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Can this all be bought from one place? How much would shipping be?

Nice build, I might build that as a second comp for friends who come over! Is that with stock cooler?
 
Best,
 
3Ball

I bought most of the parts from a local dealer, and nagotiated the price, since I bought everything from him. Besides, most of those parts comes with a free shipping, except for the casing as far as I remember.
 
What I did was, print out the prices from other websites, including NewEgg, brought it to his store, and nagotiated. In fact, the total I paid was exactly USD$637, since I had a 56k internal modem for faxing purposes.
 
And yes, I'm on stock cooling. The extra 5x fans did a lot of cooling. I took pictures of my computer, including everything, inside out, but I couldn't post it as I do not have a Compact Flash card reader with me, and my digital camera's cable went missing.

Is it that all C2D are that easyly OC'ed or you have to find and but C2D proc that have unique ID number or whatsoever that can be stable enough to be OC'ed?  
Coz i've done just one or two OC'ing with P4 and some can manage to gain 30% increse in speed while others are only manage at about 15% without raising the VCore.

Is it that all C2D are that easily OC'ed or you have to find and buy C2D proc that have unique ID number or whatsoever that can be stable enough to be OC'ed?  
Coz i've done just one or two OC'ing with P4 and some can manage to gain 30% increse in speed while others are only manage at about 15% without raising the VCore.

It's usually the motherboard, ram, and cpu that makes the difference.
 
In this case, I assume that all the E6300 distributed around, are all the same, as they're all the same Allendale core, the stripped down L2 cache of Conroe.
 
If you purchase the same ram, or proven overclock friendly ones, and motherboard, you can easily achieve these numbers.
 
The reason I think all the E6300 can achieve at least 3GHz when things are done correctly is because, I'm currently running at 3.367GHz and below the stock Vcore, and with stock cooling, I'm at 60C at full load, running perfectly stable. When at 3GHz, full load runs at 55C, at even way lower Vcore.
 
Like I said, all E6300 has the ability to hit 3GHz, if you can't hit that speed, I'm pretty sure you did something wrong with your settings, or your other parts (ram, motherboard, psu, etc) aren't allowing you to do so.

Actually, I do have alot of things to critize from your build.
 
Unless the S3 uses the same BIOS as the DS3 (almost sure they dont), The Abit AB9 series would outperform at overclocking for only $10 more.
 
Corsair RAM doesnt always come in the cheapest and it performs on par with alot of other manufacturer. Pick the cheapest 1GB stick (proven to OC easier) of 5400 with 4-4-4-12 timings, for sure it will go to 430Mhz CL5 with some voltage help.
 
The X800GTO outrageously outperforms the 7300GT and its $3 more.
 
CoolerMaster isnt a known good brand for PSU. Swap for something with better quality.

 
Which one is better RAM for C2D? DDR2 800MHz with Latency 5 or DDR2 667 with Latency 4?
 
Thx

 
There's only 3 differences between the S3 and DS3.
- RAID support
- Capacitors
- Price
 
In my setup, it's totally budget wise, and no plans for RAID (more HDD costs more money). Whether or not the AB9 can overclock much better with an additional $10, that I can't argue as I do not own a AB9, and can't make a comparison. But, running my E6300 at 3.367GHz, with stock cooling, on a generic casing, and below stock Vcore, running full load at 59C, I believe my motherboard has much more to offer. Imagine I'm using a much better casing, a much better HSF, I would definitely be able to go way higher. In fact, I can go higher now, but I want to stay below 60C under all circumstances, to be 100% rock solid stable. What else can I complain after achieving such results at such price? Besides, the cheapest AB9 on NewEgg goes for $130, mine cost me $105, that's $25 difference. $25 can get me a OEM Open Box Big Typhoon shipped for free from NewEgg.
 
True, the Corsair does cost quite a bit more, but no doubt they're a great overclocker. In fact, when I was at my local store, Corsair was the only DDR2 RAM they had that was below CL5. Besides they're the cheapest, compared to the DDR2-800 models, which costs much more, and are CL5. What I've done now is clocked it above the DDR2-800 CL5 settings, for a much lower price.
 
