Member Avatar for nk57

Hi there! :cool:

Im new to this forum, and I was wondering if u guys could help me with this.

Im building a new CPU. This is my first time building a CPU system.
So, Ive done some research and here is my final complete configuration.

Im building a budget CPU ranging around $350-$450.
I hope some of you guys could help me check this configuration and see if it is compatible.
Please let me know if something is wrong or missing from the configuration.

Thanks in advance. :)

Here is the configuration:-

Case
Antec NSK 4400 Mini Tower ATX with 380W power supply

Mobo
Gigabyte GA-8I848P775-G Socket T (LGA 775) Intel 848P ATX Intel

Processor
Intel Pentium D 805 Smithfield 533MHz FSB 2 x 1MB L2 Cache LGA 775 Dual Core,EM64T

HDD
Seagate Barracuda 7200.7 ST3120827AS 120GB 7200 RPM 8MB Cache Serial ATA150

Memory
Kingston HyperX 256MB 184-Pin DDR SDRAM Unbuffered DDR 400 (PC 3200)

DVD Burner
LITE-ON Black 16X DVD+R 8X DVD+RW 8X DVD+R DL 16X DVD-R 6X DVD-RW 16X DVD-ROM 48X CD-R 24X CD-RW 48X CD-ROM 2M Cache IDE

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  • Latest Post Latest Post by nk57

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Generated

Short, practical summary and checklist that expands on the thread (notes on compatibility, power, cooling and memory).

The Gigabyte GA‑8I848P775‑G is an LGA775 board and is listed to accept Pentium D processors and DDR‑400 memory (the board’s manual/spec pages show the ATX_12V CPU power header, IDE and SATA headers, and DDR400 support up to ~2GB). (manualslib.com) The Pentium D 805 is a Smithfield dual‑core LGA775 part (2.66 GHz, 2 × 1MB L2) with a relatively high TDP for the era (~95W), so it will work electrically on that board but wants good cooling and a decent supply. (en.wikipedia.org)

Power/cooling — the Antec NSK4400 retail package includes a 380W ATX12V v2.0 PSU (case spec listings show this). For a Pentium D plus any discrete video card that draws more than trivial power, a cheap 380W bundle PSU can be borderline; prefer a quality 400–450W (or higher) unit from a reputable maker with a strong +12V capability and the 4‑pin ATX12V plug. Tom’s Hardware and PSU reviews explain why a stable +12V rail and build quality matter more than just the watt number. (newegg.com)

Memory/optical/BIOS — 256MB of DDR400 will make multimedia/multitasking slow (heavy paging). Practically, 512MB is the minimum for comfortable XP‑era multimedia use; 1GB (two matched sticks) is a better, longer‑lasting choice. The GA‑8I848P775‑G provides standard IDE channels for ATAPI optical drives, so the Pioneer DVR‑111D (ATAPI) will be recognised on the IDE header — set jumpers/masterslave correctly and enable UDMA in BIOS if available. Check the Gigabyte CPU support/BIOS download page and flash to the recommended BIOS before installing a newer Pentium D model. (learn.microsoft.com)

Quick checklist (practical next steps)

  • Verify the exact CPU appears on the Gigabyte CPU support list and grab the BIOS the board vendor recommends. (manualslib.com)
  • Prefer 2× matched DDR400 DIMMs (512MB each or 2×256MB minimum) rather than a single 256MB stick. (manualslib.com)
  • Replace the bundled 380W PSU with a well‑reviewed 400–450W unit if a discrete GPU is planned; confirm the PSU has a 4‑pin ATX12V connector and healthy +12V rating. (newegg.com)
  • Use a decent cooler and monitor temperatures when the system is under load (Pentium D Smithfield runs hotter than many P4s). (en.wikipedia.org)

Notes: this echoes and expands on suggestions from and — RAM and a stronger, quality PSU are the highest‑impact changes for stability and responsiveness.

Recommended Answers

All 8 Replies

Member Avatar for goldeagle2005

If you're going for gaming, might I suggest an AMD Athlon64 processor? AMD has a tendency of outperforming Intel in terms of CPU intensive tasks like games, vid editing and the like. AMD is quite cheaper than it's Intel counterpart aswell.

For the mobo, I kinda prefer MSI, followed by ASUS. See if you can go for these boards

Why're you settling for 256 MB RAM? Suggest you go for 512 MB minimum. If possible, go for 1 Gig

I also suggest a PSU # 400W minimum, with minimum 18Amps on the 12V rail

Member Avatar for nk57

If you're going for gaming, might I suggest an AMD Athlon64 processor? AMD has a tendency of outperforming Intel in terms of CPU intensive tasks like games, vid editing and the like. AMD is quite cheaper than it's Intel counterpart aswell.

