AMD 64, which is the best mobo for it?

[geminiguy]

Calling all, I have a request to build a sys for a Motor Shop that is going to be out in the open all day 365 days a year. I have a VERY limited budget to work with also, it has to be under $1500 (which includes labor + parts). Parts also being a full system (Monitor, printer, the works).

UPDATE: I spoke with my client yesturday, now the system figure has gone upto $1900+, so it gives me a little more room to play with. He wants the latest and greatest, has anyone been experimenting with the A64's?
I've been reading up on the 64's vs Barton's, there doesn't seem to be much of a dif for what he is going to be using it for. The owner is only going to be running 1 business program and that's it.
My question for the group is which would be the best bet for him to not have to upgrade for a few years? The pricing is only a few bucks dif, this again is going to be a very simple system made just for one program sitting in the heat and sun all day everyday down here in Tampa,FL. I read in Tom's that the 64's are going to be going away soon, is that true? If so, again, which would be my best bet for the $$.
Now mind you he just got raked over the coals for a sys he paid 2k for that would only cost $300 to build, man, I feel bad for him.
He also needs 2 DVD roms, was gonna give him 2 Lite-On 16X DVD Dual Drive, Model SOHW-1633S Beige, due to the price dif is again, only about $5 than just a rom.

ANY SUGGESTIONS, I've been specing out the sys for the past 2 days and I'm up in the air. ANY FEEDBACK WOULD GREATLY BE APPRECIATED.
I currently still have an AMD 2800+ Barton that rocks, it hands anything I throw at it. The 64's have me curious now if they are better than the Bartons.

THANKS ALL..need to contact him ASAP with the spec's and appreciate the time and effort for your replies.

Cordially,

Gem

Equal is equal, or is it?<P ID="edit"><FONT SIZE=-1><EM>Edited by geminiguy on 01/05/05 04:19 PM.</EM></FONT></P>

 

[geminiguy]

1) I GREATLY appreciate "Spitfire"'s recommendations on CPU's. Now I know to go with a reg XP 2400+ on this particular system, due to the fact that the owner is just going to be using the system for only one application for the shop.

2) I do have a question on my own system though. As noted by "Spitfire", he states that the AMD XP 2800+ "Barton" is the worst CPU to purchase. Well, I have a XP 2800+ "Barton" in my system, with an Asus A7N8X-X mobo and I do high end gaming/video editing/application on it. The question is, can I still OC it to be comparable to a 3200+ or I am I just limited to what the stock can handle?

It gives me lag time while doing such video editing and I just put this system together less than a year ago, I really can't afford to upgrade this as of yet, due to purchasing a house in the very near future.

These are my components:

CPU: AMD XP 2800+ "Barton"

Mobo: Asus A7N8X-X "nForce 2"

Memory: Corsair PC2700+ 512MB, 333 FSB

Video: MSI FX 5700 256MB VIVO

HD's: 1 Maxtor 80 gig 2mb cache, 1 Maxtor 120gig 8mb cache

Roms: Asus CRW-5224A, Lite-On DVD+/- RW LDW-411S (soon to be updated to the Lite-On SOHW-1633S BLK

This was the best/greatest on the market when I built it alittle over a year ago. I appreciate any information on if the CPU can be OC'D and feedback on the Lite-On DVD-RW.

Again, thanks for all of the forums help/information on the postings, especially "SPITFIRE"! Rock on man.

Thanks in advance for replies/commentary on what to do with my current system for OC'ing it (if it can be).

Gem




Equal is equal, or is it?

 

[endyen]

On the A64s, an A64 2800+ is 10 to 15% faster than a comperable xp system.
As far as OCing your system, a lot depends on the date on your chip. If it was made before week 39 of 03, you have a chip with unlocked multipliers, so you can just up the multiplier to get more speed. If not, you have to OC by increasing the FSB. We had one member who ran his xp2800+ at 2.6 ghz, so they do OC fairly well. Check in the overclockers forum for some first class advice (starting with the sticky of course).
As far as Spitfires take on bartons go, he may have been a bit harsh. They perform better when OCed, so please give it a try.

