Torn between old and new

dyagetme

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Apr 11, 2006
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I was about to upgrade my computer when I read about the AMD's AM2 socket. Along with Intel's Conroe chip it seems that a few changes are occuring in the summer.

I use my computer for Video Editing (Premiere & After Effects) with the occasional foray into gaming. I have two Nvidea 7800GT cards which I was going to use in an SLI board.

Now with the movement of AMD and Intel I seem to be considering upgrading at a risky time. I just need a few questions answered.

I know that Intel D chips are better at video rendering but i am concerned by their power consumption and heat output. The AMD x2 chips seem to be a more than capable cpu. Which one? Is the Opteron worth considering (maybe if overclocked). I aim to start editing HDV in the summer.

Should I hold back on a dual processor until the Conroe arrives? Do I need to go for DDR2 now?

I am thinking of buying the following essential parts for the system.

CASE: Antec P180
MOTHERBOARD: DFI Lanparty UT NF4 SLI-DR Expert
CPU: Athlon 64 x2 4200+
RAM: I am at a loss when it comes to the RAM. I need 1 gig but am not sure about which I need.

Now all of the above will cost me €800 (approx $980). This seems steep for a system which will be outpaced by new processors and boards in the summer. For the price is it better to wait until September.

Is a single core processor and SLI worth going for? If so what would be a good set of components [motherboard / CPU / RAM] with €400 ($490) [I am definately buying the Antec P180]

I know this a long winded question but I have to have an editing rig ready by September for HDV editing. Will the advances by AMD and Intel be pronounced enough to wait another 6/9 months? If they will be then I need to buy a single core stop gap solution.

PHEW!

Hope you can help?
 

smedlin

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Mar 14, 2006
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There will always be something better right around the corner. Build what/when you need it, not based off something "about to be released".

Also, realize we are talking about new procs, new mb, new drivers, ect..will be expensive and untested for awhile.
 

llama_man

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Are you sure 1Gb of RAM will be enough?

I'd recommend 2x1Gb from the start. Some games already perform better with >1Gb RAM and this trend will only become more common over the next few months. I imagine it'd be useful for the video editing too.
 

smedlin

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I thought about responding to that as well. Specially since DDR is does not work in "odd" number of sticks. (by not work, I mean single data rate verse double data rate).

However, he's really only asking about "now verse later" build.
 

llama_man

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True - and I concur with Smedlin. If you always wait for the "next big thing" you'd never get round to buying a PC.

Plus, buying tested technology is always better for stability - which is especially important if you're using it for work. your PC crashing during a game is annoying. It crashing and losing an hour's work when you're working to a tight deadline is infuriating. Many a PC has come close to going out the office window until my employers moved to Win2k.
 

pat

Expert
I was about to upgrade my computer when I read about the AMD's AM2 socket. Along with Intel's Conroe chip it seems that a few changes are occuring in the summer.

I use my computer for Video Editing (Premiere & After Effects) with the occasional foray into gaming. I have two Nvidea 7800GT cards which I was going to use in an SLI board.

Now with the movement of AMD and Intel I seem to be considering upgrading at a risky time. I just need a few questions answered.

I know that Intel D chips are better at video rendering but i am concerned by their power consumption and heat output. The AMD x2 chips seem to be a more than capable cpu. Which one? Is the Opteron worth considering (maybe if overclocked). I aim to start editing HDV in the summer.

Should I hold back on a dual processor until the Conroe arrives? Do I need to go for DDR2 now?

I am thinking of buying the following essential parts for the system.

CASE: Antec P180
MOTHERBOARD: DFI Lanparty UT NF4 SLI-DR Expert
CPU: Athlon 64 x2 4200+
RAM: I am at a loss when it comes to the RAM. I need 1 gig but am not sure about which I need.

Now all of the above will cost me €800 (approx $980). This seems steep for a system which will be outpaced by new processors and boards in the summer. For the price is it better to wait until September.

Is a single core processor and SLI worth going for? If so what would be a good set of components [motherboard / CPU / RAM] with €400 ($490) [I am definately buying the Antec P180]

I know this a long winded question but I have to have an editing rig ready by September for HDV editing. Will the advances by AMD and Intel be pronounced enough to wait another 6/9 months? If they will be then I need to buy a single core stop gap solution.

PHEW!

Hope you can help?

get what you have listed, but for editing, get 2x1 gigs. You're right about heat concern. add processor heat to motherboard heat to hdd heat to hdd heat and you'll find yourself with lot of noise to deal with...

Get the A8R32-mvp based on he passively cooled and cool ATI chipset, HDD performance better than nvidia.

My computer has everything passively cooled, but the CPU A3000+ OCed to 2.3 GHz and the only noise is from the RAID array.. Ihave an Asus x1600xt Silent VIVO with passive cooling that I use for capture. great video card imho.

I'm looking to get an x2 CPU soon.
 

dyagetme

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Apr 11, 2006
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I thought about responding to that as well. Specially since DDR is does not work in "odd" number of sticks. (by not work, I mean single data rate verse double data rate).

However, he's really only asking about "now verse later" build.

As well as "now vs later" I am asking about "now single core" vs "now dual core". Is there a single core processer (SSE 2/3 compatible) / SLI motherboard setup which will easily handle HDV editing and work as a stop gap until I do go dual core? If that is the case then what is the best RAM to purchase for the system (I will go for 2 gigs).
 

smedlin

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I'm not an expert in that area, but I would think for something as demandnig as video editing would be, you would see a great performance increase with a dual core chip.

It really depends on if you are willing to pay the extra price for the extra performance.

You mentioned overclocking, so I would recommend some nice ocz. Cosiar(sp?) is nice also.
 

llama_man

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As far as I know, the latest boards for AMD (i.e. a nForce 4 socket 939 board) will support dual-core as well as single core. Most come with a SLI version.

Check the Asus website, but I'm pretty sure the A8N range of boards support dual-core, and they definately have SLI.

AMD currently use DDR, which is cheaper than DDR2. Buy a decent value brand if you plan to run at stock speed. Buy a decent premium brand if you plan to overclock.
 

angry_ducky

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Mar 3, 2006
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I thought about responding to that as well. Specially since DDR is does not work in "odd" number of sticks. (by not work, I mean single data rate verse double data rate).

However, he's really only asking about "now verse later" build.

As well as "now vs later" I am asking about "now single core" vs "now dual core". Is there a single core processer (SSE 2/3 compatible) / SLI motherboard setup which will easily handle HDV editing and work as a stop gap until I do go dual core? If that is the case then what is the best RAM to purchase for the system (I will go for 2 gigs).

Dual core
 

dyagetme

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Apr 11, 2006
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You're right. At this rate I'll be waiting for tomorrow all of my life! Then again what about an overclocked Opteron?