OK.....It's my turn

Mt_GoatMt_Goat Head Cheezy KnobPflugerville (north of Austin) Icrontian
edited February 2005 in Hardware
I am finally ready to go 64 and think I have most of it figured out. There are some things that I still need to figure out though.
  1. I am certain I want the DFI LANPARTY nF4 SLI-DR for my board selection but can't find one anywhere.
  2. I am convinced the Winnie core is the way to go and keep hearing about the 3200 but isn't the 3000 basically the same for less $$?
  3. Is this Patriot Dual Channel Kit a good choice for memory without spending a fortune?

I am going to wait and see on the vid cards and will likely get a middle of the road PCI-X card to get me by for a while. I will also be buying a 3 or 4 74GB WD Raptors for RAID-0 as well as a 200GB drive for backup. So what is anyones thoughts of suggestions on this?

Comments

  • madmatmadmat
    edited February 2005
    If you're going to go middling on the vid card get a PCI-E 6600GT and eventually get a second for some SLI action. In the tests I've seen it gives about the same performance in SLI as a 6800GT, so for about the same cost as a 6800GT you get the same performance, I know, big whoop right? Yeah, but, you can't buy half a 6800GT now and run it then buy the other half a few months later.

    As to the rest, I have no idea man, I think it sounds like a plan, just remember the 3000 will have a lower multiplier that you can't go up with, only down.
  • Mt_GoatMt_Goat Head Cheezy Knob Pflugerville (north of Austin) Icrontian
    edited February 2005
    Matt
    My plan on a mid level vid card is so that I will have an inexpensive card to get me going that can be sold or put into my wife's machine. Then I will do the SLI thing as that is part of my plan with going to the board mentioned.

    Doesn't anyone else have any input? Am I about to make a costly mistake or have I done my homework better than I think I have. :wtf: This will no doubt be my new head of household rig.
  • floppybootstompfloppybootstomp Greenwich New
    edited February 2005
    If I were going to go 64 bit, that's exactly what I would go for, except AFAIK we can't buy the Patriot RAM in the UK so I'd probably go Corsair.

    And I'd probably go with the 3200 and 1 x sli 6600GT for now.

    But I've promised myself I'm not upgrading until at least August. It's a cash thing :(
  • Geeky1Geeky1 University of the Pacific (Stockton, CA, USA)
    edited February 2005
    My advice: Wait a few more months. The NForce4 just came out... I'd wait until June or so before doing anything I think. Also, did you see that the DFI board requires a 24-pin power connector? (unless I miscounted... which I might have... :-/)
  • JimboraeJimborae Newbury, Berks, UK New
    edited February 2005
    floppybootstomp wrote:
    If I were going to go 64 bit, that's exactly what I would go for, except AFAIK we can't buy the Patriot RAM in the UK so I'd probably go Corsair.

    And I'd probably go with the 3200 and 1 x sli 6600GT for now.

    But I've promised myself I'm not upgrading until at least August. It's a cash thing :(


    I bought mine in the UK Flopps :)

    Got mine from Tekhead's, ultra cheap - £134 for the 1Gb kit, their supplier cocked up the price & they passed the saving on. Or you could try PC-Memory-Upgrade.co.uk

    Anyways back on topic, yep I think your choices are sound Larry and I wouldn't change a thing. Go with a 3200 just so you get the extra multiplier & then you have more options when overclocking.
  • TexTex Dallas/Ft. Worth
    edited February 2005
    I use the psu converter to run a regular atx psu in the bigger epx psu connectors. Both my dual opterons are powered this way and I can't see any bad side effects. All my voltages look rock solid. Its differant though as they don't have AGP slots with huge video cards on server dual opteron boards.

    Tex
  • Mt_GoatMt_Goat Head Cheezy Knob Pflugerville (north of Austin) Icrontian
    edited February 2005
    Geeky1 wrote:
    My advice: Wait a few more months. The NForce4 just came out... I'd wait until June or so before doing anything I think. Also, did you see that the DFI board requires a 24-pin power connector? (unless I miscounted... which I might have... :-/)
    Why would you wait?
    I am waiting on the vid cards as both a cash issue and I am certain I recall new things from both camps coming out later in the spring.

    I am aware of the 24 pin ATX connector. It is Also supposed to be compatable for use w/ a 20 pin PSU any you use the 4 pi 12v plug like on the NF2's as well as a molex. But I am buying a server PSU anyway since I will be wanting a bigger PSU for this project to run SLI.

    On another note. Is the memory I selected the same that runs as DDR4200 just by changing the timings.


    Tex
    That is good to know just incase I decide on a mega PSU that comes as 20 pin. ;)
  • TexTex Dallas/Ft. Worth
    edited February 2005
    My kits had both a 20pin to 24pin converter thing and way to add the 6pin through a molex also. EPX psu's were very expensive and I needed two of them at the time so I just got two atx to etx converter kits. I sold one of the dual opterons so I may even have an extra one if you want one bud.

