Quote:
hi
Time for a new computer, wanted the Core2D systems, none in stock so went to buy motherboard/cpu and put one together.
Without saying which retail store, I went to get an Intel m/b but the sales guy talked me into the Asus one, and it has a remote control and more things?
he said I MUST buy 2 video cards, they can ONLY be ATI. it will not work with just 1 video card. why? because it will work a little while then burn up, so he "strongly" recommended getting 2 cards, must be ATI, the Nvidia might work but not very well.
Memory, I wanted 800Mhz, this brand, OCZ? DDR2
sales guy said no, he cant sell it, its flaky and doesnt work. not the manager but the big boss told sales people they must not sell this to people building a full system, but okay to sell to folks just doing an upgrade. that changed to have to warn people building a full system that OCZ is not very good.
I ended up getting a single video card; Ive built systems for years (since 1985) but stopped keeping up with the newest trends in 2001; am clueless about which company is good, didnt know what crossfire was, okay so you use 2 video cards? cool. dont need it.
Almost walked out of the store but wanted the system for this weekend. havent had time to open the boxes yet. motherboard was 299.00, seemed pricey
was that good sales advice or hot air?
tia
This guy certainly tried to sell you the brooklyn bridge. That or he truely doesn't know what he's talking about... which is also completely possible.
ok, here we go:
ASUS P5W DH = Great board, as you can see in my sig, i have one myself. Tho you paid about $50 more for it in a retail store.
It MOST CERTAINLY DOES NOT require 2 video cards. It has the CAPABILITY of using 2 video cards for enhanced graphics performance. Now the only ring of truth to what he said was that if you want to use 2 video cards with the ASUS P5W DH they have to be ATi cards in Crossfire mode. Currently nVidia does not allow boards with Intel chipsets to user their dual-graphics solution, called SLI. But if you only want to use one video card, which is COMPLETELY FINE, feel free to choose and brand you wish, they will all work fine and nothing is going to "burn up". Love how this guy is using scare tactics.
OCZ is an ok memory brand, not the best, not the worst. I've heard some stories of OCZ memory not working with the ASUS P5W DH, but that may or may not be true. If it turns out not to work for you, i'd consider brands like Corsair (the brand many consider to be #1, including me), or Kingston, Crucial, or Patriot.
As for video cards, it really depends on what you're going to use the computer for. Games? go with an nVidia 7600GT or higher; or an ATi X1800XT or higher. Using it for home office and PC work? Just drop in a cheap DX9 compliant card.