Who is considering purchasing a Bulldozer rig?

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VirtualLarry

VirtualLarry

No Lifer
Aug 25, 2001
56,570
10,203
126
I know I am. I held off on Sandy Bridge, and I know I said I would likely wait for a few years before replacing my Q9300 CPUs I just upgraded my desktop rigs with, but ... but... I want an 8-core. Just because. The quest for ridiculous e-peen continues.

I know I shouldn't want anything new for a while, and indeed, there's nothing that I do that my Q9300 can't handle, but Bulldozer seems so tantalizing, so full of mystery.

PS. Is there an official release date set yet? I heard something about an intro at E3 in June.
 
mnewsham

mnewsham

Lifer
Oct 2, 2010
14,539
428
136
Last i heard was 2xth of June, so about a month and a week maybe? It could be longer though.
 
O

OCGuy

Lifer
Jul 12, 2000
27,224
37
91
As the current Phenom II X6 shows us, core count isn't everything. I will wait to see benchmarks in applications that I actually use.
 
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drizek

Golden Member
Jul 7, 2005
1,410
0
71
Me. Don't really need it, but I think it should be pretty cheap as far as upgrades go.

I have 3 cores and 4GB ram right now. I expect the upgrade to triple my (theoretical) performance. I also want to be able to take advantage of SATA III on my C300 SSD. But most importantly, I want USB ports that I can charge my iPad from.

I'm looking at basically spending $200 on an octal core, maybe up to $230. $80-$130 for a nice motherboard and around $80 for 12GB ram. I also expect to be able to run all 8 cores at a minimum of 4ghz with better performance/clock than stars. If AMD can deliver that, I think it's a pretty good use of ~$400.
 
Patrick Wolf

Patrick Wolf

Platinum Member
Jan 5, 2005
2,443
0
0
I'm hoping to build a cheap mini-ITX or mATX backup rig with BD. As for a main rig, with virtually no concrete info on performance I can't imagine it surpassing SB. Then the overclock factor which is so easy with a "K" CPU from Intel.
 
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drizek

Golden Member
Jul 7, 2005
1,410
0
71
Unless the Brazilian guy is right about the quad bulldozer outperforming a 2600, I don't see how amd can possibly justify asking for more than $200. They need something at $200 to compete with the i5 2500K running over clocked to 4.5+ GHz

Anyway, if it doesn't work out I'll just get a new motherboard and a ram upgrade and try to acc the fourth core in my X3 720. Then I will wait until next year for a $200 10-core bulldozer, which Ivy Bridge basically guarantees.
 
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Dark Shroud

Golden Member
Mar 26, 2010
1,576
1
0
I'm considering it if it's released in time for me to build new systems for some friends & family.
 
Terzo

Terzo

Platinum Member
Dec 13, 2005
2,589
27
91
I'm quite interested. I don't really need the upgrade, but considering it would probably be good for programs like handbrake, it would be nice.

If Bulldozer is subpar then I'll probably just wait until Ivy Bridge and see how things look then.
 
zokudu

zokudu

Diamond Member
Nov 11, 2009
4,364
1
81
I plan on upgrading this fall so I really am hoping to purchase a Bulldozer rig.
 
R

Rezist

Senior member
Jun 20, 2009
726
0
71
I'm going to build a new rig in 6 months or so, at the time of the build I will compare it to the 2500K and see which performs the best for the $ with the price of the MB included, then I'll make my decision.
 
G

greenhawk

Platinum Member
Feb 23, 2011
2,007
1
71
interest in it, but more for what my fall back option will be if the SB-E does not live upto my expectations.
 
Cerb

Cerb

Elite Member
Aug 26, 2000
17,484
33
86
drizek said:
I'm looking at basically spending $200 on an octal core, maybe up to $230. $80-$130 for a nice motherboard and around $80 for 12GB ram. I also expect to be able to run all 8 cores at a minimum of 4ghz with better performance/clock than stars. If AMD can deliver that, I think it's a pretty good use of ~$400.
Click to expand...
AMD only just now has gotten X6 CPUs around $200. If BD is not a failure, and they were able to make the CMT thing work for them, they might be able to have 4-core CPUs at or above $200. 8-core CPUs, at release, priced around $200 would make me think that either AMD wanted to be very aggressive with OEMs (doubtful, since Intel can afford a price war easier than AMD can), or that BD is not all that good. If just for the sake of good competition over the next 2-5 years, I would hope neither of those end up true.

