How's my build? Keep in mind this is Canadian dollars.
1) Is there a cheaper motherboard that works just as good
2) Does this motherboard detect DDR3 RAM?
3) Any out right bad choices? If not, I should be ordering today.
1. Triple channel ram is only used on i7 systems
2. That board only supports DDR2
3. most people stray away from nVidia chipsets, even though that is the only way you can get SLI you might be better off with an Intel chipset.
Your RAM and motherboard aren't compatible. The motherboard requires DDR2 RAM. I would get a quality 2x2GB kit that runs at tight timings and low voltage.
DDR2 1066 RAM is only worth it if you're planning on a high overclock of your E8400 (over 400FSB or 3.6GHz). Core 2 CPU's are limited by the bandwidth of the FSB, so they don't benefit much at all from faster RAM.
The GTX 260 you picked is the old version. I would ditch that combo and get a quality Intel chipset board and a 4870 1GB GPU.
DDR2 1066 RAM is only worth it if you're planning on a high overclock of your E8400 (over 400FSB or 3.6GHz). Core 2 CPU's are limited by the bandwidth of the FSB, so they don't benefit much at all from faster RAM.
The GTX 260 you picked is the old version. I would ditch that combo and get a quality Intel chipset board and a 4870 1GB GPU.
Are you trying to leave your SLI options open? The board I suggested is capable of crossfire, but not SLI. You won't find many fans of Nvidia nForce chipset motherboards around here, but that's your only option if you want SLI with anything other than an i7 build. I, personally, have had great luck with ATI cards and drivers lately. If you're really against ATI and are trying to leave the SLI option open here's a combo that includes a new core 216 version of the GTX 260:
If you don't care about SLI you could go with a smaller PSU and get the GA-EP45-UD3R instead of the GA-EP45-UD3P since the second PCI-E slot won't do you any good with an nVidia GPU.
I see no issue with that build everything is of good quality parts I'd go ahead with it.
newegg.ca doesn't have 4770's. hell newegg us is always out. Also DDR3 and 955 is a ton more expensive
Also he's much like my self although I've built systems for others with ATI i don't personally use it do to hardware compatibility(mostly with tv's)and driver issues last couple times I've used it in my own machines which make me frustrated I've only had 1 issue with nvidia while using it and that was yes a nforce mobo it had an annoying habit of starting up with 5 mins just having to wait for the gigbit lan lines to be recognized i really don't know why; it was an asus crossfire mobo
edit: the guy removed his post about why not going ddr3, Phi II 955 and 2x4770's
Message edited by IzzyCraft on 05-22-2009 at 01:15:50 AM
------------------------------Phenom II X2 unlocked to four cores @ 3.8gHz,1.45V. 4GB DDR3-1600 Gigabyte 785g ATi Radeon HD4870 1GB
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Reply to smithereen
Both would perform at least on par with the Intel/nVidia system in gaming, and better in more multithreaded apps.
Not compared to the i7 rig. The 260 seems to do him fine (recommended one himself) and by just cutting the budget a little, he'll have a more "futureproof" rig. Then, In a year he can either add another GTX 260, or upgrade to the 300 Series.
The i7 is a good choice.
Not with a 550W PSU he won't. I'm not going to lie and say your build is 'crap' or anything, but I would still recommend my Phenom 955 rig. I've had much, much better experiences personally with NCIX.com in Canada, and it leaves him budget room for a 1TB HDD, a 750W PSU, 4gb DDR3-1600 instead of 3gb DDR3-1333 and a HD4890. It's up to him what he wants to spend his budget on, I'm just making my case like you made yours. I'm sure we can agree that the e8X00 with an nForce board would be a bad decision.
Bottom line is, like he said, the Core i7 is a fantastic CPU, the most advanced on the planet but the Phenom II 955 is not too far behind. It's a native quad-core shipped at 3.2gHz, oc's nearly as well as the Core i7, but is cheaper and runs on motherboards with better value as well. It also can use cheaper or more powerful DDR3 with higher voltages, and performs nearly as well in many situations. Bother are honestly overkill in modern gaming, and I have a hard time imagining a Phenom II quad becoming a bottleneck in the foreseeable future, so I think that your budget is best spent on a case, PSU, and video card, not an X58 and an i7. You can even recycle the case and PSU in your next build.
Message edited by smithereen on 05-22-2009 at 03:19:05 AM
------------------------------Phenom II X2 unlocked to four cores @ 3.8gHz,1.45V. 4GB DDR3-1600 Gigabyte 785g ATi Radeon HD4870 1GB
Run Folding@Home! Support Toms Hardware Guide, Team 40051!
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Reply to smithereen
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