new build HELPPP

[edbtzy]

hold on a second...
if im going to pay $200-215 for a E8400...then why don't i just get the Q6600 for 200...and it will be future proof...???

[Capper]

Originally Posted by edbtzy

hmmmm
i've been readin up a lot about the DS3L board anddddd there are a lot of people out there having problems...which is kind of making me change my mind about getting that board....=/

I've never had a problem with a single Gigabyte board.

[Stormcrow]

Theres no such thing as future proof in the computer industry...yes, you can have expandability and hardware that you're happy with for the next 3 years but the tech world is constantly shifting and theres always "new and better" just over the horizon.
For the Q6600, its a quad...albeit a Frankenstein of two Conroes, but the real world benefits of quads right now are slim. A much faster dual-core, like the E8400 which can push 4GHz with ease, will be the dominant choice over a slower quad...even though the quad has more cores and technically more multi-threading power. True support for them just isn't up to par yet, and by the time it is there will be (as always) a newer and better processor to buy that leaves the Q6600 in the dust.
The Q6600 is also aging, 1066MHz FSB and 8MB of cache as opposed to the 1333MHz and 12MB of the new Penryn Q9000 line. If you do want to go quad, I would wait for those but the E8400 is currently more processor then most current apps can handle as it is.

[simple_inhibition]

plus the E8400 has SSE4 which will improve your multimedia apps when more programmers include the code in their software meaning youll get a bit more performance from it later on.

[edbtzy]

thanks for the info lol

the only thing im concerned about is being able to expand and upgrade my hardware later down the road without the stress about upgrading EVERYTHING because its out-of-date.

any new ideas on the motherboard choice to get or should i just stick with getting the DS3L...?

[screwballl]

I would suggest the EP35-DS3P or DS3R... the DS3L is the very basic board with only 4SATA ports and no RAID support plus the cooling doesn't appear to be as good as the others.

[edbtzy]

your ideas and recommendations are GREAT...the only thing is my BUDGET =/
its either i start saving up so i can pay the extra bucks for the MB...

OR

examine my build and see if there are other options for RAM or PSU resulting in a lower price which gives me the advantage to use the money i saved on that and put it towards the MB....u catch my drift? lol