I know people say if you keep on waiting for something thats just over the hill youll never get anything, but if youre really not in a rush to put a new system together try waiting till January.

1) The current Intel Core 2 Duo/Quad chips are 65nm. Their latest 45nm chips which run much cooler (thus quieter and require less power), faster and have more onboard memory for the same cost. In January youll be able to get:

Core 2 Quad Q9300 - 4x2.5GHz, 1333FSB, 6Mb cache - $266
Core 2 Quad Q9450 - 4x2.66GHz, 1333FSB, 12Mb cache - $316
Core 2 Quad Q9550 - 4x2.83GHz, 1333FSB, 12Mb cache - $530

Those prices are per tray of 1000, but to put it into perspective $266 is the price currently paid for the Q6600, so you should be able to pick up a 2.66Ghz 12Mb cache Q9450 for around the 180 quid mark.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_future_Intel_Core_2_microprocessors

A die shrink is never a small update.



2) January is sale season!

rumour has it that while testing a magazine ran a 3Ghz penryn processor at 4ghz with standard cooling and no problems. These should be damn hot for overclockers.

[cups hands over earoles] shaddup, shaddup, shaddup, shaddup, shaddup, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah!

(Already ordered my kit.

 
And the final loadout (for those still awake) was...

• Antec P182 Gunmetal Grey Super Mid Tower Case
• ASUS P5K-E/WIFI-AP AiLifestyle Series P35 Socket 775 Socket eSATA 8 channel Audio ATX Motherboard
• Intel Core 2 Quad Q6600 Energy Efficient 95W edition Socket 775 (2.40GHz) G0 Stepping L2 8MB Cache OEM Processor
• Arctic Cooling AC-FRZ-7P Freezer 7 Pro Socket 775 Processor Cooler
• 2x Corsair 2GB Kit (4x1GB) DDR2 800MHz/PC2-6400 XMS2 Memory Non-ECC Unbuffered CL5(5-5-5-12)
• BFG GeForce 8800 GT OC2 512MB GDDR3 HDTV/Dual DVI (PCI-Express)
• WD 160GB jobby (dont recall) SATA 7200RPM 16MB Cache
• WD WD5000AAKS 500GB SATA II 7200RPM 16MB Cache
• LiteOn 20X SATA DVD±RW/RAM
• Corsair HX Series 620W Modular PSU - ATX12V v2.2 APFC

• Microsoft Windows Vista Ultimate x64Bit OEM 1PK DVD

• Dell 2407WFP TFT monitor (I can dust-off the PS2 now!!!)

Grand total: £1200.  Much better than a mediochre, half-arsed £1700 DELL effort with no monitor. 8-)

Thanks for all your help (especially those who insisted on a self-build) - once again Tek comes to the rescue.

PS: Whats a modular PSU?...  :?  
 

do you actually need Ultimate, or is that just on a whim?

A modular PSU doesnt have all the wires hanging out the back of it, usallay its plugs in the back of it that are then connected tot he relvant hardware.

Quote from: Beakerdo you actually need Ultimate, or is that just on a whim?

Just a whim.  Overkill / belts n braces.

Thanks.

 
All built and lookin teh seks!  



Now, providing it actually works when I plug it in tomorrow, does anyone want to have a stab at recommending some mobo/RAM tweaks.  I do like a good fiddle.

WalrusBonzo did me proud on my current rig - spot on and rock-solid for years.

• ASUS P5K-E/WIFI-AP AiLifestyle Series P35 Socket 775 Socket eSATA 8 channel Audio ATX
• Intel Core 2 Quad Q6600 Energy Efficient 95W edition Socket 775 (2.40GHz) G0 Stepping L2 8MB Cache
• Arctic Cooling AC-FRZ-7P Freezer 7 Pro Socket 775 Processor Cooler
• 2x Corsair 2GB Kit (4x1GB) DDR2 800MHz/PC2-6400 XMS2 Memory Non-ECC Unbuffered CL5(5-5-5-12)
• BFG GeForce 8800 GT OC2 512MB GDDR3 HDTV/Dual DVI (PCI-Express)
• Corsair HX Series 620W Modular PSU - ATX12V v2.2 APFC

• Microsoft Windows Vista Ultimate x64Bit OEM 1PK DVD

When you have it up & running i,ll give you some help.
Should be easy to get to 3GHZ.
Memory tweaking might take a bit of trial & error .
My 6300 has been running @ 3GHZ(429 fsb for cpu , memory is running the same fsb) since i had it (nearly 2 years).

 
Thanks.

Vista Ultimate installed flawlessly and seems to be running very well.  Shoot!
 

What dya think of that case? Is the PSU location ok?

Quote from: sdpWhat dya think of that case? Is the PSU location ok?

I think its pretty damn good.  Excellent in fact.  Spacious but weighs a frickin ton (well, 14Kgs (empty) at any rate).  Cable management is a little fiddly but works well.

And for the first time in years... I cant hear anything but a gentle whirr, rather than the old howling storm.  8-) CPU at 28° (pre-overclock).

PSU location in lower cage.  Works for me.  :mrgreen:
 

Quote from: bigsteveWhen you have it up & running i,ll give you some help.
Should be easy to get to 3GHZ.
Memory tweaking might take a bit of trial & error .
My 6300 has been running @ 3GHZ(429 fsb for cpu , memory is running the same fsb) since i had it (nearly 2 years).

Ready when you are.

Simplest method is to up the fsb of the cpu , to reach 3ghz you will need to set the fsb to 333 , memory divider will have to be changed to keep memory @ standard.You should not need any voltage increase but i always up it 1 notch.

 :shock:  :?  :mrgreen:

Wont the memory timing go out the window?
 

You should be able to set the memory multiplier separately