First Time - GA-P55A-UDP4, I7 860, 9800GT

[newbuilder10]

Greetings. This site has been invaluable for figuring the best build for my new system. I wanted to run my planned build past the experts to see if everything will work. Here are the parts:

Motherboard GA-P55A-UD4P

Processor = I7 860

Graphics = EVGA nVidia GeForce 9800GT 1 GB 2DVI/HDCP PCI-Express Video Card 01G-P3-N981-TR

Case = Antec Sonata III 500 Quiet Super Mini Tower ATX Case (Black)
Memory = Corsair XMS3 4 GB PC3-12800 1600Mhz Dual Channel Core i3 i5 i7 DDR3 Memory Kit CMX4GX3M2A1600C9

Hard drive = Seagate Barracuda 7200 1 TB 7200RPM SATA 3Gb/s 32MB Cache 3.5 Inch Internal Hard Drive ST31000528AS-Bare Drive

DVD DRIVE = Samsung 22X DVD/RW SATA Drive SH-S223C/BEBE (Black)

I plan on going the iBoot/Multibeast route unless someone thinks that is a bad choice.

I'd love any advice, warnings, suggestions or criticism that people have.

I have a few specific questions:

(1) Amazon lists the board as a 1394 socket, but I assume that is wrong since it is 1156 on the Gigabyte website. Am I missing something?

(2) Do I need all the bells and whistles on this mobo or should I go with a lower end model like this one: Intel Core i7/i5 LGA1156 4DDR3-2200 CrossFireX/GBE/Raid/SATA3/USB3.0/7.1-CH ATX Motherboard GA-P55A-UD3

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B002XDQC4K?ie=UTF8
vb
(3) I am looking for the lowest headache install and will gladly switch parts if something works better. I've heard good things about the 9800. Is that a good choice?

(4) Is the included 500w power supply sufficient? I'll probably end up with another HD or 2 at some point but not much else

Any response would be hugely appreciated and my apologies if I've breached board etiquette somehow.


LINKS TO PARTS ON AMAZON

Motherboard - http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B002XDQC40?ie=UTF8

Processor http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B002KQ5KE8?ie=UTF8

Graphics Card = http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B001OV7MIC?ie=UTF8

 

[carbine]

Welcome!

I think you've made excellent choices. I've built two systems with this board/cpu combination (one with the exact graphics card as well) It is definitely 1156.

Your 1600 memory sounds great. I went with G.Skill, but I think it makes little difference.

I like OCZ power supplies - quiet and modular.

If you're in the US, Microcenter is/was? selling the i7-860 for $199.

Others here are recommending Samsung's F3 500GB and 1TB drives and they're on sale this week at NewEgg (1TB drive $69.99 and free shipping):
http://promotions.newegg.com/NEemail/Ma ... nding.html

 

[carbine]

(2) Do I need all the bells and whistles on this mobo or should I go with a lower end model like this one: Intel Core i7/i5 LGA1156 4DDR3-2200 CrossFireX/GBE/Raid/SATA3/USB3.0/7.1-CH ATX Motherboard GA-P55A-UD3

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B002XD ... _sbs_02_02

(3) I am looking for the lowest headache install and will gladly switch parts if something works better. I've heard good things about the 9800. Is that a good choice?

(4) Is the included 500w power supply sufficient? I'll probably end up with another HD or 2 at some point but not much else

Sorry I did not answer your specific questions in my first post...

You don't need this board, but it is a solid choice. One caveat: It does use the 889 audio codec which has been problematic for some. (works fine for me)

I used that exact video card in my brother's build and it works great. No issues.

500W should be sufficient.

 

[newbuilder10]

Thanks for all the advice carbine.

I think I am sticking with the UD4 because it has firewire and esata.

The Samsung drives look ideal.

Anyone have thoughts on whether 2200 Ram is a worthwhile investment? 4GB will set me back an extra $80.

Thanks again.

 

[MacMan]

Anyone have thoughts on whether 2200 Ram is a worthwhile investment? 4GB will set me back an extra $80.

No, as the only way to get it to run at that speed is with over clocking.

 

[carbine]

Anyone have thoughts on whether 2200 Ram is a worthwhile investment? 4GB will set me back an extra $80.

No, as the only way to get it to run at that speed is with over clocking.

MacMan,

I don't disagree with you (I don't have a clue...), but would ask what is the top speed memory usable with a non-overclocked i7-860?
Is 1600 tops? Do you have any idea how I can calculate this? Just tryin' to learn.

Thanks

 

[MacMan]

The default memory speed is based on the memory modules SPD value for the current BCLK. So in my case the default memory speed for an i5-750 is 1066.

However in the BIOS I can change System Memory Multiplier from SPD to 10x BCLK so it can run at 1333. The maximum my memory can run without over clocking with this CPU.

I don't know what the BCLK is for a i7-860, but the maximum memory speed will be 10x BCLK.

I hope this is makes sense.

 

[cakemonster]

I thought MacMan would have given you his UD5 plug!

Only downside to board you have is no 889a, which is the most supported audio codec.

 

[MacMan]

I thought MacMan would have given you his UD5 plug!

Since they are rare now I've stopped recommending them.

I have still seen some P55-UD4P's available, but don't know about the P55-UD6.

It sucks that Gigabyte is no longer using the 889a in ATC boards

 

[carbine]

Graphics = EVGA nVidia GeForce 9800GT 1 GB 2DVI/HDCP PCI-Express Video Card 01G-P3-N981-TR

While my brother has had no trouble with his EVGA 9800GT it seems a lot of people are experiencing strange noises:
viewtopic.php?f=15&t=1099
Just in case you have not seen that thread