new AMD build

[xslimmiejimmiex]

ok, basically i'm seeing a lot of confusion over what CPU to recommend.

<b>I.]</b> So far I've been recommended:
- AMD Opteron
- AMD X2 4200+
- AMD Athlon 4000+
- AMD Athlon 3700+
- AMD Athlon 3200+

Basically, this seems to be the problem that keeps comin' back to me.

A.] My usage:
- No Overclock/ excellent performance stock
- Some high-end/demanding gaming (mid)
- Multitasking (low-mid)
- Music recording/editing/listening (mid-high)
- General usage (high)
- web design/photoshop (mid-high)

I've been told:
- Opteron's made for Overclockers
- low end CPU would be better,as long as i got a high-end videocard
- Dual core is in the future and is worth it.

<b>II.]</b>For motherboards:
- Epox EP-9NPA+ Ultra
- eVGA 133-K8-NF41-AX

So, which motherboard do you recommend? If it's not a mobo out of these 2, another you might recommend me getting?

So, through information I've gathered, what would you recommend i get? (maybe this'll help others as well).

Thanks in advance, -peace

PS: i will get the comp between mid-late Jan. early Feb.

 

[the_guru]

The nforce4 chipset is not recommended for professional music production:
http://www.rme-audio.de/techinfo/nforce4_tests.htm

Most of your task doesn't demand that much from your computer exept:

Music, demands a good CPU but it depends on what applications you use.
Gaming, demands a good graphics card.

 

[xslimmiejimmiex]

The nforce4 chipset is not recommended for professional music production:
http://www.rme-audio.de/techinfo/nforce4_tests.htm

Most of your task doesn't demand that much from your computer exept:

Music, demands a good CPU but it depends on what applications you use.
Gaming, demands a good graphics card.

In response to professional production, I'm not planning on doin anything 'professional', but i do want it high-quality. right now the sound quality is great through the firewire recording interface that acquires its own built in sound card, so professionalism won't be an issue.

1.) What do you recommend for CPU? [brand/specs/price/etc]
2.) Motherboard? [brand/specs/price/etc]
3.) Memory that's awesome at stock? [brand/specs/price/etc]

Music:
Listening= iTunes/ RealPlayer
Recording= Cubase LE/ Fruityloops/ possibly another instrument software program
Burning= iTunes
converting mp3>wav,etc= Cakewalk Pyro

thanks for the help, sorry for repeating and askin so much. i guess i need all the input i can get...lemme know ASAP if you can please. adios

 

[the_guru]

How much do you wanna spend?

 

[xslimmiejimmiex]

$1,050 tops

so far, the list [may very well change, too]:
- Antec Sonata II (with 450W PSU)
- GeForce 7800GT
- CPU
- RAM
- Motherboard

 

[the_guru]

Graphics card: 7800GT

CPU: 3200+, 3700+ or a 3800+ x2 if you like to do several things at the same time. With a dual core you can encode mp3s i the background while doing something else.

 

[xslimmiejimmiex]

Graphics card: 7800GT

CPU: 3200+, 3700+ or a 3800+ x2 if you like to do several things at the same time. With a dual core you can encode mp3s i the background while doing something else.

1.) I really want the X2 4200+ because of the dual-core and all that, however, i've heard there's some issues with gaming and some software?
2.) can i play the games i may get with the X2? (BF2, Doom3, FarCry, COD2,AOEIII possibly, and any future comin games)

3.) Memory that you recommend? (brand,price,url?)

Lemme know about X2 issues. thanks for all the help! -later

p.s. if there's too many X2 issues, whats best 3800+ performer? venice or manchester [venice is lower-priced]

 

[the_guru]

Graphics card: 7800GT

CPU: 3200+, 3700+ or a 3800+ x2 if you like to do several things at the same time. With a dual core you can encode mp3s i the background while doing something else.

1.) I really want the X2 4200+ because of the dual-core and all that, however, i've heard there's some issues with gaming and some software?
2.) can i play the games i may get with the X2? (BF2, Doom3, FarCry, COD2,AOEIII possibly, and any future comin games)

3.) Memory that you recommend? (brand,price,url?)

