I know I am probally jumping the gun here since I won't order anything for the guts of the system for a couple months but I keep looking and looking and can't decide on anything for sure. Whatever I get I want to be able to OC the heck out of it(keeps fingers crossed). With that in mind I think I want to go with a x38 or x48 system. Unless of course there is rumor of something bigger and better on the horizon. I am dropping a ton of cash on this case project so I can't go overboard on the hardware but I want a good strong system that I can oc.

I was thinking of the ABit X38 quad ct mb. I had a bad experience with them in the past but I hear they have since resolved their reliability issues.

For the cpu I was thinking the E8400. I don't see the need for a quad right now and I can always upgrade the cpu when I do need it so I was gonna stick with a dual core to save on cash. It will be a huge improvement over my athlon 64 4000 that I have now.

For the ram I was thinking of Crucial Ballistix tracer DDR1066. I have heard good things about Crucial even though I have never owned their ram. If anyone has a better suggestion on ram more suited for oc'n I am all ears. I will be getting 4x1GB sticks.

And for the gpu I was thinking the Saphire Radeon HD 3870 ddr4. I will be running 2 in crossfire. I think 2 3870x2's would be overkill and a waste of money. Of course again if AMD has something else on the horizon I may be game for that.

And for the psu I will be going for the FSP Group Everest 800w. I think this should be planty of power even with all the fans and pumps added.

! of the other deciding factors on some of these components is the blue should really accent well in my case. Just an added bonus. This will put me at around $1200 not including waterblocks.

specs look good.  crucial is good and the honor their lifetime warranty. the 3870 is good but perhaps a 8800 ultra off ebay or something might be cheaper for around the same performance.

dangerden make nice warecooling btw, also perhaps you should just go straight to phase. ?

If I was gonna go nvidia I would go with the 9800Gx2 for a single card config. I was planning on running SLi or crossfire and since I am going with the x48 I decided on the 3870. I reluctant to go with the 790i chipset since I am oc'n. I'd really would like to run 2 9600gt's.

I have all DD parts in my current rig now. This set up will be a mixture of different components. DD is a little slower than alot of others at releasing waterblocks for current hardware. If they have a decent block for what I need than I would def go with them.

Phase changing is pretty neat but I don't know that I would go there just for the fact that it's really hard to get a nice looking build out of it. If all's you want is performance and don't care how your pc looks than that's the way to go.

 nice.. looks like a soild one to me

SO in comparison how do the x38,x48,780i and 790i stack up against each other. I have heard that the x48 is just an x38 with a bios upgrade and other than the esa what's the big advantage to 790i over 780i.

 there isn't really i woulf just go for a 780i, but really i woul go for a 680i unless you want to run DDR3 then i would go with one of them. why? there cheeper they have been out for some time and have bios bugs worked out. also they make some nice mobo with 680i chipset.did i mention that there cheeper?

nelsoncp21:

SO in comparison how do the x38,x48,780i and 790i stack up against each other. I have heard that the x48 is just an x38 with a bios upgrade and other than the esa what's the big advantage to 790i over 780i.

790i supports DDR3 while 780i doesn't. Reference 790i looks to have a better chipset cooler than the reference 780i. Doesn't matter if you don't buy a reference design.

As Der Meister says, 680i is a good chipset too. I have one and I love it. Also, the chipset on the 780i runs hot. My roommates 780i idles around 55 with the case side panel off and the inlcuded chipset fan running at 100%. Mine hits around 45 when playing games, side panel on, and chipset fan running at 50%. Note: both are reference designs from EVGA.

If you don't care for DDR3 and its price, then I think the decision is between X48 and 680i/780i.

Here is a pretty good article about the X48 and it talks a little bit about the differences between it and the X38:

http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/x48-motherboard-comparison,1781.html 

cooling is not an issue if you have read my worklog on this project. I am not holding back on watercooling to say the least. From every benchmark I have seen there is no real world benefit to DDR3 yet. Someone correct me if I am wrong. Of course I want this to be a system that can be upgraded in the future. I don't want to have to do a complete build again in 2 years. I thought socket 939 would stick around alot longer than it did. didn't think that 8 months after I built my system AMD would move to a new socket. My 2 biggest concerns is a foundation for a system that can be upgraded for awhile and overclocking. With that being said, it sounds like I want to go with a x48 board that supports DDR3 possibly? I really want to go with the 790i but that data corruption issue with overclocking really has me worried. If I go with a 680i or 780i than I am locked in with DDR2 unless ya'll don't think it's gonna be an issue 1-2 years from now if I want to upgrade. I basicly want this MB to last awhile. A new MB 2 years from now will mean new blocks and fresh install in addition to everything else I would be upgrading. If DDR2 will suffice for awhile than 680i sounds like the ideal board.

 I dont really see DDR3 being a big player for some time. Look how long it tood DDR to die once DDR2 came out.

I see your point Der Meister. So I think 680i may win this battle yet. But then there's the 1600fsb to think about. hmmmmm. Decisions, decisions. Of course whats to say they don't come up with a higher fsb board and cpu in a year anyway. Man, I think I may be trying to do the impossible by planning for the future in the pc world. I should know that it's almost impossible.

I recently sold my computer piece by piece and I have 1 part left... the 800w Everest that you want nelson.

I barely used it for a month so it's damn near brand new... I'll sell it to you for under $100.

recoveringknowitall:

I recently sold my computer piece by piece and I have 1 part left... the 800w Everest that you want nelson.

I barely used it for a month so it's damn near brand new... I'll sell it to you for under $100.

Awesome. I'd be stupid to pass that up.

I'll go $80 + shipping... email me.

gamesaremedsforme@yahoo.com

 I happen to have a few other parts laying around too nelson......basically an entire rig (the one from my old sig). 680i mobo (that I am pretty sure is dead but ASUS will not reply to my RMA requestions) - 4GB of RAM g.skill ddr2-1000 um.......q6600 if you wanted an older gen CPU for under $200.

Either way I am still looking forward to seeing how this project is going to turn out! :)

recoveringknowitall:

I'll go $80 + shipping... email me.

 

I emailed you just a min ago.

Ice, I may take you up on some of that stuff later down the road if you still have it. I am in no rush to get the hardware just yet. IN fact just the opposite. I still have alot of work to do on my case(several months worth) in fact. Not to mention if I go out and get all this hardware before we settle on a house or even before the wedding my fiance will literally hang me. If she knew how much I was spending already just to mod this case I would never hear the end of it. So in a couple months if you have anything left still and depending on what's on the market and how much I may hit you up. Sorry man I know you have been trying to get rid of this stuff.