Socket 775 home build: c2duo,ep45-ud3l,hd4890,4gb gskill,750W psu

[toms_hammer]

Going for a reliable, value gaming PC, so I picked older pieces with lots of newegg reviews: socket 775 motherboard/CPU + DDR2 RAM over an i5 or i7 build.
Thanks for any help. The questions are at the bottom. My main concerns are getting RAM that works without having to change any BIOS settings (“plug and play” RAM), and whether or not I should wait for out of stock pieces.
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CPU
$195 e8500 3.16ghz dual core CPU Model:BX80570E8500
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819115036&cm_re=e8500-_-19-115-036-_-Product
I think dual over quad, because faster cores and less power/heat.
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MOTHERBOARD
$90 GA-EP45-UD3L (“OUT OF STOCK”)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813128372&Tpk=GA-EP45-UD3L
or
$80 GA-EP43-UD3L
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813128380&Tpk=GA-EP43-UD3L
I choose gigabyte over asus, because it seems more reliable and better performing. The first mobo has a p45 chipset, which is suppsedly a little better for overclocking.
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RAM
$105 g.skill 2x2gb DDR2 800 F2-6400CL4D-4GBPI-B, 450 newegg reviews, 5star avg
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231209
or
$90 g.skill 2x2gb DDR2 800 F2-6400CL5D-4GBPQ, 2400 newegg reviews, 5star avg
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231122
The $105 RAM seems to be newer, has listed timings of 4-4-4-12, and has 1 reviewer saying he used it with GA-EP43-UD3L, the older P43 version of the motherboard I want.
The $90 RAM has listed timings of 5-5-5-15 and has 2 reviewers saying they used it with GA- EP45-UD3L, the motherboard I want but is out of stock.
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HARD DRIVE, PRIMARY
$220 Intel X25-M SSDSA2M080G2XX (“OUT OF STOCK”, this is item N82E16820167027)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820167016&cm_re=x25m-_-20-167-016-_-Product
or
$230 Intel X25-M SSDSA2M080G2XXX (newegg note: “Discontinued, replaced by N82E16820167027”)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820167027&cm_re=x25m-_-20-167-027-_-Product
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HARD DRIVE FOR STORAGE
$110 Western Digital 1.5TB Caviar Black Model:WD1501FASS
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822136592&Tpk=caviar%20black%201.5tb
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VIDEO CARD
$190 Radeon HD 4890 Model:HD-489X-ZSFC (“OUT OF STOCK”)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814150438&cm_re=4890-_-14-150-438-_-Product
Or $200+ Radeon HD 5830?
Or $160+ Radeon HD 5770?
Toms hardware charts FPS charts show 4890 performing equally with 5830. I choose 4890 because it may be more reliable. Some bad recent reviews for the 5830s on newegg. 4890 and 5830 performed better than 5770.
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POWER SUPPLY
$110 Corsair 750W PSU Model:CMPSU-750TX
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817139006&Tpk=corsair%20750
I'd like the 750W over 650W just to be safe with these monster video cards that use a lot of energy.
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CPU COOLER:
$35 Xigmatek HDT-S1283 CPU fan/heatsink
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835233003&cm_re=xigmatek_1283-_-35-233-003-_-Product
Not planning to overclock. I just want to be safe.
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CASE:
$60 Cooler Master 690 Mid Tower ATX case Model:RC-690-KKN1-GP
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811119137&cm_re=cm_690-_-11-119-137-_-Product
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OPERATING SYSTEM
XP 32 bit
or
Win 7 64 bit?

Total, with first choice for each, excluding OS price, is $1115.
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Questions:
1. A GA-EP43-UD3L motherboard reviewer said he used F2-6400CL4D-4GBPI-B RAM with his build(which is why I want to get that RAM). Should the RAM also work for GA-EP45-UD3L(the P45 mobo I'd rather get)? Likewise, if a reviewer says such and such ram works for GA-EP45-UD3R or GA-EP45-UD3P, should it also work for GA-EP43-UD3L and GA-EP45-UD3L?

2. Should I wait for the P45 gigabyte motherboard, the newer X25M SSD, and the HD 4890 to be in stock, or go with the alternatives? Anyone know how long it will take them to come back in stock, or know of any website that tracks newegg item availability history? And which memory and OS should I get?

3. Why did newegg stop selling GA-EP45-UR3R and GA-EP45-UD3P motherboards? Those were a couple of their most popular boards.

4. Does anyone have a link for G.skill's RAM naming scheme?

5. Will 5-5-5-15 DDR2 800 ram be faster than 6-6-6-18 DDR2 1066 RAM? Will it be faster than 6-6-6-18 DDR3 1066 RAM?

6. Does anyone know the difference between the above 2 solid state disks? And does anyone know the difference in performance/features between the older SSDSA2MH080G2C1/ SSDSA2MH080G2R5 and the newer SSDSA2M080G2GC / SSDSA2M080G2GN?

