ddr2-800 or ddr2-1066?

[umakemebetter]

i'm planning on building the most powerful rig for the least amount of money - and the best value i seem to find on newegg is this:

Intel Q6600 (i'm a video editor and i refuse to get an E6600)

2 x 2GB G.SKILL DDR2-800 (2 sticks, 4GB total) (dont argue with me on this, i NEED that ram as video exporting and rendering is very intensive)

GIGABYTE GA-P35-DS3L LGA 775 Intel P35 ATX motherboard

• Supports 8GB of DDR2-1066 with 4 slots
• Supports up to 1333mhz FSB C2Extreme or C2Q
• Has a PCI-E x16 slot, and 3 PCI-E x1's

EVGA 512-P3-N801-AR GeForce 8800GT 512MB 256-bit GDDR3 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready SLI Supported Video Card
a few questions: what kind of FPS can i expect to get outta the following games when maxed out at 1680x1050? ON VISTA

• HL2
• Portal
• Halo1,Halo2
• BF2, BF2142
• COD4

I have a feeling Halo1 and Halo2 will run fine as they run great on my currrent card (see specs below) maxed out at 1280x1024, but i'm asking how they'll work at 1680x1050.

BF2 runs like crap when maxed out at 1280x1024 - this game is TERRIBLY optimized, but my processor also sucks - so hopefully this'll run well on a Q6600 and an 8800GT

HL2 i've never tried on my system

COD4 plays well on lowish-medium at 1280x1024, so will it work well on max at 1680?

oh and CRYSIS - will this run on high at 1680? or do I have to set it on medium to play smoothly? or can i run it max at 1440x900?

Thank you
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WHOA yeah back to my question, since the Q6600 has a 1066mhz fsb, and not 1333, is 1066 memory necessary? i cant find any 2GB dimms so im thinking i dont want to buy 1066 memory - 800 seems fine, and the possible performance increase that comes with 1066 is negligible, isnt it?

 

[Bobert93]

nope, no negligible difference , well only 1066 cost more and its more of a hassle to overclock

 

[worshipme]

I recommed two sets of 2x1GB Corsair XMS2 800MHz memory with 4-4-4-12 timings. These modules can reach 1100MHz, read this: http://www.xbitlabs.com/articles/memory/display/ddr2-800_2.html#sect0

EVGA 512-P3-N801-AR GeForce 8800GT 512MB 256-bit GDDR3 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready SLI Supported Video Card
a few questions: what kind of FPS can i expect to get outta the following games when maxed out at 1680x1050? ON VISTA

* HL2
* Portal
* Halo1,Halo2
* BF2, BF2142
* COD4

Firstly, if you're buying an 8800GT, then I recommend you choose one of the Gainwards as they replace the lacklustre Nvida reference cooler with a much improved one. As for performance, I run Vsync with all my games and in HL2 and Portal, I have hardly ever seen FRAPS showing below 85FPS (my refresh rate). I don't know about the other games but I'll post some benchmarks in a minute.
EDIT: http://www.xbitlabs.com/articles/video/display/leadtek-8800gt-extreme_11.html#sect1-Battlefield 2142.
http://www.xbitlabs.com/articles/video/display/msi-nx8800gt_8.html#sect0-Crysis
guru3d.com/article/Videocards/489/8/-COD4
With my rig (in sig), I used to play Crysis at 1280x1024 with high settings in DX9 with around 30FPS average. I recently bought a new 1600x1200 monitor but I've also finished the game so I haven't tested it at the resolution.
Agree with you in the last bit of your post.

 

[Bobert93]

can the xms2 ram reach speeds of 1100mhz,wow

 

[Atomic Rooster]

WHOA yeah back to my question, since the Q6600 has a 1066mhz fsb, and not 1333, is 1066 memory necessary? i cant find any 2GB dimms so im thinking i dont want to buy 1066 memory - 800 seems fine, and the possible performance increase that comes with 1066 is negligible, isnt it?

No. Remember that the Q6600 runs on a 1066MHz FSB which is a quad pumped 266MHz (4 x 266) bus speed. So theoretically you would only need DDR2 533 (2 x 266) to match it's performance.

Your choice in the G.Skill DDR2 800 will be fine. Great memory for the price by the way.

 

[worshipme]

If you want to overclock then then DDR2 800MHz is perfect for the Q6600.

Your choice in the G.Skill DDR2 800 will be fine. Great memory for the price by the way.

http://www.xbitlabs.com/articles/memory/display/ddr2-800_5.html#sect0 - Have a look at that and then compare it to the Xbit page about Corsair memory I linked to earlier.
EDIT: http://www.xbitlabs.com/articles/mem...0_2.html#sect0 - Corsair XMS2.

 

[Atomic Rooster]

You are correct in that the Corsair is the better choice for overclocking if thats what you're planning on doing. But for general use, the G.Skill is just fine.

I didn't see where he said he'll be overclocking this system.

 

[umakemebetter]

i wont be - i need this machine to last as long as possible

 

[worshipme]

As long as you keep your temps at a safe level. An overclocked PC will last as long as you ever need it to.

 

[freestyler105]

As long as you keep your temps at a safe level. An overclocked PC will last as long as you ever need it to.

It still won't last as long as one that was never overclocked though...