socket 775 core 2 duo board

[GIBSON]

Well, I'm going to build a comp for my cousin, but I haven't really been following the motherboards. Anyone can recommend a motherboard for conroe?

[werty316]

The Asus P5W DH Deluxe seems to be quite popular.

[darkorb]

is the p5l-d2 core2duo compatible? cuz my friend has one, good boarrd

[werty316]

is the p5l-d2 core2duo compatible? cuz my friend has one, good boarrd
I think it does but maybe check Asus's website to be sure.

[Kougar]

Gibson, what is he looking for in this system? Price, features, # of SATA or IDE ports, or good overclocking... any sort of guidelines for this motherboard? :confused:

is the p5l-d2 core2duo compatible? cuz my friend has one, good boarrd

According to ASUS, it is Core 2 Duo compatible. http://www.asus.com/products4.aspx?modelmenu=1&model=515&l1=3&l2=11&l3=185 (http://www.asus.com/products4.aspx?modelmenu=1&model=515&l1=3&l2=11&l3=185)

[GIBSON]

Thanx for the replies guys, anyhow, overclocking/performance is quite important. Prize can't be overly high, but if it's really good he'll be willing to pay. #SATA/IDE ports isn't really important.

Here's the system i'm thinking about now:
Intel Core 2 Duo E6300 (S775, 1,86GHz, 1066MHz FSB, 2MB Boxed)
1GB x 2 (2GB) PC6400 DDR2, CL4 (OCZ, OCZ2P8002GK)
Seasonic S12-600, 600W (ATX12V 2.0)
XFX GeForce 7900 GT 256MB DDR3 (PCI-e, 2x DVI, ViVo) PV-T71G-UDE (R,7)
Seagate Barracuda 7200.10, 320GB (7200rpm, SATA II, 16MB)

If you have any comments about the system, or think some component would better be something else etc. feel free to say so.

[Kougar]

Well, I'm personally holding my breath to see the pricing of the Abit AW9D-MAX, as it was possibly going to even undercut ASUS's ~$260+ P5B and PW5-DH offerings... But I think now that is a bit to much to hope for. ;)

I should of very first have asked if he had any interest in SLI of Crossfire, if not now then at a later time?

CPU and HDDs look great (Using both of those!), GPU is good, PSU is very good... But, since overclocking is in his future, what about a aftermarket CPU cooler? ;) Just leaves the mainboard and potentially the case...

I'm not really a fan of OCZ RAM, however the kit I would recommend to you (The exactly one in my sig) has received a $70 price hike at Newegg since I bought it, currently $252 and shipping!! The slightly more expensive version with tighter timings also got a matching price hike, and even the 1gb kit's prices have gone up to match. :???: I knew DDR1 was going to get more expensive, but I didn't think a strong demand for DDR2 would cause this! So with that in mind, OCZ looks fine, the price difference just isn't worth it.

[GIBSON]

Well, I'm personally holding my breath to see the pricing of the Abit AW9D-MAX, as it was possibly going to even undercut ASUS's ~$260+ P5B and PW5-DH offerings... But I think now that is a bit to much to hope for. ;)

I should of very first have asked if he had any interest in SLI of Crossfire, if not now then at a later time?

CPU and HDDs look great (Using both of those!), GPU is good, PSU is very good... But, since overclocking is in his future, what about a aftermarket CPU cooler? ;) Just leaves the mainboard and potentially the case...

I'm not really a fan of OCZ RAM, however the kit I would recommend to you (The exactly one in my sig) has received a $70 price hike at Newegg since I bought it, currently $252 and shipping!! The slightly more expensive version with tighter timings also got a matching price hike, and even the 1gb kit's prices have gone up to match. :???: I knew DDR1 was going to get more expensive, but I didn't think a strong demand for DDR2 would cause this! So with that in mind, OCZ looks fine, the price difference just isn't worth it.
Thanx for the help kougar. So, should I go OCZ, or have a second look at that corsair kit? To be honest I didn't quite knew what to pick of ram, I had this whole list of DDR2 pc6400 dual channel 2 GB kits with about the same timings. Only difference I could see by looking at the products names was just price.
I'll ask him about the SLI capabilities tomorrow, but I don't think he'll care that much. SLI is nice, but is it worth the extra price tag. I used to be convinced it was, but I don't quite know for sure anymore nowadays.

