Opteron or X2?

[Rob_63]

I am a long time Intel enthusiast that has made the switch a few times but always returned for one reason or another, (mainly for the stability and multitasking ability of Intel) and was considering an upgrade to a DC Pressler until I noticed the price of the X2's has come down considerabley since I had an FX-57 5 or 6 months ago.

What I remember most about my last 939 board was that it didn't like 4 sticks of memory (all were equal) so this time around I will just get a 2 X 1gb kit .

I am not overclocking much anymore so that will not be a factor, I gave up the race a while back, I am looking more at stability and being able to multitask. I prefer buying the largest processor I can afford and avoiding the OC'ing.

Now comes the hard part, which mainboard and processor to get? I have about 1,000 for both. Opteron DC or X2?

Which board has the best onboard sound? (the reason I want onboard is I have an extra front breakout box that I like for my case, it is handy for using my headphones)

Any input would be greatly appreciated,

thanks!

GO STEELERS!!

 

[elite6]

The MSI K8N Diamond Plus has a model with integrated Sound Blaster Audigy sound, which I would imagine being the best next to the old nVidia SoundStorm.

I do not know how good the rest of the motherboard is, sorry.

 

[alimoalem]

if you won't be OCing, you might as well get the 4800x2. for the motherboard, idk but the asus a8n sli is pretty stable i think

 

[Aznguy1872]

a8n is good, since you want to be able to mutitask, best to go with the dual core, it rocks!

 

[Bobthelost]

I'd think hard about overclocking, 200-300mhz is stupidly easy and would mean that you could just get a 4400X2 instead (I have one and it's currently sat @2.58Ghz).

However if not then i'd just go with the 4800X2, the operton's main advantage is they way they perform when overclocked, that and thier lower price (and full sized cache) make them very competative compared to the 3800X2 and 4200X2.

The A8N is good, but if you want good onboard sound then the MSI is the only real option. Even then it's a generation or so out of date, might be worth biting the bullet and getting an XFI with a new box for the front of your computer using some of the cash you won't be spending on the CPU.

 

[HamidFULL]

Do X2 4800+ With DFI Lanparty UT SLI-D

 

[Bobthelost]

Originally posted by: HamidFULL
Do X2 4800+ With DFI Lanparty UT SLI-D

Don't unless you want a SLI board, can put up with the chipset fan and are going for a soundcard as it's just got the normal run of the mill onboard sound.

 

[PrayForDeath]

I'd say get the new MSI motherboard with onboard Audigy.
For the CPU, if you're absolutely not going to OC, get the 4800+ X2. Not sure if this combo fits in the 1K$ budget. If not, just get a cheaper X2.

 

[GamerExpress]

Ask yourself this...

Do I overclock??=Opteron

Do I not overclock??=X2

 

[KayKay]

Originally posted by: GamerExpress
Ask yourself this...

Do I overclock??=Opteron

Do I not overclock??=X2

I think Opteron is still better in both cases, having the ability to overclock is very valuable

 

[Bobthelost]

The higher clocked Opterons cost a lot more than the X2 equivalent or they did when i last checked, as such it's an easy choice there. Also the cache doesn't help across the board, i think photoshop for one doesn't benifit at all from the cache the 4600X2 performs just as well as the 4800X2.

 

[TheNewGuy8]

Is it that simple, GamerExpress? I thought I read here that the x2 has a better multiplier than the 165 and thus made for easier oc-ing. Is that true?

 

[Bobthelost]

Yes and no, some of the X2s have a better (ie higher) multiplier, but it's not all that important if you get a good board like the DFI or A8N32 etc as they can push the FSB up to 300+

 

[GamerExpress]

Originally posted by: TheNewGuy8
Is it that simple, GamerExpress? I thought I read here that the x2 has a better multiplier than the 165 and thus made for easier oc-ing. Is that true?

Yes, the Opteron 165 you will probably get somewhere in the area of 2.6, for the money that is well worth it.

 

[Rob_63]

One of the reasons I don't overclock anymore is to avoid sitting in front of the thing trying to eek out a few more megahertz, I spent years doing that and now I just buy the biggest processor I can afford. IMO it is money well spent considering the time that is saved that I can use to do other things on it. guess I am just getting old........

I just read an article about the coming AM2, maybe I should just hold out and wait for that to get here. (ETA is unknown, possibly by this summer?)

 

[Bobthelost]

You can wait for it, but no one expects massive improvements from it either. Up to you, but remember theres' always something better a few months out.

 

[Rob_63]

I no longer have to have the latest and greatest anymore, I do not keep up with reading about what is the latest thing to have. (that is why I posted this thread, I am not up on the latest AMD stuff). Heck my vid card is an outdated 6800 ultra, but to be honest with you it does everything I need it to do. My favorite game is proably 5 or 6 years old and is not very demanding of my vid card. Not that I don't have a few more modern games around here, I just don't play them that much anymore.

The reason that AM2 sounded appealing to me is because it will take DDR2, which I have 2 gigs of low latency stuff in my current rig, that would save me from having to replace that.

Edit: and how bout them STEELERS!! (yes I am from Pa, we are fans of Pitt and Penn St. )

 

[Bobthelost]

You have 2gb of low latency DDR2 RAM? That has to be a P4 rig, and i though the latency was all high for DDR2.

 

[Rob_63]

Well it is low latency compared to most DDR2, it is Patriot pc4200 3-2-2-4. (4 X 512) not nearly as low as the TCCD I had when I was running an Abit with an FX-57. that was a fast setup but I didn't like the way it bogged down when I multitasked so I went back to Intel. I run an Intel D945PVS board with a 571ES using the burn in mode (4% overclock) @ 3.95.

 

[w00t]

make a poll. I am saying Opteron all the way its basically a higher quality processor that is why they tend to overclock so well and that is why they are used for servers because they are stable.

 

[Rob_63]

As I look around for an N4 mainboard I see that they list the CPU as A64, X2, will I need any bios upgrade to run an Opteron in most boards? I have 5 775 rigs here and I do not have access to a 939 chip that if I need to do a bios update before using an opty.

 

[biostud]

You sound like you really like to change your rig often. Personally I would wait for AM2 if you already have a powerful rig.

 

[Rob_63]

Originally posted by: biostud
You sound like you really like to change your rig often. Personally I would wait for AM2 if you already have a powerful rig.

It's not that I like to change my rig often, it just seems I end up selling one of my rigs to someone locally here every once in a while and that gives me an opportunity to upgrade mine. I will be selling my sons 3.6 ghz P4 915P system and was going to pass down to him my 3.8 945P if I decide to go AMD again. Since most of my rigs here are 775 I have a spare/backup 945P board here at my disposal.

My goal is to go dual core.

My options at this point are:

1. Give to son my 3.8 and the extra 945P board and get a 950 Pressler and drop it in my existing setup (easiest and most cost effective for me to do)

2. Give him my internals and start my rig over with AMD, which would mean not only the processor but mainboard, memory and a sound card. (what I would like to do since I believe their dual core option is superior to Intels)

3. Just wait for AM2 to come out, then I could utilize my existing memory. (all I would need is another processor to get my boys rig rebuilt)