Opinions needed on system

C

cwinning

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May 10, 2005
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Does anyone see any issues with a system like this?

VGA EVGA 768-P2-N831-AR 8800GTX
PSU TT|W0106RU 700W RT
CPU THERMPASTE|ARCTIC SILVER5 3.5G%
CASE THERMALTAKE|VA8000BWS BLK RT
MB ASUS STRIKER EXTREME 680i 775
HD 150G|WD 10K 16M SATA WD1500ADFD
DVD_BURN LITE-ON|LH-20A1H-185 BK
CPUCOOLER|TUNIQ K8&P4|Tower 120 RTL
Q6600 2.4 S775 SLACR
PATRIOT DDR2 2G KIT PC2-9200 1150MHZ

Opinions welcome.
 
heard some not so nice things about the striker extreme and compatibility issues may want to checkout some sites about this.hardocp posters are usually on the ball.:D
 
Ditch the Striker and the Raptor.

Go with the eVGA NF68-A1 680i SLI board instead.

If you have money to burn, burn it on a raptor. Just know that the newer 7200RPM drives aren't far behind as far as performance goes.

78MB/s: WD Raptor WD1500ADFD 150GB, $160AR
65MB/s: Seagate Barracuda 7200.10 ST3320620AS 320GB, $80
65MB/s: Seagate Barracuda 7200.10 ST3300620AS 300GB, $60
52MB/s: WD Caviar SE16 WD2500KS 250GB, $70
112MB/s: RAID0 'cuda's, 600GB total, $120 (ICH9R on P35-DS3R)

As you can see, the 'cuda is twice the size and half the cost, for nearly the same performance. Stick them in RAID0, and you've got an even more cost effective solution. Though, the seek time of the Raptor can't be beat. If you have cash to burn, do so on a Raptor if you really want it. Otherwise, there are better cost effective solutions.

What size monitor do you have?
 
enginurd said:
Ditch the Striker and the Raptor.

Go with the eVGA NF68-A1 680i SLI board instead.

If you have money to burn, burn it on a raptor. Just know that the newer 7200RPM drives aren't far behind as far as performance goes.

78MB/s: WD Raptor WD1500ADFD 150GB, $160AR
65MB/s: Seagate Barracuda 7200.10 ST3320620AS 320GB, $80
65MB/s: Seagate Barracuda 7200.10 ST3300620AS 300GB, $60
52MB/s: WD Caviar SE16 WD2500KS 250GB, $70
112MB/s: RAID0 'cuda's, 600GB total, $120 (ICH9R on P35-DS3R)

As you can see, the 'cuda is twice the size and half the cost, for nearly the same performance. Stick them in RAID0, and you've got an even more cost effective solution. Though, the seek time of the Raptor can't be beat. If you have cash to burn, do so on a Raptor if you really want it. Otherwise, there are better cost effective solutions.

What size monitor do you have?
Click to expand...

I have money to burn AND I have a 1.5TB NAS amd about 500GB on other systems. I'm going for speed here. I will stick with the Raptor. Thanks fro the opinion. Good advice.
I have a 24" Sony CRT and a 22" HP W2207. I'm currently using the 22" as my main.

I read that the latest BIOS for the ASUS Striker Extreme corrected many of the issues. Price isn't an issue, looking for some OC head-room.
 
Does anyone know of a RAM compatibilty list for the Asus Striker Extreme? (cant' find one)
 
The EVGA A1 is a much better board than the Striker, which has always been an overpriced, underperforming board, even with new BIOS updates.

Of course, you should only get a 680i board if you're going to build an SLI rig, and an SLI rig is only worth it if a) you game (or plan to game) at a resolution of at least 1920x1200 and b) have the cash to get two of the fastest cards available now (this means dropping a grand on two GTXs or Ultra cards.) SLI as an upgrade path is almost always a bad idea as a better single card solution will usually be available for about the same amount (or less if you sell your old card,) but will perform better than two older cards in SLI. Futhermore, sticking to one card provides for a cooler running system and for more motherboard choices.

If you decide you don't need SLI, then consider a P-35 board instead. The Abit IP-35Pro or E, Gigabyte DS3R, and ASUS P5K E are all worth considering. Furthermore, all of these boards tend to OC better than any 680i board.

