Help With New PC Components

[TheWakeUpCall]

Hello Everyone!

Soon i will be building a computer, and I haven't been keeping up with everything that's been going on in the hardware market so I need a bit of advice.

I will probably be building this in a few months, maybe grab some bargains in the January sales. But I need to start thinking about this now really, and I have a few questions.

I need this computer to last me roughly 5 years, maybe with a few upgrades along the way. So all my parts will need to be the best I can get. I do a lot of graphic design type stuff and I do demand quite a lot out of my computer

My first question is shall I get DDR3 or DDR2 RAM? I've heard not to get motherboards that support both, so i've got to go with one or the other. The cost of getting DDR3 is about £50 more than DDR2, does it offer much better performance?

Second, shall I get a 64-bit OS? I want to run 4GB RAM if possible, so I will need it, but can it run 32 bit applications? I think all my hardware is compatible with 64bit vista, just not all my software is. If it can't run stuff like iTunes and my software, I don't want it lol.

Third, what motherboard chipset shall I get? I've heard the Intel P35 is better the P45, even though it's newer, is that true? Are nVidia boards any good?

And that's it for now I think. If anyone wants to recommend some parts then I am open to suggestions. Sorry to throw so many questions at you.

 

[little_pob]

Last I checked the P35 was still better than the P45 for gaming/OC.

Both have been somewhat replaced in the enthusiast market by the X38 and X48 chipsets, so these would be the more future proof chipsets to go for. Nehalem and X58 are round the corner, I expect DDR3 prices to fall once released as this chipset appears to be DDR3 only.

DDR3 is starting to become more mainstream and prices have dropped recently. On the original P35 chipset motherboards, where the maximum FSB was 1066, the performance of DDR3 over DDR2 was negligable. However, I don't recall seeing benchmarks for the 1333 FSB'ed P35's nor the X38 and X48 chipsets were the FSB is 1600.

If you want an Intel processor the Intel chipsets are generally cheaper. The only reason I can see to go nVidia with an Intel CPU is to run SLI.

With more than 3Gb RAM a 64bit OS is recommended. But, I would say, its a must for 4Gb+.

Vista retains the 'run in compatibility' mode of XP and most 32bit programs run fine (I've had problems with the latest Audacity beta under Vista 64). Itunes now comes in a 64bit XP/Vista flavour. IE and Firefox both come in 64bit versions.

As you said you do a lot of graphic design its worth pointing out that Adobe have stated that their next Creative Suite (CS4) will only be available in 64bit fully for Windows. Mac users will have to wait until CS5 for every piece of software to be available in a 64bit version - this includes Photoshop.

 

[little_pob]

I've been having a read on my break and all I can say is its a bad time to be looking for a PC future proof for 5yrs...

Nehalem will not be using the Socket T (aka LGA775) so you may find it difficult to cheaply source a new CPU to upgrade an LGA775 CPU in 3 years time should you want an easy power boost whilst retaining all your other components (as usual ebay should prove an ample source of second user units and new-old-stock though).

AMD are also due to release a new 940 pin socket late this year in the form of AM3. Its not as critical as the LGA775 situation, as AM3 processors will be able to run on AM2 boards. However, you won't be able to run AM2 processors on AM3 motherboards due to the switch to DDR3 (AM2 CPUs don't have the DDR3 memory controller).

 

[TheWakeUpCall]

Thanks for your reply. If there is a 32 bit compatibility mode in Vista 64bit, I'll definitely go for that, especially since CS4 is 64 bit, and Creative Suite is basically all I use these days for my design work.

As for the chipsets, I'll definitely look into those X chipsets.

I don't know what to do about the socket change though, because the new processors that use that new socket will be waaay out of my price range when they are first released, as will the motherboards will support it, so if I wait for that, I will be waiting a lot longer than I really want to.

I will look into those new processors though, see what I can find.

And DDR3, it's sounding like if I wait for the X58 chipset then DDR3 will be the only way to go anyway, and it will be the way things go, so I will see if I can afford all this.

Thanks for your help.

 

[TheWakeUpCall]

Just an update, i've been looking at these new processors and chipsets, and it says they will be out in Q4 this year, so they will be out when I buy them. However, does anyone know how much they will be? Because my budget for the motherboard and processor combined is about £200. I can stretch a little over that, but not by much.

If I can't afford this, do you reckon the any other Intel CPUs will come down in price when these are released?

Also, I can't find anywhere saying these new chipsets and motherboards will use this new socket you're talking of.

Thanks.

 

[little_pob]

I re-read my 1st post and confused myself, but it was over an hour and couldn't edit the post. However, I then forgot to correct myself in the second post: Its not a 32bit compatibility mode as such in that 64bit Vista is just able to run 32bit applications. The compatibility mode I was refering to was that which allowed XP to attempt to run troublesome 98/95 programs (poor grammar).


TBH if you need to upgrade sooner rather than later and you're not big into gaming/benchmarking/overclocking, the following will run CS on Vista:
A budget P35 motherboard: MSI P35 Neo-F Socket 775 FSB1333 onboard 8 channel audio ATX Motherboard - Ebuyer
4Gb RAM: Corsair 2GB Kit (2x1GB) DDR2 800MHz/PC2-6400 XMS2 Memory Non-ECC Unbuffered CL4(4-4-4-12) E.P.P. Technology Heat Spreader Lifetime Warranty - Ebuyer
An E8400: Intel Core 2 Duo E8400 Socket 775 (3.0GHz) 1333FSB 6MB L2 Cache Retail Boxed Processor - Ebuyer
A cheap PCI-e graphics card: Innovision 3D 8400GS 256MB DDR2 DVI TV Out PCI-E Graphics Card - Ebuyer
That lot comes to just over £250, but prices might come down once Nehalem is released.

 

[TheWakeUpCall]

Tbh I can afford to spend a little bit more than that. I was going for more £400/450. Also I want 4GB of RAM and I already have a graphics card.

Do you think a dual core is better than a quad core?

I think what I'll do is wait for that X58 chipset, see how much it is, and if I can't afford it i'll get one of the other X chipsets. I think I'll get DDR3 too.

I think I need a bit more than a budget PC tbh because I do work my PC very hard.

Thanks for all your help!

 

[little_pob]

It depends on the ability of the programs you run to run across multiple cores as to whether you're better off with Dual or Quad. The better the program is at load spreading the more benificial Quad core processors become.

I agree with you waiting for X58/Nehalem, at the very least the older chipsets should come down in price.