dual processors help

[dooder]

I am gonig to be making a dual processor machine in the next couple of months, but I do not want to use AMD processors. I was wondering if there were any motherboards that supported dual Pentium 4 setup? I know of XEON processors but I would rather do dual P4 if that is possible. If anyone know of a motherboard that supports dual P4 please let me know.

 

[halkebul]

Sadly P4s cannot be used in multiple cpu configs.

 

[Viper GTS]

P4 Xeons are the only way you can go if you want P4's.

Why the aversion to AMD CPU's? Athlon SMP rigs are fast, and unbelievably stable when using quality hardware (good P/S, memory). Plus they're a lot cheaper than their Xeon counterparts.

I hope you have a reason for dual CPU's, though, for 99% of what most people do a single CPU P4/XP would be a much better choice. The one major drawback to dual AMD systems is that their memory & AGP performance leave a lot to be desired when compared to their single CPU competitors (using other chipsets).

Viper GTS

 

[dullard]

Why do you want to avoid XEON? Unfortunately, there will not be any dual P4 motherboards. Why? Back in the P3 days, the P3 Xeon cost hundreds more than the equivalent P3. There was a huge price incentive to go dual P3 instead of dual P3 Xeon. Intel did nothing to stop motherboard manufacturers from making dual P3 motherboards, so the motherboard manufacturers saw this opportunity for some great sales. Now, times have changed. The P4 Xeon no longer has a significant price difference. With the exception of the 2.6 GHz and 2.8 GHz Xeon, their prices are typically $20 to $50 more than the equivalent P4 (and for most of the last year it was on the $20 end). Also Intel took a few steps to make dual P4s difficult to run together (maybe it might even be impossible, I don't know). So with Intel against it, and without any price reason, motherboard manufacturers haven't attempted to make a dual P4 motherboard. For the same reason, there really are very few reason for customers to want dual P4s. The only reasons I can think of are:
A) you already own a P4 chip and want to use it in a dual machine, or
B) you cannot wait a little longer for the upcoming 533 MHz fsb Xeons.

 

[dullard]

Originally posted by: Viper GTS
Why the aversion to AMD CPU's? Athlon SMP rigs are fast, and unbelievably stable when using quality hardware (good P/S, memory). Plus they're a lot cheaper than their Xeon counterparts.

The AMD Athlon MP chips are really good chips, I agree with that. But there are some reasons to avoid them (some are valid and others are not). One of the most valid reasons is that 2200+ might not be enough speed. As for cost, the chip prices aren't that different: the 2200+ MP costs $210 and the 2.4 GHz P4 $253. But the motherboard prices are significantly different. For that reason a dual AMD machine will cost a lot less, I'd also suggest considering AMD MP processors if your budget is tight.