Advice Please

[forsakendmz]

Putting together a new system and would like a bit of advice/guidance.

CPU: Opteron 165 Dual Core
MB: ?
RAM: mushkin eXtreme Performance DDR500 2 x 1GB
VIDEO: 7800 GT PCI-e

I will most definitely be OC'ng. I have no real interest in SLI though.

What motherboard is right for me? I've gone over tons of reviews and searched this site and a lot of the boards utilizing nForce 4 Ultra that don't have SLI are about $100. Something doesn't seem right about putting a $300 CPU on a $100 board like the EPOX 9nPA. Am I missing something?

Second, I've always jumped up in RAM speed when building a machine that is going to be OCd primarily all the time. I've never personally used mushkin though their reviews on NewEgg seem decent. Any suggestions on speed and brand other than what I've chosen? For Dual Core systems is 2 GB sufficent?

Thanks in advance!

 

[zoridon]

Take a look a the DFI infinity series of boards sounds like it fits your criteria of good overclocking and low price with only 1 PCIE slot. Mushkin used to have a good name in memory circles not sure any more, corsair and OCZ memory are kind of the name lately.

 

[purelithium]

I own the Epox 9NPA+ Ultra and I love it. I was un satisfied with the performance and reliability of the ASUS A8N-SLI Premium i had before so I sold it and bought the Epox. I didn't regret it. And I know you won't either.

 

[a1ien]

I believe Mushkin has gotten a good name recently when it produced its Redline memory which was meant for extreme overclocking with voltages going up to 3.1v before violating the warranty (I believe). They have discontinued it though. OCZ is great for overclocking and Corsair is another great brand for memory too.

 

[linux_0]

I would suggest a DFI, Epox or ASUS nForce 4 Ultra.

DFI is great for OC but complicated.

Epox is a great value.

ASUS is relatively expensive, doesn't always OC as well but usually makes very stable boards with a lot of features.

Good luck

 

[maxxum]

Something doesn't seem right about putting a $300 CPU on a $100 board like the EPOX 9nPA. Am I missing something?

I have a $500 processor, $200 Video Card, $500 in HDs and $200 Memory kit on my $60 motherboard (I also have a power cleaner and UPS all on an isolated grounded outlet it too just in case :roll: )

 

[forsakendmz]

I think I'll go with the EPOX then. I do like to OC but I don't really go hardcore with it. Just want to get the best bang for my buck. I had used the EPOX 9NPA in a build for a friend and was quite impressed with it. He went single core though so that's only reason I was a bit skeptial using it on a dual core.

And I agree on the OCZ. It's in my current build and I love it. Great ram. I had seen mushkin around just never used it personally. Reviews on NewEgg were all very good.

Looks like the beast is complete... Bye bye tax return

Thanks for all the advice!