Several Dilemas

[JoeSwanson]

Hello, this is my first post here at Tom's. I was wondering what everyone thought of this build.

$270 - Intel Core 2 Quad Q9300 Yorkfield 2.5GHz LGA 775 95W Quad-Core Processor Model BX80580Q9300 - Retail
$135 - GIGABYTE GA-EP45-DS3R LGA 775 Intel P45 ATX Intel Motherboard - Retail
$ 70 - mushkin 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 (PC2 6400) Dual Channel Kit Desktop Memory Model 996558 - Retail
$160 - PC Power & Cooling Silencer 750 Quad (Red) 750W EPS12V Power Supply - Retail
$ 90 - ASUS Xonar DX 7.1 Channels PCI Express Interface Sound Card - Retail
$290 - HIS Hightech H487F512P Radeon HD 4870 512MB 256-bit GDDR5 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready CrossFire Supported Video Card - Retail
$180 - Western Digital Caviar SE16 WD6400AAKS 640GB 7200 RPM SATA 3.0Gb/s Hard Drive - OEM x2 in Raid 0 ($90 ea.)
$160 - Antec P182 Gun Metal Black 0.8mm cold rolled steel ATX Mid Tower Computer Case - Retail
$ 27 - SAMSUNG 20X DVD±R DVD Burner with LightScribe Black SATA Model SH-S203N - OEM
$ 7 - ARCTIC COOLING MX-2 Thermal Compound - Retail
$ 32 - ARCTIC COOLING Freezer 7 Pro 92mm CPU Cooler - Retail
$1421 Total

The main questions i have are:
1. Q9300 @ w/ 6mb cache OR Q9450 w/12mb cache for $60 more
2. Another brand of P45 mb instead of the EP45-DS3R, I heard these can be a pain to set up.
3. DDR2 800 OR DDR2 1066
4. Which brand of ATI card is best (reliable, warranty, extras)

Thanks in advance

 

[thepowerofdonuts]

I would go with the 9450. I think it's worth the $60. If you get the Gigabyte, get the D3SL not R. Better value. There's the Asus P5Q family (I believe) that are pretty good if you want P45. DDR memory is fine with 800 unless you want to spend more money. Visiontek's have the best warranty and are reasonably priced.

 

[th_username]

true