Purchasing new Motherboad + GPU. PSU good enough? Motherboard advice!

[sybreed]

Hello.


I'm going to Purchase a new GPU and Motherboard. Regarding the GPU. I need to know if my PSU can handle it. And regarding the Motherboard. I need it so I can overclock my CPU: Intel core2 quad 8200.. And also, if there is a better, cheaper Motherboard out there anyone would recommend, please do so. I can spend approximately 180$ On a new Mobo. I use DDR2 Ram. 4gigs @ 800Mhz.

@ In addition. If there is a different Mobo out there, that works with my 8200. Could I possibly upgrade my RAM in addition with purchasing a new mobo that works with the 8200, and is good to overclock with? I could stretch my cash a little, if deffo worth it.


GPU: ASUS GeForce GTX 560Ti 1GB - Requires 38amps on the 12vRail Line. I don't know how to calculate this.

PSU:

INPUT: (DELL D750E-00) Delta 750W OEM unit

100-120v -10a 50-60 Hz
200-240v -5a

OUTPUT: +12v1 = /18a +5v 0/ 30a
750w max +12v2 0/18a - 12v 0/0,3a
+12v3 =/ 18a +3,3 0/30a
+12 v4 0/18a + 5v5b 0/3a

Max combined power on: +5v & 3,3v
Output: 220w

Max combined power on: +12v1, +12v2
+12v3 +12v4 output 752w


Motherboard I'm considering buying:

Gigabyte GA-EP45-UD3LR

Thanks

 

[minitron815]

Even if that PSU put out half of the specified amperes it will more than power your system; just make sure you use unoccupied rails for the 12V connectors to your video card. It's a Dell so I don't know if it'll work just like any other PSU.

Most DDR2 motherboards can support DDR2 1066 in their "OC" settings.

From what I'm looking at you want to upgrade your motherboard and ram. If this is what you want to do just buy a new processor with it to get a huge boost to your performance. A LGA 1156/1155, DDR3 and i5-760/i5-2500K combo wouldn't be too much more expensive than the motherboard and faster DDR2 ram. Otherwise I would stick with what you have now.

 

[sybreed]

I can't afford to buy the Intel i5 2500 I want in addition with buying a new GPU and motherboard.

So I decided to buy the GPU and Mobo - So I could OC the CPU. And avoid eventual bottleneck between GPU and CPU.

I had in my plans decided to upgrade in the future, buying the Intel i5 2500k. IF. I could buy a mobo that would fit a 8200, and in addition a intel i5 2500k. If not. So be it. I'll stick with the mobo that can handle the quad 8200. avod bottleneck. And use the system for 2, 3 years. If I could.

What also recently came up, was if a DDR3 Standard mobo, would work with only DDR3. or could also use DDR2.

 

[Proximon]

No, the platforms are different entirely. Your CPU is an LGA 775 type. That is the socket it fits in. The i5-2500K is designed for the LGA 1155 socket.

The 750W Delta PSU you are using is one of the better OEM units. Should be fine.

DDR3 and DDR2 are entirely different and there are no boards that can use both at once. There used to be an ASRock board that would use EITHER 2 sticks of DDR2 or 2 sticks of DDR3.

When you overclock a C2D, you are doing it by raising the core clock speed. This also impacts the speed of your RAM, and an aggressive overclock will require faster RAM. I think you are limited to 3.6Ghz with DDR2 800Mhz.... which is pretty good for an 8200.

So if you want to know how I would handle the upgrade:

Go with the Gigbyte board if you have one available somewhere. Stay with the RAM you have or upgrade to 8GB DDR2 800:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231301&cm_re=DDR2_8GB-_-20-231-301-_-Product

Try to avoid populating all 4 slots as the board won't like that and it will make it harder to OC.

Get a very good air cooler:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835233029

But also you need to have good air flow in your case.

 

[sybreed]

I have decided to buy: COOLER MASTER HYPER 212 PLUS As my Cooler. XIGMATEK is nowhere to be found in Denmark ATM.

As for the ram I had initially found: Kingston HyperX T1 2 x 2 GB
5-5-5-15 timings
2.2 V
1066 MHz

Any comments?

 

[minitron815]

RAM also has a multiplier so don't worry about your ram during overclocking. Set it to DDR 667 at the start; it'll increase accordingly.

For example, my bus speed for my i5-760 is 186. With 21 as my multiplier that's about 3.91ghz. At this speed I can run my RAM at either 745 (1490) or 930 (1860). My RAM is DDR 1600 so 1490 is what I run it at with tight timings.

I would stick with the DDR2 800 to be cheap if I were you; gaming performance is almost entirely dependent upon your CPU and GPU.

