New PC - which one should I buy?

I have three PC's to pick from. They are all priced very closely so the spec is far more important than the cost and I dont know which to pick - please help.

It's the mother boards and RAM that are doing my head in the most but opinions on all spec would be appreciated.

I know I need to add a very good sound card because I want to run quality VST audio applications without any stuttering...

so it is probably most important that the PC gives me very quick speed response times (inc mutli-task) and then excellent DVD / picture graphics to enjoy on my new 22" Samsung 2232bw.

PC1 - Mesh
intel core 2 duo E6750
ASUS P5N-E-SLI Mobo
Samsung 667mhz '??' RAM
Samsung DVD writer (20x dual layer light scribe)
1 x 256 Nvidia 8600GT graphics card
Samsung 500gb Hard drive 7200rpm Sata2 16mb cache

PC 2 - pcspecialists
intel core 2 duo E6750
ASUS P5K Intel P35 chipset Mobo
Corsair 667mhz Value select DDR2 RAM
LG 20x dual layer light scribe DVD writer
1 x 512 Nvidia 8600GT graphics card
Western Digital 500gb Hard drive 7200rpm Sata2 16mb cache

PC3 - pcspecialists
intel core 2 duo E6750
ASUS P5N-E-SLI Mobo
Corsair 667mhz Value select DDR2 RAM
LG 20x dual layer light scribe DVD writer
1 x 512 Nvidia 8600GT graphics card
Western Digital 500gb Hard drive 7200rpm Sata2 16mb cache

Your opinion would be appreciated

 

PC2 - has the better graphics card chip with most onboard memory.
Although I do like Mesh PC's....

 

Hi mcadam - yes I admit Mesh's name and rep is drawing me in, but they don't do the ASUS P5K Intel P35 chipset Mobo that you says is the better one (Mesh said the ASUS P5N-E-SLI Mobo they use is better but didn't say why). But the PCSpecialist dude and a guy from a respected PC mag said the P5k was the better one... tricky :confused

Can I ask why you say the P5K has the better graphics card chip with most onboard memory? Sorry if it is a thick question, still finding my feet

And what is it that you like about Mesh PC's?

I would like to get into some 3D games but wouldnt describe myself as an extreme gamer. It would definately be nice to get something that gives me the option to game in future but also deliver the audio punch that I need now.

Someone told me today that SLI is only for using two monitors, which I am not sure is true. I thought SLI was that you can use two (e.g). 256 cards to enhance one thing/game that you are playing on the same screen - like doubling it's power on the same job. I did notice that the ASUS P5N-E-SLI has PCIx16 but only uses them both at x8 when you have two cards in it. I dont know if that then means one 512 (presumably x16) is better than two 256's x8 or vice versa?

Simply put - do either of these motherboards make gaming better than it would be on the other and if so why?

Your advice is really appreciated, until I get more clued up i will continue to research =:banghead

 

They're all practically identical and the extra RAM on one card will make little difference. Some benchmarks show the higher RAM models in the same card are actually slower.

Assuming they all have the same amount of main system RAM, there's nothing to choose between all three really

The P5k is a slightly better board IMO, but there's nothing wrong with the other one, and they will all perform within a minute fraction of the other two.

The one that performs the best, will be the one with the least amount of unwanted software on it.

System 2 has 8 channel on-board sound, compared to 6 for the other, so on paper that looks the one to choose for your requirements. On-board sound is perfectly adequate, even for high end audio work IMO, especially if backed up by a decent CPU and plenty of RAM, so I wouldn't bother with a separate audio card. You can always add one later if you feel it's not up to scratch

 

Thanks for the reply mikkh, much appreciated. I will not get drawn in by the 512 RAM on the Graphics card.

So you make that 2 for the ASUS P5K Intel P35 chipset Mobo.

But I am still not exactly sure why it's the better board, is there something I should look for on the spec to prove this?

I probably will end up needing another sound card with a midi port, but not yet, so it's the rest of the spec that concerns me.

I am starting to lean towards the Corsair RAM as they seem a more frequent brand.

Any opinions for Western Digital Hard drive vs the Samsung?

 

It's a better board because it costs more - only kidding, although it does (cost more that is)

Well the better sound is one reason, but the heat pipe cooling the chipset is probably the main reason I think it's a better board, and although I like the Nvidia Nforce chipset, despite it causing me a bit of hassle sometimes, there's got to be some benefit of using an Intel chipset with an Intel CPU I'd have thought

The other board has SLI, which I've never even been tempted to try, because I find the whole concept ludicrous - well the way most people employ it anyway.
i.e they buy two mid to nearly top end cards, probably thinking they're going to get 2 x performance, when a better idea would be to spend the whole budget on one good card and get better performance that way - and not have to worry about overheating and extra power consumption of using two cards.

SLI is Nvidias solution to having 2 x graphics cards, but both cards must be the same type/speed

The PK5 uses ATI/AMD's 'Crossfire' which is the same thing for using two ATI/AMD cards BUT with a slight difference - you can use different non matching cards (apparently) Like I say, I've never tried either setup, and I'm not citing it as a reason for it being a better board, just filling in a bit of background info