RAM issue

[Deshra]

My system specs since I know it will help.

Asus CG essentio 5270 bestbuy refurb.
Stock parts
.75 tb HD unsure of brand
Nvidia gts 220 gpu
intel 2.5 ghz core 2 quad processor
8 gb ddr2 ram, crucial mem scan shows the followingDR2 PC2-6400, DDR2 PC2-8500, DDR2 (non-ECC)
Dvd-Rw drive

OS
Win Vista premium, 64bit

Non stock parts
2tb wd caviar green hd

Lately I have been having an issue where I leave my pc on, my energy saver function turns my screen off, and while the screen is off, randomly it will crash, doesn't do it all the time, amount of time doesn't seem to matter as I have left it like that over night and it was fine, but earlier tonight I left the room for about 20 mins and when I came back it was unresponsive. Every time it does I have to hard reboot. I have tried to run memtest86 from USB and it wont load, not sure how to get it to burn to DVD as I have tried and nero says it's the wrong medium for this file. Fairly certain my ram is going bad since it is a refurb. What I need to find out is if I can put DDR3 in ( when I first bought it It said DDr2/DDr3 ram) so I am unsure if It will handle DDR3, oddly the ddr3 is cheaper by about $200 I also am wondering, do I have to buy a 4 card set or can I get two, two card sets as long as they are identical?

 

[Buckshot420]

I have tried to run memtest86 from USB and it wont load, not sure how to get it to burn to DVD as I have tried and nero says it's the wrong medium for this file.

Burn to a CD-R

...do I have to buy a 4 card set or can I get two, two card sets as long as they are identical?

you can get a 2 or 4 card set....2x2gig or 4x1gig does not matter but I would personally use only 2 slots (2x4gig).

 

[Deshra]

considering I am looking at upping my gpu ( my current one has heat issues due to it's construction), replacing my psu with a better unit (not to mention more watt 600) would it not just make more sense to get a new mobo and ddr3 ramf? just comparing upgrading my unit with replacing parts that are worn out, would run about the same price anyway. weird how ddr2 ram is more expensive than the newer better ddr3

 

[Buckshot420]

What is your budget?

 

[Deshra]

I have compared the repair (with a couple upgrades) to full on upgrade and side by side the upgrade route is a little less at $ 1050 where the repair will run around $1070 I figured I will need about a 700watt psu for either. Problem is if I upgrade what do I do about my current OS install, can I CLONE my hdd and change the mobo out then once the OS is up switch it off and change out, HDD and GPU? Also Heatsink for processor where mine is side case mounted mobo, will a standing style heatsink cause undue stress on a mobo?

*edit* I do have a list of upgrades I am looking at the mobo in question has the memory listed as dual channel, so I take it for that model I would need a 2x8 gig ram for my 16gb even though it has four dimm slots?

 

[Buckshot420]

Why do you need a 700watt PSU? For $1000 you can have a nice computer built from the ground up, no old parts except your HDD's. Are you near a Micro Center? You don't need 16gb of RAM....8 is overkill and 4 is standard, but since it's so cheap go with 8 if you want (I did). What are your primary uses for the computer? Do you game?

 

[Deshra]

Almost forgot: This morning was about to boot my pc from sleep mode but I noticed my Asus light on, when I moved my mouse it was already at the windows login screen. Apparantly it went bsod during sleep mode as I had a nice error message telling me so when it booted.

Yes I am upgrading so It will run skyrim , and fallout 3 with better graphics. the only reason I pulled a 700 watt psu was according to neweggs watt calc, I needed a 650 and that didnt include usb, monitor, or other power drawing sources. I basically am rebuilding from ground up but the only older parts will be my slave drive and sound card (dont really see a point in changing that) I'm at the point where I am wondering how to keep my os active when changing mobo out)

 

[Buckshot420]

What GPU and CPU are you looking at? I can put together something for you to look at.

 

[Deshra]

These are the current parts I am looking at, (not including a replacement hdd which is too easy to replace to even mention) with it being a dual channel mobo am I correct to assume that two ram sticks are better than trying to run 4? I had originally considered an i7 but had heard that they are having issues hence my choice for an i5

ASUS ENGTX570 DCII/2DIS/1280MD5 GeForce GTX 570 (Fermi) 1280MB 320-bit GDDR5 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready SLI Support Video Card

CORSAIR Gaming Series GS700 700W ATX12V v2.3 80 PLUS Certified Active PFC High Performance Power Supply

CORSAIR Vengeance 8GB (2 x 4GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Desktop Memory Model CMZ8GX3M2A1600C9B

ASUS P8Z68-V LE LGA 1155 Intel Z68 HDMI SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 ATX Intel Motherboard with UEFI BIOS

Intel Core i5-2500K Sandy Bridge 3.3GHz (3.7GHz Turbo Boost) LGA 1155 95W Quad-Core Desktop Processor Intel HD Graphics 3000 BX80623I52500K

 

[Buckshot420]

Are you going to be overclocking? Are you in the U.S.? Do you have a Micro Center store near you (great savings to be had if you do)?
I just built a new primary computer for exactly the same reasons but mostly Skyrim, HTPC and encoding. This would be my budget build for under $1000. Putting emphasis on most bang for your buck and assuming you already have an ATX Case.
i5 2500k $230
Asus p8z68-v lx $118 ($108 after rebate
Sapphire HD 6870 $165 ($145 after rebate
Corsair 80+ Gold 750watt $170 ($150 after rebate
Corsair XMS3 1600 2x4gig $50
Windows 7 Pro 64-bit $140
Xigmatek Gaia CPU Cooler $30
Asus DVD-RW OEM SATA Drive $19
WD Caviar Blue 6Gb/s SATA 500Gig HDD $100

$972 after rebates but this has the shipping included. Leaves $28 for a couple fans, cable extensions (if you are routing cables) and some Arctic Silver paste. If you compare these prices to amazon you might save some $, I didn't compare.

 

[Deshra]

Not bad, the list I posted ran just 6 dollers over 1k which isnt too bad, I am looking at heatsinks at the moment for whatever build I do put together and I don't know if the heatsink types that are much more vertical than others will handle being in a tower where the mobo isn't flat. Will that put undue stress on the mobo? If I stick with the build I posted how do I know that all those are compatible, I know the processor and mobo are both lga1155 so there shouldnt be any issues there, just unsure about the ram and psu. On the gpu I was actually contemplating the gtx 580 because I prefer nvidia but I settled on the gtx 570 as its lots cheaper with about a 15% loss in performance.

 

[Buckshot420]

Do you have a monitor that supports at least 1920 x 1080 ?

 

[Deshra]

does a 32" tv screen that will run hdmi up to 1080P count? The monitor I use when I don't have my pc attached to my tv ( only two hdmi ports on tv and I play games on xbox and ps3 more often) currently is running 1280x1024, actually looking at getting a new monitor this one is only like 13"

 

[Deshra]

HOLY CRAP!!! I just found the most awesome of stock cases, any idea where to find the case for the Asus cg8490? The asus store doesnt even have the desktop itself let alone the case listed, They announced it in 2010 so I wonder did they release it or scratch it?