I've put it off for as long as possible but it's time to build my next whitebox. I don't game, I don't overclock, mostly I do home-office type stuff and Internet. But I want a solid, stable high-quality machine that won't go obsolete anytime soon.

I'm looking at the Gigabyte GA-P35C-DS3R.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produ...

I'd get likely an Intel Core 2 Duo E6400 or 6600. The Conroes (Correct me if I'm wrong but I don't understand the E6400 and 6600 to be Conroes) are above my budget at this point but I want a C2D, not a M. (Is it worth the 40 or so extra bucks to get the 6600?)

The page doesn't say what kinds of video cards I can get for this mobo, what should I get that will run well with this mobo? I would like it to handle Vista well but anything more than that I don't need. Maybe in the 150 dollar range.

And which memory should I get.

TIA.

jamespreyn ... a t ... aol dot you know what.

Yes they are all conroes in the core2duo range although the Quad cores are not! As you will not be gaming it is probably worth to buy the cheaper C2D E6400 as you will not dramatically bennefit from the faster clock speed or extra Cache although if you have extra money left over why not get the E6600. Possibly a budget card able to run Vista "Nvidia 7600gt" cost $100 or £50 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produ...
On RAM if your running Vista it would be advisable to get 2gb if only running XP 1gb:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produ... = 1gb
or
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produ...
Good luck
02coled

Core2Duo E6400 @ 3.4ghz
2gb Elipedia 1066mhz5,5,5,15
EVGA 680i
Ati Radeon X600 128mb
680w Thermaltake Purepower
2 x 250gb Sata
XP Home

Thanks ... Yes I am planning to get 2 GB of RAM. Funny how the video card you linked me to, was exactly the one I was looking at! SLI for 100 dollars is a lot less than 9 months or so ago when I last got the tech urge.

The memory looks like it's only one module (not 2 X 1GB). Is it OK nowadays to just have one module or do some mobos require you to interleave (or did that go out with the 90s?)

Jim

jamespreyn ... a t ... aol dot you know what.

Considering your primary use(s) for this system, you're kinda going overboard, IMHO. You could get a 'slower' AMD CPU, a much cheaper board with onboard graphics, 2GB (1 x 1GB) DDR2-800 RAM & do just as well.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produ...

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produ...

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produ...

Better deals on RAM:

http://shop2.outpost.com/%7BSKpuRjC...

http://shop2.outpost.com/%7BSKpuRjC...

OK ... I looked at the reviews and so far no one is mentioning if it will do Aero on Vista okay. Is that because it goes without saying, or is everybody not focused on that yet.

Thanks.

jamespreyn ... a t ... aol dot you know what.

If what will do Aero? The board I posted a link to?

"NVIDIA motherboard GPUs are a new category of graphics processor designed for both AMD and Intel-based mainstream PCs. With NVIDIA motherboard GPUs you can be assured of Windows Vista™ premium graphics, high-quality video processing with NVIDIA PureVideo technology, and digital connectivity with DVI and HDMI support."

http://www.nvidia.com/object/mother...