Q9450, 9800GX2, 8GB DDR2 MOBO PLEASE?

Hi all!

I am an FSX fanatic and run the Simulator through 4 cores and therefore have invested in the Q9450. I am also going to use the 9800GX2, with 8GB of DDR2 running either XP 64bit or Vista 64bit. Either or it will be a 64bit Operating System to take advantage of the 8GB of DDR2.

FSX is one of the most demanding games on the market and I have been looking at numerous motherboards but am getting discombobulated with the compatibility issues. I have a budget of £300 for the motherboard.

Any help on the matter would be much appreciated?

 

either of these motherboards will do great.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produ...mpareItemList=N82E16813128336,N82E16813128331

the unless you need the exra usb headers and sata ports you can ge the cheaper of the two. what memory are you going to use?

 

I use the motherboard on the left of that list, the X38-DS4. It's excellent, and cost me £120 from tekheads.

 

Thank you I have taken a look at both motherboards and they look nice. I was told to stay away from 780i because of driver issues? An avid user also has the Asus Striker not to sure if that one is any good either.

In relation to memory I will be using the most powerfull the motherboard can handle. I might also try overlocking but never done it but have heard its pretty straight forward from the forums.

Thanks again.

 

I'd avoid the Striker, again on the basis that it's an nvidia chipset board, which have compatibility issues all over the place and haven't proven as reliable as Intel chipset boards like the X38-DS4 or the Asus Maximus series.

 

I also forgot any suggestions on the rest of the set up feel free to add..

Case
Hard-Drive
Graphics Card (will be using 9800GX2)
Sound Card
Power Supply
RAM (8gb of the fastest DDR2)
Mother Board
Processor (Q9450 quad)
OS (XP 64 or Vista 64)
Fan

I was looking at hard drives and noticed these HD drives on the forum not to sure what they are but if they are needed please advice? P.S. I will proparly need 2 x 500GB drives.

Many many thanks again.

 

Does SLI work that well for Flight Sim X? I forget. If it does, then the 9800GX2's fine, but if it gives mediocre results it might be worth waiting for a GTX280.

These are the parts I'd suggest:
Case: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811146029
HDD: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822152100
GPU: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814143128
Sound: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16829102017
PSU: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817139002
RAM: 2x http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820145197
Mobo: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813128329
CPU: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819115042
OS: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16832116215
Heatsink: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835233003

Oh, and HD is short for Hard disk.

 

WOW That was quick. I will be recommending this forum to my friends. Sorry I thought HD was an acronym maybe for High Definition (utilising more space). I am afraid SLI is not worth it in FSX at the moment. Set up looks nice

Thank you sir.

 

You're welcome.
If SLI's not worth it for FSX you may as well save your money for now and get one of these, as if SLI doesn't work, then neither will the 9800GX2, if you see what I mean.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814143119

When another solo card comes out that significantly bests this, such as the GTX280, then with the money saved you could consider upgrading, if it's necessary - depending on the resolution you use, an 8800GTS might be plenty sufficient for FSX.

 

I forgot to mention as well what do you think of the ASUS P5E3 PREMIUM/WIFI-AP @n LGA 775 DDR3 Intel X48 ATX Intel Motherboard?

Thanks again.

 

They're supposed to be pretty good, but unlike the Gigabyte boards I don't have first hand experience to say how good they are. Further to what I mentioned about HD, with the 'drive' suffix, it'll mean hard disk. HD is used quite a lot for various things in the PC industry, usually meaning High Definition, but for drives, as far as I'm aware, there is only one meaning of the acronym. Hope that clears it up. ;-)

 

Sorry I am getting mixed up, I was meant to say SLI is worth it but having 2 x SLI is not worth it (ie having 2 x 9800GX2)

In most FSX reviews a quad (and i like the q9450 for its price and power) and a 9800GX2 was the only set up which ran in max resolution which hosting an online session with high frames.

Now I am at the stage of completing the rest of my set up including the motherboard, and the rest.

Thank you again.

 

Ah right, makes sense. I should get into flight sims again, I played a bit of Flight Unlimited 2 eons ago, but haven't really bothered since - the simulator that superceded FU2 was ProPilot, and the graphics on it were really poor. I tend to use ATI Radeon graphics cards for the graphical features they offer in other games, but for some reason in FSX they really underperform... Plus I'd need to get a joystick as well, haven't had one of those since they used a gameport...


Anyway, more on topic, what screen resolution will you be playing at?

 

Yeah you should get back into it. FSX is a massive step, including the option of going online is a great benefit. If you are looking for a joystick i recommend x52 pro by saitek. Not to sure about the resolution. I will be swapping my output between an 18inch LCD and a 32inch LCD depending on what i am doing. However during FSX I will be using both screens, 32 inch for inside cockpit view and general other views, and 18inch to control Air Traffic Control, and pilots around my aerodrome.

Thanks again.

 

So it's a High def TV, not a PC monitor? Probably 1366x768 then, which should be no trouble for a lower end video card. if you want the game to run super smoothly even at maximum texture settings though, especially with two monitors, no harm in getting the 9800GX2 if you can afford it.

 

Hi all sorry in the delay i have been surfing the net looking at all the motherboards advised. I think i have narrowed the asus down to asus maximus formula or asus rampage formula. The rampage formula having additional stuff probably makes it the better card. I also came across 2 gigabyte motherboards. GA X48 DQ6 and GA X48 DS4. I am also guessing again here as i am not an expert on mobos but the DQ6 is better as its newer and more expensive. Any advice on the above would be much appreciated. Or recommendation. I also noticed a motherboard called the p45 is meant to be good but not out yet. Also (sorry about me blagging) but when the GTX280 comes out will it be powerfull than the 9800gx2 and will it be compatible with one of the above motherboards. Many many thanks again.

 

Unlike a lot of people here, I'm not a fan of wasting loads of money on buying an unnecessarily expensive motherboard. I use the X38-DS4 and there's very little it can't do, save squeezing the last few mhz out of a CPU.

 

Hi all, looks like the list is getting shorter, infact I believe I am now down to the last 4. Let us know what you think>

ASUS Rampage Formula X48: http://www.awd-it.com/scripts/prodView.asp?idproduct=3691
Gigabyte GA-EP45-DQ6: http://www.awd-it.com/scripts/prodView.asp?idproduct=4233
Gigabyte GA-X48-DQ6: http://www.awd-it.com/scripts/prodView.asp?idproduct=3722
DFI Lanparty UT X48-T2R: http://www.awd-it.com/scripts/prodView.asp?idproduct=3811

I dont think I can wait for the P45 so I suspect the above 4 are the top end motherboards to handle a Q9450 and 8 GB of DDR2 (please dont persuade me to buy just 4Gb) with the 9800GX2 on Vista 64bit.

I am also not going to wait for the GTX280, however I believe If need I can upgrade to it in the future it will be compatible with the above motherboards if I remove the 9800GX2.

Thanks again and please advice on the top 4 above. Hopefully I will be able to make the purchase today!

 

just stick with the Gigabyte GA-X48-DQ6. P45 wont be any better than x48 so there is no reason to wait. asus products have been crap lately so i would stay away from that company in general. i dont really know much about the dfi but i have heard that they are nice. but anyway just get the gigabyte board. if you plan on upgrading to the gtx 280 make sure you get a good power supply. it is supposed to be really power hungry. TDP 250 or somewhere around that.

 

krj15489 why do you think ASUS have been crap lately? From what I have read they are more reliable than Gigabyte and also Gigabyte seem to be having a lot of driver issues?