New PC Help

[isaacinsoll]

Hi, I am thinking of building a new PC and these are the specs i am considering

Intel 2.8 Prescott (in Australia, it's the same price as a northwood 2.8)
Albatron PX865PE Pro V2.0 Motherboard
and 2x Kingmax 256Mb DDR433

I have just a few questions that i havn't been able to figure out

1. Using stock cooling that comes with the processor, can i overclock this easily? Can I just change the FSB from 200(800) to something like 220, or will that stuff up everything and put my timing out for like PCI devices or something? Is it safe to do?

2. With these i865 based motherboards, can I just put in a 512 stick or do i have to install in pairs (EG: 2x256Mb)? If i don't have to, is there an advantage performance wise in doing so (EG: dual channel or something) apart from the fact that it's cheaper and using up more of my slots?

3. I'm currently running a P3 733Mhz system with Windows XP. If i chuck in a new mobo/cpu/ram would I have to format and reinstall, or is it usually pretty stable when you swap these parts and will still work fine.

Thanks guys, it's been a while since i've been into this whole computer scene.

Isaac

 

[endyen]

There seem to be heat issues with the current prescott stepping. The P4c may be the better option at this time. There is no difference in performance between the 2 anyhow.
If you want to oc either chip, a better cooling solution is recomended for the P4c, required for the P4e. Water cooling is your best bet to get the same perf out of the "e" as the "c".
When overclocking, it is better to move up in small increments.
To take advantage of dual channel memory on 865 boards, pairs of ram must be installed.
While a "repair install" may be enough to get you up and running, perf will be better on a clean os install.

 

[miniklobb]

i would reccomend the 2.8c as it can actually out perform the prescott and is usually cheaper, they also run alot cooler leting you OC more. i use a 2.8 c on the system belowand can OC to 224fsb with just a fan thrown on the NB and a sink on the SB but i don't think the last one was needed.

P4 2.8c
Seagate 160g 7200rpm 8mb cache
2x256 Crucial PC3200
Radeon 9800pro 128
Asus P4P800

 

[P4Man]

Agreed with the other posters about not getting a P4E, but also: "2x Kingmax 256Mb DDR433"

I'm not sure how much those DIMMs cost, but i'm fairly certain 2x512 Mb of cheaper (slower) memory will give much more real world performance. 512 Mb is bare minimum today, depending what you run, even insufficient. Get a gig. Oh, and consider an A64 as well

= The views stated herein are my personal views, and not necessarily the views of my wife. =