Athlon XP 1600+ (1.4GHz) ----> Duron 1.8GHz

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Brian23

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Dec 28, 1999
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I have a XP 1600+ in my system right now, and I noticed the other day that you can get Duron 1.8s for about $45. Since socket A prices may go up soon I was thinking about upgrading. However, I'm not sure if the Duron will perform better or worse than the XP I have now. I think my XP is a Palomino core. Anyone know which one is faster?

UPDATE:

Old system specs:
Athlon XP 1600+ (Palomino)
Radeon 9000 64MB
ECS K7S5A
2x PC133 256MB cas3 generic (total 512mb)
Leadtek TV2000Deluxe tuner
Creative Soundblaster MP3+
Benq 16x DVD burner
3x IDE Harddrives (total 420GB)
Antec case and 300W Antec power supply


New system specs:
Duron 1.8GHz
Radeon 9000 64MB
ECS KT600-A
2x PC3200 512MB Mushkin Blue Line CL2 (total 1GB)
Leadtek TV2000Deluxe tuner
Creative Soundblaster MP3+
Benq 16x DVD burner
3x IDE Harddrives (total 420GB)
Antec case and 380W Thermaltake power supply

Benchmarks (at default clock speed):

SuperPi 1million:
Old: 1min 59sec
New: 1min 6sec

SuperPi 4million:
Old: 6min 39sec
New: 5min 20sec

Quake 3 fastest Demo001:
Old: 164.8fps
New: 195.6fps

Cost:
CPU $41
Memory $140
Power Supply $36
Motherboard $0 (given by friend)
Total: $217

Overclocking/mods:
My Duron is an Applebred core which is really a modified Thouroughbred steping B0 core. I tried doing the L2 mod to turn on the rest of the L2 cache in my chip. Using the equipment at work, I was able remove the solder mask and successfully solder the bridge closed. When I booted the PC, bios recognized it as an Athlon XP, not a duron. I was excited until I tried memtest86. Under the lvl2 transfer rate, it listed it as unknown. I booted into windows and ran cpu-z and it reported 64k L2. So I ran AMDs id utility. It also reported 64k L2. I then ran a program that benchmarks CPU cache (I forget what it's called) and it only reported 64k L2, but it thought the chip was an Athlon XP. So then I removed the L2 bridge and now bios recognizes it as a Duron and memtest is able to identify the cache as 64K. So the results I found with the cache mod is that it makes the CPU look like it's an Athlon XP, but it still functions as a Duron. I don't recomend this mod.

I tried to set the FSB to 166MHz, but it failed to boot. I then started back at the 133 default and stepped it up in increments of 3MHz and found my limit to be 148FSB. This equates to exactly 2GHz. I was puzzled by these results because I've heard the thouroughbred B0 core is supposed to OC quite nicely. After scratching my head for quite a while in confusion, I noticed that my core voltage was at 1.4V. I think the default for this core is 1.5V. That would explain my dismal results. My stupid motherboard does not allow core voltage adjustments, so I'm stuck at 1.4V and 2GHz for now. If I can figure out how to mod this board to up the core voltage, I'm gonna try that. So far, I haven't found any info online about a voltage mod for the motherboard.


Overall I'm pleased with my upgrade. I have had the "upgrade bug" for quite a while, and this has finally cured it. (for now :)) I was considering going A64 route, but if I did I'm sure I would have spent many hundreds more on a DFI board and a 3200+ or a 3500+. And then I would have the urge to get a 6600gt to match the cpu. This way I have the memory to go to an A64 later, I put off upgrading again for a while and I'm happy with the results.
 
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Brian23

Banned
Dec 28, 1999
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I'm not really planing on overclocking. My current setup doesn't run right above 1460 and it's rated at 1400. I think it's my 3 sticks of cheap ass memory causing the problem. You think the duron will be faster at stock?
 
Avalon

Avalon

Diamond Member
Jul 16, 2001
7,571
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It will probably be closer to a sidegrade than anything else.
 
B

Brian23

Banned
Dec 28, 1999
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Originally posted by: Avalon
It will probably be closer to a sidegrade than anything else.
Click to expand...

