The End of AGP, Socket 754, 939 and DDR

[TriniXaeno]

Well today I set about researching the costs of some new machines for HQ and came across an interesting development. Not a surprise really but it amazed me how quickly this development has sprung upon us.

The discoverey: It was actually more expensive to put together a PC with older tech than newer tech.

939 processors are more expensive than Socket AM2 versions.

Socket 754 chips were almost non existant and offering nothing in the way of cost savings either.

DDR 2 memory is cheaper than it's DDR brethren.

We all already know (and agree) that PCI Express is cheaper than AGP cards. That point is moot.

The only $$ benefit of the older platforms came from mobo costs. You could get a decent Socket 754 mobo for $48 - 50 but an AM2 variant worth your dime would be US$70+


The industry has spoken and sounded the death knoll for the other archaic technology.

Not by performance but by dollars and sense. It is just plain cheaper to get the newer stuff.

No wonder so many people are selling their old gear.

Anyone found different?

[Saxito Pau]

So far, i tend to agree:

Hell for those who still using SDRAM: they in real crap... the other lady i tell a lady to buy a new computer over upgrading her RAM.. give that I have alrady upgraded her from 128MB to 256MB a over year ago. And to date she only has the computer 3 years.

Cruical 512 SDRAM for a Dell 2300 is almost US$100!!

[disciple]

So far, i tend to agree:

Hell for those who still using SDRAM: they in real crap... the other lady i tell a lady to buy a new computer over upgrading her RAM.. give that I have alrady upgraded her from 128MB to 256MB a over year ago. And to date she only has the computer 3 years.

Cruical 512 SDRAM for a Dell 2300 is almost US$100!!

lol  at least crucial have it!

was tryin to locate  some RDRAM for a cousin; almost NOWHERE have that anymore..
dell sellin a 512meg stick for 294US ( and yuh hadda buy it in pairs, for rambus)

if voyd didn;'t hook me up , muh dogs woulda be dead! lol

[W1nTry]

Well baego it's a relative thing I believe. In you case, it would prove more economical to revise the line. In my case since I perform incremental updates most of the time, it's hella lot cheaper to upgrade the CPU (even if its 939) vs. buying say conroe which will require EVERYTHING: Ram , mobo, cpu, video, etc. Heck the ONLY thing I could keep is optical drives and HDs. MAYBE i'd keep the case, but what sense would that make if yuh replacing it all. I didn't realize DDR2 cheaper than DDR, last I checked performance DDR 2x1GB still cheaper than the comparative DDR2 eh and I am sure if you check at this point it still is. Man like kaizen went for 2x1GB XMS DDR2 1066 and it cost (retail) over 400USD. The comparative (performance) DDR is still sub 250USD... so it depends on the segment as well as the application.

[TriniXaeno]

of course w1ntry. I am talking about a modest machine (an HQ GamePC)

We never have nor ever will use high end stuff like 2x1GB XMS DDR2 1066

The components in this example are those that apply to the majority of computer purchaes. Not enthusiast level.

I hope that clarifies the statement.

Also as mentioned, it is for a NEW machine. Not an uprade scenario.

Talking about putting together a computer from scratch here.

On the AMD side of the fence, anyone buying a new PC today would be a fool to get anything other than an AM2/PCI-Express/DDR2 setup as opposed to 754/939/AGP/DDR. It is just cheaper and needless to say, better. Even if slightly, it makes the point moot.

[W1nTry]

I just read some interesting reviews where the latency in the AM2 is actually lower now than the 939 which was 1 of the prime reasons AMD didn't really switch over to DDR2 until now. And we're talking on 4-4-4-12 DDR2 here which is pretty good to DDR2. The increase in Frequency seems to have cut down the latency factor significantly and thus we're now seeing the fruits of AMDs labour on their DDR2 parts. That aside Baego like yuh doh wha the 3500+ no more oh wha? at least info a bruda if yuh doh want it no more. Oh also the ADO (I believe thats the acronym) for the <35W low power AM2 parts is REALLY a power saver. In fact in alot of the benchmarks in a review I posted today show that performance per WATT on the 3800 AM2 X2 is superior to even the Core 2. Of course Core 2 flexes its legs in the video dept, but when you consider for office type applications that 3800AM2 X2 is just unbeatable.