X800GTO is definitely better than 7300GT in games. But forget not, this is the DDR3 model, which runs faster than the regular DDR2 model. Although it's still slower than X800GTO, it supports SM3.0, and it's newer technology. SM3.0 and DDR3 is the reason I went for 7300GT. Besides, old stuffs aren't sold at my local store.
 
CoolerMaster isn't a known good brand for PSU, but their price are decent, compared to other unknown brands. So far, running on my settings on stock HSF, with these settings at 3.367GHz, rock solid stable, and the PSU has yet to give me any problems after stress testing maximum heat and power consumption for over 8 hours and counting.
 
Again, I repeat, I really can't complain for what I'm getting for the price I paid.

Thats 3 differences, lol...jp
 
Best,
 
3Ball

 
LOL... Thanks for correcting me.

 
Which one is better RAM for C2D? DDR2 800MHz with Latency 5 or DDR2 667 with Latency 4?
 
Thx
 
It all depends on the quality/brand. For the price difference, I'd go for a good DDR2-667 with CL4. A good DDR2-667 RAM with stock CL4, can easily outperform a DDR2-800 CL5, by setting the CL to 5, and with a bit of bump in Vdimm. But then, a DDR2-667 will have difficulties hitting extremely high FSB. If you got the money, go for the low latency DDR2-800 modules.

The DS3 uses all Solid capacitors while the S3 uses electrolytic ones that tend to last up to 5 times less than the solid ones. The life expentancy is of course lowered with OCing since it puts such a high load on the motherboard. RAID support is added for the futureproof ability of the motheboard. Seems like Gigabyte really went cheap on it...
While the Abit AB9 is only $15 more than the S3 and it DOES use this type of capacitors. Its got RAID support. The S3 has a FSB top of 500Mhz while the AB9 has a top of 600Mhz.
For the above reasons is why wusy didnt suggest it on its C2D OCing guide.
 

This PQI stick not only is $33 less but it uses the same Micron D9GCT chips as Corsair, therefore WILL perform the same. They run at 1.8v at the advertised specs, newegg got it wrong. Dual-channel has prooven a 3-5% improoving in real life apps so no worries about that.
By the way, here you stated that youre running them at 2.1v, now youre saying 1.9v?
 

Considering that newegg just recently stocked a Leadtek 7300GT 128mb DDR3, I would pick the X800GTO for raw performance and the 7300GT if you WILL use the SM3.0
 

My biggest complain with the CoolerMaster is that its got a single, very weak 12v rail. This Raidmax PSU, uses the same hardware as Antec, its got more power and a stronger 12v rail. Cheaper, better, blue.
 

I not flaming completly your setup, but you shouldnt recommend something based on only your experience. There are better things in the market that might be more suitable for other users. Youve got a good setup, no doubt about that, but im just trying to make it better  

So uh... 3GHZ plus processor... I bet that does wonders for games...
 
Why exactly do you need to clock it so high when everything else in your system is cheapy? I already take it your not gaming... but then you need SM3.0... so you are gaming... with a 7300GT...
 
Another thing, in your guide, you just say, set FSB to 430MHZ... which is probably not the best thing to do right off the bat. You might want to say move up in small 5~10 MHZ increments until it doesn't post, bump up vcore or go back to last known good settings and move up in 1~2 MHZ increments...  
 
It's a decent system for a decent price... but all you have is an oversized engine with plastic spinning rims, small tires, huge spoiler, and a loud exhaust.

Funny thing is, I just built a rig with the same CPU and mobo.  BUT I did get much better RAM, PSU, GFX card, HDD, and aftermarket cooling.  Which means that I have the supporting components to hit 3 ghz and have a very respectable system.
 
I think his point is that he's got a fast system on the cheap.  That's all.  Don't read too much into it.  For the price, you can't really knock it.
 
