Stock XP & MOBO for cheap or Mobile XP for more $

[ParatoOptimal]

Should I get one of the stock XP2600 or XP2800 with MOBO deals that are out there for under $100 or should I go with an Abit NF7-S and a mobile XP for 1.5x to 2-times as much?

Thanks

 

[o1die]

My local Fry's has the xp2600 bare cpu with ecs via kt600 mobo for $84. Add a heatsink, and you'll get a decent setup for about $100. If it works. Some ecs boards work, and some don't. But at least you'll have 30 days to test it (for the mobo, 15 days for the cpu). If the board breaks, you might as well toss it. Ecs charges a $30-35 handling fee for their 3 year warranty, last time I checked. So the bottom line is, it's a gamble, but the mobo is almost free.

 

[Corey0808]

Well what are your intentions? IF you want to overclock I would say go with the Abit NF7-S V2.0 and Mobile XP. I went that way. I bought a mobile 2500+ and I was running at 2500mHz at only 1.7v. I really like it. Actually right now I'm running at 2400mHz @ 1.65v because the heat is making it not prime95 stable. But overall I like the processor alot.

 

[BlueWeasel]

The NF7-S is a great board, no doubt, but it's not the only option if you want to OC with the mobile chips. There are numerous other Nforce2 boards at Newegg that cost much less than the NF7-S.

Granted, only the NF7-S and some DFI boards will let you use the full range of multpliers on the mobiles, but it's unlikely you'll use the upper ones anyway. Unless you need the features of the expensive boards like the NF7-S, I'd go with a cheaper board that could get you running around 2.3ghz with the mobile chips and good RAM.

 

[JeffreyY]

Like Corey said, depends on how much speed you want and how much you want to spend. If you go the mobile route essentially you're getting a 3500+ at least when you overclock it, though you'd need to get better cooling as well.