 

[sybreed]

Okay. I'm atm considering buying these RAM:

As for the ram I had initially found: Kingston HyperX T1 2 x 2 GB
5-5-5-15 timings
2.2 V
1066 MHz


With the timings, will I need to adjust them even further? any comments on these?

Regarding Ram, and Oc'ing CPU. Any chance, there is an excellent newbie guide out there when it comes to RAM and OC'ing CPU?

 

[minitron815]

Memory modules have a specified timing; you can look up the SPD for installed RAM using CPUID. At timings lower than the default timing you can run it at the SPD without worry. For example, your DDR2 800 is at 790 mhz because of some overclock but will be able to run the timings of the stick at the default clock speed of 800 mhz.

As for how much you can increase the voltage, you will have to look up some guides for overclocking Core 2 Duos. Overclocking an i7 is much different than overclocking a C2D even for the RAMs (actually it's all the same but with different numbers).

As for the "auto" mode, are you referring to the timings, clock speed or both? It's best to leave the timings on auto if you don't know what you're doing but if you overclock your C2D by raising the bclk (which is how you overclock) then you will want to set the actual speed of the RAM manually. You should be able to see some settings like 533/677/800/1066 (effective clock) or 266/333/400/533 (clock before doubling).

 

[sybreed]

I have a Intel Core 2, Quad 2,33 Ghz.

Regarding the ram. I think I'm going to read a guide (again again) Lot's of Dont's and Do's.

@ As for the ram I had initially found: Kingston HyperX T1 2 x 2 GB
5-5-5-15 timings
2.2 V
1066 MHz

any comments on these?

 

[minitron815]

Like I said upgrading your RAM isn't going to make any difference in gaming. Every Core 2 can be overclocked quite well with the right cooling like the 212. You don't need faster ram to overclock.

 

[sybreed]

I've just read in a guide:

DDR2 800 – Max FSB: 400

If I currently set FSB to 400, I get 2,8Ghz - I'm aiming for more than 2,8ghz. Is there something I'm missing?

ehhh. Is this where the 2x Multiplier comes into place? My ram isn't really running in 800Mhz. it's running at 400. But then I'm multiplying. Im dividing? :S.. argh!

 

[minitron815]

If it says 400 in BIOS and there's no option for 800/1066 then it means the real clock speed; DDR2 800 is runs at 400 mhz.

Try lowering that speed and raising your bclk. If you can set your speed at 200 mhz (400 effective) you should be able to overclock it past 400 mhz FSB.

If you overclock to 3.5 ghz that means your FSB is at 500 mhz x 7 multiplier. That means you can run your ram at 250 mhz or DDR2 500. In this case the ratio is 2:1 for the CPU bus:RAM bus. There should be other higher ratios but obviously you want to get the highest speed under 800 mhz (or 400 mhz depending on what your motherboard likes to display).

 

[Proximon]

RAM also has a multiplier so don't worry about your ram during overclocking. Set it to DDR 667 at the start; it'll increase accordingly.

For example, my bus speed for my i5-760 is 186. With 21 as my multiplier that's about 3.91ghz. At this speed I can run my RAM at either 745 (1490) or 930 (1860). My RAM is DDR 1600 so 1490 is what I run it at with tight timings.

I would stick with the DDR2 800 to be cheap if I were you; gaming performance is almost entirely dependent upon your CPU and GPU.

Not exactly because the minimum multiplier on DDR2 is 2. So whatever the FSB is, the DDR2 has to be double at least. A Q8200 has a multiplier of 7. 7x400 is only 2.8Ghz. 7x533 is 3731... I'm not sure how much of an OC you will get, but I think 3.4 is probably realistic. That's A 485Mhz FSB. 485x2 is 970, and that would be a stretch for DDR2 800 I think. Maybe you lower the timings and get it, but maybe not. DDR2 1066 would be safer.

 

[Proximon]

If it says 400 in BIOS and there's no option for 800/1066 then it means the real clock speed; DDR2 800 is runs at 400 mhz.

Try lowering that speed and raising your bclk. If you can set your speed at 200 mhz (400 effective) you should be able to overclock it past 400 mhz FSB.

If you overclock to 3.5 ghz that means your FSB is at 500 mhz x 7 multiplier. That means you can run your ram at 250 mhz or DDR2 500. In this case the ratio is 2:1 for the CPU bus:RAM bus. There should be other higher ratios but obviously you want to get the highest speed under 800 mhz (or 400 mhz depending on what your motherboard likes to display).

Yep this is off too. Doesn't work like that with C2Ds.