New Build.Need advice please.

[evilfud]

Ok i have built alot of machines for myself and family ive always liked AMD. im going to be building a new machine and would like some help and advice from anyone willing to give.price sorta matters right now im wondering for CPU should i go the A64 3800+ (939) priced at $698.00 or go for something a little less? like the Opteron(940) priced at $638.00? or if paying that much should i just get a FX-53? also what are good MB choices for these processors ( i do want to OC ) and what are good cooling systems? i am getting the geforce 6800 Ultra.

 

[thetman]

IMO, if you're going to spend that much money, you should go all the way and get the fx-53.

 

[Vette73]

I would just get a 3500+ socket 939 and a board with the nForce3 chip

 

[Tiamat]

Originally posted by: Marlin1975
I would just get a 3500+ socket 939 and a board with the nForce3 chip

 

[evilfud]

Quoting him does that mean he agrees with you? anyone else have suggestions? and can specify a good MB or a good cooling system for A64?

 

[AnnoyedGrunt]

Well, the Opteron 150 and FX-53 are the same chip (for 940 MBs, except the FX has the multiplier ulocked). So, if you want to save a bit of money on the chip you could og for an Opteron 150. You'll spend about $50 more on RAM (since you need ECC Registered RAM), but I think that 940 MB's are currently similar in price or maybe even less than 939 MB's.

If I were going 939 now, I'd go with the 3500+ and then look to upgrade in a year or two when faster chips are out. I presonally don't see a huge need for anything faster than that, unless you are doing some very intensive things with your computer. Certainly spending $200-$300 more for an FX or 3800+ doesn't seem worth it to me. But that's just me; I'm always looking for mid-high end @ a good value, instead of super-high end.

I don't know too much about the 939 or 940 MB's, but for cooling I am using a Zalman 7000A-AlCu, and I like it very much. It is very quiet, even on it's fastest setting, and right now it's keeping my CPU about 5 C above my case temps. I have an XP 1800+, so it's not as powerful as today's chips by any means, but it is a Palomino core chips and I think puts out decent heat. I'm currently running the fan @ 2100 RPM (range of Zalman is 1500 - 2500, has it's own fan controller that mounts inside the case).

-D'oh!

 

[Zebo]

I would get a 3200+ DTR OC to 3700-3900+ only having a $400 invested in a system which will beat a FX-53 all to hell.

Granted you could OC a 53 but not by much compared to 3200+... say 100-200 Mhz which would then be about 5% faster in some tasks due to dual channel. But at More than double the price seems not worth it.

 

[evilfud]

Ok so ya know this is only for gaming. i plan on playing EverQuest II which they say will be developed for beyond any current system specs so as the game will last longer in the future.

Do you think the 3200+ DTR is better than say getting a 3500+ (939) and having a better MB to Upgrade CPU later?

Im also heavily considering Water Cooling which i have never done.So any more advice from here will help.

 

[thatsright]

When looking at the Overclocking factor, your best bet is with a solid 875 Mobo, and a Pentium 4 CPU. I am only mentioning the P4 as you usually get the best overclocking gains, percentage wise anyway. With solid cooling and a good board, a lot of P4 owners can OC by anywhere from 25-40%. With Water Cooling, I have seen some 50% overclocks when using the P4 2.4c and using the Prescott 2.8E. I know that the A64's of all flavors don't really like Overclocking at all. Another thing is that with the P4's is they have Hyper-Threading. I can really feel the difference between this CPU with HT and my last P4 without; a more smooth feel. And recently, the P4's are blowing the A64/FX chips out of the water on price level.

Other than that:

I'm not a die hard Intel guy. If you have your heart set on a A64 Rig, then go for it. The socket 939 doesn't really seem to offer any tangible performance benefits over the 'older' socket 940. And the new Socket 939 chips and Mobo's exorbitantly expensive. Thought if price is no object, then who cares right! But if price is the main factor, you don't necessarily need a socket 939 rig. Get yourself a A64 3400+ with 1mb Cache @ new egg Then go with the best chipset for the Athlon 64 line, a board based on the Via K8T800 Pro Chipset, like this ABIT K8V Pro

If you were to go with a Pentium 4 based rig, then start with the P4c 2.8G CPU. The newer Prescott CPU's are a waste of your time right now. They run a hella lot hotter than the 'C' versions, and this would limit your overclocking. Don't be scared off by the 2.8 speed of the CPU. You can Overclock the HELL out of it. I've heard many folks getting up to 3.4G and beyond. Thought as with ANY overclocking, your need superb RAM if you want to get your OC up there. If you want the cream of the crop Intel P4 motherboard, then take a look @ the ABIT IC7-MAX 3 Mobo. It tackles modesty with a sledgehammer! It has 6 SATA slots, Intel CSA Gigabit LAN and OTES cooling, for the overclocker in all of us.

