AMD CPU dilemma
 

My pc is getting a bit long in the tooth.
I'm looking to squeeze a little more life out of it yet - I cannot afford a whole new computer anyway, so... upgrading is where I'm at:

XP Pro 32bit (retail)
2GB ram (x2 1GB matched corsair twinx ddr2 pc2-6400 c4 I think, will look at box)
nvidia GeForce 7950gt 512MB
AMD Athlon(tm) 64 X2 Dual Core Processor 3800+ 2009 MHz
Mobo ASUS M2N32-SLI DELUXE ACPI BIOS Revision 0406
plenty of HDD space


Upgrade CPU - best solution so far, but with one caveat: it has to be socket AM2 compatible.

Various sources online say that AMD has made their AM3 & AM3+ chips backward compatible to the AM2 mobo platform.
This means certain hyperthreadding things will not be taken advantage of, and DDR3 will not be of any use to me, but what I've researched so far seems to indicate that this might not be such a problem after all.

Can anyone confirm this?
Asus show a list of CPU types including AM3 CPU variants that would be compatible after a bios flash. Trouble is finding one that matches the manufacturer codes.
http://www.asus.com/Motherboards/AMD...I_Deluxe/#CPUS scroll about half way down the list to the athlon IIx2/3/4


The best and cheapest solution so far appears to be as follows:

Upgrade CPU to AM3 variant (either 3 or 4 core architecture @ 3+Ghz) of which there seems to be about a dozen to choose from.
Change OS to W7 to take advantage of greater RAM Capacity.
More RAM another matched pair of corsair Ram memory to take it up to 4 or 6GB (Corsair XMS2 4GB (2x2GB) DDR2 PC2-6400C5 TwinX Dual Channel for example to match what I have already).
Add a better gfx card at a later date.

Costs:
CPU ~ £50-90.
RAM - £50-60.
OS £130 REATIL or £80 OEM for home premium 64 bit

So about a couple of hundred quid to upgrade my machine to last a little bit longer vs a whole new computer at something in the range of £600 - £800 (which is about what I paid for my existing set up 6 or 8+ years ago).



Any of you technically minded bods look at the options, especially as regards the AM2/AM3 compatibility, and tell me what you think?

Critique my dilemma if you will.

You could just upgrade the memory +2GB and OS to win7-64bit to see what results you get. You might be surprised.

Installing Win7 on a new HD might help with the transition.

Yer, new os and more ram is certainly the 'plug & play' upgrade.
I have 2 hdd so a quick transfer of all I want to keep to my data drive would be a simple-ish job.
I need to have a tidy up of duplicate files/backups anyway.

plus I could always run a dual boot W7/XP...

It's the CPU thing that bothers me regarding the socket architecture compatibility and required bios flash to get it to work. This is mainly with the aim of meeting the min spec requirement of Red Orchestra 2 at some point, but I have been thinking about a general upgrade for a while now.

Before we can advise you - whats the budget. If you can only do 1 or 2 of the 3, its best we know the budget so we can get you the best bang for the buck. If you can do all three - go with it.

The Motherboard is an AM2+ board, so you can use an AM3 chip in it = but only with the right ratings. The best chip you can run in that board is a Phenom II x4 955 at 125Watts. However, I STRONGLY suggest you go with a 95W 945x4 instead - I have seen too many AM2+ boards that were SUPPOSED to be 125W capable turn out NOT to be.

The 945 is a 3.0 Ghz screamer - its not an I7 but its more than sufficient for games. Your not likely to bottleneck it anytime soon. Your vid card will choke well before you ever make the cpu stress.
A 945 is about 100 - 110 US. No clue on pounds.

OS won't help unless you have the memory to use it - so combine those two costs as one upgrade - since the memory won't help as much (XP can see 3gb though) without the OS.

Overall, OS and memory will give you the best jump if the costs are about the same. Do one now and the other later when you can.

Budget is 'as little as possible' so a couple of hundred quid at most really.
The way things are right now, I'll probably be looking at an incremental upgrade.
ie. OS + RAM then a CPU at a later date as one possible combination.

However Costs are as follows:

W7 Home Premium 64bit
http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showpr...d=1555&subcat=

£79.99 inc VAT


RAM
http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showpr...odid=MY-190-CS

£53.99 inc VAT
I'd prefer this as it is matched to what I have already iirc it was recommended as being a good match for my mobo and cpu at the time - twin2x2048-6400C4. I forget the latency timings.

or

http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showpr...d=8&subcat=813

£29.99 inc VAT

There's other RAM that's much cheaper here too http://www.overclockers.co.uk/produc...id=8&subid=813

CPU
Some interesting choices you recommend...
AMD Phenom II X4 Quad Core 955 Black Edition "125W Edition" 3.20GHz (Socket AM3) - Retail
http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showpr...=6&subcat=1943

£94.99 inc VAT

or

AMD Phenom II X4 Quad Core 850 "95W Edition" 3.30GHz (Socket AM3) - Retail
http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showpr...=6&subcat=1943

£85.99 inc VAT

This retailer (I've used them before and am comfortable with their reliability) doesn't have a 955 @ 95w, so it looks like the 850 @ 95w is the option here.
QUESTION - how can I see what wattage my cpu is currently? Presumably less wattage means less heat and less chance of damaging the mobo.

