Mobo choice and system question

[_jaco_]

Hello,

I’m trying to set up a new rig, mostly for gaming, some encoding and a fair amount of computational stuff, like MatLab or Mathematica. I hope to use it for some time (with upgrades) so I guess socket 939 is the best choice. I do plan to OC the system without water cooling, though.
At the moment I’m thinking about:

CPU:
AMD Athlon64 3000+ 1.8Ghz Socket 939
+ Zalman CNPS7000 or Thermalright XP-90

Mobo:
DFI LANPARTY UT nF4 Ultra-D
GIGABYTE GA-K8N Ultra-9
Epox Ep-9NPA+ Ultra

RAM:
OCZ Value Series 1GB (2 x 512MB) OCZ4001024WV3DC-K

Video:
ATI (Connect3D) Radeon X800 XL 256MB OEM
Powercolor ATI Radeon X800 XL Video Card 256MB GDDR3 256Bit DVI/HDTV R43CTD3D/BULK OEM
Rosewill Radeon X800XL 256MB 256-bit GDDR3 PCI-Express x16 Video Card - Retail


HDD: 160GB SATA


My first choice was DFI but then only 2 PCI seem a bit small. In future I want to add a TV-card, possibly SB Audigy and WLAN. They’re all PCI so the PCIe x16, x4 and x1 would lay idle with me choked on normal PCI. On the other hand DFI and its more than decent OC abilities extends the life of the system. Both GigaByte and Epox have 3x PCI.

I would highly welcome any comments. Also some suggestion concerning <$100 PSU and Case would be highly appreciated.

 

[Rugger]

Mobo:
That Epox baord should OC very well, but it can't push the voltage that the OCZ Value VX will need to really shine. The DFI can push that voltage without any mods. OCZ makes their OCZ DDR Booster, that is designed to give more voltage, but it takes up one of the memory slots so you'll have to decide if that is worth it to you. Another option for the OC would be to run the memory async, but why get that RAM if you're not going to run it sync...In the end you have to make the decision on whether or not it's worth it to you to have only PCI slots. The DFI has really good onboard sound, but if you're going to a sound card, then you're probably doing that to unload the CPU during intense gaming. At SOME point, mfrs will start putting out cards in PCI 1X, et al - you can take the chance and hope that it happens before you want to use more than 2 PCI slots.

CPU: If you're going to OC, then get one of the Venice cores for max potential. I would go with the XP-90 or XP-90C instead of the Zalman 7000. Put a good Panaflo 92MM with medium output for good performance/noise ratio.

Vid cards: Not fond of the mfrs you listed. For inexpensive solutions, I would go with Sapphire or ATI (BuiltByAti). If you find an inexpensive VIVO model, then I would get one of them over the non-VIVO because they OC better.

Case/PSU: HARD to get a good quality PSU and case for under $100. If anything I would spend a little less on the case and get a good PSU. If it were me I would cut back in other areas - maybe video card, maybe RAM, maybe going stock cooling at first - to get a better PSU/case. I like the <A HREF="http://www.zipzoomfly.com/jsp/ProductDetail.jsp?ProductCode=270402" target="_new">Enermax 535W Whisper II model EG565P</A>. For $89 shipped you cannot beat this PSU. For the case I would go with something like the <A HREF="http://www2.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16811129152" target="_new">Antec Solution Series SLK-3000B</A>. That combo takes you closer to $150...

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[_jaco_]

Thanks a lot rugger, your comments are invaluable.

What would be an alternative for OCZ Value VX for Epox, if OCZ will not be fully exploited?

The PSU and Case was to be <$100 each, $100 for both would be a bit shy.
What about <A HREF="http://www2.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16817151023" target="_new">Seasonic S12-430</A> for PSU?

Is there any use for the second PCIe 16x ? Since the DFI nF4 Ultra-D does not have SLI bridge anymore how can it be accomodated? Can PCIe 1x card be put there?

 

[Rugger]

For that rig and OCing I would really go with the beefier PSU like the Enermax that I listed or the <A HREF="http://www.newegg.com/app/viewProductDesc.asp?description=17-104-934&depa=0" target="_new">Fortron Blue Storm 500W</A>. Read this recent <A HREF="http://www.tomshardware.com/howto/20050228/index.html" target="_new">THG Power Supply Review</A>. I'm no familiar with Seasonic so I can't comment on performance/reliabilty, but I know the other two I listed are good.