BTW I let him choose the case and he came up with a NZXT apollo. Seems pretty decent I guess. (he changed his mind like 5 times. First he was like, I'll take the thermaltake shark, then he was going for the kandalf, then he was looking into the xaser series, and then, well I can't remember. I was like, gees man, make up your mind. [/NAG MODE])

[Kougar]

OCZ is much cheaper, and I don't think Corsair is worth spending 50-100 more just for the same specs of RAM. If you look closely you'll notice the voltages differ a good bit though, Corsair uses better quality/low voltage chips in their stuff, usually you can set tighter timings than they advertise due to that or OC better. For instance my 800mhz kit of 5-5-5-15 RAM is running at 952mhz @ 5-5-4-13 2.1v right now. Got it about 80% stable at 5-4-4-12, but the RAS to CAS setting is just barely outside of stability at 2.35v, and any extra voltage gives instant errors. This RAM does 5-5-5-15 @ 952mhz at just 2v though, rated specs is 1.9v.

Gigabyte has some powerful boards but I really will not call them user friendly, and I can gripe forever and a day about their software problems! I hate to see a company get the hardware almost perfectly, yet completely nullify their great hardware advantage on the software side of the product. And since the AW9D won't be out for around 1-2 weeks from what I hear, that leaves the ASUS P5B and P5W-DH. There isn't much these boards can't do. I think the P5W-DH has the edge in OCing 4mb Conroes, but the P5B has the edge with 2mb Allendales... not really much of a difference regardless even so, but I think it is there.

[GIBSON]

We're going with the P5B. Currently looking into what kind of heatsink I should get. Any recommendations?

[werty316]

Heres a roundup of S775 coolers:
http://www.madshrimps.be/?action=getarticle&articID=433

Depends on your budget but the AC Freezer Pro7 should do you good.
http://www.arctic-cooling.com/cpu2.php?idx=79&disc=

I also suggest the TT Big Typhoon as its one of the best air coolers.
http://www.thermaltake.com/product/Cooler/Retail/CL-P0114-01/cl-p0114-01.asp

The MiniTyphooon is also good but not as good as the Big Typhoon.
http://www.thermaltake.com/product/Cooler/Retail/CL-P0268-01/cl-p0268-01.asp

If you want to spend more you could get a Zalman CNPS8000.
http://www.zalman.co.kr/usa/product/view.asp?idx=203&code=009
or a Zalman CNPS9500 AT
http://www.zalman.co.kr/usa/product/view.asp?idx=193&code=009

[GIBSON]

The zalman CNPS 9500 AT looks promising, however the the P5B board doesn't seem to be mentioned on their compatibility list. Any idea how the big typhoon stacks up against the zalman?
Don't know about the ac freezer. Know of any good reviews where it's compared to the zalman and/or thermaltake?

[werty316]

If you mean the Zalman CNPS8000 I am not really sure but both are great coolers. Price vs. performance I think the TT Big Typhoon is the better choice than the Zalman CNPS8000.

Comparing regular prices:
TT Big Typhoon - $48.99
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16835106061

Zalman CNPS8000 - $53.99
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16835118005

Other good coolers are the Zalman CNPS9500, and the Scythe Infinity.

If you the best price vs. performance than the AC Freezer Pro 7 is your choice.

AC Freezer 7 Pro
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16835186134

[GIBSON]

Thanx for the help guys! (i'm going with the big typhoon)

[werty316]

Thanx for the help guys! (i'm going with the big typhoon)
Good choice and because of the coolers design you shouldn't experience any imcompatibilites and its easy to install.

Make sure to get the TT Typhoon VX model if you plan on getting the AM2 as it includes an AM2 bracket and the none VX model does not; but then again you could always use a Dremel to make your own mounting holes.