You mean like going from 3-3-3-6 to 2-3-2-6? I didn't see any difference when I upgraded my friends computer to faster memory.
 
RussianSensation

RussianSensation

Elite Member
Sep 5, 2003
19,458
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It'll be faster at stock since 400mhz extra will compensate for lack of cache on the duron vs. the xp processor. However, if you do not intend to overclock, I would not bother spending money then.

You gave me an idea to upgrade and overclock too. But after a quick check, unfortunately my MSI KT3-Ultra 2 doesnt support duron processors above 1.4ghz. So make sure to check this as well before you even consider it. Again, if you aren't going to overclock, I think you'd be better off to save the $40 towards a future upgrade. With A64 2800+ at $99 right now, and S754 boards for $50-60, even $45 aside will count.

Also you should consider your system as a whole. What tasks do you perform? Do you have a 5400 rpm HDD, less than 512mb of ram? 80 gig 7200 rpm hard drive with 2mb cache? A radeon 7000 videocard? Perhaps you might consider another weak spot in your system and tell us? Or maybe it's just too slow in general so it might be time for a whole new system?
 
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Brian23

Banned
Dec 28, 1999
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Also, The Duron 1.8 I'm looking at is an Applebred core. I've never even heard of such a core! My K7S5A supports up to morgan core if I recall correctly. Anyone know anything about this so called Applebread core?
 
RussianSensation

RussianSensation

Elite Member
Sep 5, 2003
19,458
765
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Originally posted by: Brian23
Also, The Duron 1.8 I'm looking at is an Applebred core. I've never even heard of such a core! My K7S5A supports up to morgan core if I recall correctly. Anyone know anything about this so called Applebread core?
Click to expand...

Go to the official www.ecs.com.tw website and search for BIOS updates or CPU support information regarding this issue. You could also post on the forum and maybe something will come up.

These are all the versions of your board:

K7S5A Pro (5.0)
K7S5A (1.1)
K7S5A (3.1)
K7S5A (3.1B)
K7S5A+(1.0)
K7S5A2 (1.0A)

I am not sure which one you have out of these.

But..it seems this BIOS

BIOS Name BIOS for K7S5A(PCB:1.1) / K7S5A(PCB:3.1) / K7S5A(PCB:3.1B)
Version 30811
Release Date 2004/01/02
Update Description BIOS CheckSum:C38Bh 1.Support Duron 1800 CPU

seems to fix the duron 1800 issue and provide support for it for 1.1, 3.1 and 3.1B versions of your board.

Make sure you are confident with flashing your board if you intend to upgrade.
Make sure to double check on ECS forums for better information regarding this issue with users of your particular board.
Make sure you consider the minor benefits from upgrading to a Duron 1800mhz given that you will not overclock.
 
Aenslead

Aenslead

Golden Member
Sep 9, 2001
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The BIOS update should be enough for you to be able to run Durons and Semprons of higher clockspeed.

I suggest that, if possible, you aquire a Sempron, instead of the already dead Duron.
 
B

Brian23

Banned
Dec 28, 1999
1,655
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Originally posted by: RussianSensation
Originally posted by: Brian23
Also, The Duron 1.8 I'm looking at is an Applebred core. I've never even heard of such a core! My K7S5A supports up to morgan core if I recall correctly. Anyone know anything about this so called Applebread core?
Click to expand...

Go to the official www.ecs.com.tw website and search for BIOS updates or CPU support information regarding this issue. You could also post on the forum and maybe something will come up.

These are all the versions of your board:

K7S5A Pro (5.0)
K7S5A (1.1)
K7S5A (3.1)
K7S5A (3.1B)
K7S5A+(1.0)
K7S5A2 (1.0A)

I am not sure which one you have out of these.

But..it seems this BIOS

BIOS Name BIOS for K7S5A(PCB:1.1) / K7S5A(PCB:3.1) / K7S5A(PCB:3.1B)
Version 30811
Release Date 2004/01/02
Update Description BIOS CheckSum:C38Bh 1.Support Duron 1800 CPU

seems to fix the duron 1800 issue and provide support for it for 1.1, 3.1 and 3.1B versions of your board.

