DragonMage Posted April 14, 2005 Report Share Posted April 14, 2005 Gigabyte has usually have multiple versions of their motherboards. The "workhouse" versions are usually pretty standard, typical of regular motherboards of that type (built in LAN, USB, SATA, sound, etc). The "overclocker" versions, now, those have all those fancy smancy gadgets like dual bios, dual rail, dual Gigabit Lan, dual SATA RAID, Dual Video (aka SLI), etc, etc, etc. How do I know? Well, my current A64 motherboard is a gigabyte K8NS ("workhouse version"). The difference between that and K8NS-Pro Sigma Edition (the "uber" version) is close to US$ 100. At the time I bought my motherboard, only 4 manufacturers have NF3-250 mobo in Indonesia. Asus, (at least in Indonesia) is way overpriced and overhyped for its quality. I am afraid of using ECS for a top of the line computer like A64. DFI's LAN Party mobo has legendary overclocking and stability, but it is also expensive. So I have to go to Gigabyte. So far I haven't regret my choice yet. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Darkelve Posted April 14, 2005 Author Report Share Posted April 14, 2005 Out of curiosity: what about boards with a higher chipset, like nforce3 or nforce4? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
adamw Posted April 14, 2005 Report Share Posted April 14, 2005 they're for Athlon 64 / Opteron processors. If that's the CPU you want, they're fine, and reasonably well supported (especially under 2005). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Darkelve Posted April 16, 2005 Author Report Share Posted April 16, 2005 They'll switch my AMD 2000+ (1,6Ghz) with an Intel PIV 2.8Ghz processor and the motherboard with a modern Intel MOBO. Power supply will be replaced too. All of this in total will cost around €400. I've called a friend who said it's not cheap, but it certainly isn't money wasted. One thing I was wondering: I plan to get a high-end nvidia card within a few years (a card which is high-end at this moment, like a Geforce 6600 or 6800). That would not be possible with my current MOBO, but will it be a problem with the newer, more modern MOBO? I guess not, but I'm asking to be sure. I have a Geforce MX440 AGP card currently, so the new MOBO will most likely also have an AGP slot. Otherwise how are they expecting to get it to run? Which leaves the question if the powersupply is good enough. I suppose "good enough" in the context of a power supply means "powerful" enough? Now I also wonder: is it a good idea to get a new Graphics card now or should I wait a couple of more months/years? It would be annoying if I had to replace the power supply and MOBO AGAIN, just for a new graphics card. Although I'm also considering to keep this comp. and build a new one for gaming then. Then again, all my current PC will lack for gaming, when it gets back from the store, is a good graphics card... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Darkelve Posted April 16, 2005 Author Report Share Posted April 16, 2005 Well, since I'm "upgrading" my PC anyways, I'm considering replacing my Geforce MX440 with a nvidia Geforce 6600 - one of these cards: http://cdb.novell.com/productSearch.php?PH..._groups%5B%5D=5 Any catches? Of course I might wait a bit 'till they get cheaper. A friend of mine said sticking in a new graphic card is very easy. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Darkelve Posted April 16, 2005 Author Report Share Posted April 16, 2005 So someone told me I should get a power supply of at least 350 Watt (for the GT 6600) and I'd be fine. So I specifically asked for that, but the lady on the phone told me it would probably be at least 350 Watt, since the processor I'm getting is a P-IV. Seems like I'm all set... phew! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DragonMage Posted April 16, 2005 Report Share Posted April 16, 2005 You need to be careful. Not all 350 Watt PSU are made the same. You need at least a PURE POWER 350 Watt for a configuration like this. In fact, for a P4+6600 GT I think 350 Watt is on the low side. Get at least a 400 Watt Pure Power PSU for this and you'll be happy. If it 's not a pure power version, you'll need at least 450 Watt. Better get a high quality PSU anyway since a bad PSU will destroy your computer. Also, I think a 6600 GT requires an additional 4 pin power plug from the PSU. So make sure that the PSU have two 4 pin power plugs, one for the Motherboard and one for the video card. For good PSU brands, I suggest Antec, Fortron, Sparkle Power, ThermalTake, and Enlight. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
daniewicz Posted April 16, 2005 Report Share Posted April 16, 2005 What DragonMage says is significant. A high quality PS is important. Antec or Fortron are good choices. I have a Fortron which is exceptionally quiet. Very nice. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
adamw Posted April 16, 2005 Report Share Posted April 16, 2005 Yeah, 400eur is a little on the high side, but worth it if you don't want to go the trouble of doing your own hardware stuff (I always build and tinker with my own machines :>). The only other thing to note with graphics cards these days is, make sure it matches your motherboard. The newer cards are split between PCI-E and AGP slots. You need to know whether the motherboard you're getting has a PCI-E or AGP slot for the graphics card, and buy a card to match. I can second the recommendation of an Antec PSU, they're excellent. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Darkelve Posted April 17, 2005 Author Report Share Posted April 17, 2005 They've got Antec as one of their partners, should be no prob. asking an Antec supply. 450 Watt, you said, right? And I think I'll switch my current Geforce MX 440 64MB with a Geforce 6600GT 128MB RAM. That will mean they can choose a motherboard with PCI-Express slot. So to recap: - Intel 2.8Ghz processor (I'll get a AMD64 for my next PC) - Intel Motherboard with PCI-Express - Antec power supply 450Watt - Geforce 6600GT 128MB Ram How's that for a plan? And how much would that cost approximately? I guess a couple of hundreds more? If I want to make any more changes, I'd better ask for it tomorrow. Otherwise I might piss them off since they've already ordered my stuff. Although I think they only ordered the Intel 2.8Ghz processor. I know it's a hefty upgrade, but I consider it as getting a new PC... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
adamw Posted April 18, 2005 Report Share Posted April 18, 2005 yeah, 600-700 I guess, going on their prices. Do you actually need such a hefty gfx card, though? Are you a gamer? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Darkelve Posted April 18, 2005 Author Report Share Posted April 18, 2005 yeah, 600-700 I guess, going on their prices. Do you actually need such a hefty gfx card, though? Are you a gamer? <{POST_SNAPBACK}> I'm Waiting for Oblivion :) Oblivion will need a powerful graphics card. I'll finally be able to play Prince of Persia etc. too! Yes, I guess you could say I'm a PC gamer... just not the one that likes FPS! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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