I wasn't trying to dissuade you from the OCZ or the DFI. In fact I think that is a beast of a system! If you want to go with the Epox, then you can pair it up with some <A HREF="http://www.newegg.com/app/ViewProductDesc.asp?description=20-146-546&depa=1" target="_new">Crucial Ballistix</A> - under $200 for that RAM is a really good deal!

I'm not sure of cards that can be used in the second PCIe x16 slot and I don't think a PCIe x1 card will work in that slot.

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<font color=red>You're a boil on the arse of progress - don't make me squeeze you!</font color=red>

 

[Renegade87]

Your choice of the Seasonic S12-430 would be an excellent one <A HREF="http://www.silentpcreview.com/article226-page1.html" target="_new">Mike Chin</A> did a review over at silentpcreview you might want to look at.

As for the mobo choice, the DFI board is a good one, but why get a mobo with 2 PCIe slots (that don't natively support SLI) if you have no intention of building an SLI Rig (which is a huge waste of money in my opinion) or growing into one?

I'd look at the <A HREF="http://www2.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16813130484#DetailSpecs" target="_new"> MSI K8N Neo4 Platinum</A> and compare it feature for feature. In the long run, it's a better board (unless you want to do uber overclocking in which case you don't want to cheap out on any of your hardware).

"The world ends when you're dead. As long as your breathing you got more punishment in store. Stand it like a man and give some back."

 

[Rugger]

I've done the MSI path one too many times and I've only had trouble with their mobos. You can recommend it if you want, but their track record stinks in my book.

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<font color=red>You're a boil on the arse of progress - don't make me squeeze you!</font color=red>

 

[Renegade87]

Everybody's entitled to their opinion. Abit used to be top 2 or 3. Would you buy one now? I wouldn't. Nor will I buy anything with a VIA chipset. If you've had problems with MSI in the past, I can respect your stance. My recent experiences with MSI have been spectacular. I guess eveything goes in cycles eh?

"The world ends when you're dead. As long as your breathing you got more punishment in store. Stand it like a man and give some back."

 

[endyen]

I'm with Rugger on this one. I have had problems with msi, and seen a lot lately on thier newer boards.
As to Abit, they are the only boardmaker I would use, on a board that has a via chipset.
I'm a little steamed, Abit had trouble with some bad caps. They owned it and made good. Msi used the same caps, but denied responsability. You had an msi board, and the caps blew, tough luck. Most mobo makers took that track. The only one who made good was abit. Which one should you trust?
I should add that soltek offers to send replacement caps. You are just out the instalation fee.

 

[Rugger]

You're 100% right - everyone can have their own opinion and these boards are a great means to express those opinions.

I'm with you about the Via chipsets - nForce is the only way to go in my book. Endyen is exactly right about Abit and their conduct on the bad caps issue. Every company should have done half of what Abit did on that issue - I would absolutely buy Abit now!

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<font color=red>You're a boil on the arse of progress - don't make me squeeze you!</font color=red>

 

[Renegade87]

I'm not saying that MSI is the greatest thing since the discovery of fire, but they are a tier one mobo maker (along with Asus and Gigabyte) and I am impressed with their recent products and would personally buy the mobo I recommended. But as I have a new K8N Neo2 that is running great, I have no need.

I also never had any of the problems with any mobo's as you stated "You had an msi board, and the caps blew, tough". I don't know where you got that. Maybe you got your wires crossed.

"The world ends when you're dead. As long as your breathing you got more punishment in store. Stand it like a man and give some back."

 

[Rugger]

What he was trying to say was that IF someone, not necessarily you, had an MSI board and the caps blew because of the bad caps that circulated in the industry, then MSI did not stand behind their mobos. MSI did not replace the boards, provide new caps or even acknowledge the issue was because of defective parts MSI had used on those boards. Abit, on the other hand, publicly admitted the issue with the caps and replaced any board that was sent to them with bad caps - you didn't even have to show proof of purchase to get the new board.

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<font color=red>You're a boil on the arse of progress - don't make me squeeze you!</font color=red>