Socket Talk: long term forcast.

[orwell]

Ok I am the type of PC buyer who studies super hard before buying a PC. Then I buy my PC. Then I don't stay current on all the "happenings" until the time comes for my to buy a new PC. Thus, I am completely out of the loop every time I am looking for a new PC. I am hoping you guys can answer my questions.

When I do choose to upgrade, I want to go with a processor/mobo that has a socket with some future ahead of it. This is so next time I go to upgrade, I might be able to dodge having to buy a new mobo.

However, with Quad Cores becoming more and more popular, and more cores on the horizon, I am feeling more and more insecure about upgrading right now.

So, question one. For Intel, how long is the LGA775 socket going to be around? How long will the chipsets on current boards be sufficient (ie. if I buy a LGA775 Core2Duo, will a LGA775 Quadcore require a new mobo chipset to operate anyway)?

For you guys who upgrade often, is this issue even a concern for you? Or do you just say "screw it, I'll just buy a new mobo when the time comes". Do you guys put any thought into staying "ahead of the curve"?

 

[BUFF]

So, question one. For Intel, how long is the LGA775 socket going to be around?

with Intel its not just a case of the socket saying the same but things like the VRM too - look at all the 775s (even 975 chipset ones) mobos that can't support C2D.

How long will the chipsets on current boards be sufficient (ie. if I buy a LGA775 Core2Duo, will a LGA775 Quadcore require a new mobo chipset to operate anyway)?

Again depends what changes that Intel may make - most current C2D mobos should run existing quads although some may be better than others - e.g. Gigabytes Rev. 1 965 mobos are described as "quad ready" & the later ones are "quad optimised" :roll:

For you guys who upgrade often, is this issue even a concern for you? Or do you just say "screw it, I'll just buy a new mobo when the time comes". Do you guys put any thought into staying "ahead of the curve"?

I think that most of the early adopters who like to stay on the cutting edge tend to view new CPUs & mobos to support them as complete packages.

 

[jamiepotter]

Good question. I'd be interested to see what some of the more knowledgeable people out there have to say myself. Here's the little I've heard:

It's all about Penryn (the next big Intel processor) basically. It's going to be Socket LGA775, just like Pentium D and Core2Duo, but that doesn't guarantee that if you buy a mobo now it will come to support Penryn later. It might simply be a matter of BIOS updates, but then again, it might not, and it might require new chipset designs (much like Core2duo did when it came out).

Of course, you could always buy an E4300 now and go Kentsfield (i.e. the current Intel quad-cores) later in the day when they come down in price, but don't count on being able to use the new stuff. If you do this, you'll need to check the manufacturer's page to see if it supports quad-core. Generally, it's only upper end mobos like some of the P965, 975x, and the 650i and 680i that will support quad core.

I think the basic truth is this: God knows!

 

[spet3r]

The LGA 775 socket has some issues (especially on the memory side)... I envision a socket change for Intel soon. The Socket AM2 just replaced the 939 / 745 socket which replaced the prior socket A... having switched so many times, I don't think its wise for AMD to switch sockets again so I don't think they will (Socket A was around for a long time). The AM2 socket seems to run all the chip sets and memory very well.

 

[BUFF]

.. having switched so many times, I don't think its wise for AMD to switch sockets again so I don't think they will (Socket A was around for a long time). The AM2 socket seems to run all the chip sets and memory very well.

Ah well, you're kind of wrong then as AM2 + will be out later this year to be followed by AM3.
They will offer backward compatibility though so that CPUs will be able to run in earlier boards but maybe not with all features enabled.

 

[spet3r]

Interesting... where did you get that info?

 

[BUFF]

http://trackingamd.blogspot.com/search/label/roadmap

http://www.dailytech.com/article.aspx?newsid=3169

http://www.theinquirer.net/default.aspx?article=35211

etc. etc.

 

[spet3r]

The shift to Hypertransport 3.0 on the desktop will be marked by the release the new Socket AM2+ to accommodate HT3.0 and the "stars" series of cores, namely Agena, Kuma, Rana and Spica. Note that Socket AM2+ processors will work in Socket AM2 motherboards, but will not be able to use HT3.0. The stars series will share the same features with Barcelona, such as a shared L3 cache, 128-bit FP and a reworked microarchitecture. Agena, the native quad-core processor for the desktop, will become the Athlon 64 X4 and a special version called Agena FX will update the Athlon FX for Quad FX. Expect these to launch together with Budapest for 1-way servers in Q3 2007.

This makes a lot more sense... its not really a socket change per se... maybe re configuration of the socket? This is saying a AM2+ chip will work in the AM2 socket, just not with full features. Thats coming out this summer? Makes sense... thats when the new Quad core chips are being released.

AM3 is now scheduled for the second half of 2008. AMD claims that it has delayed the AM3 plans as the cross over to DDR 3 won't happen until the middle of 2009 while AM3 "will be on time" before the big crossover happens. This also squares with AMD's planned 45 nanometre production. It is safe to claim that at least some of AM3 CPUs will be 45 nanometre.

8O

Um... yeah right. I always like speculating that far into the future... plans change and things get pushed back. Althought it would be interesting if AMD pushes it ahead to compete with Intel... DDR-3 ? PCI-E 16 x 2... nice.

Guess its AM2+ socket now? Good to know. Thanks again Buff. Hold all buying until after this summer.

 

[Newf]

Ok I am the type of PC buyer who studies super hard before buying a PC. Then I buy my PC. Then I don't stay current on all the "happenings" until the time comes for my to buy a new PC. Thus, I am completely out of the loop every time I am looking for a new PC. I am hoping you guys can answer my questions.

If you wait long enough between upgrades to get "out of the loop", you need all new guts in your system.

When I do choose to upgrade, I want to go with a processor/mobo that has a socket with some future ahead of it. This is so next time I go to upgrade, I might be able to dodge having to buy a new mobo.

This only works if you are budget constrained, getting a new P965 motherboard with an $80 cpu that a few months from now you can switch for cheap something that costs >$500 today.

However, with Quad Cores becoming more and more popular, and more cores on the horizon, I am feeling more and more insecure about upgrading right now.

Do you NEED a new rig or do you just FEEL like getting one?

So, question one. For Intel, how long is the LGA775 socket going to be around? How long will the chipsets on current boards be sufficient (ie. if I buy a LGA775 Core2Duo, will a LGA775 Quadcore require a new mobo chipset to operate anyway)?

Quads and Conroes run on the same boards today. The speed difference is not enough to matter UNLESS you always have to have the fastest rig, (see your 1st paragraph). Intel brings out new chipsets often enough that mobo changes tend to go with the processor changes.

For you guys who upgrade often, is this issue even a concern for you? Or do you just say "screw it, I'll just buy a new mobo when the time comes". Do you guys put any thought into staying "ahead of the curve"?

My guess is that most of the parts churning goes to videocards. Gaming requirements stress the video most. CPU changes really should be generational in nature (along of course with the mobo and ram) since for most of us a 10-25% speed increase just doesn't FEEL good enough compared to the bucks shelled out. Often just a fresh OS install will work wonders on an older system. Now, a 200% change in speed, that's something we all notice!
As far as staying ahead of the curve, I am guilty of waiting for mid-range dx10 cards to come out. I am also waiting for Vista to make more sense than problems before I buy it. IF I was a hard-core gaming fanatic, I would have an 8800 card regardless of how dated the other parts were. Those other parts can have a much longer useful life even in a gaming rig.

That leads me to ask, what are you running now and what do you want to do that it can't?