If people want to nitpick, then sure you can pick a different GFX card.  Sure you can get different RAM.  HDD, cooler, blah, blah.  There are countless combinations.  So what?  The point is that the general guts of his build prove that people can build a decent C2D rig on the cheap.  
 
And keep in mind, 98% of the population are not "enthusiasts" and would be more than happy with even less than what he shows.  Depending on someone's budget, they could drop an extra $150 by getting better PSU and GFX card and that is still one helluva deal.
 
There's always a sliding scale as to how much extra to spend, and what you get for that price.  It's up to each person to customize their build and move that scale around to find what they're happy with.  And that's I think what's being shown here.
 
One person says "One can never have enough HDD's"....I may think 1.8 Tb's of storage is asinine.  So what?  Someone may think I wasted $$ on a 7900 GTO.  So what?  The point is that if that person is satisfied with their build and actually got some great performance for their $$ investment, then that's what matters.

For the $$$ you paid you got a pretty good system

I have to say that is a great system for the money although i would fork over another $100 to get a better gfx card

 
The S3's highest FSB is 600MHz, that's even on my mobo's manual, and I even double checked it in my bios. There is someone in one of the Singapore forum, achieved a 570MHz FSB on a S3, on a E6300, but of course with much better power supply, and cooling, and casing. For the capacitors, I made a phone call to my local Gigabyte supplier, and was told the difference in the capacitor isn't going to make a huge difference. This motherboard was designed to be an overclocker, the S3 would last at least 5-6 years, if running on a 24/7 daily basis. Unless if you're planning to have your computer switched on for 24/7 for the next 5-6 years, this motherboard isn't going to fail for at least 5 years, and Gigabyte's representative talking to me on the phone emphasized on their seriousness in quality control. Besides, even if your motherboard can last 5 years, that doesn't mean your other parts are going to, including your HDD, Graphic Cards, CPU, etc, some might break down before your motherboard does, and in 5 years time, these parts might go obsolete, replaced with newer technology. By then, the $631 you've just spent on your system today would have definitely served to VERY well, and it would be time to move on with better money spendings.
 
Another point would be RAID being future proof, and come at a cost (RAID mobo costs more, more HDD costs more), but if you're on budget, you can't be going for the best of everything. At the time being, non-RAID will suffice. In real world/economics, there's always a trade-off.
 
Wusy didn't suggest this motherboard, because his guide and mine are totally different. His was there to achieve highest overclock, without considering budget. Mine, would be to go as cheap as possible, and for the best system for the price. There is a difference in spending $2000 to get a 5GHz system, and a $600 for getting a 3GHz.
 

 
For this point, I can't argue, you're quite right. Corsair has their RAM being sold for higher price. But I mentioned, this is the only low latency modules available at my local store, and have proven to my own experience to work perfectly with my setup. Other RAM modules might work better at a lower price, but I can't guarantee that they're going to achieve as well of an outcome as the combination I'm having. Again, I'd have to admit, I'm not perfect. At 3GHz setting, my RAM was indeed running at 1.9V stable. I had it set at 2.1V earlier to hit my maximum potential, which I'm now running at 3.367GHz solid rock stable, will attempt lower it down to see if I can run lower Vdimm stable, as soon as I have time to do a MemTest. These torture tests do take a lot of time, and I've spent countless hours reaching a satisfactory overclocking speed. Regarding the other thread that you just linked to from your reply is totally irrelevant to this thread, as that thread is totally experimental of what I'm doing (and going to do) and is not final, whereas this thread is results proven to work.
 
Just for your reference, this is what I had on my other thread, that you were talking about, the 2.1V Vdimm, was set for my 3.367GHz setup (481MHz FSB), not for this thread's setting of 3.01GHz.

 
The above settings are still temporary, can't be declared as my final settings, as I might decide to overclock higher, or try to lower voltages of Vcore and Vdimm to check if they could go stable at lower ratings. I've just called up my local store, and they ha