Making new Comp...Questions on RAM, Processor, Motherboard...etc

I've Decided I want to build my own PC for 3 reasons
1. I really like everything about computers and really just want to learn how to build one and know what parts are best. Like top RAM and SLI
2. Its cheaper
3. I like playing PC games and want to get Parts that can be upgraded for a long time.

-Ok I've decided on a Pentium D 840 3.2mhz dualcore for a processor
-Now the Motherboard is causing a problem. I have been looking for a mother board that can support dual core and that can support hyperthreading also so that if i want to upgrade in a year or 2 to a higher mhz dual with hyperthreading and faster bus then i can. Plus one with SLI so i can get one card now and another later when i feel like another card is need for newer games. Plus RAM is very important.
-Ok RAM....(I want to start out with like 2 gigs but be able to upgrade to like 4..was looking at corsair DDR2 6400) the Pentium D 840 has 800mhz fsb and i hear that ram slower than 400mhz will slow down the processor speed and sometimes faster ram can not really help it much (then again i read somewhere that if the ram is really fast it can help the speed). I was wondering since the Processor is a dual core then something like 800mhz RAM would help out a lot(correct me if i'm wrong but a dual core at 800mhz fsb would be like 1600mhz fsb?<---just a guess..prolly wrong) Thing is i haven't been able to find a mother board that supports all 3 (Pentium D840, SLI, and DDR2 800mhz RAM) I know Asus has a board out P5ND2-SLI Deluxe That pretty much supports all of this but not 800mhz ram ( i might be picky but i want to be able to upgrade my RAM) . Plus I've read that people are having a lot of problems with the bios on that asus card and having problems with putting more than one stick of RAM in there.

-So if you can understand what i just said and if i didn't jumble it up to much i would like to know about a good Motherboard and about the RAM.

 

Here's my 2 cents...

1) Don't worry about upgradeability so much. Things will change a lot in the near future. (as far as computers are concerned)

2) Dual core processors show no performance gain over single core processors for gaming and other single threaded applications. They are mainly for servers, 3d design, Photoshop, and other applications that can do multi-threading.

3) You don't really need 2Gb of RAM right now. 1Gb would be fine, and cost less, but if you feel you want 2Gb, go ahead...

4) Right now, SLI is not worth the money. Plus, some games don't even support it. Just go for a Geforce 6800GT/Radeon X800 series card or better and you'll be good for awhile. When they work the bugs out of SLI in the coming years, then upgrade to it.

5) I'd suggest going with an Athlon 64 processor if only for the sole reason they are cheaper. They perform just as well, and sometimes better than Pentiums. I believe they also run cooler.

Lastly, tell us how much you want to spend and we can make some suggestions.

 

I go for almost everything Wyatt said except for the athlon 64. Pentium runs cooler than AMD but AMD's maximum temperature is higher so almost no gain except the fact that the whole computer will run at a lower temperature for Pentium. Also if you like overclocking Pentium would be the better chice and in case the cpu gets to hot because of overclocking or because the fan breaks Pentium 4 won't fry up like AMD. I took all the info out of this site (http://www.tech-forums.net/showthread.php?threadid=22031) so i may be wrong.

 

"Wyat Erpp" Thankyou very much for your Advice

Sorry i left out one important detail. I do a lot of GIS work (Geographical Information Systems) using programs like CAD and Imagine that work with huge Imagery files and have to process them. This would be a multi purpose PC.

-also I would like to double box playing Everquest 2 and a Dualcore processor with 2 gigs of RAM I think would support that for sure.

-The first question I wanted answered from the thread post above was If getting the faster ram would Help, Hinder, or have not effect. example--Pentium D 840 3.2ghz 800mhz fsb ...having Corsair 6400 800mhz .. would this slow down the processor or just not help it at all, but what if i was running multiple applications..then would the 2 gigs of Corsair 6400 800mhz ram help out.

-Second I would like to find a motherboard that can support Dual core, and hyperthreading processors, SLI, and 800mhz ram. I know Asus has a mother board that offers everything up to 677mhz ram but not 800mhz.

Thankyou very much again.

 

If the speed of the ram is higher than the fsb speed it wouldn't help at all. But having more Ghz of ram will help to make the cpu faster.

 

-so I'm very confused by that last statement. yeah if i have a 800mhz fsb chip and DDR2 800mhz RAM then that is alot better than having DDR2 533mhz RAM?

 

sorry about confusing you Yes if you have 800 mhz fsb and ddr2 800 mhz then its better than the ddr2 533 mhz, but if you have 800 mhz fsb and ddr2 900 mhz (don't think it exists just an example) then the ram won't make the computer faster than the ddr2 800 mhz. Hope you don't get confused again.

 

-Sweet thanks so much for the help. But i have even more questions. I think i'm going to pass on the 800 mhz ram becuase the latency seems to be really high right now on them. I see some TWIN2X1024A-5400UL that seems to be some Sweet RAM. MSI P4N Diamond is the motherboard i'm looking at now for this PC also. Anyway the Corsair Ram says it comes in 2 sticks ...does that mean that if i wanted 2 gigs of this RAM then it would take up all my RAM slots? I would appreciate the help..I have done research, but without a Majorgeek at my side i'm still looking for answers =).

thanks again guys.
P.S. i just saw some 1000mhz ram at the corsair site. Crazy!!

 

Err, tell me where you can buy a Pentium processor that is 64-bit, 1.8 GHz (even though an AMD peforms faster than a 1.8 Pentium would) costs less than $150, idles at 28C with stock cooling, and is OC'able to 2.4 GHz with stock cooling.

It is all a matter of opinion, but AMD is cheaper and there is so much speculation over which is faster that if you can't really tell, I don't see why anyone wouldn't go with the cheaper one.


As far a suggestions, I would look at an Athlon 64 with a 1MB L2 cache, such as the San Diego core 3700+ or 4000+

 

Well thankyou all for the info and advice. I really appreciate it.

Also what brand motherboard would be best that supports Pentium D and SLI?

 

Hi
when i said all that i was't looking at the cheaper one since lem95 isn't caring to much for the budget i just said what card I think is the best. And about the motherboard i would look for a NVIDIA motherboard since they invented SLI (http://www.nvidia.com/page/home.html) thats the NVIDIA home page and the motherboard page is (http://www.nvidia.com/page/mobo.html) hope it helps. on the left side of the page there is a where to buy icon.