Dual AMD System Questions

[adamkmiec]

Given the cheap price of Athlon XP 2000 CPUs I am considering updgrading from my current MSI 6380 to a dual Athlon XP setup. I do have a few questions:

1. What programs/games are currently taking advantage of Dual CPU setups. I don't want to head down this path only to find out that only Photoshop 7 will take advantage of it. There has to be a list somewhere, but I have been unable to locate one.

2. Every mobo I have seen states it supports the MP processors but not the XPs. I recall a while back an article, maybe by THG, that stated dual processor mobos can use XP processors however in the event of a problem you were out of luck with AMD because they are not MPs.

3. What mobo would you reccomend. I am currently looking at offerings from Gigabyte, MSI, and Asus.

Thanks.

 

[minendo]

XP chips can be used in dual setup only if they are SMP unlocked. Many of the XP chips nowadays have the SMP bridges cut at the factory, but there are still those out there that are left intact. However, these bridges can be reconnected using the same methods as unlocking the multiplier.

I currently run dual XP1800+ on the Asus A7M266-D and have run into only one problem involving the keyboard. First off, the pins on the mobo for connecting case lights, power button, etc are mislabeled and connecting one of the cables causes the keyboard to be locked and the PC won't boot. Furthermore, a PS2 keyboard must always be plugged in or you will receive a "No Keyboard Present" error and no boot. My keyboard is USB, but I always have to have a ps2 plugged in to avoid this problem.

I do not know of any games that take advantage of the dual processors as I see no reason for a game to need two processors.

 

[CraigRT]

There aren't many dual mobos... the MSI K7D Master-L is probably the best from what I have seen.

and about gaming... do NOT buy a dual mobo in hopes to use both CPU's... also 760MPX boards are slower in games using 1 CPU of equal speed compared to a single processor unit. (KT266A for example)

DUAL CPU's BEST aspect is being able to dedicate each CPU to a different process if you want. that is the only thing that attracts me to a dual CPU system. dedicated DUAL CPU SETI cracking... mmm mmm good!

 

[Vette73]

I have built several 760MPX systems and here is the jest...

1. It is not the best gaming system, as someone has already said. The boards work BEST with Reg. ECC ram so this will slow things down a little BUT make them more reliabale.

2. I built mine as I like to run several programs at once and Windows XP Pro will have chip0 doing one program while chip1 does the other

3. You can run XP chips in a 760MPX board you just need to connext the last Bridge of the L5. It is VERY EASY, as it is only one bridge and the last one of the L5 slot

4. Some people have had problems with Nivida vidoe cards so if you plan on running a Ati card like meself then you will have no problem

5. Most 760MPX board are about the same in terms of performance. So choose the board that has the features you want. I am running a Chaintech 7KDD 760MPX board as it has Raid and a 2ch sound card

 

[adamkmiec]

thanks for the input thus far. a couple of more questions:

1. the L5 bridge, is that something on the mobo or on the processor? Is it a jumper or solder situation?
2. Can I run a Athlon XP 2000 with an MP 20000?
3. In Win xP Pro can I assign tasks to each processor?

Right now the thing that is pushing me towards a dual setup is the lag PS 7 seems to have processing large TIF or NEW RAW files from my Nikon D100. After making changes and adding layers we are talking upwards of 300 mb PS files?

Thanks

 

[mechBgon]

What operating system are you using, and can you give more details on your system? If your system doesn't have enough RAM it's going to have to shovel stuff back and forth to the hard drive. Check Task Manager, assuming you use Win2000 or WinXP, and see if it's using up nearly all the RAM and paging the excess to the hard drive when you are doing your conversions. If so, more RAM is going to be key for PS7.

For gaming, I think you'd find a 2700+ on nForce2 or KT400 would outperform a dual 2000+ on 760MPX. If you wanted to game while an ongoing CPU-intensive process runs in the background, on the other hand, then the dualie is going to show its muscle (assuming you've given it enough RAM for both tasks).

 

[minendo]

1. the L5 bridge, is that something on the mobo or on the processor? Is it a jumper or solder situation?

It is the SMP bridges located directly on the processor. It needs to be unlocked using one of the unlocking techniques for XP processors. Do a search on google for details on teh unlocking procedures.

 

[pcNate]

I think Quake 3 can actually do SMP, but don't quote me on that....but yeah..most games cannot.