Good luck,

Mark.
 
Markyip1 said:
The EVGA A1 is a much better board than the Striker, which has always been an overpriced, underperforming board, even with new BIOS updates.

Of course, you should only get a 680i board if you're going to build an SLI rig, and an SLI rig is only worth it if a) you game (or plan to game) at a resolution of at least 1920x1200 and b) have the cash to get two of the fastest cards available now (this means dropping a grand on two GTXs or Ultra cards.) SLI as an upgrade path is almost always a bad idea as a better single card solution will usually be available for about the same amount (or less if you sell your old card,) but will perform better than two older cards in SLI. Futhermore, sticking to one card provides for a cooler running system and for more motherboard choices.

If you decide you don't need SLI, then consider a P-35 board instead. The Abit IP-35Pro or E, Gigabyte DS3R, and ASUS P5K E are all worth considering. Furthermore, all of these boards tend to OC better than any 680i board.

Good luck,

Mark.
Click to expand...

My PCs are for gaming. I would like to run my games at 1680X1050 without having to go with low settings. I was thinking of going with 8800 GTX now and another in a few months. Concerning the EVGA A1, would I get a better OC off one of the non-SLI P35 boards?

Out of the "The Abit IP-35Pro or E, Gigabyte DS3R, and ASUS P5K E are all worth considering. Furthermore, all of these boards tend to OC better than any 680i board." what would be best for an OC machine when considering my other components? I've read dozens of reviews and they seem to make my head spin. I'm looking for a high'ish OC (3.6ghz+ would nice) but I don't want to deal with all the issue of the Striker Extrerme. I'm cool with playing with setting until its done, but these BIOS and hardware issues are not cool. (been OC'ing since my Celeron 300)

VGA EVGA 768-P2-N831-AR 8800GTX
PSU TT|W0106RU 700W RT
CPU THERMPASTE|ARCTIC SILVER5 3.5G%
CASE THERMALTAKE|VA8000BWS BLK RT
HD 150G|WD 10K 16M SATA WD1500ADFD
DVD_BURN LITE-ON|LH-20A1H-185 BK
CPUCOOLER|TUNIQ K8&P4|Tower 120 RTL
Q6600 2.4 S775 SLACR
PATRIOT DDR2 2G KIT PC2-9200 1150MHZ

Board choice aside....How does the RAM look? I read some good reviews on them. I think the highest stable OC for this kit is around 1280'ish.

Thanks for the help so far.
 
You don't need DDR2-1150 RAM. All you need for a Q6600 is DDR2-800.

Formulas for Intel platform @ 1:1 settings: (base FSB speed is SDR, or single data rate)
(CPU Multiplier) x [Base FSB speed] = CPU Clock speed
2 x [Base FSB speed] = RAM speed (DDR: double data rate)
4 x [Base FSB speed] = Effective FSB speed (QDR: quad data rate)

On Intel platforms, running the RAM higher than a 1:1 ratio with the CPU is, for the most part, useless, so don't bother trying to do so. If the BIOS does it for you, just let it. All you need is a 1:1 config, though. Here's some possible clock speeds (as always with OC'ing, your results will vary):

Q6600: 9 × 266 = 2.4Ghz, DDR2-533 << STOCK speeds
Q6600: 9 × 333 = 3.0Ghz, DDR2-667 << Nice OC
Q6600: 9 × 378 = 3.4Ghz, DDR2-756 << Good OC, near max for B3 stepping
Q6600: 9 × 400 = 3.6Ghz, DDR2-800 << Great OC, near max for G0 stepping

I'll repeat... running the ram faster than a 1:1 ratio with the CPU yields negligible performance gains. But if you must waste the money (cuz it sounds like you have a lot of money to splurge), then go ahead.

Any of those boards will take a Q6600 to 3.6Ghz... simply because any of those boards can easily hit 400Mhz FSB SDR.
 
enginurd said:
You don't need DDR2-1150 RAM. All you need for a Q6600 is DDR2-800.