 

[geminiguy]

endyen,

Thanks for the advice, I haven't check it as of yet, but will tomorrow and read up on it a little more.

My customer has decided to go all out, so will get him the A64 3200+, he's the son in law of a huge firm and his daddy in law is paying for it. Man, some got all the luck.

GFOS

Equal is equal, or is it?

 

[Lazerous]

Part of the reason you are experiencing some lag on your system during video editing is the 512mb of ram. Up that amount to at least 1GB and you will see a marked improvement.
My current PC is only an athalon 1900+ that had 512 mb ram when i bought it and i upped it to 1GB of ram for the very same reason. it's still not a wonder machine but it handles editing and encoding much better with the boosted ram support.

AMD 64 3700+,ASUS K8N-E Deluxe-250gb,1.5 gb PC3200,Gigabyte GeForce 6800gt 256mb,Audigy 2 ZS , 2-36.7gb 10,000 rpm Raptors/Raid 0, Thermaltake butterfly 480 watt PSU , + asst. other amenities.....

 

[Crashman]

I'm a mechanical designer with an extensive automotive background, tell him I need a job.

<font color=blue>Only a place as big as the internet could be home to a hero as big as Crashman!</font color=blue>
<font color=red>Only a place as big as the internet could be home to an ego as large as Crashman's!</font color=red>

 

[geminiguy]

Crashman,

I would like to entertain the idea of asking regarding any positions (my client), but he is the owner of a auto shop currently and is going to be taking over for the father in-law's position in a HUGE pharmacutical company in the near future and needs a min of 5 more systems built for him. So the chances of him having an open position at this time is very unlikely. I will inquire for you though, the company is located in Safety Harbour, FL. Just an FYI.

I still have a question of OC'ing my XP 2800+ "Barton" 333fsb, has anyone done it as of yet? I plan on adding more memory to my main sys (another 512mb Corsair to my current Corsair 512mb). It has been the discussion of the company, just a matter of finishing this current system for him then I can do it.

Can anyone recommend a mobo for the AMD64 cpu's? I've been looking at Asus, I always go with Asus. Still contiplating on giving him DDR2 or just DDR.

Thanks for the advice and answers,

GEM

Equal is equal, or is it?<P ID="edit"><FONT SIZE=-1><EM>Edited by geminiguy on 01/05/05 01:20 PM.</EM></FONT></P>

 

[Cyrus]

The latest and probably greatest Asus mobo for AMD : http://www.asus.com/products/mb/socket939/a8nsli-d/overview.htm

 

[Crashman]

I have a place to stay in Florida, I can stay the as long as it takes for me to get my own place.

Asus has some nForce3 boards, and availability of their nForce4 boards will continue to improve. Check out their line.

<font color=blue>Only a place as big as the internet could be home to a hero as big as Crashman!</font color=blue>
<font color=red>Only a place as big as the internet could be home to an ego as large as Crashman's!</font color=red>

 

[pauldh]

If I were to spend $1900 on a system and end up with an Athlon XP, I'd be ticked! He might not know any better, but honestly, AXP is for a budget system, not a near $2000 one. That's hardly a budget at all. I'd definately go with an A64 on a very good motherboard, only other option would be a P4 3.2C on an Abit IS7.

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[endyen]

Still contiplating on giving him DDR2 or just DDR.

You can stop contemplating, the A64 chip does not support DDR2. Just as well, you dont want to pay more, for worse performance.
When DDR2, and the memory bus on the A64s can support 333/666 speeds, the high latency of DDR2 will no longer be a factor. Until then, dont expect to see A64s, or thier boards that use DDR2.

 

[Ned_Flanders]

Cool, I'm Gemini.

______________
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