switch to AM2 - advice on parts

[daniboy79]

i'm upgrading to AM2 and i'm checking out the Asus M2N-SLI Deluxe MB, anybody has any experience using this MB?



http://usa.asus.com/products.aspx?l1=3&l2=101&l3=301&l4=0&model=1160&modelmenu=1

I'm not interested in SLI, so this boards second PCIe x 8 doesn't bother me, what i AM interested in is HD Audio, preferably with the coaxial/optical S/PDIF - anyone has experience with this audio codec/controller?

[Spazosaurus]

This board has maaaaaaaannnyyyyy reviews on Newegg, some bad, most good. I have this on order it seems to be the best price/performance ratio for its features and overclocking options. Will post the newegg link soon.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/ProductReview.aspx?Item=N82E16813131013

Over 500 reviews here. I'm seriously considering the 3800x2 because of its overclocking ability but just wondering if it won't be better to go with the lower power (65watt) model. it's the same price and *should* run cooler than the 89 watt.

[Arcmanov]

Doh study dat nah man.  There are HSFs to handle 89W + OC'ing.

[daniboy79]

i know  ...cough[Thermaltake] cough! ...which one i can use

[Spazosaurus]

Hmmm well that's just it. I looking to use stock hs & fan AND overclock!!! I moving on a skeleton budget. I using back old super power handle case with clear plexi side panel I added some years ago. Also i'm hoping I can get away with using back my old 20 pin Thermaltake 430W psu by using a 20-24 pin convertor. *crosses fingers on that last piece of Matrix scene I show allyuh. Also I have to find a dvd drive somewhere to slap in for the hour. Lawwwd this system flattening meh!!!.

Just for info sake....proposed specs are as follows...

3800 x2 65w
2gb ddr2 800 (open to suggestions TODAY please. Also preferrable ddr800 UNDER $150)
8800gts 320 (major $$ sucker #1)
Asus M2N-SLI Deluxe
Acer AL2216Wbd (major $$ sucker #2)

Video card in transit, wanna order these other things tonight.

[daniboy79]

Hmmm well that's just it. I looking to use stock hs & fan AND overclock!!! I moving on a skeleton budget. I using back old super power handle case with clear plexi side panel I added some years ago. Also i'm hoping I can get away with using back my old 20 pin Thermaltake 430W psu by using a 20-24 pin convertor. *crosses fingers on that last piece of Matrix scene I show allyuh. Also I have to find a dvd drive somewhere to slap in for the hour. Lawwwd this system flattening meh!!!.

Just for info sake....proposed specs are as follows...

3800 x2 65w
2gb ddr2 800 (open to suggestions TODAY please. Also preferrable ddr800 UNDER $150)
8800gts 320 (major $$ sucker #1)
Asus M2N-SLI Deluxe
Acer AL2216Wbd (major $$ sucker #2)

Video card in transit, wanna order these other things tonight.

arrite, the M2N-SLI Deluxe ordered today!

btw, why you goin with that LCD monitor? the Office one like the one i have (AL2223Wd) has a DVI-D port and it's about the same price

[Spazosaurus]

I'm going with the AL2216Wbd simply because of the fact that it supports HDCP. I don't know if you know this, but in order to have a chance of watching any hind of high def content on your computer be it HD-DVD or Bluray, both your montor and your video card MUST both support HDCP. Plus I get away from extra bezel size due to very annoying and unnecessary built in speakers. The funny thing though is that Newegg has it for $320 while Amazon has the identical monitor for $270. needless to say I ordered that biatch from Amazon faster than you can say "b1tch I need my Cheerios"

If THIS is what you have, then according to Newegg, it does not have DVI-D connector.

[daniboy79]

that's the one i have, and it does have the DVI-D port, that's what i use.

[Spazosaurus]

Well ok that's cool. I guess the major difference is the HDCP. How does that DVI-D thing work though? The monitor has two DVI onnectors?

Memory I decided on was the Corsair XMS2 Xtreme Performance TwinX DDR2 800Mhz.

[Netizen1]

if yuh really wanted to save money, I had RAM that you could use...

saving you TT$600 right there...

[Saxito Pau]

And of course, you can take my X2 4200+ while I go for a X2 6000+...

[Spazosaurus]

What Sax like u have paper to burrrn lol.

[daniboy79]

Well ok that's cool. I guess the major difference is the HDCP. How does that DVI-D thing work though? The monitor has two DVI onnectors?

Memory I decided on was the Corsair XMS2 Xtreme Performance TwinX DDR2 800Mhz.

the monitor has one VGA connector & one DVI-D connector, so if one wanted, and i've tried this arredy - you can connect 2 pc's to the one monitor (one to the VGA, & one to the DVI-D)

[daniboy79]

arrite - advice on the AM2 6000+ X2 ...any experience using this CPU? overclockability, general thermal issues/behaviour?

[Saxito Pau]

What Sax like u have paper to burrrn lol.

well.... a bit of it for the while  .... gonna burn A LOT more paper investing in a car soon... may as well get the uber computer project out the way one time, eh.

[Spazosaurus]

On the one hand, you have el cheapo cpu's like the 3600+ x2 and the 3800+ x2. These chips have the ability to reach speeds of up to 3ghz with proper air cooling. With that in mind, you can save a lot on your system build and put those savings toward a better vid card or more ram or a better case or whatever.

On the other hand you have the 6000+ x2 which is 3ghz stock clock with reports of them reaching as high as 3.5ghz, essentially outpacing the likes of the e6600 and e6700 for a fraction of the price. At the end of the day, it depends on the depth of your pocket. If you can handle spending the extra $$, then go for it. Penny pinchers like my will take the former route.

[daniboy79]

so i've received the first items off my wish list:

The Asus MoBo


undressed



The HDD


and the HSF


out of box beauty



just have to wait for the RAM, CPU, and other necessary items.

AM2 here i come!!

[W1nTry]

Nice thing about this too is that you SHOULD be able to upgrade to an AM2+ processor soon with Barcelona...only thing is you won't fully take advantage of the power saving features of the new chip with an old chipset. Even so, performance will increase and you will have native Quad core... how many Intel men could say they bought a single core and a year later I simply upgrade to a dual core? most of them have to make chipset changes to pull that off!

[daniboy79]

Nice thing about this too is that you SHOULD be able to upgrade to an AM2+ processor soon with Barcelona...only thing is you won't fully take advantage of the power saving features of the new chip with an old chipset. Even so, performance will increase and you will have native Quad core... how many Intel men could say they bought a single core and a year later I simply upgrade to a dual core? most of them have to make chipset changes to pull that off!

'power-saving' you say W1n?

lol ...T&TEC doh care if i drawing 25Watts more from them!

[W1nTry]

*sighs* I was reffering to the Barcelona core's ability to power down or decrease dynamically the frequency of EACH core independently of the other... pretty much my understanding is with an AM2 chipset, Barcelona will run the 4 cores at the same frequency. Thus you'll prolly be running at FULL pace if you're using even 1 core. What the newer K10 chipsets will allow is dynamic clocking of each individual core as well as better sleep states, etc. I sure T&TEC doh care, but hey even mentioning all this seems moot...