I'm in decision hell, help my headache :)

[MetalAges]

I've never been a big know it all when it comes to building my own systems etc. and have usually bought Dell, etc. I know about parts and such but what I am getting headaches from is deciding on a motherboard/memory combo. I bought a P4 HT 3.0 L2 chip already. I was looking at the Asus "P4C800-E DELUXE" i875P board. Seems to have gotten a lot of raves and such. I really can't find a board without all the onboard audio/video stuff these days eh? I will be using an Audigy ZS Platinum Pro as well as a ATI Radeon 9800 or X800 so I am not worried about onbord video/audio stuff. Trying to decipher the difference between the different Asus versions is mind boggling! I see small things like onboard Lan chip differences but not much else. When it comes to memory...I was looking at the Asus manual online to try and stick with a recommended brand/model they list in there. One thing I don't know about is what's the difference in say, Kingston 512m 3200 DDR chips. The couple model numbers I was checking out both seemed to have the same specs but the price difference was like $35 between them. What should I look for that jacks up the cost like that? Thanks everyone!

 

[Cybercraig]

The THG best buy here is the ABIT IS7. It has good on-board sound but you can disable it in BIOS. It will save you some bucks over ASUS and has better stability and a nice menu of features.

"I am become death, the destroyer of worlds. Now, let's eat!

 

[MetalAges]

Also, I did see one difference in the memory now that I look at it, the CAS Latency (2.5 vs. 3-3-3).

 

[Crashman]

Read my review of that board at Sysopt.com, it's overpriced and overrated.

<font color=blue>Only a place as big as the internet could be home to a hero as big as Crashman!</font color=blue>
<font color=red>Only a place as big as the internet could be home to an ego as large as Crashman's!</font color=red>

 

[Cybercraig]

Kingston isn't known for low-latency ram since the demise of the Winbond chip supply. The 2.5 cas would be faster. Kingston does have great support and they back their warranty 100%. Get the fastest chips unless you're going to but a big clock on them.

"I am become death, the destroyer of worlds. Now, let's eat!

 

[xeenrecoil]

heya Metal

The Abit Is7-g is a nice board, it has onboard G-bit LAN, i have onboard G-bit LAN and its nice. Pretty much everyone who comes here would recommend the Abit Is7 in one of its forms or another. It is just a great board.
Also it rated higher then the similar Asus version, and not just on Toms Hardware, same goes for AnAndTech and a bunch of others as well.

 

[MetalAges]

Thanks for all the input. I notice the IS7 uses the I865 chipset which does not have PAT. Not worth the money difference vs. the I875? My use for this computer (should have mentioned this before) will be web/graphic design with programs such as Photoshop, Dreamweaver, Illustrator, Outlook, etc.. with Photoshop/Dreamweaver and sometimes Flash running at the same time. Also of course gaming as well as audio recording. Would the I875 give me noticeable beef in this scenario?

 

[Zeekfu]

<A HREF="http://www.tomshardware.com/motherboard/20030707/i875p-06.html" target="_new">http://www.tomshardware.com/motherboard/20030707/i875p-06.html</A>

<font color=black>yippie ki ya, m..........<font color=black>

 

[xeenrecoil]

Heya Metal:

Abit cracked the PAT code and enabled it on the IS7, so if lack of PAT is what is staving off your desire to buy a i865 mobo then your worries are over...this board runs fast, real fast, and its stable too. you wont notice any gain at all between the IS7 and its brother the IC7. So to answer your question, No you wont notice any difference between the i865 and i875 chipset boards from Abit they made them equally potent by cracking the PAT code on the IS7.

SO in conclusion, save yourself some money and buy the Abit IS7-G its some sweet action.

 

[MetalAges]

Cool I'm sold. One last question now. IS7 vs. IS7-G . I know the differences...(LAN/extra SATA on -G) ... I was surprised that New egg doesn't have the IS7-G available? I plan on running a WD Raptor 10k SATA drive, POSSIBLY will pick up another one. Other than that will be migrating my IDE over to this machine. Will I be cool with the IS7 and able to forgo the -G model? I also already have a fairly new Netgear 54g PCI wireless.

Also for those who recommened this Abit board, any recommended memory brands/models? Thanks guys! (for saving me money too! lol).

 

[Cybercraig]

Crucial PC3200 would be great for what you want to do. They always understate their timings and have been known to reach a 220mhz FSB if you are so inclined. OCZ Performance or Corsair LL would be fine too. Mushkin 222 Special with the new Samsung super chips will be out in two weeks if you want to wait.


"I am become death, the destroyer of worlds. Now, let's eat!