8. These HD 4XXX and 5XXX video cards say they require at least a 500W PSU. Should I go with an 850W PSU to be safe or is 750 fine? Using only 1 video card. Using 2 hard drives: 1 traditional and 1 intel SSD.

9. Why I haven't been able to find sites with graphs showing XP performing better than 7? After googling “win 7 vs xp”, the sites from the first two pages of google have graphs showing win 7 performing about equal with xp, but a good amount of commenters at the bottom say things like xp is better than 7 in every way. (e.g. http://www.maximumpc.com/article/reviews/windows_7_review ) If that's true, how come I didn't find any sites with graphs showing XP performing significantly better?

10. It seems like newegg offers weekly discounts and combo deals on their items that don't sell so well. Would it not make them more money to offer deals on items that do sell well?

11. How high could this build be overclocked? What about with 1066 RAM? And with what FSB speeds? Or is it better to keep the RAM timings low?

12. Does anyone know a good place I can get a new $300 - $500 laptop that has win XP installed instead of 7 or vista? Or if I already own a copy of XP, can I install it on any new laptop? Would anyone recommend ebay for buying a used laptop?

 

[calguyhunk]

Many of your questions IMO gets answered with this -

Why would you buy a $1100 LGA 775 C2D system from scratch? If you're upgrading your processor from an older 2200 or something, it's different. But with that budget, you can get a 760 (1156) system easily, or even a 1366 based 930, both of which will be a lot newer, faster, and better overall in every which way.

That I think answers questions 1 thru 5.

6. answers.yahoo.com

also - [url=dramexchange.com]dramexchange.com[/url]

7. You don't have a no. 7

8. Get the 750. Even a 650 will be good enough for you.

9. XP don't retail anymore anyways. If you have an old copy, you can reinstall that by just claiming that you're changing your dead mobo or something

10. The whole idea of discounted combo selling is to avoid building up of inventory. Fast selling products sell well as it is, without requiring push sales.

11. N.A.

12. I don't have any answer to the first part of the question, but the answer to the second pat of the question is obviously yes. 3rd part - I have previously bought stuff from Ebay, and haven't been disappointed, but obviously, I've also heard some horror stories.

 

[Proximon]

Before I start answering your questions I need to point out some major flaws. You seem to be stuck in some sort of time warp. I think you imagine you are being thrifty by choosing older tech, but looking at the prices all you seem to be doing is depriving yourself of performance and features with no monetary benefit.

The parts you have selected and are "out of stock" are not coming back, my friend. They were great parts two years ago and are now slipping quietly away, for good.

Choosing DDR2 is the same thing. End of life part. DDR3 will be around for a LOOOONG time yet, and you will have more use out of it if you buy today.

See my PSU guide linked in my sig. It will help you with all PSU questions.

Old operating systems are ALWAYS better than new ones for a time. Eventually Vista became better (or at least as good as) XP. Reading old reviews gets you nothing but behind the times.

Win 7 has the best 64-bit support of any OS to date, and for that reason alone you need it. RAM needs will only climb, as they ALWAYS have. You need a 64-bit OS to take advantage of more than about 3.2GB.

That covers most of this. If I've changed your mind I'll help you with a build now.

 

[jsc]

I have a couple of quad core system in Gigabyte P45 boards - good, solid systems.

But this is 2010. It's time to move on.

 

[calguyhunk]

Amen to Proximon & jsc.

The thing is, upgrading on the 775 makes a great deal of sense, coz it's still a pretty solid platform & a 9650 or something can totally transform your system into a real beast.

But if you're buying a totally new system, the following config is gonna be a million times faster, newer and oh, btw, did I say better?

Oh! and this ain't gonna be no 'value PC'. It's gonna be a kick-a$$, almost top-of-the-line cutting edge PC for the same (if not lower) cost.

CPU : $209 Intel Core i5-760

or the $289 Intel Core i7-860

Mobo : $150 ASUS P7P55D-E Pro

RAM : $102 G.SKILL Ripjaws Series 4GB (2 x 2GB)

HDD : (Storage) $79 Samsung Spinpoint F3 1TB

SSD : (Optional for Games, OS, etc) $149 OCZ Vertex 2 2.5" 60GB SATA II MLC Internal Solid State Drive (SSD)

GPU : $155 Radeon HD 5770

PSU : $70 CORSAIR 650TX

No single card set-up ever needs a 650. The only reason I'm recommending one above the OCZ Fatal1ty 550W is because of the SSD.

ODD : $25 LG SATA 22X DVD Burner With LightScribe Support

HSF : You said you ain't planning to OC. So don't even worry 'bout this one.

Case : Keep the Cooler Master 690. It's the only thing worth keeping from your build.

Total Cost : $999 with the ODD that your build didn't have. This rig will devour / decimate / annihilate the C2D rig any given day.

The video card I linked is pretty damn good, but if you want a more expensive one, go with a 470 / 5850, or something that suits your pocket, catches your fancy, and/or fulfills your requirements.