What CPU / motherboard should I get? e6600 vs e6750 etc.

[drdavidge]

Hey guys,

I'm upgrading my system and already got the following from recent deals:

2GB (2 x 1GB) Crucial Ballistix PC2-6400 800mhz Ram
MSI GeForce 7600GS 256mb PCI-X (i don't play games so nothing overkill needed)

I cant decide on a motherboard.. i need something with at least 2 IDE connectors, 3 SATA connectors, at least 1 pci express slot for the video card, at least 1 of the older PCI slots for a TV tuner card I have, and should be pretty good for overclocking safely.

I searched for these things on Newegg and came up with the following:

ABIT IB9 LGA 775 Intel P965 Express - http://www.newegg.com/Product/...x?Item=N82E16813127018

MSI P6N SLI-FI LGA 775 NVIDIA nForce 650i SLI - http://www.newegg.com/Product/...x?Item=N82E16813130082

ASUS P5N-E SLI LGA 775 NVIDIA nForce 650i SLI - http://www.newegg.com/Product/...x?Item=N82E16813131142

These 3 blatantly say they run DDR2 800mhz ram and basically fit my specs.

The ones below fit my specs but use the slower DDR2 667 ram standard:

ASUS P5LD2 R2.0 LGA 775 Intel 945P - http://www.newegg.com/Product/...x?Item=N82E16813131048

ASUS P5NSLI LGA 775 NVIDIA nForce 570 SLI - http://www.newegg.com/Product/...x?Item=N82E16813131032

These are perfect too except they don't support DDR2 800mhz. I know my 800mhz ram will just run at 667mgz instead, but id like to have a MB that supports 800mhz if possible. Are there BIOS upgrades that might allow 800mhz in the future, or is it a hardware thing?

I know the Intel chip prices are set to be slashed again on 7/22/07. I am between the e6600 and the e6750 but I had a few questions on those too:

Now whats the deal with the new Intel exx50 chips? I heard they run on a 1333mhz bus which (I think) only the new p35 chipset motherboard run.. is this true? Do you have to have a p35 to run say a e6750 or would it be fast and fine on the motherboards listed above?

Anyways.. what do you guys think about these choices and do you have any suggestions other than the ones I listed? Thanks for the help in advance.

 

[adairusmc]

Well, if you could get over your need to have two IDE connectors, or can install a add-in IDE controller, I would suggest looking at a P35 based board. All of them should support at least DDR2800, most of them support DDR2 1066.

 

[MarcVenice]

Aren't the gigabyte ds's rev 1.3 and 3.3 ready for 1333mhz bus chips ? And there should be more, I don't think its a p35/bearlake thing only.

 

[Screwballl]

I myself suggest the GA-P965-DS3 or the newer P35 boards.
The DS3 only has 1 PCIe x16 slot so if you plan to go SLI in the future, you may need to look elsewhere. Otherwise this is a fantastic board and the Rev3.3 board does state it supports 1333fsb right on the box and website.
My setup I just built:
E6600
GA-965P-DS3
2GB PC2-667
X1950GT
320GB 7200.10
X-Fi X-Music
HX520W psu
SonataII case

This system is a screamer with these parts. I am not an OC'r so no need for high end coolers or memory, I get the lower latency so this system suits me just fine.

Also with the IDE.... if you have 2 PATA items then put them on the one IDE connector. If the 2nd channel is absolutely needed then get a PCI add-in card. I always suggest getting a 250-320GB SATA boot drive and use the older PATA drive on the same channel as the disc drive for a backup.

 

[drdavidge]

i actually just realized that i do have a PCI IDE connector card so i can manage to have only one ide connector.. this widens my choices a lot. heres some of my motherboard choices from newegg now:

link

 

[drdavidge]

any thoughts?

 

[cuti7399]

since you don't game, i would go for the asus p5n-sli, i had that board and ran centon ddr533 at ddr800 speed just fine with voltage bump. The only drawback about this board is that you need to your ram default voltage @1.8v otherwise it won't boot. There are some ram that are not rated @1.8v