Which Mobo?

If you dont care about SLI, Intel chipsets always. Dont forget DDR3 is an option for you too if you wanted with P35 boards. Not that its a huge advantage for performance or anything, just less power draw.
 
So if I went with the Intel board & a e6850 then I wouldn't have to buy DDR3, I could still use DDR2 1066? The CPU & Mem run at 1333/1066 separate?

Guess I am still used to the mem & cpu's fsb having to be the same even though the board I have now can run them separate.
 
DDR3 is something to consider from a longevity standpoint, too. I got a DDR motherboard when it first came out, and that let me re-use RAM through various upgrades. Don't worry too much about memory speed either, as the performance impact is pretty marginal on Intel CPUs. Check Anandtech for memory reviews, as they show very limited performance scaling with memory speed even for extremes like DDR2-533 vs. DDR2-1066.

Other than that, I think SugarCoat's advice is best. The P35 chipset seems to have a great memory controller, so go for that unless you're seriously considering SLI.
 
So if I went with the Intel board & a e6850 then I wouldn't have to buy DDR3, I could still use DDR2 1066? The CPU & Mem run at 1333/1066 separate?

Guess I am still used to the mem & cpu's fsb having to be the same even though the board I have now can run them separate.

Most P35 boards are DDR2, and they arent forward compatable. You'd have to choose one or the other. I dont suggest boards that support both since you're losing slots in one way or the other, in the case above only 2 x DDR3, which doesnt really make any sense if memory prices are comparable which they should be. DDR3 is actually cheaper to manufacture so if its carrying any premium costs its just because companies are taking advantage of early adopters. It will drop quickly.
 
All the DDR3 prices at Newegg are pretty insane so far.

yea the actual modules are indeed cheaper to produce, and at higher speeds to boot, this is just them preying on early adopters. My DDR2 667 was quite expensive as well back when i got a 925X board. Like i said, prices should drop like a stone once they lose steam due to stupidly high prices. Look outside of newegg as well since they often dont have the best prices on newer stuff due to their price system that increases every time something is sold.
 
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Cheaper to produce, but you have to consider scale here. DDR2 is still MASSIVELY more in demand than DDR3 is. That will make a pretty large difference.
 
X38 if you can wait, P35 if you must have it now.
BAH! I wanted to upgrade over a month ago & couldn't because I had more important purchases to make & well knowing about the July price cuts. It seems theres always a (hold off for this next better hardware) at all times. Is there a really dramatic reason to wait for X38 (whatever that is)?
 
From what I've been seeing, X38 is to P35 as 975X is to P965.
 
BAH! I wanted to upgrade over a month ago & couldn't because I had more important purchases to make & well knowing about the July price cuts. It seems theres always a (hold off for this next better hardware) at all times. Is there a really dramatic reason to wait for X38 (whatever that is)?

PCI-Express 2.0 support (two full 16x lanes with an option for motherboard companies to include one extra 8x lane for GPU physics), apparently much better overclocking (they removed some overclocking limit, whatever that means), and native DDR3-1333 support for RAM (technically P35 only supports up to DDR3-1066, although ASUS P35 boards claim DRR3-1333 support).

The extra ram support is unimportant (I'm sure we all agree), but PCI-E 2.0 support is a very attractive feature (obviously for the future). It's also good to see Intel develop a decent overclocking chipset (I want a Q6600 @ 3.2GHz! :D ). I mean if overclocking/multiple GPU's/PCI-E 2.0 is irrelevant to you (which I can see many not caring about), then P35 is perfect for you. If these features interest you, I would definitely wait.
 
PCI-Express 2.0 support (two full 16x lanes with an option for motherboard companies to include one extra 8x lane for GPU physics), apparently much better overclocking (they removed some overclocking limit, whatever that means), and native DDR3-1333 support for RAM (technically P35 only supports up to DDR3-1066, although ASUS P35 boards claim DRR3-1333 support).

The extra ram support is unimportant (I'm sure we all agree), but PCI-E 2.0 support is a very attractive feature (obviously for the future). It's also good to see Intel develop a decent overclocking chipset (I want a Q6600 @ 3.2GHz! :D ). I mean if overclocking/multiple GPU's/PCI-E 2.0 is irrelevant to you (which I can see many not caring about), then P35 is perfect for you. If these features interest you, I would definitely wait.

On intels inhouse built models they come with an FSB lock which is problably the limit you read about, it was "removed" in the 975x boards too however this is only a bios limitation to intels own boards, obviously no third party partners had the same limitation.

Considering the plumitting prices of chips and the new stuff released, 3.2Ghz is nothing. You'll be able to pick up a E6850 3.0GHz chip for what $270 when its released? OC'ing that 200 more MHz is a drop in the hat if that was your goal. They havent made a chipset thats been a total failure in overclocking for quite some time.

PCI E 2 only looks good if you're going to be running multiple cards, otherwise, its useless. Even then nVidia still hasnt announced any official SLI support for consumer or enthusiast intel desktop chipsets. You listed some buzzwords but nothing i'd say is worth waiting for.
 
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Considering the plumitting prices of chips and the new stuff released, 3.2Ghz is nothing. You'll be able to pick up a E6850 3.0GHz chip for what $270 when its released?

Yeah that's not quad-core though. I need a 800 MHz overclock on a Q6600 to reach 3.2 GHz. Although I should still be able to reach my target. I should also clarify that I heard the X38 was a good overclocking chipset in general (the fact that they removed their overclocking limits isn't the reason it's a good overclocking chipset).

PCI E 2 only looks good if you're going to be running multiple cards, otherwise, its useless.

It also has double the power. AMD's 2900XT (and Nvidia's 8800GTX to a lesser degree) could have really benefited from this (I don't think people like plugging in multiple power cables to their video cards).

I have to disagree with your final conclusion though, the overclocking potential and PCI-E 2.0 support is worth waiting for IMO.
 
The overclocking... no, not at all. The PCIe 2.0... possibly but again not really. The cards will certainly be able to be used in previous PCIe slots you'll just have to use one more cable, which honestly is not a big deal at all to me. Not worth the wait and the almost certain price increase it will carry.
 
The overclocking... no, not at all. The PCIe 2.0... possibly but again not really. The cards will certainly be able to be used in previous PCIe slots you'll just have to use one more cable, which honestly is not a big deal at all to me. Not worth the wait and the almost certain price increase it will carry.
This was what I was wondering. Unless the x38 is going to be substantially better at most benchmarks (non OC) with apples to apples except for the mobo then the obvious price increase for the latest & greatest wouldn't be appealing to me.
 
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The overclocking... no, not at all. The PCIe 2.0... possibly but again not really. The cards will certainly be able to be used in previous PCIe slots you'll just have to use one more cable, which honestly is not a big deal at all to me. Not worth the wait and the almost certain price increase it will carry.

If it's the best overclocking chipset, that is a huge deal to me. Though I agree we only have a few sources claiming the X38 is a great overclocker, but if true that's a big selling point.

As for PCI-E 2.0 support, it's like the old AGP 8x vs PCI-E debate. Outside of multiple GPU's, does PCI-E have a real world benefit over AGP 8x? Regardless of it being better or not in real world situations, PCI-E 2.0 will become the new standard and thus should be at least treated as a worthwhile bonus.
 
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