First time builder needs adivce...

Hi folks,

i'm a first time builder and need some advice to build a solid system
base on a E8400(190$) or a Q9300(270$)/Q9450(330$).

For: webdesign, poker , gaming (crysis, fsx), a little bit of video editing, internet surfing

I have these motherboards in my head:
a.) Asus P5K EPU - FSB 1333 - DDR2 1066 - arround 95$
b.) Gigastyle GA P35 S3G - FSB 1333 - DDR2 1066 - arround 85$
c.) ECS P35T-A - FSB 1333 - DDR2 - arround 90$
which boards fits me best for E8400; and which is best for Q9; rememer i'm a 1st time builder and wants it a bit easy

Video Card:
a.) Raedon HD4850 - from Gigabyte or Sapphire for arround 190$ - dont want to do CF at the moment - dont know if i want later

Can you adivse me with
a.) Memory ... 2/4GB
b.) Power
c.) Cooling
d.) Case ... should be also something for the eye...looking for a price arround $60-100 incl. shipping

Would be GREAT ...........

THANKS so much ..........

if i´m totaly wrong with the motherboards (are they ok with the Q9xxx ?) please let me know

I use at the moment a Notebook Asus with a D T2300 and a ATI X1600

I never OCed before

Mobo - Asus P5K, and if you can get the P5K-E as its a beter quality build.

Memory - 2GB if you are going with Windows XP/Vista 32 4GB if you are going with XP/ Vista 64Bit (I would suggest Corsair RAM as well as the memory is very reliable and fast)

PSU - Thermaltake has great ones along with Corsair and I would suggest 600w+

Cooling - The ThermalRight 120 is a fave of most.

Case - I hear greta things about Antec and this one is on sale for $80 bucks.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6811129041

CPU- well if you are only going to do light video editing then a E8400 is your best bet. Qauds are only good for video editing and maybe future gaming when those games become more multi threaded.

All the mobos you listed have a P35 which should have support for the Q9XXX chips. I know for sure that the P5K series does as I have a P5K-E that supports all of the 45nm chips thus far.

Hope this helps.

The mobos listed probably require a bios update for the 45nm chips to work.

The GPU is a great choice. The ECS is the worst one. Asus is probably one of the best, meaning stable and good for everything, and Gigabyte is up there with them.

Depending on your luck though you might get a newer BIOS version. As they make them and newer BIOS come out they start putting the better ones on them stock. Like my P5K-E had the BIOS support for the Q6600 G0 after the Q6600 G0 came out just about 2 weeks before it so its more than likely the BIOS will have support for the 45nm ones.

If you want guarnteed out of the box support then a X38 chipset or a P45 chipset will. And the P45 chipset is the same as the P35 but should run cooler and more stable with BIOS updates.

Q9450
GA -P35-DS3P
HD 4850
4GB
VX 550

q6600

@kad thanks
The Crown Prince is only 10 bucks more because of free shipping...

OK so we are at:
Q9450 $330 or E8400 $190
Asus Crown Prince P5Q Pro $150
Mushkin 4GB DDR2 1066 (PC2 8500) $130
Sapphire HD4850 $190
+HD
+DVD
+Case
+Power
+Cooler ... is the Artic 7Pro ok for that Board (does it fit?)
+Wlan

----------------------

Get the E8400 or the Q9450 depending on what you want to spend. Don't get Corsair RAM, they have problems and is overpriced. For power, go with the PC Power and Cooling 610w and get the Xigmatek HDT-s1283. Put all that in a Cooler Master 690 and you are good to go.

Hmm... Tell that to my 2GB of DDR400 Corsair XMS thats 5 years old (6 in october of this year) in my old system thats still kicking strong. That and the 4GB of Corsair XMS2 DDR2 1066 I have running at 1333 in a 1:1 and at DDR2 800 timings of 4-4-4-12.

I still suggest Corsair over anything as everytime I have gotten it, not only for myself but for my fiance and grandparenst PCs, it has performed the best and never given me a problem or bad stick.

Nobody is against Corsair
But nowadays nobody can deny G.Skill, Muskin, OCZ are high end brands
I have also Kingston memories DDR1 working since 6 years

Micro Center has the E8400 for $159.99 before shipping/tax. Less shipping if you have a local Micro Center.

http://www.microcenter.com/single_ [...] id=0281097

After i have read so much in forums about OC'ing, the
Q6600 is back in my head because of the price.

Ok, here is a near complete System.
THE PRINCE SYSTEM (maybe the Alien Prince, depends on the case)
E8400 + Asus P5Q Pro.............$305
XIGMATEK HDT S1293.............$37 (before $10 mail in)
Cosair SMPSU-650TX.............$109(b $20 mi)
WD Caviar SE16 640GB/SATA/16MB/7200.............$90
Samsung 22xDVD LS SH223F/SATA.............$28
MSI HD4850.............$190 (b $30 mi)
Mushkin 2x2GB 1066.............$125 (b $25 mi)

$884.......(before $85 mi) + case

Suggetions would be nice...

Are these Case/PSU Deals fit to my configuration:...i would not order Cosair SMPSU-650TX
a.)
RAIDMAX AZTEC ATX-619WB530P Black / Silver ATX Mid Tower Foldout MB Case With 530W Modular LED Power Supply - Retail
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6811156219
watch the foldout

b.)
RAIDMAX Sagitta ATX-921WBP Black/Silver SECC Steel ATX Mid Tower 450watt PRESCOTT/ SATA Ready Power Supply - Retail
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6811156180

c.)
APEVIA X-Navigator ATXA9NW-AL/500 Black/ Silver Steel ATX Mid Tower Computer Case 500W Power Supply - Retail
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6811144125

Looks good. Be careful with DDR2 1066 RAM. They are known to have compatibility issues. Check the QVL if you must get DDR2 1066. Imo, just go with DDR2 800.

As far as cases go get a good and well solidly built one that DOESN'T come with a PSU. The PSUs that come with the cases are usually cr@p. (There are exceptions for cases that come with PSUs like the Antec EA500,etc which are not too bad PSUs)

Sorry to tell you none of these deals will work with you
unless you'll get the case and throw Power Supply , this one has 4 fans but for 140$
RAIDMAX AZTEC ATX-619WB530P
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6811156219
and this one also aluminium case with 4 fans but again 110$
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6811144125
remember again you have to throw power supply
APEVIA X-Navigator ATXA9NW
You need 600 W minimum
you can calculate here
http://support.asus.com/PowerSuppl [...] uage=en-us
or here
http://www.vbutils.com/power.asp

COOLER MASTER RC-690-KKN1-GP seems to be the best choice for 80$
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6811119137

One more thing
If you'll not OC your FSB more than 400 then this RAM is enough, cheaper, and has better timing
mushkin 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 (PC2 6400)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6820146726

you set your Multiplier to 9 and FSB to 400
Your processor will be working at 9X400=3600MHz i.e 3.6GHz
and you need RAM working at FSBX2 i.e 400X2=800
So the best match will be DDR2 800
and your RAM will be working at FSB ; DRAM ratio 1:1 which is the best

And the lower the timing the better the memory
4-4-4-12 is the best

hey kad,
thanks so much for your time.
you helped me A LOT!!!
T H A N K S ! ! ! ! ! ! ! !

anyone?

I've had nothing but problems from motherboard incompatibilities, lower performance than expected, and I have YET to get a rebate. OCZ and Mushkin is where it is at.