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Ordering my new system tommorow suggestions?

W

wvtalbot

Senior member
Let me first state that I don't overclock, I just don't have the time and resources (nor do I really care)

I am ordering a new system tommorow and taking the guts of my old one to build a myth box. Currently here is what I plan on ordering.

ASUS A8N-VM CSM
AMD ATHLON 64 3200+,
CRUCIAL 1GB (1024MB) PC3200 400MHZ CL3

I would order the MSI 6150 board but it is nowhere to be found right now. Any suggestions? I really don't want to go over about $325 for the package. Also I think I am going to order from mwave (currently annoyed with newegg) and was considering having the assemble and test it so I don't have to worry about RMA'ing anything.

 
Hint: If you aren't ordering until tomorrow, you *may* be able to find somewhere that has the Opteron 146 for about the same price as the Athlon 64 3200 😉
 
Looks fine to me. I'd suggest getting the cheapest possible memory in a 2x configuration (2gb = 2x1gb dimms or 1gb=2x512mb dimms). Don't worry about the memory timings or anything like that since you're not looking to OC and you'll pay a lot more money for something that you won't notice the difference on.

You also shouldn't worry about having the stuff tested, unless it's really cheap to do. Most of the mobos, cpus and RAM that's manufactured have no problems.
 
Originally posted by: m1ldslide1
Looks fine to me. I'd suggest getting the cheapest possible memory in a 2x configuration (2gb = 2x1gb dimms or 1gb=2x512mb dimms). Don't worry about the memory timings or anything like that since you're not looking to OC and you'll pay a lot more money for something that you won't notice the difference on.

You also shouldn't worry about having the stuff tested, unless it's really cheap to do. Most of the mobos, cpus and RAM that's manufactured have no problems.
Click to expand...


The crucial memory is 2x512 and I am not worrying about the timing.

The testing and assembling is only $9 which is worth it to me not to have a small chance at an rma.


How much fatser is a stock 146 than a 3200 not overclocked?
 
an opteron 146 wouldnt be a bad idea even just for stability why not? it's a higher quality chip and if later on you decide to oc your going to love it. I just wanted to confirm that your getting a one gig stick instead of two 512mb it's better to get a one gig stick because AMD64 memory controller built on the chip is only made to support two sticks of ram. you can decrease performance by using 4 sticks and raise temps from a couple ive seen.
 
Originally posted by: w00t
an opteron 146 wouldnt be a bad idea even just for stability why not? it's a higher quality chip and if later on you decide to oc your going to love it. I just wanted to confirm that your getting a one gig stick instead of two 512mb it's better to get a one gig stick because AMD64 memory controller built on the chip is only made to support two sticks of ram. you can decrease performance by using 4 sticks and raise temps from a couple ive seen.
Click to expand...


There is no way I will ever overclok the chip, just not into that anymore, in fact last chip I overclocked was a Celeron300A (oh those were the days)
 
How much fatser is a stock 146 than a 3200 not overclocked?
Click to expand...

The 146 has a 1MB L2 cache vs. the 3200 512KB. I don't have a link for the article but I read some benchmarks on anand at one point suggesting that the extra cache is a significant difference.

But since you're not going to OC, you should consider the 3700+ which is 200mhz faster than both and has the 1MB L2 cache. it's the same price as the opty 146.

 
love the mobo choice, one of my fav's. don't get the msi.

if you can swing 2gb of ram go for it.

and as stated, the mwave pre-tested thing is a waste IMO.
 
Opty isn't really worth it here unless its very close to the same price. They are sought after for good overclocking abilities. A regular A64 is just as stable as a Opty, don't know where that idea came from.

So get the 146 if its the same price as a 3200+ (not sure if that's possible though) for the sole fact of 1MB L2 cache vs. 512kb on regular A64. Note the extra L2 cache rarely shows a significant advantage, and as said since overclocking isn't being considered, the 3700+ San Diego might be best choice if its not much more than a 3200+. You'll get extra MHz and 512mb more L2 cache (just in case). I've read that ON AVERAGE, equivalent processors equally clocked with the only exception being 512kb L2 vs 1mb L2 has the 1MB L2 amounting to 100-300 more MHz, depending the application, which unless you're hitting the high end of that range, won't be noticed.
 
Actually I am thiniing of waiting tommorow and order from newegg because of the free shipping and the $10 gift certificate I earned yesterday, hope they don't screw my order up like they have done so many times before though.
 
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