Well...after a long journey of thinking and brooding, and thinking and thinking, I'm almost ready to complete my upgrade. I've already bought 3 of the 4 parts I need. If you're wondering:
DFI nForce 4 Ultra
OCZ Platinum PC3200 Dual Channel 2X1GB sticks
BFG GeForce 7800 GTX OC
I've got everything else, too. All I'm left with is a damn cpu choice. Here's what I usually do:
IE browsing (up to 5-6 windows)
burst! d/ling
Ares d/ling
Occasional photo editing
Occasional music editing
Burning
Gaming (San Andreas, NFS UG2, etc.)
Anti-Virus running in the background
And it's not uncommon for me to be running many of these things in the same instance (accordingly of course, it would be absurd to say I photo edit and game at the same time).
I'm getting by w/ a P3 Tualatin 1.4 GHz and V5 5500 and it's been really good to me...but it's time to move on. I've narrowed down my choice to the following three cpus and I need some of you fellas' opinions:
Athlon 64 3000+ (OC-able and madd cheap right now, $124 OEM) OR
Athlon 64 3700+ (is it worth the extra $155 (as I'm typing, $279) for the 11X multi and common OC-ability of 2.7+ Ghz?) OR
Athlon X2 4400+ (with the aforementioned tasks I do, is there a justification for spending double the price - minus $1 right now ($557) - for the second core?)
Yes...that's where I am right now. Please give me your thoughts on this issue. Lastly, if I end up going with the 3000+, it is OEM (no fan). I'm gonna be pre-ordering a Zalman CNPS 9500 (~$75) but that thing's gonna take a while to be released. Is there a good underclock at which I can run the 3000+ which would not produce much heat and damage it until I get the CNPS 9500? Thanks. Peace...
DFI nForce 4 Ultra
OCZ Platinum PC3200 Dual Channel 2X1GB sticks
BFG GeForce 7800 GTX OC
I've got everything else, too. All I'm left with is a damn cpu choice. Here's what I usually do:
IE browsing (up to 5-6 windows)
burst! d/ling
Ares d/ling
Occasional photo editing
Occasional music editing
Burning
Gaming (San Andreas, NFS UG2, etc.)
Anti-Virus running in the background
And it's not uncommon for me to be running many of these things in the same instance (accordingly of course, it would be absurd to say I photo edit and game at the same time).
I'm getting by w/ a P3 Tualatin 1.4 GHz and V5 5500 and it's been really good to me...but it's time to move on. I've narrowed down my choice to the following three cpus and I need some of you fellas' opinions:
Athlon 64 3000+ (OC-able and madd cheap right now, $124 OEM) OR
Athlon 64 3700+ (is it worth the extra $155 (as I'm typing, $279) for the 11X multi and common OC-ability of 2.7+ Ghz?) OR
Athlon X2 4400+ (with the aforementioned tasks I do, is there a justification for spending double the price - minus $1 right now ($557) - for the second core?)
Yes...that's where I am right now. Please give me your thoughts on this issue. Lastly, if I end up going with the 3000+, it is OEM (no fan). I'm gonna be pre-ordering a Zalman CNPS 9500 (~$75) but that thing's gonna take a while to be released. Is there a good underclock at which I can run the 3000+ which would not produce much heat and damage it until I get the CNPS 9500? Thanks. Peace...