These are just my suggestions. You didn't indicate what your Budget is, so It's hard to recommend anything beyond what I did above. I'm happy with my IC7 & P4c combo, but you may want to go strictly AMD and this is a great option as well. Don't be blinded by the Rabid fanboi's: be they for AMD or for Intel. Get what makes sense for you. Then if you have any money left over, save it to get a X800 Pro or XT Vid card.

Good luck chief! Let us know what your planning....

 

[nick1985]

^
^


dont listen to him.

get the nforce 3 chipset, not the k8t800.

 

[Vette73]

Originally posted by: nick1985
^
^


dont listen to him.

get the nforce 3 chipset, not the k8t800.

The problem with that is there is only 1 nForce3 board in socket 939 setup, and it is not a good one. Heck it doesn't even use teh nForce3 ethernet.

So I would have to agree with the VIA chipset for a 939 cpu RIGHT NOW.

Of course if someone came out with a better socket 939 nForce3 board then I would change my answer.

 

[evilfud]

ya but the board he recommended is 754 not 939 anyways. it seems like everytime i ask for help here i get a different answer lmao i think im more confused now then when i started. my budget is well limited but not to that point that ill make a decision that ill regret in a few months.it would be nice if i could get my CPU&MB for $500-700 area.

Also can i ask why it seems like everyone at these forums is getting the x800 over the geforce 6800?

 

[evilfud]

Actually im thinking now my best choice is go for the 3400+ OC and Water cool it. any recomendations on MB Water cooling kits,Ram that you know works good with suggested MB and AMD. as far as Water cooling has anyone heard anything about this Kingwin Water Cooling Kit?

 

[Corporate Thug]

socket 939 is dreadfully expensive, stick with 754

 

[thatsright]

EVILFUD:

Well it looks like you have your heart set on a AMD rig. Which is great if thats what you really want. But can I ask, did you ever think about a Pentium 4 rig at all? If so, why did you ditch the idea. Why is AMD your main choice.

Hope I'm not giving you the 3rd degree Just curious.

Good Luck

 

[evilfud]

3400+ is 754

 

[evilfud]

Thatsright:

Hmmm well AMD is all i have ever built and i used to have 2 computers on my desk an AMD 1800+ i think it was and my current system that i bought a P4 2.4 Ghz. The AMD seemed to destroy my P4 in loadup and games. and ive always thought AMD was just better and used to be cheaper! my original plan a few eeks ago was to buy a 3.2 prescott and the P4C800E-Deluxe MB woulda cost me about $400-450. but i started reading these forums and i fell back to AMD seems like they still outperform but just arent as cheap as they used to be.

Like i said earlier everytime i ask for help here i get different answers so im more confused now than when i started lol.figured i just need to choose something and roll with it.i just read something that was saying people are getting the same or better OC with air than water is this true? i mean i will try water or air but i want to OC.

 

[thatsright]

Originally posted by: evilfud
Thatsright:

Like i said earlier everytime i ask for help here i get different answers so im more confused now than when i started lol

LOL, welcome to ATF dude!! The big help, or problem depending on how you look at it; is 99.99% of the time when you start new threads here in ATF about buying a new CPU, or Vid card 1/2 the folks tell you absolutely why you MUST get a Nvidia or ATI card, or why your going horribly wrong by buying a P4 rig or AMD64 system.

Originally posted by: evilfud

just read something that was saying people are getting the same or better OC with air than water is this true? i mean i will try water or air but i want to OC

FYI: The Prescott puts out an INSANE amount of Heat, and would really limit your OC, be it cooled with air or H2o. If your going to OC a P4 CPU, you'll go a lot farther due to less heat with a Northwood CPU. And there really is no performance benefit w/ Prescott over the P4c line of Northwood CPU's. The main reason why I wanted to inform you about the possibility of a P4 rig, is that the AMD 64 can't compete on price alone. The P4c is a absolute bargain nowadays.


Just thought I'd add my $0.03