Lemme know about X2 issues. thanks for all the help! -later

p.s. if there's too many X2 issues, whats best 3800+ performer? venice or manchester [venice is lower-priced]

1.) Well the X2 3800+ is also a dualcore. But if you want to you can spend an extra $80 to get the x2 4200+. There has been some issues with some games and dual core but I think there is patches for everything by now.

2.) yes and future games will take more advantage of dual core but I don't it will make such a big difference.

3.) TCCD-based memory like Corsair. I think Corsair Value Select CL2.5 is a good buy.

 

[the_guru]

Memory:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16820145440

 

[xslimmiejimmiex]

so, here it is:

- Antec Sonata II (w/450W PSU)
- EPoX EP-9NPA+Ultra
- eVGA 256-P2-N516 7800GT
- Corsair Value Select 1GB (2x512MB)
- AMD X2 4200+

TOTAL: $1,011.92 (w/tax,UPS)

the only thing that's buggin me is the mobo. i've heard its got great reviews, just worried about the customer service/advice/support because of the name. i've been told to stick with brand names, also have been told to stick with this one. What do you think/recommend?

 

[CommodoreRed]

Right guru, and since you arent OCing jimmie a good brand VS is way to go for RAM. Get a good deal on 2X1gb sticks too...

1.) Issues yes, patches yes, still some issues, but can always turn off a core to fix, I know BF2 had to with dual cores.
2.) No advantage for gaming with dual. For me, always being budget minded, especially with duals sky high price, Id get nice single and wait. Then again prices may not go down for a while either, but for your needs atm unless you are really wanting a X2 I still say go single =) With 1050 budget focus on a good mobo, gpa and RAM. 2gb do make a difference with BF2 and any mmorg
3.) see above (Corsair's always been good to me, I recommend that brand greatly)

And as for Mobo, Epox 9nA+ is what I decided on getting too, same reasons. read many reviews many sites, its a quality board, stable, easy use, every board has it's issues none is perfect, I'd stick with it, majority of ppl really like it and CS is good.

 

[xslimmiejimmiex]

For me, always being budget minded, especially with duals sky high price, Id get nice single and wait. Then again prices may not go down for a while either, but for your needs atm unless you are really wanting a X2 I still say go single =)

So which CPU would you recommend instead? (brand/specs/link/etc)

 

[the_guru]

For me, always being budget minded, especially with duals sky high price, Id get nice single and wait. Then again prices may not go down for a while either, but for your needs atm unless you are really wanting a X2 I still say go single =)

So which CPU would you recommend instead? (brand/specs/link/etc)

I would pick a 3200+ and keep some money for future upgrades. Dual cores will drop in price the next year. And them there might be more support for dual cores. You will get a 3200+ now and a dual core next year for less then a dual core today.

 

[CommodoreRed]

Personally Im in love with 3700+ San Diego. I do some video editing too so it helps, dual core woulda a lot for that, but I don't do a lot atm. Mostly gaming and normal day things, so I'd go for broke otherwise and get a 3200 venice... maybe 3500 if dont OC. I plan on upgrading dual core when time is right. A year or so from now, when prices go down! My budget is around 1200 now...

Of course, the X2 you mentioned is a great X2 for price/quality atm. If don't want to fuss with upgrading a new CPU in a year or 2, get one. I'm willing to do so, save some $$ now AND later. And I still don't think it'll be the final word in gaming even then, even games making use of dual, GPA still be number one factor.

(just make sure get 7800, enough RAM (especially saving on CPU can get good VS deal 2 gig 2X1gb), a GOOD case with good cooling and room and powerful reliable psu, put money there first, then see if have enough spend on X2, if really want it, go for it =)

 

[xslimmiejimmiex]

I would pick a 3200+ and keep some money for future upgrades. Dual cores will drop in price the next year. And them there might be more support for dual cores. You will get a 3200+ now and a dual core next year for less then a dual core today.

Why the 3200+?

Mostly gaming and normal day things, so I'd go for broke otherwise and get a 3200 venice... maybe 3500 if dont OC.

