Im Thinking Of Upgrading,Any Advise.

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hi,everyone.
ive been thinking of upgrading,but i am struggling to make my mind up what to go for.
im on a tight bugdet,so preferably i would like to upgrade motherboard/cpu,and keep my other components.

ive been looking at the new amd 64 setups,but not sure wots wot.
im not really bothered about 64bit applications,but want to increase my speed(for converting films,gaming etc).
does an amd 64 run twice as fast,or is it specifically for 64bit software?.

i currently have
amd atholon 2500+barton(1.83ghz)
768mb ddr pc2700 ram
msi delta 2 motherboard(skt A)

if for example i look at an amd atholon 2800+ 64 it states 2.0ghz cpu speed
my barton is 1.83ghz,so there doesnt seem much point going for amd 64,or am i not understanding what it all means? ,will there be a big difference because its 64bit?.

also which SKT type mobo?,754 or 939?.

sorry about the long winded questions,just trying to gather all info i can.

thank you in advance for any help. .

 

Well, contrary to popular belief, the Athlon64 family's performance is not due to the 64-bit capabilities. A good chunk has to do with the on-die memory controller. Traditional motherboard/chipset:CPU relationships have the memory controller integrated into the chipset. AMD moved this over to the CPU itself, which allows faster access to the memory. The saved time allows more to be processed at once.
The second thing that's a misnomer is that you're required to have a 64-bit OS to use an Athlon64. The Athlon64 is a 32-bit CPU, just like the AthlonXP. AMD has added 64-bit extentions which allow the A64 to easily run on a 64-bit OS. Right now, 64-bit OS support in general is still in the growing stages, so unless a 64-bit OS is a requirement, I'd avoid going that route.

Socket 754 has an 800MHz HyperTransport (the CPU's internal communication frequency, something like a Front Side Bus---FSB---in tradtional designs) and utilizes a single, 64-bit memory system: i.e. single-channel.

Socket 939 has a 1GHz HyperTransport frequency, and utilizes 2, 64-bit memory systems: i.e dual-channel.

Clock for clock, a 2GHz 939 CPU is going to perform better than a stock 2GHz 754 CPU.

 

So would I be right in saying that socket 939 is the newer standard?

When is socket AM2 hitting our shores? Will it's arrival wipe out socket 754 & 939?

 

thanks for the info Big B.
do you think its worth going for the biggest cpu available for my current mobo,or should i opt for a new mobo/cpu (with updated specs etc)
its just that by upgrading to a new setup and cpu (say 2ghz ahtolon 64),i asume there wont be much difference to my current 1.8ghz amd atholon xp?,or is it a completly different kettle of fish.


does any of these look like a descent buy?.or could you recomend anything similar/better.

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=9705602324&rd=1&sspagename=STRK:MEWA:IT&rd=1

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=6863971683&rd=1&sspagename=STRK:MEWA:IT&rd=1

once again,thank you for your help.

 

Well, newer motherboards offer PCI Express (PCIe or PCI-E) that's a serial technology, meaning it's point to point and doesn't share bandwith with other devices like PCI and PCI-X technology does. These are parallel bus technologies that have a set amount of bandwith for all devices to tap into. AGP is also a bus technically, but it's dedicated to one slot---however, the limitations are ultimately the same.

Well, the first auction is still going, but I don't recommend it because of the nForce 3 chipset which only supports AGP. Since AGP is on it's way out, that's not your best move.

The second one wouldn't be bad, but it's done.

For gaming, even with a mid-range video card like a GeForce 6600GT is going to make a helluva difference for a lot of people. I don't know what video card you have now, but if your card is a few years old, I think you'll find that something newer that's middle of the road is going to be a real improvement.

As far as the upcoming socket AM2, it's a 940-pin socket, but it's not compatible with the Socket 940 currently used by Opterons. While it's exciting new technology, it's more than likely to be a bit on the pricey side as most new tech tends to be when it's first introduced. It's also likely to stay that way for a year or so due to production ramping up and limited market saturation. If it were 2007, I'd probably say to look into it at the very least, but right now, the product isn't available yet.

My advice would be to either upgrade to an A64 CPU/PCIe-based motherboard with the video card (and probably power supply for the package) or sit tight.
You'd want to probably upgrade your RAM too, but you can get by without having to upgrade that immediately.