    Tex
  • Mt_GoatMt_Goat Head Cheezy Knob Pflugerville (north of Austin) Icrontian
    edited February 2005
    Tex wrote:
    My kits had both a 20pin to 24pin converter thing and way to add the 6pin through a molex also. EPX psu's were very expensive and I needed two of them at the time so I just got two atx to etx converter kits. I sold one of the dual opterons so I may even have an extra one if you want one bud.

    Tex
    Tex
    Thanks,:thumbsup: I will let you know. First I will need to get my hands on a board. :scratch:
  • madmatmadmat
    edited February 2005
    Larry, the reason I suggested the 6600GT is that it's a middle range card AND is SLI capable, why toss the money away on a card that will be entirely replaced when you decide to go SLI?

    I can understand not wanting to go with a 6800 or 6800GT as a first card but the 6600GT can be found for less than $200 if you look hard enough and even alone gives you better performance than any of the other cheap PCI-E graphics cards out there.
  • Mt_GoatMt_Goat Head Cheezy Knob Pflugerville (north of Austin) Icrontian
    edited February 2005
    Mat, my original thought was to go uber cheap then toss it in my wife's rig. But I am now looking At this
    MSI nVIDIA GeForce 6600GT Video Card     How's that look?
  • deepseadeepsea Lancaster, PA
    edited February 2005
    I am aware of the 24 pin ATX connector. It is Also supposed to be compatable for use w/ a 20 pin PSU any you use the 4 pi 12v plug like on the NF2's as well as a molex. But I am buying a server PSU anyway since I will be wanting a bigger PSU for this project to run SLI.

    I just bought a Raidmax case that has a 20 pin connector and an nForce 4 Ultra mb that has a 24 pin connector. No adapter included. Does this mean that I can use the 20 pin connector on the mb?
  • Mt_GoatMt_Goat Head Cheezy Knob Pflugerville (north of Austin) Icrontian
    edited February 2005
    deepsea wrote:
    I am aware of the 24 pin ATX connector. It is Also supposed to be compatable for use w/ a 20 pin PSU any you use the 4 pi 12v plug like on the NF2's as well as a molex. But I am buying a server PSU anyway since I will be wanting a bigger PSU for this project to run SLI.

    I just bought a Raidmax case that has a 20 pin connector and an nForce 4 Ultra mb that has a 24 pin connector. No adapter included. Does this mean that I can use the 20 pin connector on the mb?
    If I read the information correctly on the DFI boards you can use the 20 pin and it just leaves the top 4 holes empty plus you must use the 4 pin 12v and a molex for stability. I could be wrong but that is what I got out of it. I am also planning on going to a server PSU though.
  • madmatmadmat
    edited February 2005
    mtgoat wrote:
    Mat, my original thought was to go uber cheap then toss it in my wife's rig. But I am now looking At this
    MSI nVIDIA GeForce 6600GT Video Card     How's that look?
    Very nice card, add another a little later and get your SLI groove goin'.

    I'd say go for it, MSI makes a solid card and I've favored them for a while now. :thumbsup:
  • deepseadeepsea Lancaster, PA
    edited February 2005
    How do I connect the molex?
  • Mt_GoatMt_Goat Head Cheezy Knob Pflugerville (north of Austin) Icrontian
    edited February 2005
    deepsea wrote:
    How do I connect the molex?
    Use an unused plug coming from the PSU and plug it directly to the board. It is mostly needed for SLI use to power the second graphics card. If using SLI, don't forget you will need a bridge to connect the 2 cards.
  • deepseadeepsea Lancaster, PA
    edited February 2005
    The board is an ultra instead of SLI...no molex connector on board. Also, no second graphics card. Would it be OK without the extra power connection?
  • Mt_GoatMt_Goat Head Cheezy Knob Pflugerville (north of Austin) Icrontian
    edited February 2005
    Exactly what board are you getting??? :scratch:
  • Geeky1Geeky1 University of the Pacific (Stockton, CA, USA)
    edited February 2005
    Geeky1 wrote:
    My advice: Wait a few more months. The NForce4 just came out... I'd wait until June or so before doing anything I think. Also, did you see that the DFI board requires a 24-pin power connector? (unless I miscounted... which I might have... :-/)

    /me opens mouth, inserts BOTH feet, starts chewing...
     http://www.short-media.com/forum/showthread.php?t=27755

    :banghead: ;D
  • Mt_GoatMt_Goat Head Cheezy Knob Pflugerville (north of Austin) Icrontian
    edited February 2005
    Geeky1 wrote:
    /me opens mouth, inserts BOTH feet, starts chewing...
    http://www.short-media.com/forum/showthread.php?t=27755

    :banghead: ;D
    Don't forget the stuff between your toes! ;D
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