So which for me you think: 3200+ or 3500+? [what would be best bang for buck, get the most power/performance out of it?]I'm not planning on OC'in at all... fyi: I'm getting all the stuff mid-late Jan, early February...

enough RAM (especially saving on CPU can get good VS deal 2 gig 2X1gb)

Why 2GB instead of 1GB? Do you think I'll need the 2GB?

a GOOD case with good cooling and room

Which do you recommend? (none of the side windows,crazy lighting, etc)
Maybe -mobo tray/ black,or silver,or both/slots for 2x120mm fans front and rear/not huge [preferably below 18" tall]

fyi., i picked antec cuz its black, no lighting or anything and comes with 450W PSU, and its only $99... Pros- black,smaller,120mm fans front&rear/Cons- space? PSU? lemme know what you think...

powerful reliable psu

Which brand, how much power would you recommend?

THANKS guru and commodore, lemme know what you guys think (sorry i keep askin more and more questions, hopefully i can make a decision and be comfortable with it. -take care

 

[CommodoreRed]

Well no OC, 3500 not much more, 3700 top single core.

Only 2gigs of RAM, well, if do a lot of heavy d/l, multitask, or play MMORG like World of Warcraft really benefit from extra gig. Even BF2.

As for case the Sonata IS a good case, I am actually deciding between that one and Cooler Master RC-531 Centurion. And can always replace PSU. Its a excellent case actually. I must have skimmed you mentioning it.

power, I like Fortron. Antec Truepower series (only truepower) is pretty good. And 450 minimum. 500 is probably perfect, and perfect any future upgrades.

 

[xslimmiejimmiex]

So far, the new build:

- Antec Sonata II (w/450W PSU)
- EPoX EP-9NPA+Ultra
- eVGA 256-P2-N516 7800GT
- Corsair Value Select 1GB (2x512MB)
- AMD Athlon 3700+ San Diego

TOTAL: $836.91 (w/tax,UPS)

May be some changes if ppl convince me of somethin' else. Thanks for the help.

 

[phonicsmonkey]

Maybe you could look at the eVGA Geforce 7800GT 256-P2-N518 . It comes bundled with a free decent motherboard and could save you a couple of dollars. I got this for Christmas and love it.

Also, the AMD 3700+ is the right way to go because of the 1MB of cache. You have to pay a lot more to get better performance.

 

[CommodoreRed]

lol starting to look like my build nearly exactly =)

The GT nc-18 with mobo, well good deal but personally want a better performing and more stable mobo.

 

[the_guru]

So far, the new build:

- Antec Sonata II (w/450W PSU)
- EPoX EP-9NPA+Ultra
- eVGA 256-P2-N516 7800GT
- Corsair Value Select 1GB (2x512MB)
- AMD Athlon 3700+ San Diego

TOTAL: $836.91 (w/tax,UPS)

May be some changes if ppl convince me of somethin' else. Thanks for the help.

Looks good to me.

If you wonder why I suggested the 3200+ it's because the 3700+ is over 30% more expensive but only gives a performance increase of 0-10%.

 

[pat]

1.) I really want the X2 4200+ because of the dual-core and all that, however, i've heard there's some issues with gaming and some software?
2.) can i play the games i may get with the X2? (BF2, Doom3, FarCry, COD2,AOEIII possibly, and any future comin games)

3.) Memory that you recommend? (brand,price,url?)

Lemme know about X2 issues. thanks for all the help! -later

p.s. if there's too many X2 issues, whats best 3800+ performer? venice or manchester [venice is lower-priced]

Some game don't like dual core and may rn choppier than on single core. easily fixed by setting the affinity for the game to use 1 core instead of 2. Easily done in task manager. As for other issue with software, well, it's about the same.. older software don't know what dual core is and might not run as fast as they should. But since Intel introduced its hyperthreading sometime ago, and those issue were see on them, newer software are now ready for dual core compatibility. I don't mean that they will run faster on dual core, but simply run as the speed they are designe to.

I would get an X2, if I was you... you still have some slack in your budget, get the fastest x2 you can afford..

 

[xslimmiejimmiex]

Maybe you could look at the eVGA Geforce 7800GT 256-P2-N518 . It comes bundled with a free decent motherboard and could save you a couple of dollars. I got this for Christmas and love it.

Definately...