Here's what I've come up with from Komplett:

Motherboard: Gigabyte K8N Pro-SLI £76.00
CPU: Athlon64 3000+ retail (includes cooler) Socket 939 £85.00
RAM: Corsair TwinX1024 (2x512MB) PC3200 £69.00
Video Card:PowerColor Radeon X800GTO 128MB £89.01
Power Supply: Tagan TG480-U22 480W £72.00

Total: £391.01
w/o RAM: £322.01

 

Thanks for the advise BIG B.
my budget doesnt stretch that far at the moment ,
guess i will have to start saving the pennyshah: .
thanks.

 

Okay let me try

ECS RX480-A Motherboard £39.99
AMD (Venice) Athlon 64Bit 3200+ £104.92
Casecom Silver 500w ATX Power Supply £14.09
Gainward 6600 ULTRA/1780PCX TV/DVI 256MB 128bit PCI-E £60.28

eBuyer total: £219.28

The RAM you have at the moment will work in this motherboard

 

Actually, that Casecom 500W is a very weak unit by the specs it has. I'd recommend this Antec SP-350 over it $30.66

 

Power supplies aren't my speciality i'm afraid :O

 

thanks guys for the info.
like i said i'll have to start saving the pennies.

i was hoping i could upgrade things a little at a time,and just get by using whatever i have at the mo.

i have 80gb hard drive.
dvdrw/cdrw etc.
if i recall im using a 350-400w psu?.
758mb pc2700 ram.
geforce 4 MX400 graphics(agp).im not looking for a 'super duper' graphics card at the moment,anything i play is fine on my present card at the mo,but asume ive got to buy a cheap pci slot graphics to match the new board.
(when i decide what board,cpu combo i can afford?:O ).

 

Short term, I'd probably snag something like a Radeon 9600Pro or 9600XT to tide yourself over until you can do your CPU upgrade in a long-term beneficial way. I wouldn't invest a whole lot in your current rig simply because you're going to paint yourself in a corner by sticking with AGP if you're going to do a massive CPU upgrade.

 

thanks.
i dont intend spending anything on my present set up,but i do want to change mobo/cpu etc for the purpose of upgrade.
i must admit(and you can probably gather) i do not know a great deal about pc's,just the basics.
just on the look for any bits i can find ready for upgrade,its just hard to know where to start.
i asume the main bits are cpu/mobo,then add to that in time,while using my hd/dvdrw/psu etc.
maybe im hoping for to much?:O .

would this be a good start?seems cheapish.

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&rd=1&item=6865528485&ssPageName=STRK:MEWA:IT.
thanks again.

 

hi,BIG B and MEGAMACED.
ive been looking around at various versions of what you advised.
im a little puzzled about 1 thing.

my current processor is a amd atholon xp 2500+ barton,but it runs at 1.837ghz if i recall.

most people are advertising amd 64s but not convinced at what they state.
for example amd atholon 64 3800+ =3.8ghz/3400+=3.4ghz etc etc.
is this a true representation,do they actualy run at these speeds because they are 64 bit?.

i want to upgrade,but dont see any point unless im gonna notice a difference,i.e from my 1.83ghz to something like 3ghz(i asume i would notice a big difference).
im just stugglin to get my head round a cheapish mobo/cpu combo,that i can upgrade to and know its been worthwhile.

Thanks again in advance if you can provide me with any advise(laymans terms please :O ).

 

Nope. A 3400 does not run at 3.4GHz, and the 64-bit has nothing to do with it. The 3400+ is a performance rating. While yes, it's marketing, it's a combative way to go against the incorrect idea that the computer with the fastest CPU automatically means it's the fastest thing out there. You can slap a 4GHz CPU in and use a GeForce 2 MX and get beat by a 2GHz CPU running a GeForce 6600.

The main performance advatage comes from the memory controller being integrated onto the CPU itself, not the 64-bit capabilities.

To make the upgrade worthwhile, you want to go with a PCIe motherboard.

You will need the following:
1.)Motherboard
2.)CPU
3.)PCIe video card
4.)High-quality power supply ~500W (or something that has about 25A on the 12V rail).

