New System

[+Brainless 1]

X38 is the latest Intel chipset & is their "high end" desktop chipset.

The Gigabyte is the first mobo using it to be available in retail but all the main mobo manufacturers will have one or a couple.

 

You can upgrade later to a faster CPU but that board only has DDR2 slots so, no to DDR3.

Gigabyte will be doing a DDR3 version the X38T-DQ6 but unknown at this point when it will ship & how much it will be - plus of course the current cost of DDR3 is a killer for little or no gain with current systems.

Some mobo manufacturers will be doing X38 mobos with both DDR2 & DDR3 slots (you can only use 1 type at a time) but historically that type of design tends to be not as good as a board dedicated to 1 type but it does give a bit more flexibility for the future.

 

Early results say the X38 with DDR2 is no quicker than a P35 chipset board but where reviewers say that they are seeing gains is with DDR3 & Penryns (see below).

For my part I'm probably going to wait for Penryns to launch & DDR3 to come down to a sensible price at which time I'll probably buy an abit IX38-MAX (assuming reviews are good of course but I expect that they will be).

Of course, I can afford to wait as I already have 3 Core 2 Duo systems here.

If I were you & looking to buy now I would just go with a P35/DDR2 system as X38/DDR2 doesn't really seem to offer gains & the RAM for X38/DDR3 is ludicrously priced atm (hopefully will change by Spring).

Latest production Core 2 CPUs are 65Nm process (like the GO stepping q6600 that I recommended as opposed to the older B3 stepping), the 45Nm CPUs are the next generation of Intel's Core 2 (Penryn).

They are expected to show performance gains.

with the mobo being so new there is as yet little info on what fits & more importantly what doesn't.

Give it a week or so & there should be more info available.

I think that you mean a Q6600 GO stepping

 

RAM

 

Corsair 800hz 4GB DDR2 6400 (your suggestion)

 

HDD

 

Seagate Barracuda – 320 GB ref STY 3320620AS

latest is the SH-S203/BEBN & you would probably want to buy a silver bezel to match your silver case.

NEC/Sony do a silver SATA DVDR/RW AD-7170S-0S for much the same price but it's a bit noisier.

 

FLOPPY

 

Teac Floppy drive FD-CRZ

 

the latest & best is the 8800 Ultra but imo the small improvement over the GTX isn't worth the big price increase.

& I think that you mean is nVidia better than AMD/ATi - at this point AMD/ATi have nothing to touch the 8800GTX (the 8800GTS/XT2900 is 6 of one/half a dozen of the other)

 

OS

 

Windows Vista

there are many & like most things you tend to get what you pay for.

Things to watch out for are:

does it use the right type of connector for your peripherals (PS/2 or USB)?

the type of video connection to suit your monitor - DSUB or DVI

cheaper KVMs usually have a limit to the display resolution that they can handle well, check that they can handle whatever you normally use.

 

your existing one is probably ethernet or USB connected - if so yes, it should plug straight into your new mobo.

Presumably your old mobo has an integrated LAN adapter or a NIC card installed?

Chances are that it will be ethernet 10/100Mbps.

Your new mobo will have a gigabit (10/100/1000) integrated LAN adapter but if your old system is 10/100 there is no point in buying a gigabit switch as the network will be limited to the max of the old system - 100.

 

I think that we should deal with all your networking questions separately from the tower build.

the 8800GTX is a long card but afaik that case will take it - it's not a small case, in fact the reverse.

The PSU should be able to power it all, the RAM should work etc. etc. - afaik it should all fit/work together.

 

 

Hmmmm.....It seems to me that my best option would be to wait until the New Year/Spring and then get the latest mother board supporting the 45Nm processors with DDR3 RAM etc.

 

I will revise my saved component list based on your latest advices for future referrence. No doubt this will change again when the latest components come onstream but at least it will give me a starting point.

 

Meanwhile have you any suggestions for a better AGP graphics card that will fit my existing rig which might improve things until I get round to building a new system?

 

My existing one, a Radeon X800 Pro seems a little worn and outdated now with the flickering tiles etc. This shouldn't break the bank and as I intend to retain the system won't abe a total waste of money!!

 

 

 

Thanks for your invaluable advice with all this.

[+suhsjake 11]

I just bought a Arctic Fan 12 and its just about wispier quiet and it moves a ton of air. And you get a shiny sticker.

[+starfighter2 117]

http://www.tomshardware.com/2007/09/12/pentium_dual_core/

:yes:

[+Brainless 1]

I just bought a Arctic Fan 12 and its just about wispier quiet and it moves a ton of air. And you get a shiny sticker.

Thanks for the info but I think buying a new fan for my existing system probably wouldn't be worthwhile unless the existing AMD fan packs up. I will note this for the new system though. All advice gratefully received!

[+Brainless 1]

http://www.tomshardware.com/2007/09/12/pentium_dual_core/

:yes:

 

Thanks for the direct link which I looked at and which seems a great price and really good but my socket size is 754 so it won't fit my mobo.

 

I really need to know the best AGP card to fit my current Gigabyte K8N Pro mobo. I've looked at sites offering GFX but I really don't know what's best and I'm waiting for advice on this before I splash my cash. I know you guys will tell me.

[+Brainless 1]

Thanks for the direct link which I looked at and which seems a great price and really good but my socket size is 754 so it won't fit my mobo.

 

I really need to know the best AGP card to fit my current Gigabyte K8N Pro mobo. I've looked at sites offering GFX but I really don't know what's best and I'm waiting for advice on this before I splash my cash. I know you guys will tell me.

 

Having spent all afternoon researching this question on the web realise this is frought with all sorts of difficulties trying to work out what will fit my GA-K8N Pro mobo. Why don't the manufacturers and suppliers give a simple list of what fits their products it would make life so much easier for computer illiterates like me or do we all have to be computer geniuses. Sheer frustration!!!

 

BTW my existing tower size is H410mm x D430mm x W200mm

[BUFF 8]

My existing one, a Radeon X800 Pro seems a little worn and outdated now with the flickering tiles etc. This shouldn't break the bank and as I intend to retain the system won't abe a total waste of money!!

Possibly a driver issue?

 

How about an X1950 Pro AGP ~£120?

of course that's £120 (price of your P35-DQ6) not going towards your upgrade ...

[+Brainless 1]

Possibly a driver issue?

 

How about an X1950 Pro AGP ~£120?

of course that's £120 (price of your P35-DQ6) not going towards your upgrade ...

 

Well yes, that's what I've just worked out after much further research. I've discovered I need a 4X/8X PCI card and that fits the bill I believe.

 

Thanks for the advice. I won't be too worried about the cost as it seems it will be well into next year before I go for the new rig based on your current info.

 

Perhaps if you remember you could let me know when the DDR3 & 45NM components are available so we can go tho' this again if you can stand it