If you wonder why I suggested the 3200+ it's because the 3700+ is over 30% more expensive but only gives a performance increase of 0-10%.

Interesting...

Some game don't like dual core and may rn choppier than on single core. easily fixed by setting the affinity for the game to use 1 core instead of 2. Easily done in task manager. As for other issue with software, well, it's about the same.. older software don't know what dual core is and might not run as fast as they should. But since Intel introduced its hyperthreading sometime ago, and those issue were see on them, newer software are now ready for dual core compatibility. I don't mean that they will run faster on dual core, but simply run as the speed they are designe to.

I would get an X2, if I was you... you still have some slack in your budget, get the fastest x2 you can afford..

Interesting also...

So, now i'm basically stuck between single-core, and dual core CPU... As of right now, the single cores that are leading the AMD X2 4200+ Manchester are:
- AMD Athlon 3400+ Newcastle and higher. Hmm...decisions, decisions.

Based off the CPU Charts

Here's the new build with the X2 4200+
-Antec SUPER LANBOY Silver= i fell in love with the size/strap...
(probably end up painting it or somethin', don't like the clear stuff, but i do like the size and the fans...)
-FSP AX450-PN
-CORSAIR ValueSelect 1GB (2 x 512MB)
-AMD Athlon 64 X2 4200+
-eVGA 256-P2-N518 Geforce 7800GT
-eVGA 133-K8-NF41
TOTAL= $1,020.01

+ 2x120mm Nexus Silent fans

OR

with AMD Athlon 3700+ San Diego instead of X2 4200+=
TOTAL=$844.01

hmm...tough one

 

[the_guru]

AMD Athlon 3400+ Newcastle

Just for notice. The 3400+ is a socket 754 CPU if you didn't know that.


Another notice, when it comes to gaming the Tom's hardware CPU charts are not a good thing to look at. The performance difference between all CPUs mentioned in this thread will be zero or very small when it comes to gaming.

 

[xslimmiejimmiex]

AMD Athlon 3400+ Newcastle

Just for notice. The 3400+ is a socket 754 CPU if you didn't know that.


Another notice, when it comes to gaming the Tom's hardware CPU charts are not a good thing to look at. The performance difference between all CPUs mentioned in this thread will be zero or very small when it comes to gaming.

Ok, interesting. So, basically, between the 3700+ San Diego and the 3200+ Venice, the differences are:
- 512KB vs. 1MB cache
- Price
- Not a lot of performance?

Based off of the numbers, is the 3700+ price really justified?
What i mean is, is the 3200+ basically only a little under-par from the 3700+ performance? It seems as though you think i only need the 3200+; i thought i needed the 3700+ because there's large differences overall (not just gaming) between the two. What are the differences, price/performance ratio? Thanks again for all the help. -later

 

[the_guru]

AMD Athlon 3400+ Newcastle

Just for notice. The 3400+ is a socket 754 CPU if you didn't know that.


Another notice, when it comes to gaming the Tom's hardware CPU charts are not a good thing to look at. The performance difference between all CPUs mentioned in this thread will be zero or very small when it comes to gaming.

Ok, interesting. So, basically, between the 3700+ San Diego and the 3200+ Venice, the differences are:
- 512KB vs. 1MB cache
- Price
- Not a lot of performance?

Based off of the numbers, is the 3700+ price really justified?
What i mean is, is the 3200+ basically only a little under-par from the 3700+ performance? It seems as though you think i only need the 3200+; i thought i needed the 3700+ because there's large differences overall (not just gaming) between the two. What are the differences, price/performance ratio? Thanks again for all the help. -later

The 3700+ will be faster than the 3200+ in everything except gaming. Take a look at the CPU Charts for the differences. But when it comes to gaming you play at a higher resolution than the ones used at the CPU charts and at higher resolutions the graphics card is all that matters. Between a 3700+ and a 3200+ the difference will be 0-1% depending on game.

So differences between a 3700+ and a 3200+:

Gaming: 0-1%

General usage, Internet, watching videos, running office applications: nothing you will notice.

More demanding applications like Photoshop, 3D design, encoding/decoding music/movies. 10-11%

Price difference is 31% so it's up to you to decide if it's worth it.