Iain Young

Hi folks,

Been reading with interest some of the threads on here and the web about the current crop of cpus etc, and have to admit to being a little confused as to what to get. Basically I want to replace my aging system (P4 2.5ghz, 4x agp, 1gb ram, x800xtpe) with something a little more up to date within the next couple of months or so.

As far as I can see, there are a few options...

AMD Athalon 64 X2 4800+
AMD Athalon 64 FX-57
Intel Extreme Edition 840 3.2ghz
Intel 840 dual core 3.2ghz
Intel P4 670 HT 3.8ghz

I intend to go for a SLI config as well (probably with dual 7800gtx 512 cards )

All seem to have good / bad points, but the question is which will be best suited to what I will be using it for. I will mainly be using the machine for...

• Lots of high-end gaming
• 3D modelling / rendering using Lightwave (multi-threaded)
• Video editing using Premiere Pro (multi-threaded)
• Photoshop CS2
• and some programming stuff as well for when I'm working from home

From what I've seen, the FX-57 is probably best for games, but one of the dual core processors may be best for the applications. Programs like Lightwave and Premiere will soak up every little bit of cpu power you can throw at them.

Any comments / opinions / pointers gratefully receieved

Thanks,
Iain

Daz34

I would go the X2 route.
It won't be that far off the performance of the FX chip but has the promise of much higher once more software is programmed to take dual core into consideration.
I would get a decent aftermarket cooler though. A local computer store says there are cooling issues with the retail heatsinks and they have experienced this first hand.

DrEvil

X2 4800+ based on your usage.

Iain Young

Ok, sounds like the X2 4800+ might be the one then. Do you reckon I'll notice a significant speed increase over my existing system? I know when playing certain games on it at the moment, (The Movies, Black and White 2, Fear etc), I'm getting some pretty bad slowdown when there's a lot going on. This machine will have to last me 2-3 years before I think about upgrading again, so it needs to be as quick as possible

Thinking of getting some sort of fancy water cooling solution, so won't be using the supplied heat sink etc anyway

Cheers,
Iain

jaytc2003

iTrader: (1)

slowdown, what slowdown!!

With what you intend to use it for, the dual core would be the way to go as it is more futureproof than the single core fx range.

Iain Young

I think the slowdown I'm getting at the moment is more cpu related than gpu related (it is an xt800pe). I know that when I run 3dmark03, it dies on the cpu stuff, and is quite smooth on the gpu stuff. On 3dmark05 I'm getting less than 5fps on some of the demos . Hence why I want to upgrade the whole machine, not just the graphics card.

Daz34

Athlon 64 cpus easily outperform the P4 cpus as far as gaming is concerned so yes, even if at the moment it performs as an Athlon 64 4000+ you should notice a significant improvement.

Iain Young

Thanks folks, that's just the info I needed

Clarey

I've just done a similar upgrade, from P4 2.4 to a new rig:
Abit AN8-SLi
Opteron 148 (running faster than FX-57 @3.1ghz)
2Gb Memory
7800GT
Custom watercooled (my first attempt at it)

I only have one video card, although i bought an SLi board to allow for future upgrade. Trouble is everything runs great with one card, and by the time i think i need another the 7800GT will probably be obsolete, or atleast, one of the latest cards will out perform 2x7800GT in SLi.

But if you've got the money then go for it. Personally, i wouldn't bother with SLi if i was doing it again.

Also look into S939 Opteron Dual Core CPU's, will be cheaper than A64 X2, if they appear. (Haven't seen any yet).

Danny B

aging system?
What would you call a PIII600mhz with 256mb RAM and a 16mb graphic card then?

DrEvil

I went from a P4 3.2 (prescott) to an AMD64 3500+ initially - I couldn't believe the improvement in Windows and games!

Iain Young

geriatric

bioforger

iTrader: (1)

P3? 256mb OF ram? 16MB GFX CARD?!? eiwwwwwww Redundant

_Meridian_

iTrader: (1)

A Smoothwall box.


M