Help choosing new MOBO to fit E8400

[Sell224]

Alright.. I am planning on upgrading my computer, and have pretty much decided on the E8400 (which seems to be practically available now, or tomorrow?). My old mobo was socket 939, so I am going to have to upgrade it. I am not going for ULTIMATE performance, or SLI, but a nice buy and a good amount of power. I am planning to stick an 8800GT in it as well (or 8800GTS? opinion?). Lastly, I want to upgrade my ram to 4 gigs, so would you guys suggest 2x2 gigs or 1x4 gigs. And what type.

I'm just asking for opinions, because I am not knowledgeable enough to have opinions of my own.

 

[ThatGuy16]

I would say a 780i if you got the money and wanted the option for SLI later on.

Otherwise, i think the P-35 boards will support the 8400. So maybe a DS3R..

 

[hermeslyre]

On the other questions, get a 8800gt over the gts. It's a hundred bucks cheaper and just marginally less impressive. Also 2 x 2gbs of RAM is the recommended when springing for 4gigs. Memory addressing is less of a problem that way, among other benefits. Remember that a 64bit OS will be a must to take advantage of the full 4gb's.

 

[Sell224]

On the other questions, get a 8800gt over the gts. It's a hundred bucks cheaper and just marginally less impressive. Also 2 x 2gbs of RAM is the recommended when springing for 4gigs. Memory addressing is less of a problem that way, among other benefits. Remember that a 64bit OS will be a must to take advantage of the full 4gb's.

Alright, thats what I have been thinking as well. I am still not sure whether I will get vista or XP, so hmm...

I would say a 780i if you got the money and wanted the option for SLI later on.

Otherwise, i think the P-35 boards will support the 8400. So maybe a DS3R..

Looks great, I will do a bit more research but that seems like a perfect solution. A bit pricey though.

 

[JohnJSal]

Looks great, I will do a bit more research but that seems like a perfect solution. A bit pricey though.

This one looks very nice, for only $100. The only thing missing seems to be firewire.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813128059


As for graphics cards, definitely get the 8800GT. It seems to perform better than the GTS, and not much worse than the high-end cards.

I think most people would recommend getting an Intel chipset over nVidia, especially if SLI doesn't interest you. So you'd probably want to look for the P35 chipset (which the above is). The next highest is X38, and it doesn't seem like you need that.

Oh, and as for RAM, some recommended brands are Crucial, Kingston, and Corsairs. I'm sure other brands are good as well. But choose the mobo first and then find compatible RAM.

 

[Sell224]

This one looks very nice, for only $100. The only thing missing seems to be firewire.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813128059


As for graphics cards, definitely get the 8800GT. It seems to perform better than the GTS, and not much worse than the high-end cards.

I think most people would recommend getting an Intel chipset over nVidia, especially if SLI doesn't interest you. So you'd probably want to look for the P35 chipset (which the above is). The next highest is X38, and it doesn't seem like you need that.

Oh, and as for RAM, some recommended brands are Crucial, Kingston, and Corsairs. I'm sure other brands are good as well. But choose the mobo first and then find compatible RAM.

Sounds great.. that mobo is a bit cheaper, and I am no connoisseur of motherboards, so I'll probably be happy with it. Any of you guys have any major complaints about it?

 

[hermeslyre]

The Gigabyte P35 DS3 series of motherboards are still considered some of the best. Great overclockers, great construction (solid state caps), overall great boards for the money.