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Help me with my AMD Opteron dual core system

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DeathscytheHELL

Member
Back in September, I considered building a system with dual cores to handle Black and White 2... I ended up just cheaply upgrading the processor in my 423pin Pentium 4 to a 2.0ghz
Which did work for a while... but not the way I Play... I got my population above 600 people, and the processor and video card no longer keeps up.
Lag and invisible civilians are the issue, I assume lack of processing power.
And then I looked at the games coming out this summer, they all have 'recommended' p4 3.0ghz systems with 6600 or higher video cards, and most games just don't play well on the 'required' setting anymore...

I am really building a new system this time, thanks to the report in the overclocking guide, that says overclocking the 3800 x2 will indeed be good for at least 9 months, even with the M2 socket coming. And I now have $600 extra.
So for me it might last about 2 years.

I am building off the ideas presented in both the AMD 3800 x2 overclocking ideas
Overclocking the 3800x2 guide
and the systems shopping list presented in this
Mid and high ranged builders guide

I need some help though, with you guys approving what I order.

Processor:
I want the 4400 x2, it just seems that the increased L2 cashe has to provide some benefit.
Provide me with some reasons not to if you wish.
-switched to a choice between the three opterons 165 170 or 175

Motherboard:
Still no need for Sli video,
But I was thinking about ASUS nForce4 SLI X16 A8N32-SLI Deluxe (939)
Even though I like the idea of the simplicity of Overclocking with the DFI Landparty SLI-DR expert
I was afraid of the DFI board because of the problems they had on the Lanparty Infinity with memory.
Can you guys recommend a better Overclocking board, or one without SLI or cheaper?

Memory:
Origonally wanted the Crucial Ballistix PC4000 in 1gig x2 sticks... but I cannot tell if the stuff Newegg has is the same as what was used tested in:
Fast 2gig DDR kits-part2
Newegg's Crucial Ballistix pc4000
And if you look, there isn't very favorable personal reviews on the memory from newegg
-if I don't go with crucial, I suppose I will choose the OCZ memory of choice.
And I still cannot determine whether or not the PC4000 ram will be compatable with the Opterons, if it Does I will have to look up some good PC3200

Video:
I will probably pick the most recommended brand of 7800GT (right now the evga).

As for a Case, I like my NZXT Nemesis, and I like the new NZXT lexa
And I can save money from shipping by picking it up at microcenter.
But will the NZXT 500W PSU, that can be included be enough for overclocking (Anandtech used a 600W)?
Also the fans of my Nemesis don't provide a great amount of airflow for the amount of noise (they aren't terribly loud, but I know there has to be better), can you guys recommend some new ones (with links)?

I never did find a case with a hinged side access door.

Also I need a new video capture setup... suggestions would be wonderful.
 
for the cpu, if you have the money the x2 4400 is good but you'll be OCing. why not save the money and get a 3800? you will see an increase in performance with the extra cache, but is it worth the $150 to you?

mobo: i'd still go with the DFI. it seems like you really want to overclock, why not get the dfi?

ram: i actually want to get the ram you want (the ballistix) but i have been hearing they're lasting 4-5 months (if lucky) so maybe considering other brands (like the OCZ you mentioned) would be a wiser choice. actually, i would get the OCZ. if i recall correctly, OCZ and Mushkin were at 2nd and 3rd for the benchmarks

your 500w should be fine. you could use the psu calculator just to see how much power you'll need at your OCed speeds. brand really matters though. what brand is the psu you'll be getting or currently have?

i'd stick with your current case

for video, yea, the 7800gt eVGA is what's recommended at the moment

gl with your build 🙂
 
Okay, I need to know.

If I choose an opteron, it seems like the only reason is to overclock.
The Opteron175 seems to be exactly the same as the X2 4400, except L1 Cashe is higher on the 4400 and the Opteron175 costs $60 more.

So, which would be better out of the box?
And since I am a stickler to stats, Why does the Opteron chipset get its recommendation for overclocking? It would seem that the 4400 should outperform the 175, even if only slightly.

And would I have to change anything else in my system other than the CPU when switching up a Opteron175 for a 4400 x2??

 
The L2 cache really doesn't help much. Look at some benchmarks. You're talking about 1% performance increase. An X2 3800+ can overclock just as well as everything else, so there's really no reason not to get it since it's the cheapest.

The Opteron 165 gets the recommendation because it's not much more than the X2 3800 and it has the greater cache. So maybe it's worth $30 for a 1% boost in performance. The Opterons also have a heatsink with heatpipes, which is a little better.

The best overclocker setups right now seem to be:

1) Get an X2 3800 and some DDR500 if you want something simple. Just put it together and set your HTT to 250-270 and leave everything else at default with the memory synchronous. Then you have a 2.5-2.7 GHz X2 with the memory running at DDR500-DDR540.

2) Get an Opteron 165 and some cheap DDR400 if you want to tweak it a little more. Put it together and set your HTT to 290-300 and set the memory to a 133 (2/3) divider. Then you have a 2.6-2.7 GHz Opteron with the memory running at DDR385-DDR400.

One has faster memory. One has more cache. Neither makes that much of a difference.
 
The Opteron 175 has the same amount of L1 cache as the 4400+ does. The reasons why the Opterons are so sought after is that the lowest end 165 also has as much cache as the 4400+, and Opterons recieve more testing at the factory and so tend to overclock better.
 
Originally posted by: pkrush
The Opteron 175 has the same amount of L1 cache as the 4400+ does. The reasons why the Opterons are so sought after is that the lowest end 165 also has as much cache as the 4400+, and Opterons recieve more testing at the factory and so tend to overclock better.
Click to expand...



That's the main point - Opterons are so sought after because they are designed to be SERVER chips - thus they are tested to have higher heat tolerances and thus are able to OC higher without artifacts and crashes.

The increased cache looks good on paper, but as was said, doesnt provide much of an increase in performance.

Tostada laid out a very good example of what to do.
 
all things being equal 1mb of cache per core does not equal 200 mhz of processor speed despite how amd rates the X2's but w/ the opterons they tend to top out higher or the same as an X2 so having more cache helps when the chips are runing at the same clock speed.
 
Okay, I am convinced on the Opteron.
Will the 175 or 170 make a difference over the 165?

Will DDR500 work with the Opterons? or should I research the ddr400's

I am also worried about the DFI boards, it seems in another "help me build my system" forum on the 13th where it's 50/50 on good/bad results of owning one.
 
the opteron has a different multiplier, so you dont need DDR500. You can just get 2gb of cheap value ram. As many people here will tell you, RAM has very little to do with overclocking. Just get value ram and run a divider.
 
just get a 165, 2GB value ram and a 7800gt/x or x1900xt and be done with it. o/cing the a64s is pretty easy and memory dividers don't really hinder performance much. in theory you should be able to hit 2.4-2.5 on stock V with a 165, and also the 165 comes with a better hsf setup than the 3800
 
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