about $175. Came with platinum heat spreaders and a life time warranty.

Originally posted by Evan
My twin sticks of 512 MB Dual Channel Samsung DDR400 cost me about $175. Came with platinum heat spreaders and a life time warranty.

Do these boards nowadays (I remember back in the day it had to be a binary number) have to have a "standard" amount of ram (I.e. 512, 1 gig, 2 gig) or can I throw in 3 512's?

[Evan]

You can throw in any amount of sticks you want, but it's better to have the same type of RAM and sticks of the same size.

I plan on getting a third 512MB Stick, or a 1GB Stick. See, my motherboard has 3 DIMM's. DIMM's 1 and 2 are a single channel, DIMM 3 is another channel. If I use my Dual Channel RAM, I should have it in DIMM's 1 and 3, 2 and three, or 1, 2 and 3.

If I get another stick, it will most likely be a 1GB stick. I'd put my 512MB sticks in DIMM's 1 and 2 (Channel 1) and the 1GB stick in DIMM 3 (Channel 2).

If you have 3 slots on mobo for mem, and it's dual channel, you really DON'T want to fill all 3 slots, because the board then runs single channel (How're you gonna have dual anything with three pieces? eh? you'd need four slots). Yes, you can mix/match, but again, with the dual-channel boards your best perf. is with matching sizes (and preferably speed and manufact.).

For inexpensive, rock-solid memory, you cannot beat Crucial (http://www.crucial.com). For higher performance mem, I recommend Kingston Hyper-X (pricey), Corsair XMS (pricey), or Mushkin Level3 (black, I believe).

[Evan]

Originally posted by Bullhead
If you have 3 slots on mobo for mem, and it's dual channel, you really DON'T want to fill all 3 slots, because the board then runs single channel (How're you gonna have dual anything with three pieces? eh? you'd need four slots). Yes, you can mix/match, but again, with the dual-channel boards your best perf. is with matching sizes (and preferably speed and manufact.).

For inexpensive, rock-solid memory, you cannot beat Crucial (http://www.crucial.com). For higher performance mem, I recommend Kingston Hyper-X (pricey), Corsair XMS (pricey), or Mushkin Level3 (black, I believe).

My board is designed to run Dual Channel with all three DIMM slots filled.

[YOOPER]

You might want to check out http://www.motherboards.org/ for an incredible amount of information on just about every mobo out there.

Also, keep in mind that Dell power supplies often have a different wiring scheme than the industry standard. I don't know if you planned on using one or not, but I just thought I'd let you know...

--Dr. Yooper

[Jim0322]

Hey Murg,
Do you plan on overclocking? If yes, you might consider saving money and going with the 2500+ instead of the 2800+. If you do not want to overclock, you might consider the XP 3000+ with 400 MHz instead of the 2800+ with 333. See http://www.newegg.com/app/ViewProductDesc.asp?description=19-103-394&catalog=343&depa=1

I have the asus a7n8x del ver 2.0 and the 2800+. I really like them. The onboard sound is as good/better than my old soundblaster live card. I would recommend you get two sticks of 512 for your new system. (PC3200)

Jim

AMD XP 2800+
Asus A7N8X Del ver 2.0
Kingston 1024 MB PC3200 twin sticks (512x2)
Geforce FX 5600 (325/550)

[Jim0322]

Originally posted by Evan
You can throw in any amount of sticks you want, but it's better to have the same type of RAM and sticks of the same size.

I plan on getting a third 512MB Stick, or a 1GB Stick. See, my motherboard has 3 DIMM's. DIMM's 1 and 2 are a single channel, DIMM 3 is another channel. If I use my Dual Channel RAM, I should have it in DIMM's 1 and 3, 2 and three, or 1, 2 and 3.

If I get another stick, it will most likely be a 1GB stick. I'd put my 512MB sticks in DIMM's 1 and 2 (Channel 1) and the 1GB stick in DIMM 3 (Channel 2).

Evan,
Would it be a waste of money for you get get a third stick? At this point 1024 is plenty of memory for all gaming. I have heard some graphic design type programs take advantge of all the RAM you can give them, but gaming just doesn't take more than 1024 currently. Any opinions?
Jim

Originally posted by Jim0322
Hey Murg,
Do you plan on overclocking? If yes, you might consider saving money and going with the 2500+ instead of the 2800+. If you do not want to overclock, you might consider the XP 3000+ with 400 MHz instead of the 2800+ with 333. See http://www.newegg.com/app/ViewProductDesc.asp?description=19-103-394&catalog=343&depa=1

I have the asus a7n8x del ver 2.0 and the 2800+. I really like them. The onboard sound is as good/better than my old soundblaster live card. I would recommend you get two sticks of 512 for your new system. (PC3200)

Jim

AMD XP 2800+
Asus A7N8X Del ver 2.0
Kingston 1024 MB PC3200 twin sticks (512x2)
Geforce FX 5600 (325/550)

I don't know that much about overclocking, from what I understand most people do it, and it's relatively safe - it just diminishes the life expectancy of your components (someone correct me if I'm wrong).

