New MB/CPU suggestions

[JMPHOTO]

I am rebuilding a new system for my photography business. This PC is just basically for Photoshop and business apps. I have a new Lian-li 6070 case. I was looking to go dual core P4. I usually use ASUS boards. Any suggestions? What about AMD64? I heard AMD 64 has a short lifespan? My goals is perforamnce and reliability.
Thanks.

 

[drum]

Originally posted by: JMPHOTO
I am rebuilding a new system for my photography business. This PC is just basically for Photoshop and business apps. I have a new Lian-li 6070 case. I was looking to go dual core P4. I usually use ASUS boards. Any suggestions? What about AMD64? I heard AMD 64 has a short lifespan? My goals is perforamnce and reliability.
Thanks.

where did you hear this?

 

[Cerb]

Budget?

 

[Bobthelost]

Reliablity means you're not going to overclock (or at least not much).

Photoshp means you'll need a minimum of 2gb RAM, maybe more.

Performance means you'll want an A64 Dual core. They hammer dual core P4 chips for photoshop, what's your budget? If you're rolling in cash then go for the 4600X2, less cash then the 4200X2 and if only a little cash then the 3800X2 gets the vote. Don't waste your money on the 2x1mb cahce models as photoshop doesn't see any benifit at all from it.

Of course if money is no object then the FX60 would be the best possible.

Now for the mobo i'd look at the A8R-MVP or whatever the ATI version was, very good board, all the features you need and plenty quick. Although if you're not overclocking then you can pretty much pick any ASUS board you like the feature set of.

 

[alimoalem]

bob said it perfectly. but here are other suggestions:

CPU: you can also look into the opterons (165 if on a budget, 170 if you have more to spend, 175 if you have a lot to spend, 180 or fx60 if you're rich)

MB: the Asus A8N should be a good choice

 

[JMPHOTO]

Here is a quote from Tomshardware.com
"But there are downsides as well: The Athlon 64 FX-60 not only is the most expensive AMD desktop processor, but its life span will be short."
Toms review
My budget is about $1200 to 1500 for MB, CPU, RAM and a new video card for photo (not gaming)
Thanks

 

[ShadoWing]

wait out for the new sockets!

 

[Cerb]

$1200 for CPU, RAM, and video? Add a PSU to that list!

 

[JMPHOTO]

I just bought a new 550w antec power supply a couple weeks ago?
What about the AMD 64 FX57 looks like about $849 at mwave?

 

[Cerb]

OK, then...
No less than 2GB (2x1GB), some CAS 2 RAM.
No less than a 7800GT for video. Maybe 2 of them in SLI (better value than 7800GTX).
A 4800+ would be a good CPU, next to the FX-60.
A FX-57 would be alright, and is fast, but single-core. There are already games out using dual-core CPUs. Single-core now would be wasteful.

You could wait for the new sockets, but it will be more of the same. DDR-II will replace DDR, but the differences will still be minimal. The waiting game is rarely worth it.

 

[misanthropy]

if memory serves, one of intel's low-end dual-core models is the best bang for the buck when it comes to apps such as photoshop. If you are on a budget and not much of a gamer I'd go Intel--if you plan on spending a lot of cash, or if you will be doing a lot of gaming then AMD. If you absolutely must go AMD (which IMO is not the best choice for a budget dual-core PC used for photoshop) then get their lowest end dual-core Opteron clocked at 1.8Ghz with 1MB cache. Don't take my word for it--there are benchmarks out there that prove my point. And let's not forget that Intel has supposedly transitioned their Pentium Ds to 65mm--making heat not much of a issue.

 

[JMPHOTO]

Thanks for the input so far.
This will not be used at all for gaming. Just photoshop and other business apps.

 

[JMPHOTO]

Why are the AMD 64X2's rated at a lower ghz than the P4 duals?
Forgive me for asking, I don't know much about the AMD's.
Thanks

 

[misanthropy]

AMD processors have better performance per mhz/watt. Basically that's all you need to know. AMD uses less energy and lower clock speeds to achieve similar performance as Intel, except arguably in their mobile line.

 

[emilyek]

The least expensive AMD Dual core-- an x2, or opteron

2 gigs of ram

X800GT would be enough for photoshop, and an x800xl would be plenty.

For photo editing, personally, whatever you choose, I'd go with ATI as their image quality seems better-- to me, anyway.

 

[Knavish]

I'm not sure if you're clear on this after reading the first post... Tomshardware is NOT saying that the processor will die in 12 months or some short time period. He's saying that the FX-60 won't be the top-dog processor for a long time, but that's pretty normal. I'd be shocked if any processor was the #1 performing processor for more than about 3 months. That's why you've got to have really deep pockets to afford one...

Also, I never buy the crap about a certain socket type going obsolete. I know that AMD is going to move to Socket M2 sometime this year. I'm going to buy a system soon and I don't care -- I have *never* upgraded a cpu without buying a new motherboard at the same time.

-Knavish

Originally posted by: JMPHOTO
Here is a quote from Tomshardware.com
"But there are downsides as well: The Athlon 64 FX-60 not only is the most expensive AMD desktop processor, but its life span will be short."
Thanks

 

[JMPHOTO]

I noticed the AMD boards from asus don't thave DDR2. Why is that?
I thought DDR2 was much better than DDR?
Sorry for all the dumb questions, this is new to me.

 

[JEDIYoda]

actully at present time...DDR is better than DDR2.

 

[JMPHOTO]

I currently have a P4 3.2 prescott on an ASUS P4C800e delux mb with 2gb ram.
I need to build a pc for my daughter and thought I would give her the prescott and get a new setup. Would there be a big performance gain going from the prescott to an AMD 64X2 (say 4400 or 4600) or Pentium D9xx???

 

[JMPHOTO]

Any thoughts

 

[GamerExpress]

Yeah I have a thought, go with 2GB's for Photoshop!!

I would go with
Epox 9npa+ Ultra
Opteron 165
2GB some value ram (corsair)