Mobo & RAM compatability with CPU and GC

I am getting a Q9450 CPU and a GeForce GTX 280 Graphics Card.

I need help choosing an appropriate Mobo and RAM

I don't want to over spend for the sake of it, I just want the MB and RAM to allow the CPU and GC do there best and I would also like the recommendations to be common and easy to get products (Im in Australia)

Thank you in anticipation

 

It is typical to start with the motherboard when choosing hardware for a new rig.

The geeks here will need to know the Socket type for the processor you are getting in order to show you mobo's that will be compatible. Socket 775 sound right?

We need to know whether the graphics card will use AGP or PCIE as well. Also is it an SLI card?

The RAM you choose will be determined by the # of pins the slots on the mobo has. Also the speed of the RAM that is supported.

If you have not purchased your proc & video card yet, choose your mobo 1st and build from there. If you are committed to the proc & card, post those specs and give us an idea of what you want to spend on the mobo/ram.

You can't give too much info here...

Some links:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813188024

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813131275

 

Understand but unfortunately I have started with the card and CPU

Yes an Intel Q9450 2.66 MHz Core 2 Quad is sockett 775

The GeForce GTX 280 1GB is a PCIe card which is SLI capable. If anyone suggests a board that has multiple PCIe x 16 slots then I would prefer it supported SLI as opposed to Xfire

Thats cool.........Given that I'm looking for suggestions, I'm hoping the people that suggest a board will take the board specs into account when they recommend RAM

As previously mentioned I'm committed to the card, cpu and also have a Samsung Syncmaster 2493HM 24" (1920 x 1200) LCD on the way

I desparately need some suggestions for a suitable MB, compatible RAM and a case that will fit the card and is fairly quiet. I'd like to get all 3 for under AU 600.00 but will spend more if I have too

Thx

 

Why has no one left any suggestions? Have I done something wrong?

 

No you haven't done anything wrong.

So it seems you may want a LGA775 Mobo with an SLI chipset. That means a mobo with a 650, 680, 750, 780 or 790 chipset for the SLI. Personally I wouldn't go any earlier than these series with a GTX280.

Here is an interesting comment on the 6xx series:

"650 = dual 8x bandwidth
680 = dual 16x bandwidth"

http://www.devhardware.com/forums/motherboards-32/the-best-775-motherboard-out-there-160836.html

Here is a supporting article to back up this comment:

http://www.virtual-hideout.net/reviews/ASUS_Striker_Extreme/index.shtml

So would avoid a 650 myself. Here is a review on 4 790 mobo's:

http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/NVIDIA-790i-SLI,1977-2.html

So with this in mind I am still looking for some decent comparative articles on the above chipsets and motherboards.

 

Also being an Aussie here are some online shopping comparison sites and my favorite PC Parts supplier (arguably the cheapest of quality known parts):

http://whirlpool.net.au/wiki/?tag=Cheapest_Modem
Use these search engines when we have narrowed down the field.

http://www.umart.com.au/

 

It would be handy to know if you have any budget constraints and how much you are willing to spend.

Some points you may need to consider. Your CPU is almost at the top of the range for LGA775 and the upcoming Nehalem (Octa Cores) are going to be an LGA1366 with tri-channel DDR3 and will require a complete system upgrade;

http://www.anandtech.com/cpuchipsets/intel/showdoc.aspx?i=3326&p=3

You could consider buying a 790i Motherboard that supports DDR3, LGA775 and SLI but many indicate that DDR3 is expensive for little performance gain but could be used in a future LGA1366 build. So with this in mind I would stick with DDR2 which is very reasonably priced.

As I stated earlier I would go with a 7xx series for the 280GTX and also to ensure 45um support (CPU).

Therefore I would be considering either a 750i or 780i Motherboard. Some indicate the 750i is a good gaming board unless you want extra bells and whistles.

