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GameMusic   07-24-2008 at 02:16:20 PM

I am seeking a custom PC, powerful but not extreme, and power efficiency/reliability is a high priority.

E8400
2GB
8800 GT, 9800 GT, or 9800 GTX+

What chipset? Is there any reason to get an nVidia chipset if you aren't using SLI? How useful is HybridPower?

Does the Asus EPU actually do anything? Gigabyte said no, and then Asus said that P5Q's EPU does work.

I am not interested in overclocking.

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jtt283   07-24-2008 at 03:42:35 PM
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I'm still curious as to how that Asus/Gigabyte flare-up turned out. From initial appearances, Gigabyte called BS on claims by Asus, and had the data to back it up. Asus howled, but with no supporting data (at least that I saw). At worst, this makes Asus a dishonest company (not saying the product itself is bad, just doesn't match its claims), and I endeavor to not do business with dishonest companies. At best, Gigabyte mobos are still a good choice.
The efficiency of the PSU will make a big difference on power usage. I have an 80+ certified Enermax Liberty 500W PSU in my rig, which has a stock Q9450, 4GB of RAM, and an EAH3850 GPU, on an Abit IP35 Pro. At idle, my UPS software reports that it draws 81 Watts. My less-powerful prior system (e6750, 2GB, Mushkin PSU) drew 126, so I'm pleased. Any PSU I buy in the future will be 80+ (or better).

Message quoted 1 times
------------------------------ There is ALWAYS a drone. Exactly where, or how many drones you will encounter may vary, but that there will be at least one will not.
 Reply to jtt283
evongugg   07-24-2008 at 04:02:47 PM
- 0 +

HybridPower is targeted to very high-end systems. This technology turns off your video cards when you are not playing games, thus saving energy. Under this situation video is provided by the chipset (i.e. on-board video). This looks like a terrific idea, but the problem is that so far only two video cards are compatible with HybridPower: GeForce 9800 GTX and GeForce 9800 GX2. So unless you have these video cards this technology is useless.
Currently available only under Windows Vista.

------------------------------ Google is your friend and Bob's your uncle
 Reply to evongugg
bobbknight   07-24-2008 at 04:44:11 PM
- 0 +

A good P35 motherboard is really all you need for your stated desires.
I like the DFI Blood Iron, works great and is very stable.

Reply to bobbknight
halcyon   07-24-2008 at 04:44:40 PM
- 0 +

You're pretty safe with either of these, IMO.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6813131295 (Gigabyte GA-EP45-DS3R)

or

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6813131295 (Asus P5Q)


...and they'll both allow you to overclock should you ever change your mind about that.

------------------------------ 17" MacBook Pro: 2.66Ghz, 4GB DDR3-1066, 256GB Corsair P256 SSD
 Reply to halcyon
ausch30   07-24-2008 at 04:48:50 PM
- 0 +

jtt283 wrote :

I'm still curious as to how that Asus/Gigabyte flare-up turned out. From initial appearances, Gigabyte called BS on claims by Asus, and had the data to back it up. Asus howled, but with no supporting data (at least that I saw). At worst, this makes Asus a dishonest company (not saying the product itself is bad, just doesn't match its claims), and I endeavor to not do business with dishonest companies. At best, Gigabyte mobos are still a good choice.
The efficiency of the PSU will make a big difference on power usage. I have an 80+ certified Enermax Liberty 500W PSU in my rig, which has a stock Q9450, 4GB of RAM, and an EAH3850 GPU, on an Abit IP35 Pro. At idle, my UPS software reports that it draws 81 Watts. My less-powerful prior system (e6750, 2GB, Mushkin PSU) drew 126, so I'm pleased. Any PSU I buy in the future will be 80+ (or better).



Asus did have proof and in fact started a web site to show that their product was what they said it was (I forgot it's name). Gigabyte formally and publicly apologized on many sites including Tom's as well as print publications and all was forgiven.

OP - The E8400 is a very good choice but I would suggest something like this for your memory. I would suggest a Asus P5Q motherboard and a ATI HD4850 instead of the cards you listed. What I listed would make a very good system and will be ~$525.

As jtt283 wrote, look for a quality PSU with a good efficiency rating rather than just looking for the cheapest. A very efficient PSU will pay for itself in power savings.

Message quoted 1 times
------------------------------
It is the mark of an educated mind to be able to entertain a thought without accepting it.
-Aristotle
 Reply to ausch30
jtt283   07-24-2008 at 05:10:23 PM
- 0 +

Thank you for the update.