I'm not too concerned about shelling out an extra $40 or so for a better chip - as long as it's worth it. I'm not looking at "what's good for me now", more so "what'll still be good from me a year from now so I won't have to do this again". Because I'd rather shell out the extra cash now, than have to constantly upgrade my machine (unless someone can demonstrate a method of saving money by upgrading more frequently).

Chances are I will start overclocking - the case I've picked out has some ridiculous number of fans, so why not?

I'm probably gonna throw down the cash to pick up two 1gb DDR400 PC3200 DIMMs for my upgrade - I'm sick of you clowns out-loading me.. I've got two 512mb DIMMs of PC-2300 (I think), which just arent' fast enough for me.

I've also got a ATI Radeon 9800Pro coming in the mail soon, so video card performance won't be a worry.

I currently have a SB Audigy 2 - are these onboard sound cards better than the Audigy 2? Cos if so, I can hock that bad boy.

Thanks.

[Jim0322]

I have never overclocked a CPU, just graphics cards. I really like my system. However, the 2800+ is just 333 FSB and my mobo supports 400. Theoretically I could OC my CPU tp 400 but have not done so yet. My memory is also 400 (PC3200). I will overclock at some point but have not yet. Had I bought the 3000+ with 400MHz I would not even be thinking about OC yet. There is just this part of me that wants to take advantage of the 400MHz FSB. I have heard it is better to have components match.

I have heard that the Audigy 2 and onboard sound (soundstorm) on my mobo are roughly equivilent in quality. There are a few BF regs that use the same onboard sound as me and I have heard no complaints. On most onboard sound chips you will get better quality from the audigy.

my 2c,
jim

Originally posted by Evan
My board is designed to run Dual Channel with all three DIMM slots filled.

There's a significant difference between amd and intel motherboards regarding how they utilize RAM. Trying to run dual channel with 3 dimms on an intel board with a P4 hyperthreading cpu would be a bad idea (i also don't see how this could even work correctly on an amd board) . However for an amd board you could run single or dual and be ok regardless. The amd board should care more about the memory timings and less about the bandwidth when it comes to performance compared to an intel counterpart.

Of course this could all change with the newer amd boards coming out this year but for now I wouldn't be worried about dual channel w/ amd mobos.

Bullhead I know you run dual channel but I still think your system would be very fast even in single channel mode.

C. Murgatroyd - my general advice to you is to buy high quality RAM, an excellent PC case(if you plan to overclock) and a very nice powersupply no matter what. Overclocking and its impact on the life expectancy of your hardware shouldn't be an issue unless: A) you push it too far and don't have proper cooling or B) you plan to use that PC for 10+ years.

For the PS...Don't just go by the wattage advertised (ie 400w) . This can be misleading because the PS might only have a small amount of watts dedicated to a range that is used by most of your pc components. Go for something such as the Antec 480w power supply if you can. There might be better options now but in December that was the best PS available imo.

Also your onboard sound should not be better than the Audigy 2 as long as you setup the Audigy 2 drivers correctly. (it can be a circus because there are a ton of drivers to pick from and you need to install them in the proper order as well)

1. Rgr that Crazy, it'd be a little less, but hardly noticeable. Benchmark scores might drop, but not alot of real-world difference, since the AMD procs don't use all the bandwidth avail. (at least not the XP's, the 64's do. It's the FSB that limits the XP's.)

2. Murg, I'd not worry about overclocking just yet. Get to know your hardware, see what kinda temps you get, etc. Read up on o/c'ing stuff. To safely overclock you should NOT use the stock AMD HSF, which means another ~$50 for a good aftermarket HSF (Thermalright SP97 is AWESOME). Also, keep in mind, the more fans, the louder your pc. Some people are really annoyed by the drone of loud fans, some aren't. You can always unplug a few (and there is such a thing as TOO many fans). Ideally, you have a SLIGHT imbalance with more air being pulled out of case than being put in. I also have noticed staggering diferences in temps by having a side fan (or two), whether in a window or not, being used as an intake. I'll try to get a digital camera and post some pics of my madness

3. The power supply is ABSOLUTELY critcal to system stabilty, perf, and lifespan, and the importance triples if overclcoking. DO NOT BUY GENERIC, OR UNKNOWN BRAND POWER SUPPLIES. Especially if buying an NF7-S, they are known to be power hungry (but it's a good thing, they're also very stable). Like I said, if not Antec Truepower, get an Enermax, Fortran, or Vantec p/s.

4. I can't say I've ever owned the Audigy 2, but I HATE creative's drivers, and their penchant for abandoning their old products as soon as new stuff comes out (anyone who owned/owns a SB Live! card knows what I mean). The Soundstorm I have is as good if not superior to an Audigy 1, and possibly Audigy 2, with no driver overhead, and no loss in perfomance common with onboard audio.

And Yooper brings up a good point. Dell P/s are proprietary (as are the mobos). The devious bastards have moved around the pin assignments in the ATX connector, meaning a standard power supply will kill their board, and vice versa. DO NOT USE 'EM!