Formulas for Intel platform @ 1:1 settings: (base FSB speed is SDR, or single data rate)
(CPU Multiplier) x [Base FSB speed] = CPU Clock speed
2 x [Base FSB speed] = RAM speed (DDR: double data rate)
4 x [Base FSB speed] = Effective FSB speed (QDR: quad data rate)

On Intel platforms, running the RAM higher than a 1:1 ratio with the CPU is, for the most part, useless, so don't bother trying to do so. If the BIOS does it for you, just let it. All you need is a 1:1 config, though. Here's some possible clock speeds (as always with OC'ing, your results will vary):

Q6600: 9 × 266 = 2.4Ghz, DDR2-533 << STOCK speeds
Q6600: 9 × 333 = 3.0Ghz, DDR2-667 << Nice OC
Q6600: 9 × 378 = 3.4Ghz, DDR2-756 << Good OC, near max for B3 stepping
Q6600: 9 × 400 = 3.6Ghz, DDR2-800 << Great OC, near max for G0 stepping

I'll repeat... running the ram faster than a 1:1 ratio with the CPU yields negligible performance gains. But if you must waste the money (cuz it sounds like you have a lot of money to splurge), then go ahead.

Any of those boards will take a Q6600 to 3.6Ghz... simply because any of those boards can easily hit 400Mhz FSB SDR.
Click to expand...

Very good information here...I have a tendancy to go way overboard when buying things. I have the $$, so I don't mind spending the $$ to get what I want and not what I really 'need'. For instance I wanted a car that got 30MPH and I purchase a vette two summers ago...It gets 30PMH in 6th gear at 75mph, but did I REALLY need to purchase a vette? =)

With that being said, I'm leaning towards the GIGABYTE GA-P35C-DS3R mobo along with my GO stepping Q6600. I'm only looking for a 3.6ghz OC so the Striker Extreme is overkill. I've been looking for a compatibilty chart for RAM and the GIGABYTE GA-P35C-DS3R board and I cannot locate one. Are there any out there? If not, what would be the best set of 4-4-4- rate RAM. (I'm thinking of going 4GB too) As you pointed out, pretty much any DDR2 800mhz sticks will do, but I'm looking for compatibily along with quality.

Edit: Found the list http://www.giga-byte.com/Products/Motherboard/Products_Overview.aspx?ProductID=2626

Anyone have opinions on he best choice for 2gb and 4gb?
 
The only way you'll get CL4 with 4GB of RAM is with 4 sticks. In which case, the Crucial Ballistix DDR2-800 is your best choice. P35 boards can handle 4 sticks of ram just fine, so no need to worry there. The only issue is no room for upgrade. And, if you want, you can pump those Micron D9 chips to 1066 if you want (they'll probably need a tad bit more voltage for that, though... as if 2.2v wasn't enough).

You have the money, how about the time? If so, consider an extreme chip so you can break some OC'ing records, for which you'll need a vapochill and a nice custom WC setup. Now THAT... isn't exactly needed... but WOW.

Have you checked out the Silverstone cases, btw? Like the TJ-09 and TJ-10? MUCH better cases than the Armor.
 
I wouldn't bother with the GIGABYTE GA-P35C-DS3R. By the time DDR3 gets cheaper and faster, there will already be a newer chipset/CPU that'll actually take advantage of DDR3 RAM.

The GA-P35-DS3R is what you're looking for.

Also, I recommend the following 2GB/4GB RAM sets:
G.SKILL F2-6400CL5D-2GBNQ 2 x 1GB DDR2 800 RAM - $66
G.SKILL F2-6400CL5D-4GBPQ 2 x 2GB DDR2 800 RAM - $170

Also, you seriously won't notice the difference with lower latency RAM outside of benchmarks.
 
Yah, so he knows he doesnt need them, but he wants them anyway, hehe.
 
They're just $20 more than the one's Danny recommended... not bad. I doubt you'll get CL4 out of them, though. 8GB is overkill, but I was using 2GB back when 512MB was the norm, lol.
 
I think I over the 'I have to have CL4' phase...The only thing CL4 is going to do for me is benchmark higher and a few more FPS in games...I think I would settle for a good set of stable RAM with some head-room for an OC. I'm thinking of starting with 4GB and then go 8GB when they come down in price in the next year or so..

I think I'm going to pull the trigger on these unless someone has a legit reason not to.
 
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