Upgrade from socket A to socket 939 or not?

[muskel]

Budget: A university student (read a very tight budget).
Current system:
Socket A Athlon XP 2800+@2.2 ghz
3*512mb ram
Geforce fx5600 256mb AGP
A few ide hdds
Socket A mobo

Now the problem: I have an MSI Neo 2 Platinum Socket 939 mobo on my shelf. I also have one 512 stick of ddr. My epox has only 3 slots, the MSI mobo has 4. So using the MSI mobo i could use all of my ram in my system. It also has an AGP socket so i can use my existing video card.
I dont have an 939 processor. Buying a single-core seems stupid and a dual-core Opteron 165 costs $200.
THE QUESTION: Would it be worth to get a socket 939 processor even though the new Core 2 Duo chips are cheap (i dont have the money to upgrade the whole system) or should i just sell the mobo and the extra ram :?:

muskel

 

[col-p-todd]

939 socket is a dead end. If you want to upgrade get a AM2 socket. you will have to spend more money on ram but the AM2 cpu's are cheaper then the 939 cpu's.

 

[jitpublisher]

What do you do with your PC?

 

[rodney_ws]

What he said. 939 is a dead-end. The ONLY reason I think you'd even consider that is because it would utilize the RAM you already have. However, 939 processors are becoming more expensive than their AM2 counterparts and that should help offset that.

 

[col-p-todd]

How much do you want to spend on your upgrade?

 

[sandmanwn]

I have an MSI Neo 2 Platinum Socket 939 mobo on my shelf.

THE QUESTION: Would it be worth to get a socket 939 processor even though the new Core 2 Duo chips are cheap (i dont have the money to upgrade the whole system) or should i just sell the mobo and the extra ram :?:

Buying a single-core seems stupid and a dual-core Opteron 165 costs $200.

Major Edit:

Since you have all the parts, upgrading to anything on the 939 side will improve your setup. You can find single core 939's for as little as $60 http://www.zipzoomfly.com/jsp/ProductDetail.jsp?ProductCode=80701-5

If you want to stretch the budget for Dual Core the Opteron 165 can be had for $140 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16819103587

An AM2/C2D is out of the question for less than $200, especially since you will need a new Mobo, Ram, and CPU

 

[caamsa]

I would just get a single core 3800+ 939 cpu for $82.50. or the 3200+ for $58.00. If all you use your computer for is school then why waste the money on something your not going to take advantage of.

Espicially if your not going to upgrade your graphics card. Then save your money for a new system in a year or so.

 

[elpresidente2075]

Or, one could go for the $77 opty 144 and have some fun overclocking.

 

[HA_ZEE]

Stay with the 939 MB and get an opty 165:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16819103588
This is just a suggestion if you are on a budget and will allow you to use the equipment you currently have.
The AM2 system does not offer a large enough performance increase to upgrade to it. The next logical step is to go to C2D which has huge performance benefits.

 

[Bloated]

if you have a socket 939 motherboard and you have 4 X 512mb's of DDR then without a doubt you may as well go for a socket 939 processor more specifically a lower end dual core will suit your needs quite nicely especially when considering the budget.

yes I have a Conroe system and I upgraded from a socket 939 dual core setup and to be honest in day to day I don't really see the difference..... in benchmarks the numbers are much higher for Conroe by every measure and I can overclock the Conroe considerably higher than I was ever able to get with my Opteron but todays dual cores are plenty fast and had I simply left my cpu stock aside from some decryption I wouldn't notice any benefits......

also I've noted personally while my Conroe is faster then the Athlon64 I've always gotten the impression the AMD rig was smoother in multitasking, less hesitation in launching multiple apps..... this could be my own fault and not be an issue with the Conroe as I haven't updated chipset drivers in quite some time being lazy because it's stable is my fault but I remember my AMD as being a better multitasker if by only the slightest amount.

I've recently taken a water cooled Opteron 170 with Asus A8N32-SLI deluxe mated with 2048mb of Mushkin PC 4000 (defective motherboard) the customer had me buy the parts and is going Conroe, I'm eager to get the traded system up and running to do side by side comparisons against my Conroe setup to verify the differences and impressions as it's been a while since I used the AMD dual core.

 

[oldmantran]

Are you certain your old ram is DDR? With an older MOBO, you might have pc133 SDRAM that won't work in the new board.

 

[jaguarskx]

As a poor college student your best bet is to go with a S939 CPU. Buy a dual core if possible since that will extend the life of your PC.You already have most of the components necessary for a S939 system so you might as well build one. If you will be playing games then you should also upgrade your FX5600 GPU.

Buying an AM2 or C2D system is not worth it since you'll need to spend money on all new components. Also, there is hardly any performance difference between S939 and AM2 CPUs of the same model number (such as the X2 3800+). The C2D E6300 will provide better performance than the X2 3800+, but remember you're on a budget.

 

[sandmanwn]

Are you certain your old ram is DDR? With an older MOBO, you might have pc133 SDRAM that won't work in the new board.

not certain about that either. but the OP did mention he had a stick of 512 DDR in a different section of the post.

 

[cdonato]

I'd say sell off the other parts. Pocket the cash & stash it somewhere for a later upgrade of the full system. Since it's for school the boost isn't really necessary.

 

[caamsa]

Good Point!


Also what kind of memory does he have?

It is probably DDR but what kind?

 

[oldmantran]

939 mobo: check
ram: check (512 ddr already installed)
sound: most likely
video: check (agp slot on new mobo)
cpu: no
cpu fan: no

I just bought an oem athlon 64 4000+ socket 939 for 79 bucks on newegg. A cpu fan will run about 15 bucks. Under $100 bucks to upgrade to 939. Reuse all the old parts from the previous PC. Sell the old ram on ebay, use the cash to buy another stick of 512 ddr. You'll stay under $150.

 

[1Tanker]

I'd say sell off the other parts. Pocket the cash & stash it somewhere for a later upgrade of the full system. Since it's for school the boost isn't really necessary.

That would entail going without a computer until he gathers enough for a new one. He won't get enough from his current parts to finance a new system. I would go with a cheap s939. GL

 

[m25]

your queston is not appropriately built; I answered 'NO' considering a clear cut transition but if you have all that stuff with which to start off at zero expenses, it's really a good upgrade. An opteron 165 (or better 170) will be a pretty comfortable chip for at least another year or two, so if that's just a 'CPU upgrade', it's the wisest thing to do; squeeze that RAM and other hardware to the last drop.

 

[chuckshissle]

Ebay that stuff and upgrade to Core 2.

 

[muskel]

the ram is pc3200 ddr
im using my pc for photoshop and schoolwork, web etc.

not much gaming going on since the video card is crap.
I am thinking about keeping the computer as a server later when i upgrade, since the parts wont be worth much and i can install linux on it..

Thanks for the advice ppl.