Make sure you are confident with flashing your board if you intend to upgrade.
Make sure to double check on ECS forums for better information regarding this issue with users of your particular board.
Make sure you consider the minor benefits from upgrading to a Duron 1800mhz given that you will not overclock.
Click to expand...


Thank you for the detailed information. I decided that my PC133 cas 3 was holding me back too much so I just ordered 2x 512MB Mushkin PC3200 cas 2-2-2. I like it how this board will take SDR or DDR memory. Now that I have my memory problem cleared up, I should be able to overclock my pc nicely! Is this applebread CPU very overclockable?
 
Avalon

Avalon

Diamond Member
Jul 16, 2001
7,571
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I bought a K7S5A for my lady, because she had an old P3 667mhz system and I wanted to use the CAS 2 512MB stick of SDRAM I had put in it for her. The damn board wouldn't take SDRAM, so I wound up plugging some value Geil DDR in there :p

It's running strong though. Good old board.
 
L

lycurgus

Member
Jun 23, 2002
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Pretty much agree with previous comments - if you're not looking for a better OC, (i.e. running at stock speeds), no point in the proposed upgrade.
 
B

Brian23

Banned
Dec 28, 1999
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It looks like the Duron 1.8 is fairly OCable from what I've seen online, so I ordered one. I'll post an update with my OC results when I get it.
 
Zap

Zap

Elite Member
Oct 13, 1999
22,377
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Originally posted by: Aenslead
The BIOS update should be enough for you to be able to run Durons and Semprons of higher clockspeed.

I suggest that, if possible, you aquire a Sempron, instead of the already dead Duron.
Click to expand...

Well, depends on what version PCB he has. Some of those won't support the higher FSB of the faster Semprons.

If the BIOS update for his board gives support (official or unofficial) for Barton chips, then the mobile AXP with a wire mod would be the best choice.
 
B

Budman

Lifer
Oct 9, 1999
10,980
0
0
Originally posted by: Brian23
But I want to overclock now! I just bought new memory to replace my old sh!t.
Click to expand...

If you want to overclock you'll need a better motherboard,best you can probably hope for is 150mhz with a modded bios on that board.

would be better to just grab a Asus A7N8X-X for cheap.
 
S

selfbuilt

Senior member
Feb 6, 2003
481
0
0
I agree with Budman ... the ECS K7S5A has basically no oc-ing options, so you would be limited to stock on the Duron (which would be marginally faster than your pally). Also, that board will hold your memory back (as I recall, it's limited to a 266Mhz fsb, so your mem will run at PC2100 speeds). You're going to want a board that can take advantage of your new low latency DDR400 mem ...
 
X

xsilver

Senior member
Aug 9, 2001
470
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0
if you're going to spend money, spend money on a s754/s939 upgrade.... until then do nothing.....
 
Aenslead

Aenslead

Golden Member
Sep 9, 2001
1,256
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Hm... true. 333Mhz FSB must be used... and the SiS735 does not support it officialy...
 
L

lycurgus

Member
Jun 23, 2002
83
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Originally posted by: xsilver
if you're going to spend money, spend money on a s754/s939 upgrade.... until then do nothing.....
Click to expand...
I agree, if you're going to get new memory, processor and m/b then it doesn't make sense to stick with socket A.
 
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Brian23

Banned
Dec 28, 1999
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The default for this chip is 1.5, but I'm wiling to run it up to 1.65. I'd like to be able to just change something in bios to set the voltage higher, but I think I have the newest bios and it doesn't have any voltage adjustments. And I don't feel like hacking the bios.
 
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imported_whatever

Platinum Member
Jul 9, 2004
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i doubt that you will find a hacked BIOS for it.
i figured that if you are willing to try modding it for more cache, you likely would be willing to do a pin mod. can't think of any other way to increase the vCore though. there may be a vCore mod for your mobo if you felt like doing that instead of a pin mod...
 
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