ddr3 motherboard

[luca5371]

I need to build a new comp for work. Pretty heavy applications, processing wise not graphics, and it takes a freaking long time to get anything so I need this to last probably 5 years. Since it's work, price isn't a problem up to a point (need to keep it under $2500). This is what I'm thinking so far:

CPU: Q9550
VGA: VisionTek 4870
HD: Samsung SpinPoint F1 750GB
PSU: PC Power & Cooling S61EPS
RAM: CORSAIR XMS3 4GB DDR3 1333

The rest is just peripherals. I will get a different CPU fan, etc... I'll be using XP 64-bit, part of the cost, but already have a mouse/keyboard and 2 monitors for it.

Anyone got any suggestions for a mobo or changes to make? I'm having trouble finding a DDR3 mobo but I want to go that route since it will be hard to upgrade for a while. I know the processor will limit the RAM (would you all recommend AMD instead?) but I can probably upgrade that later on easier than a whole new system.

One more thing, I will not be using dual-VGA's or overclocking at all.

So basically, design a comp for me for $2500 or less with not much need for high-end video cards.

 

[JogaBonito1502]

You're in luck mate! The new i7 quad-cores just came out and they are making DDR3 a standard. If you really want to be future proof you will ditch the Q9550 and get the Core i7 920. Although it may seem a whole 200MHz slower, it is the future and all the 4 cores are equipped with Hyper-Threading which pretty much add 4 virtual cores for a grand total of 8 cores. Additionally, the memory controller has been included in the die and you no longer have a FSB (allowing for greater OC'ing). A nice motherboard to go along would be the Asus P6T.

Dude, if you get this, I want benchmarks and a pic! I will also rep you lol. I can't wait to see an i7 build.

 

[mdtajghori]

Core i7 is the way to go indeed

 

[luca5371]

Thanks for the suggestion. I'll probably go with that. It doesn't add much to the price of what I had been thinking and performance shouldb e way better. I'll definitely let you know when I do though, it may be a little cause I've got to wait on some funding to come in but I'm hoping by the beginning of next month.

BTW: does this chip fix Intel's problem with the processor limiting the RAM?

Any other suggestions?

 

[amp27]

crap ddr3 is standerd. all that money to get off those 10 year computers and now i am already outdated. stupid engineers.

 

[JogaBonito1502]

Yes. There is no longer a FSB. In the new architectural there is something else that caps off the RAM though. Fortunately it's not so low. I think higher than 1333MHz. Humm...no other suggestions. I think you got everything down.

 

[luca5371]

Ok, so this is what I'm thinking so far. I made a few changes.

CPU: i7 940 or i7 965 - I just can't decide if I should bite the bullet. Think I will if I can make the rest of the build work out. Total including shipping must be under $3000
VGA: EVGA 01G-P3-1280-AR GTX 280 1GB
Mobo: ASUS P6T
HD: Spinpoint F1 HD753LJ
RAM: G.SKILL 6GB DDR3 1600

That's the basics. I'll probably be running XP 64-bit.

Here's the problem. Can anyone find a CPU cooler besides this one which doesn't even come with a bracket? I would hate to have to wait for this because I can't find a stupid cooler so I need some help. I don't even know if it comes with one. I'd settle for a stock cooler if I have to and just get another one in a month or two. I would prefer Newegg for store so hopefully there.

Also, the price for 2 GTX 260's is really close to 1 GTX 280. Which should have better performance?

Getting really excited because regardless of which processor I get this thing is going to be a beast.

Oh, one more thing. What's the odds, in your opinion, of this going the way of the Sega CD and becoming a technology that is overlooked in the future.

 

[Cabbs]

Newegg doesn't have any other LGA1366 heatsinks right now. Right now a lot of places don't have LGA1366 heatsinks or mounting brackets that allow older coolers to work with it.

But it will come with a cooler. CPU's that don't come with a cooler are labeled OEM.

 

[worshipme]

CPU: i7 940 or i7 965 - I just can't decide if I should bite the bullet. Think I will if I can make the rest of the build work out. Total including shipping must be under $3000
VGA: EVGA 01G-P3-1280-AR GTX 280 1GB
Mobo: ASUS P6T
HD: Spinpoint F1 HD753LJ
RAM: G.SKILL 6GB DDR3 1600

You're not an overclocker, don't bother with the 965. I think that even the 940 is too much of a price increase over the 920, go with that.
And go with MSI's X58, it does everything the ASUS does and it's $80 cheaper.

And don't waste your money on the GTX 280 unless your monitor's native res is at least 1920x1200.

The HD 4870 might be a better bet actually considering that motherboard doesn't support SLi, you could almost buy two for the price of one 280.

 

[luca5371]

Ok, I pretty much got what i listed above. Thanks all for the advice. It should be an awesome machine.

@ worshipme: I had this all decided this morning and then i got your post and it really made me think all over about this. Finally, I got tired of it all and just bought the thing. But here's my question for you. I'm assuming that your logic behind your recommendation was basically that since I'm not an overclocker and the 965 is an overclocking beast (almost made for it), I won't be able to use the thing to its true capabilities (at least from an oc'er's POV) so why spend the money to get a beast. However, this logic seems a little backwards to me. If i was an overclocker, I would look at the 920 and think, I can make that thing run faster than the 965 and save myself $800 so why do i need the 965. However, not being an oc'er I think that I want as fast as possible out of the box and that's the 965 both because it is higher speed and because it can use higher speed RAM.

Sure, I may not need all of that processing power but actually I will be running some very heavy applications since i'll be running finite element analysis models and fluid models some of which are generally run on clusters and so if I can get as fast as possible on my own computer, I can get more work done by hopefully not needing to use the clusters as much.

I'd appreciate your thoughts on my reasoning.