The RAM you can reuse, but even if you go with an AGP-based A64 board, you'd be looking at a new power supply, unless you've got a good 450W unit (or better).

As far as that motherboard goes, I've never used ASrock before, but I've heard generally positive things about them. Your expansion will be limited due to the mATX formfactor of that motherboard vs a full-size ATX one. However, it might be a good starter board. However, this Biostar 6100-M9 is cheaper, as well as this Asus A8N-VM, even with VAT (£47.86).
Athlon64 3000+ £81.43 w VAT
Radeon X700 128MB PCIe £52.20 w VAT
Enermax EG-375AX 370W £37.99 w VAT

£219.48 w VAT

With the motherboard I suggested (among others, but I feel Asus is a good brand for n00bs to start with due to drop-in and go setups), you've got integrated graphics. This is not ideal for gaming as all integrated graphic solutions hijack part of your system RAM for it's own, but it might be your best bet to get going.

Going with the above components, you could drop the video card and order the motherboard, CPU, and power supply for £167.28. I harp on the PSU because of how critical it is to the system's stability. Gone are the days where a 300W unit is deemed excessive. While the 370W Enenermax I linked may not seem powerful, the specs on it are quite impressive and worth the money spent. You'll thank me later.

 

hi.can you please give your opinion on the following motherboards,as to which one would be a good starting point.

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?CompareItems&MfcISAPICommand=CompareItems

i know some may have ended in auction but theres plenty availible.
i just want to start by buying mobo,and dont want to get stuck in the near future because of certain features i dont have on new mobo.
thanks for any help in deciding.

 

In my honest opinion, wait for it. I made the mistake of buying everything before I really had all the money I needed for a great system and ended up regretting it later. Also at this point it's best to wait for AMD's new socket AM2, or Intels latest processor line, Conroe, which is apparently faster than anything available today, AMD or current Intel's in almost all tests. Granted you'll be waiting untill this summer for sure but at least you'll have the satasfaction of not needing to upgrade for awhile to keep up with current standards.
It's your choice but that's my take.

 

i was going to wait,but from my experience,when something new comes out
1.theres usualy problems that arise for various reasons.
2.everything is expensive because its the latest gizmo.

im happy to get a year or two out of my new build,then see what else i can upgrade to then?.

ive managed to purchase a few bits already.

an asus a8n-sli deluxe motherboard
amd atholon 64 3700+ san diego core
an ultra xfinity dual rail 500w power supply
a maxtor diamond max 250gb sata hard drive

and a nice little pc case to pop it all in.

ive got to save a few more pennies,to purchase
1-2gb pc 3200 ddr ram
and 1 or 2 sli graphics cards(cheap ones at the moment though:O )

can anyone forsee any problems with any of this at the moment?please do tell .

once again,thank you to all for your help and advise

 

All is great except the powersupply I'm afraid. Something from OCz, Thermaltake, Seasonic, etc. would have been better. BigB will have plenty of info for you on this matter.

 

I've read some reports, and I believe someone here had posted some info on a major power supply roundup and the Ultra X-Connect blew up in the testing, not to mention at least one on-line review. While I don't know that this applies to the X-Finity line, Ultra is not a brand I would readily recommend to anyone at this point in time. The Hiper Type-R 480W has good specs on the 12V rails, and along with the Enermax 375W I linked earlier, those are excellent units for a reasonable cost. The Fortron AX500-PN/Bluestorm may also be fairly inexpensive, and would be another great choice. It's your money, but given that at least one line of Ultra brand power supplies could not stand up to a heavy load, I'd put my money in another unit. Bling is appealing, but it's utterly worthless if it's going to fail under stress. There's very few companies I blacklist, and Ultra is one of the very few (along with Epox, PC Chips, and Q-Tec/Q-Technology).

 

oh dear,it seems i may of made a mistake with the power supply then?:O .

it seems a very heavy and sturdy unit,
has large fan underneath instead of at the back,

it has loads of connections pci/molex/20-24pin etc.

more info here
http://www.ultraproducts.com/product_details.php?cPath=60&pPath=383&productID=401

all cables are protected in a very neat silver type braiding.
it seems very well made,not like the cheap crap i took out of my case.

i obviously misread BIG B's advise,i thought id found something close to what he mentioned?.
guess ill have to shop around again soon for something else?hah: .