Hey Guys

After alot of thought, I have come up with the following system. I was hoping you guys could tell me if you think it is a good setup and will run games great on my 24inch monitor as well as other stuff such as ripping dvds and converting them and a bit of graphics editing. Keep in mind, I don't plan on overclocking and don't plan on SLI or RAID.

Motherboard - Gigabyte GA-X48-DS4 Motherboard
Case - Antec P182 Gun Metal Black Case
PSU - Corsair TX-750 750W Power Supply
CPU - Intel Core2 Quad Q9550
Cooler - Arctic Cooling Freezer 7 Pro (not sure if this is needed for stock)
RAM - Corsair TWIN2X4096-6400C4DHX 4GB (2x2GB) 4-4-4-12
Video Card - Am waiting for the new cards to be released.

Will this setup run games better stock than it would if I replaced the Q9550 with a E8400 or E8500?

I'm basically after a quick and quiet PC. What sort of performance can I expect with this setup mainly when running games. Keep in mind, when the new video cards get released, I plan on spending enough cash to get myself one of the quickest cards. Only single though, no SLI.

Thanks.

if you're going to be working with video, then a quad core will do you alot of good. so go with the Q9550. or even the Q9450 if you wanna save a few bucks.

E8400 with definitely outperform the Q9550 at stock frequencies for gaming with today's current games, since they don't take advantage of the extra cores.

If you do a lot of gaming and only a little video/photo work, a dual core would likely be just fine for you. My advice would probably be to stick with the dual core and save the extra 150 bucks toward upgrading to Nehalem in 1-2 years.

By then, my guess is games would be more likely to be taking advantage of the extra cores.

Looks like a great setup you've got going overall.

I'm really torn between the type of CPU to get.

Maybe a dual core would be better. I have a P4 3.6GHz at the moment and as far as all the video type work I do now it's not too bad. It's mainly the games I'm having trouble with now. I guess anything would probably be better than what I have at the moment.

Would it be better to go with the E8400 or E8500? If I did intend to do a little overclocking, but not too much, would the setup i've listed be good enough for that?

So, if I am more interested in getting better performance for games, would the E8400/8500 be better than the quad core regardless of the price?

If so, then how about this revised system?

Motherboard - Gigabyte GA-X48-DS4 Motherboard
Case - Antec Twelve Hundred
PSU - Corsair TX-750 750W Power Supply
CPU - Intel Core2 E8400
Cooler - Thermalright Ultra 120 eXtreme with Scythe 120mm
RAM - Corsair TWIN2X4096-6400C4DHX 4GB (2x2GB) 4-4-4-12
Video Card - Am waiting for the new cards to be released.

Would this setup be able to handle a little overclocking without needing anything extra? Is the RAM I've listed any good for overclocking? Also, if you overclock your CPU, do you have to overclock your RAM to match or are they completely seperate?

Thanks again guys.

ok wait..firstly that motherboard is way overkill ... if you're a very high end overclocker enthusiast only then get X48 .... otherwise stick with X38. This mobo is one of the very best. GIGABYTE GA-EX38-DS4 ($180)

Since you mentioned gaming, stick with the E8400 and ditch the Q9550. E8400 is the most popular gaming CPU in the world. In case you do want a quad core, get the Q6600 and overclock it. Both the E8400 and Q6600 are available for $190. Although E8400 does outperform the quad in almost all games and most applications.

Regarding cooler, get the Xigmatek S1283 instead... it outperforms the one you've picked.

I live in AUS and the only Xigmatek cooler I can find is the Xigmatek HDT-S983 Cooler. Is this one any good? It's half the price of the Thermalright Ultra 120.

I can't seem to find a X38 Gigabyte motherboard either, most of the places I can find stock the 48 series now. The one I selected is not very expensive so I don't mind purchasing it. Is the RAM ok? I mainly just want the whole system to work well together.

For the setup I posted above, which would be the better RAM choice from the two below? Also, if you can suggest any good RAM to get that would be great.

1) Corsair TWIN2X4096-8500C5DF 4GB (2x XMS2 2GB) PC-8500 (1066MHz) 5-5-5-15; or
2) Corsair TWIN2X4096-6400C4DHX 4GB (2x2GB) 4-4-4-12.

Will either of these work well with the motherboard I've listed?

Thanks heaps.

that PSU is way too much for single GPU systems

The price difference between the one I have listed and the less powerful versions is not very much at all, so I don't see the point in using the less powerful versions.

Is the Xigmatek HDT-S983 any good cause I can't find the Xigmatek S1283 anywhere. Will it be any good for overclocking, and what would be a safe limit to overclock it to.

If there isn't much of a price difference do go for the bigger PSU ... its futureproof anyways.

No the Xigmatk S983 isn't too good... this is the list of the top 10 coolers ... see which ones are available there. I'm sure you'd find the Thermalright Ultra 120 easily ...

http://www.frostytech.com/top5heatsinks.cfm

Corsair...Crucial Ballistix...Gskill are all good brands of RAM ...get the cheapest one available ...though stick with DDR2 800...1066 got issues.

Its a crossfire build mate.

Thanks for the help and the list of coolers. I managed to find a Xigmatek S1283 and have ordered it. Are they noisy? I'm hoping for a fairly quiet PC.

I guess I will stick with the 4gb 800 corsair.

As far as the OS goes, is it best I go with Vista 64 or 32. I'm currently running Windows XP Pro.

If I was going to run 2 ATI (new release) video cards in Crossfire, would the Corsair TX750 PSU be enough or should I get a higher one?

ah good you found the S1283... no they're not noisy ... its a good buy.

Good choice of RAM

Yes that Corsair 750TX is very well indeed.