Better performance per clock is a must, and it would be an abysmal failure if they couldn't beat STARS, based on what we know of BD, so far. BD being cheap, before IB comes out, though, would not bode well for AMD.
 
H

hans007

Lifer
Feb 1, 2000
20,212
18
81
i honestly don't need a new computer as i don't use mine at home for anything taxing, but i know i would consider a bulldozer if it was cheap and am probably going to get a llano just to have something to play with.

currently i have a 785G with an athlon ii 245 and a 2TB 5400rpm drive. I don't even have an SSD after having problems with sandforce firmware.

honestly computerse are way too fast. my computers at work are all core i7 laptops and its just amazing how much power they have when my athlon ii 245 seems plenty for honestly anything.

i feel like i've lost my geek cred recently. a few weekends ago i bought a $300 wallet (yes absurd for a wallet, but still). and i realized my main rig cost about the same as the wallet. i guess it just doesnt seem worthwhile upgrading as often anymore, i feel really old now ....
 
videoclone

videoclone

Golden Member
Jun 5, 2003
1,465
0
0
I think if its faster then what intel has anyone and everyone who knows anything about computers looking to buy a new pc or upgrade will go Bulldozer Unless they are an intel fanboy... :)
 
Markfw

Markfw

Moderator Emeritus, Elite Member
May 16, 2002
27,007
15,953
136
Unless the benchmarks tank, I will get one just to play with.
 
L

LoneNinja

Senior member
Jan 5, 2009
825
0
0
I think I'm going to wait for a new stepping or something, but I'll for sure own Bulldozer unless it has horrible performance/$. It just won't be until later this year, I'm actually more interested in a Llano 4 core combined with a 6670 than Bulldozer right now, since I still find a Phenom X4 9850 offers plenty of processing power for my needs. I still want to get my hands on a C3 Deneb and the 955 @ $120 is very tempting.

I'm also considering an Intel build, I've been building AMD desktops since socket 754, but I've got high interest in a 2500K build.
 
D

drizek

Golden Member
Jul 7, 2005
1,410
0
71
Cerb said:
AMD only just now has gotten X6 CPUs around $200. If BD is not a failure, and they were able to make the CMT thing work for them, they might be able to have 4-core CPUs at or above $200. 8-core CPUs, at release, priced around $200 would make me think that either AMD wanted to be very aggressive with OEMs (doubtful, since Intel can afford a price war easier than AMD can), or that BD is not all that good. If just for the sake of good competition over the next 2-5 years, I would hope neither of those end up true.

Better performance per clock is a must, and it would be an abysmal failure if they couldn't beat STARS, based on what we know of BD, so far. BD being cheap, before IB comes out, though, would not bode well for AMD.
Click to expand...

X6 CPUs at $200 aren't exactly selling like hotcakes, and the only reason they are selling at all is because of AMD3/DDR2 inertia making PII X6 the upgrade path of least resistance for a lot of people. BD will, for the vast majority of people, require a new motherboard and, for many, new ram.

Also keep in mind that up until SB was released, high end intel chips required motherboards that were $160+ compared to AMD motherboards for $50, and good ones for around $80. Again, this is why they could get away with pricing the X6 so high, but it won't apply to Bulldozer. There is no inherent platform advantage over Intel. AMD motherboards might be a little cheaper than Intel ones, but even that will be minimal now that they have licensed SLI.

So I'm sure that AMD doesn't want to start a price war, but they will want to price Bulldozer such that they sell every single chip they make before IB is released.
 
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ummduh

Member
Aug 12, 2008
83
2
71
I am. Intel pissed me off with their stupid chipset limitations at launch. Since they made me wait till Z68 came out anyways, I figure I can wait until BD gets released to make my decision. I'd really like to go BD just to smite Intel.. not that it matter much in the grand scheme of things.
 
Patrick Wolf

Patrick Wolf

Platinum Member
Jan 5, 2005
2,443
0
0
ummduh said:
I am. Intel pissed me off with their stupid chipset limitations at launch. Since they made me wait till Z68 came out anyways, I figure I can wait until BD gets released to make my decision. I'd really like to go BD just to smite Intel.. not that it matter much in the grand scheme of things.
Click to expand...

You speak truth, but that attitude won't help you get the most out of your build. As much as I want AMD to pull ahead, I'll go Intel everytime if AMD can't deliver the goods.
 
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