Ok.. wanting to delve into core 2...

[SuB]

right.. so.. i've been stuck on an a64 4800 939 now for some time, don't get me wrong i love it

but i think it's high time i plucked the old asus mobo and cpu out, and took the intel plunge *oh dear* i've been an amd fan since i had a 2100xp (w00t) with 512mb ram and a 30gb drive *back in the day*

anyway back to business

ok...

CPU:

Is core 2 quad all that much better than core 2 duo?

Which is the best one to go for?

RAM:

A good indication of how much ram to go for? (i would like at least 4GB as i will have vista 64 on it at some stage (and i photoshop))

MOBO:

Which motherboard and chipset? i've completely lost track of these and would love to know which is good? 680i? (better not crackle in vista!!!)

I've got me an 8800gts and won't be changing that for a while, sli isn't really a must, but hey they all have it now right?

POWER:

I have a tagan 2force 580w psu (running fine) would this need updating?

Cooling:

also i'll be water cooling the cpu with a DD TDX block after buying the 775 top for it since i've already got a nice water setup.

the main reason i ask is i got a mail from komplett {linky} for an upgrade deal which looked to be pretty alright and i could afford it in the coming weeks...

and i reckon i'll have to jump on that twin samsung spinpoint deal too!!

however i know bundles have their problems and i'd love to hear from you guys first.

any help, suggestions or advice will be repped and remembered chaps

Cheers

 

[ionicle]

right.. so.. i've been stuck on an a64 4800 939 now for some time, don't get me wrong i love it

but i think it's high time i plucked the old asus mobo and cpu out, and took the intel plunge *oh dear* i've been an amd fan since i had a 2100xp (w00t) with 512mb ram and a 30gb drive *back in the day*

anyway back to business

ok...

CPU:

Is core 2 quad all that much better than core 2 duo?

Which is the best one to go for?

RAM:

A good indication of how much ram to go for? (i would like at least 4GB as i will have vista 64 on it at some stage (and i photoshop))

MOBO:

Which motherboard and chipset? i've completely lost track of these and would love to know which is good? 680i? (better not crackle in vista!!!)

I've got me an 8800gts and won't be changing that for a while, sli isn't really a must, but hey they all have it now right?

POWER:

I have a tagan 2force 580w psu (running fine) would this need updating?

Cooling:

also i'll be water cooling the cpu with a DD TDX block after buying the 775 top for it since i've already got a nice water setup.

the main reason i ask is i got a mail from komplett {linky} for an upgrade deal which looked to be pretty alright and i could afford it in the coming weeks...

and i reckon i'll have to jump on that twin samsung spinpoint deal too!!

however i know bundles have their problems and i'd love to hear from you guys first.

any help, suggestions or advice will be repped and remembered chaps

Cheers

CPU:

Is core 2 quad all that much better than core 2 duo?

Which is the best one to go for?

if you want it to last you a while, go for quad core, but get the G0 stepping.

RAM:

A good indication of how much ram to go for? (i would like at least 4GB as i will have vista 64 on it at some stage (and i photoshop))

4 gig is ok, but will only work on 64 bit operating systems, you could get a 2 gig kit now, and another later...

MOBO:

Which motherboard and chipset? i've completely lost track of these and would love to know which is good? 680i? (better not crackle in vista!!!)

I've got me an 8800gts and won't be changing that for a while, sli isn't really a must, but hey they all have it now right?

for stability either the P965/975 chipset, although the new Abit, IP35 is worth looking at, the review's on the front page.

POWER:

I have a tagan 2force 580w psu (running fine) would this need updating?

that will be fine.

i know nothing really about watercooling, so i'll leave that to others

but thats my advice, get a Q6600, a 2 gig kit, and an Abit IP35.

 

[FarFarAway]

As has been said, I would get an P35 based board and the Abit is my personal fav.

The PSU should be fine and dandy to go.

Personally with C2Q being around £165 for a 6600 variant...why not?

RAM: tricky one. If you're thinking of running64bit then yes more than 2gb is a good step. If 32bit then it's just not worth it

If you have a good water setup then that should be ok taking the heat away from the Quad

 

[SuB]

120.3 rad 1/2" ID tubing danger den tdx block should be alright then?

i've got vista 64bit so 4gb (i'm assuming you meant 4gb not 2gb kemp?) is alright then

any views on that deal from komplett?

thankyou much for the advice guys reps (sept kemp i cant rep him lol, damn your uber admin powers of holiness)

oh one last thing i have no idea how intel timings work (matching ram to cpu) so which would be best to put with the 6600 quad?

 

[Ham]

Iirc the G0 quad is 1333 and theres no DDR2 that runs at a REAL 333mhz afaik.

Older ones might be 1066 in which case you want PC8500 (266 real).

Don't quote me on this as i ant too sure about the FSBs of the CPUs (tierdness ftl)

 

[FarFarAway]

Aye the G0 stepping quad is 1333 but I would have thought you'd be ok with some high frequency RAM to match the quad.

 

[Mr. Smith]

No the G0 quad is 1066, the e6x50's (dual core) are 1333...

If I was in your position, having stuck with 939 for so long, I'd wait a little longer for penryn to come out... It makes sense.

Buy now, 3 months later your brand new kit is old hat, drops in value and a better more efficient core architecture is out.

Hold out for penryn and that way it will be top dog for a while, unless amd actually pull something out of the bag.

 

[FarFarAway]

Ah ye soz didn't actually read up on it. You could wait, but then you'd be continually waiting. You could wait and get DDR3 and Penryn or you could get a Quad Core now...or you could even get a cheap one whilst you are waiting?

 

[SuB]

well i need to do a few weeks of saving first so it's likely that i will ask again.. :S

i've done the whole waiting thing before and i find you just end up waiting forever, which is why i finally bought the 8800gts yes fair enough new stuff comes out quickly now but i can't afford to keep RIGHT up to date, so i reckon it'l be quad core (since it's actually ALOT cheaper than i realised) once i get some cash in.

now to start scouting prices so i can give myself some kind of target to aim for..

again big thankyou for the advice reps given where possible

 

[Mr. Smith]

If you are buying now: Quad core - q6600 G0, 4gb of cellshock, and pk5-d (you HAVE to get P35 mobo for OC'in quads). That with your gts and its pretty much what I have, except you'll have a better mobo!

Deffo get the G0 revision, SLACR FTW

BUT, really, you should wait until Penryn @ the end of year