First build candidates - tell me what you thihk of these

[roscoe46]

I'm going to addres this question mainly to the 3 gurus here,
Jamie Nixx, Wise Monkey, & Rickey Tick, but any & all comments are
welcome from everyone.
Several weeks ago, I posted about trying my luck to build an SLI PC;
I was told that SLI is not that big of a deal right now & may really
never take off. Some suggested to look at a motherboard that
used the Intel P35 chipset,that is supposed to be optimized for
the C2D & C2Q Intel processors.
OK, here are the 2 contenders & from the hardware sites I've visited
and numerous reviews I've read, they both sound very good.
1. From Newegg, Foxconn Mars mobo + C2D E6550 CPU &
eVGA 8800 GT 512mb Superclocked videocard. The memory I
plan to use for either one is 2 gigs Crucial Ballistics Tracer PC 6400.
2. From Tigerdirect, a bundled deal that is the XFX 680i LT SLI mobo +
C2D Q6600 quad core CPU, same videocard & memory.
I'm planning to use a Thermaltake 600 watt PSU for power. Any
comments on this good, bad, or ugly ?; from what I've read it seems to
be a good, reliable, stable unit.
I recently read a review, a mobo roundup, in a magazine that I think is
published in England & they rated the boards I think it was Foxconn
Mars # 1 & XFX either # 2 or 3.
I belive that I can be very happy with either choice. I had been very
enthused with the XFX, but now I'm actually leaning a little more
towards the Foxconn.
Anyway, tell me what you think about these 2 combos.
Thanks in advance.

roscoe46 AKA Alfred

[Jamie Nixx]

What i think depends on how much these combos cost.

Personally i hate these deals, you should buy everything seperately and build from scratch, you don't get the same warranties you get with individual parts ect.

[RickyTick]

Sorry Alfred, I can't remember is you're in the States or Europe.

*Edit* Nevermind. If you're shopping newegg and tiger, I guess your in the USA.

I agree with Jamie. I don't think much of the combo deals.

However, there is an online retail site called Mwave.com that puts together combos of your choice; like a mobo, cpu, and ram, and then tests it before shipping it to you. There is small fee for that, but if you're more comfortable doing it that way, its a good alternative.

Out of curiosity, what were the deciding factors on your two choices?

Just on first glance, my initial comment would be, Why are you choosing last generation components such as the 680i board and an E6550 or Q6600, and the 8800GT? If its a budget thing, then fine. They are all very good parts and can be upgraded later on.

[roscoe46]

Ricky, thanks for your reply. I live in Texas just a little north
of Houston.
I do have budget constraints & both examples I've listed
here will come in around $700.00 which is about what I want to
spend & what my sweet wife will let me spend.
I'm also hoping to do future upgrades & hope this PC won't be
obsolete when I fire it up.
Like I said, I've tried to read every review possible on these
candidates to make sure my money is well spent. Also, I'm really
leaning to the Foxconn. I've read that it has very easy to use &
stable bios.
Again, thank you for your comments & kind words.

Alfred

[jclaydon]

Ricky, thanks for your reply. I live in Texas just a little north
of Houston.
I do have budget constraints & both examples I've listed
here will come in around $700.00 which is about what I want to
spend & what my sweet wife will let me spend.
I'm also hoping to do future upgrades & hope this PC won't be
obsolete when I fire it up.
Like I said, I've tried to read every review possible on these
candidates to make sure my money is well spent. Also, I'm really
leaning to the Foxconn. I've read that it has very easy to use &
stable bios.
Again, thank you for your comments & kind words.

Alfred

Well it's not as bad as it used to be, but it still doesn't really matter what you buy, it's almost guarunteed to be obsolete within the next year anyway.. ;)

-James

[RickyTick]

Well, I think we've all agreed that the P35 is the way to go, so that Foxconn would be the better choice. You may also consider the Corsair HX520 power supply. Its a great choice too, and very reasonably priced.

[gtrasi]

If ur using this rig for casual gaming...go for P35 chipset in Intel or SLI setup in amd or 690G chipset .

Also AMD X2 6000+ is a good choice or u couold go for Core 2 duo 8200 series whch has 6MB!!! cache and gr8 cooling!

gr8 budget and gr8 performance for casual gaming who would like to go pro!

Not so sure aout Foxconn...i tend to go with asus/msi or abit. heard about solid state caps, heatpipe cooling? Then check thesee mobos out.

U have chosen a good SMPS...check out RC 690 from coolermaster oif on budget or else cabinets for Antec!