Help for my dream machine

gemjuno

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Apr 6, 2009
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I am planning to build new desktop for home/personal use with following components and I would like to know anything that could cause a problem (apart from price :) )
ASUS P5Q3 DELUXE
KINGSTON KVR133D3~ (4G KIT)x2
E8400 / E8600
ATI HD4350 512MB (ASUS/SAPPHIRE)
SONATA III 500
 

jpdykes

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Aug 7, 2007
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Can you give us an idea of budget? And are you going to be gaming?

E8600 is way overpriced for the improvement over an E8500 or E8400.

I can't tell if the RAM is DDR3 or DDR2, if it is the former scrap - the bang isn't worth the bucks. Go for DDR2-800.

General recommendations, certianly until recently, were for the P5Q Pro, the deluxe was considered excessive.

Jeremy
 

gemjuno

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It is supposed to be used in video editing and testing OSes over VMware and price is not a problem as long as under £800. Actually I prefer E8400. RAM is DDR3 KVR1333D3N9K2/4G. The reason for choosing P5Q3 is about built-in 802.11n, nothing special. Storage will be WD Caviar Green 2TB.
 

jpdykes

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The DDR3 won't be of much benefit over DDR2. It is not worth the difference in price.

With regards to wireless n, you could just buy an add in card for half the difference between the P5Q3 and the P5Q Pro, depends if the £30 is valuable to you.

 
DDR3 is only worthwhile for CPU's with an integrated memory controller like the i7 or AMD CPU's. I would also suggest ditching the DDR3 idea and getting a motherboard that runs DDR2 RAM.

Actually, since you will be doing video editing, I would suggest ditching the Core 2 Duo all together and getting at least a Phenom II 720. The Phenom II is almost as fast as the E8400 in single threaded apps and considerably faster in multi-threaded apps and video encoding. The Phenom II 720 or 940 on a 790GX motherboard is a great combination.
 

gemjuno

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Apr 6, 2009
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I found out ASUS M4A78-E with DDR2 support up to 16GB. Seems like I can cut some budget for VGA along with £30 saving on motherboard.

Will this ASUS M4A78-E be okay with SONATA III 500 PSU?

Thanks you, shortstuff_mt for advising me.
 
That motherboard would work great with a Phenom II CPU. The Gigabyte GA-MA790GP-UD4H is another great option if it's available where you're buying your parts.

The Sonota III and included 500W PSU will work fine with that build. The 790GX comes with integrated video so you won't need a video card. You'll end up with a better build for your use and more money in your pocket! :)