For the mobo, I kinda prefer MSI, followed by ASUS. See if you can go for these boards

Why're you settling for 256 MB RAM? Suggest you go for 512 MB minimum. If possible, go for 1 Gig

I also suggest a PSU # 400W minimum, with minimum 18Amps on the 12V rail

yes, i know amd is better for gaming, BUT i kinda tight at budget now.
im thinking of buying the stuff from Newegg.com

as u can see, amd is far more expensive then intel, somehow.

just compare, amd opteron 170 2.0ghz ($396.00) with Intel Pentium D 840 3.2ghz ($348.99)

tell me, isnt the ghz more important then the rest of the specs of a processor?

tell me why i shouldnt go for the pentium d which has greater ghz then the amd?

i use the pc for mild gaming and more to watching movies, listening to music, graphical interface applications and of course, surfing the net.

as for motherboards, i know msi is good, but i dont hear much positive feedbacks bout asus boards.

anyway, this cpu is supposed to be a budget pc, thats why im choosing this specs instead of higher.;)

please explain to me more about the dual-core processors ok.

i know amd opteron is the best dualcore rite now.

Member Avatar for goldeagle2005

yes, i know amd is better for gaming, BUT i kinda tight at budget now.
im thinking of buying the stuff from Newegg.com

as u can see, amd is far more expensive then intel, somehow.

just compare, amd opteron 170 2.0ghz ($396.00) with Intel Pentium D 840 3.2ghz ($348.99)

An opteron is a server class CPU, so it's bound to be expensive. It's in the same league as an Intel Xeon. I was talking about the AMD Athlon64. It's substantially cheaper, is 64-bit. The PentiumD is dual core, but as you have mentioned, this is a budget PC, there isnt any point going for it. Settle for an Athlon64 would be my advice. FYI, the AMD Athlon64 is available in dual core too. Its called the Athlon64 X2.

tell me, isnt the ghz more important then the rest of the specs of a processor?

tell me why i shouldnt go for the pentium d which has greater ghz then the amd?

No, the clock speed (GHz) is not more important than the rest of the procesor specs. Various aspects of a processor contribute to the processor's performance, nit just the speed. Infact, these days, even Intel doesn't market their processors by the clock speed.

i use the pc for mild gaming and more to watching movies, listening to music, graphical interface applications and of course, surfing the net.

In this case, a Pentium D would be overkill for you

as for motherboards, i know msi is good, but i dont hear much positive feedbacks bout asus boards.

ASUS is a market leader in boards. True, there have been complaints, but that holds true for anyone, be it MSI, ASUS or Gigabyte. The choice is yours

anyway, this cpu is supposed to be a budget pc, thats why im choosing this specs instead of higher.;)

Even for a budget PC, I think your RAM is too little. Go for 512 minimum

Member Avatar for nizzy1115

Scrap that processor, get the single core 3.0 ghz lga 775 processor (about $180) and get a minimum of 1 gig ram. I promise you that you will have a faster machine for most uses if you have 1 gb ram and a slower processor than a faster processor and less ram. You can get a pair of 512 mb ddr sticks (1gb total) for about 80 bucks.

Member Avatar for nk57

ok, and so, after listening many opinions of my friends and doing much research this couple of days, i've decided to scrap this budget spec.

ive recently decided to build a higher spec, actually, much updated.:cheesy:

though this specs gonna take me sometime to get suffificient funds, im satisfied with it as much so it could last me at least another 3 years.:eek:

however, some questions are circulating in my mind.

first of, can someone tell me what is ATAPI?

yea, the ATAPI interface of a media drive.

i was looking at this

Ok, i've decided to get the ASUS P5LD2 Socket T (LGA 775) Intel 945P ATX Intel Motherboard

So, can u tell me if ATAPI is compatible with the mentioned mobo? Thanks in advance. And thanks goldeagle2005 & nizzy1115

Member Avatar for goldeagle2005

ATAPI - Advanced Technology Attachment Packet Interface -- is a standard that all IDE drives follow. Hence, any mobo which has IDE ports will support ATAPI.

Member Avatar for goldeagle2005

And yes, the DVD RW you selected is pretty good. I have an ASUS DRW-1608P2S, but that is nothing but a rebranded version of the Pioneer DR-111D.

Member Avatar for nk57

And yes, the DVD RW you selected is pretty good. I have an ASUS DRW-1608P2S, but that is nothing but a rebranded version of the Pioneer DR-111D.

thx, ur help is much appreciated. now, im relieved that i know its compatible, coz thts the model of the burner i like. :cool: Pioneer rocks!

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