------------------------------ There is ALWAYS a drone. Exactly where, or how many drones you will encounter may vary, but that there will be at least one will not.
 Reply to jtt283
GameMusic   07-25-2008 at 04:10:22 AM
- 0 +

ausch30 wrote :

Asus did have proof and in fact started a web site to show that their product was what they said it was (I forgot it's name). Gigabyte formally and publicly apologized on many sites including Tom's as well as print publications and all was forgiven.



I did a lot of googling about this and it sounds like:

DES Advanced is more efficient than EPU 6 because Gigabyte can run at many settings while ASUS is like an idle/load switch.

bit-tech.com says that DES Advanced rarely uses maximum power even at load, while EPU 6 goes to max at any load, but Asus is more efficient at idle or load because there are less features on the board.

http://www.bit-tech.net/hardware/2 [...] -arrived/6

http://www.bit-tech.net/hardware/2 [...] ep45-dq6/4

Does any of this make the board less stable? Reliability is an even higher priority.

ausch30 wrote :

OP - The E8400 is a very good choice but I would suggest something like this for your memory. I would suggest a Asus P5Q motherboard and a ATI HD4850 instead of the cards you listed. What I listed would make a very good system and will be ~$525.

As jtt283 wrote, look for a quality PSU with a good efficiency rating rather than just looking for the cheapest. A very efficient PSU will pay for itself in power savings.



What are the advantages of Mushkin RAM or that RAM in particular?

I may be getting an online custom build, and can get Mushkin over Corsair for $10, but it doesn't specify the exact model.

ATI is the leader in benchmarks right now, but don't some older games have compatibility issues? Does ATI offer a similar feature to HybridPower?

The one easy thing is E8400. It seems to blow away everybody for price/performance on this site.

Reply to GameMusic
ausch30   07-25-2008 at 04:29:33 AM
- 0 +

The thing that makes that RAM a good deal is the fact that it has good timings @ the JEDEC standard 1.8v. JEDEC is the governing body that certifies memory speeds and voltages and their DDR2 speeds are 400, 533, 667 and 800 all @ 1.8v. What some manufacturers do to disguise the fact that they are using lower quality chips is to jack up the voltage to achieve the same timings as better chips can at lower voltages and since most people just look at the timings it's a very smart marketing move. Most RAM on the market is sold at it's overclocked or EPP (Enhanced Performance Profiles) speed and it isn't until you actually put it in your system that you find out what the standard speed is. Any DDR2 memory sold above 1.8v is sold at it's EPP speeds and you will have to manually go into the BIOS and set the timings. I have seen a lot of benchmarks and there is very little difference between DDR2 400 and DDR3 2000 or the difference between cas 3 and cas 5 memory so the sticks I picked out are just high quality, low timing, standard voltage RAM that will be solid and stable. Corsair is good but Mushkin is just as good if not better, it's just the Corsair has a bigger name.

------------------------------
It is the mark of an educated mind to be able to entertain a thought without accepting it.
-Aristotle
 Reply to ausch30
GameMusic   07-25-2008 at 08:26:06 AM
- 0 +

What do I do to connect more than the P5Q supported 3 case fans?

What is the distinction between MyLogo 2 and MyLogo 3?

Which is better, ADI AD2000B or Realtek ALC1200?

Which is better, crashfree BIOS or diehard BIOS?

Message quoted 1 times
Message edited by GameMusic on 07-25-2008 at 09:06:20 AM
Reply to GameMusic
halcyon   07-25-2008 at 10:49:01 AM
- 0 +

GameMusic wrote :

What do I do to connect more than the P5Q supported 3 case fans?

What is the distinction between MyLogo 2 and MyLogo 3?

Which is better, ADI AD2000B or Realtek ALC1200?

Which is better, crashfree BIOS or diehard BIOS?




Game...Google has all of these answers, Google's your friend. Try it, you'll see.

------------------------------ 17" MacBook Pro: 2.66Ghz, 4GB DDR3-1066, 256GB Corsair P256 SSD
 Reply to halcyon
GameMusic   07-26-2008 at 02:04:09 AM
- 0 +

I've been searching those on Google for hours but can't find answers, other than about the fans (either chaining or a fan controller).

Message quoted 1 times
Reply to GameMusic
ausch30   07-26-2008 at 06:21:15 AM
- 0 +

GameMusic wrote :

I've been searching those on Google for hours but can't find answers, other than about the fans (either chaining or a fan controller).


http://www.pcalchemy.com/product_i [...] rers_id/52

------------------------------
It is the mark of an educated mind to be able to entertain a thought without accepting it.
-Aristotle
 Reply to ausch30
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