750i Motherboards in Austrlia I would consider:
http://www.shopbot.com.au/default.asp?kw=750i&position=search

Asus P5N-D S775 nF750i-SLI FSB1333 DDR2 2xPCIEx16 RAID GbLAN 1394a ATX
http://www.asus.com/products.aspx?l1=3&l2=11&l3=627&l4=0&model=2033&modelmenu=1

eVGA 123-YW-E175-A1 M/Board - nForce 750i SLI (FTW edition), 1333 FSB, DDR2-1066, 2x PCI-E 16x, SATAII RAID, USB2.0, 7.1ch HD Sound, 1x GbE, ATX

MSI P7N-SLI-Platinum nVidia nForce 750i SLI Socket 775 Motherboard


780i Motherboards in Australia I would consider:
http://www.shopbot.com.au/search.asp?page=1&position=search&kw=780i

Asus Striker II 780i Formula (looks like this can offer awesome sound);
http://www.neoseeker.com/resourcelink.html?rid=150886
http://au.asus.com/products.aspx?l1=3&l2=11&l3=610&l4=0&model=2016&modelmenu=1

ASUS P5N-T Deluxe - nForce 780i 4*DDR2 3x PCI-E2.0 3-Way SLI

EVGA ATX nForce 780i SLI Mainboard

XFX nForce 780i Motherboard
http://www.xfxforce.com/en-gb/products/motherboards/7series/780.aspx

MSI P7N Diamond M/board - nVidia nFORCE 780i SLI Chipset, 1333MHz FSB, DDR2 800, EIST technology (P7N-Diamond)
[P7N-Diamond]

Personally I really like the XFX for it's NB cooling solution and they do make top products, they ASUS Striker II is also another worthy consideration.

Six months ago I wouldn't have hesitated in recommending Crucial Ballistix RAM, that was before the new CEO, and now the latest modules are leaving many Crucial owners less than impressed with many kits not even achieving stated speeds. Muskin RAM keeps popping up in many forums as a popular choice, but here are a couple of reviews with "Patriot" winning;

http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/hardcore-ddr2-ram-corsair,1627.html

http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/overclocking-9-value-priced-ddr2-800-kits,1548.html

http://www.shopbot.com.au/c-84-0-734-1.html

Damn the DDR3 has come down significantly in price so may be a 790i motherboard would be worthy of consideration. If you want me to look into the 790i series just say and I will see what I can find.

It has been quite hard to ensure that the RAM is supported by the Motherboards so I would enquire with the sales staff when you are purchasing it whether this RAM will go with that motherboard.

 

Your an absolute legend mate!

This is better than the help I was hoping to get

I'm going to spend some time looking at your suggestions and thinking about what you've said and hopefully make a post later tonight

Thanks again mate that info is magic

 

Forgot to respond to you last question...................

Hmm..............i'm split between saving money and spending the right amount to get a balanced system

If its not too much too ask could we look a one each of four combinations:

1. Your recommended single card board with your recommended DDR 2 RAM
2. Your recommended single card board with your recommended DDR 3 RAM
3. Your recommended SLI board with your recommended DDR 2 RAM
4. Your recommended SLI board with your recommended DDR 3 RAM

From what you've already said and done, I trust your judgement (which is 100% better than mine), and will make a choice from what you recomend.

Cheers

 

Will have a look tomorrow, but single cards bring in a whole new kettle of fish and I would be seriously considering the Intel Chipsets and go for a Biostar Motherboard;

Biostar TPower I45

http://forums.overclockers.com.au/showthread.php?t=689897

Well he also cranks this board:

FOXCONN Dreadnought 790i chipset mainboard

 

I haven't forgotten about you. I have been busy but also I was thinking you should make a post over at this Aussie site because we will get a lot more feedback on Products available in Australia from Aussies. Sorry admin if it seems I am promoting other sites but we have limited product availability compared to the US:

http://forums.overclockers.com.au/

http://forums.overclockers.com.au/forumdisplay.php?f=21

I would really like to have feedback from more individuals who have recent motherboards and RAM and can talk from experience, especially as my motherboard and RAM are almost 2 years old. Just want to make sure you get the best possible advice and you could cut and paste "post 7" and state this is what advice you have so far.