I've been doing LOTS of digging and research and have my planned build. So far I've got:
CPU - E6600 Conroe
RAM - 2x1GB DDR2-800 Corsair
PSU - Enermax 500W Modular (dual 12V rails @ 22A ea)
Sound - Creative X-Fi Xtreme Music
HDD - 250GB 7200RPM SATA
Video - ATI Radeon X1900 XT
Mobo - Asus P5B Vanilla (haven't pulled trigger on it yet)
Now, as to the mobo, I know that only 965 and some 975 support Conroe. Some folks will say go with the 975 for Crossfire support, but I have no plans to run Crossfire. Also, I have no need for a lot of the whiz-bang features (RAID, WLAN, dual GigE, etc.) on the more expensive boards. I chose that one because I absolutely hated the lay-out of the Abit boards (Especially the placement of the IDE and floppy connectors). I'm still debating on between the Asus and the Gigabyte 965 boards though. Is there any reason I should be considering the 975 boards again (other than Crossfire)?
Seondly, before folks mention going with a different CPU, I chose the E6600 over the E6400 because: (1) I will not be overclocking any time soon, and (2) flight sims seem to like the extra cache from the benchies I've seen. (Was $357, so I didn't get ripped by Newegg.) Wife won't let me build again anytime soon, so this rig must last!
My main questions though lie with the RAM. Will I see any noticable impact from using the CAS4 vice the CAS5 Corsair? (Trying to save cash where I can.)
Also, is this PSU going to be enough for the single vid-card? Is there a difference between PSUs with 20+4pin main connectors and 24 pin main connectors?
Any other feedback on my build? Trying to stick to a budget.
Sorry for the questions - it's been a while since my last build - during which, techs have changed. (My old comp is still running AGP.)
CPU - E6600 Conroe
RAM - 2x1GB DDR2-800 Corsair
PSU - Enermax 500W Modular (dual 12V rails @ 22A ea)
Sound - Creative X-Fi Xtreme Music
HDD - 250GB 7200RPM SATA
Video - ATI Radeon X1900 XT
Mobo - Asus P5B Vanilla (haven't pulled trigger on it yet)
Now, as to the mobo, I know that only 965 and some 975 support Conroe. Some folks will say go with the 975 for Crossfire support, but I have no plans to run Crossfire. Also, I have no need for a lot of the whiz-bang features (RAID, WLAN, dual GigE, etc.) on the more expensive boards. I chose that one because I absolutely hated the lay-out of the Abit boards (Especially the placement of the IDE and floppy connectors). I'm still debating on between the Asus and the Gigabyte 965 boards though. Is there any reason I should be considering the 975 boards again (other than Crossfire)?
Seondly, before folks mention going with a different CPU, I chose the E6600 over the E6400 because: (1) I will not be overclocking any time soon, and (2) flight sims seem to like the extra cache from the benchies I've seen. (Was $357, so I didn't get ripped by Newegg.) Wife won't let me build again anytime soon, so this rig must last!
My main questions though lie with the RAM. Will I see any noticable impact from using the CAS4 vice the CAS5 Corsair? (Trying to save cash where I can.)
Also, is this PSU going to be enough for the single vid-card? Is there a difference between PSUs with 20+4pin main connectors and 24 pin main connectors?
Any other feedback on my build? Trying to stick to a budget.
Sorry for the questions - it's been a while since my last build - during which, techs have changed. (My old comp is still running AGP.)