QUESTION - my current mobo spec shows os support for Vista/XP/2000. Surely W7 will not break it? lol.

I also recently got a discount voucher for 5% off next order until 12 september... so I might have to use it :cool:

So ram + os is about £140 inc delivery (or less using a different RAM brand/amount). Which is not too bad, add to that a processor a short way down the line and we could be in business.

Yes I agree with CaptainHaplo, I have an Asus M3A32-MVP Deluxe that is AM2+ and after a bios flash now run a Phenom II 2 core (Deneb), 3.7ghz, I am looking to upgrade to a 4 core soon while they are still available, but your memory and video card is more important.:yep:
BTW, with my current system I am finding the biggest problem is running XP pro 32 bit, I have to switch to Win 7 64 bit soon!:hmmm:

Yer, 32bit xp pro (retail) has kept me from buying RAM when I could afford it, and when it was cheaper.
It cost me £320.00 or something too damnit!

You didn't read Capt. Haplo's post closely. He recommended the " 945 Black Edition 95 watt" He wasn't comfortable with the 955 BE 125watt when your mobo is 95watt

You've gott to watch the small details. You posted you had an AM2 mobo. He checked it out on the net and caught it waas an AM2+.

Big Difference. Everyone would have been posting wrong CPU's that would have cost you money and, probably no refund.

Thank Capt. Halpo for that money saveing catch.:yep:

This isn't meant to diss you but, Details count and can be expensive.

Good Luck on your Upgrade jumpy :up:

AM2 was off the top of my head.
Asus link I provided in my first post says - Support AMD Socket AM2+/AM2 CPU. Confirmed by CaptainHaplo.

Also the two links, in my third post, for CPU's are for both the 125 & 95 W options suggested by CaptainHaplo - although at my preferred retailer there is only 945 125w, which is why I linked to an 850 95w which is the closest match to Hapalo's recommendation.
I think - now you have confused me :DL

Sorry jumpy. Just want to help. I bet when you get all the upgrades in your going to see a big increase in performance. :yep:

Then there's the Video card. Does it ever end. :haha:

Btw post #5 was nice how you put that toghter. Best I've seen. :up:

jumpy - DO NOT get the 850 CPU. That is a PURE AM3 chip - it will fit in your MB but will not work in it at all.

Technically - per ASUS - the 955 will work with that board. Find out supported CPU's here:

http://www.asus.com/Motherboards/AMD...I_Deluxe/#CPUS

I only recommend against the 955 based on personal experience where I have seen MB's struggle with 125W chips. However, Asus makes it so they know better than I do. The 850 is NOT on that list. The 955 is so you should be fine with it.

No need for apology chap ;)

argh...don't talk to me about gfx cards lol it's all changed since I last looked (about 5 years ago)
The worst thing about computers (apart from making sure everything is compatible) is not falling into the trap of what I like to call 'the eternal upgrade cycle'. :hmmm:

Aaah, see? This is what 'snagging' is all about - make the mistakes now when there's no cash involved :O:
Well, if AMD make the 125W and 95W versions of the 955, maybe my supplier can order me one?
Failing that I'll see if I can dig out the spec on my current CPU, see what the wattage is and post back here.
Also bear in mind nothing will be overclocked.

EDIT:
Doesn't look like the 945 is available in the UK, looking at AMD comparison site and their 'shop now' links for the UK...
Next closest to the asus list is the 925 @ 95W. There's a tenner difference between the 955/925

Asus says the 955 @125W will work. Yes its more heat than a 95W cpu but hey, your not going to be stressing it really. Not with the GFX card you have. So go with the 955 @ 125W and you should be fine.

AMD is about to refresh their entire line-up shortly, buying a new AMD chip right now makes no sense of all. Sorry, just an opinion. :-?

Yer, I've heard the talk on another forum. (hundreds of pages of it hehe)
It would mean a whole new system from what I gather - new mobo new ram new gfx... that's just not in my budget. Plus new tech is always expensive for at least 6 months or more.
Of course this probably means that existing AMD chips will take a price cut, whist retailers focus on the new generation stuff.

lol My last full system buy was quite a bit behind the times in terms of the technology... I sort of aimed for the top end of the middle range of parts (especially CPU - @ the time the dual core 6000+ cpu's were pushing 600 quid!), this ended up being a reasonable compromise between speed and price.
I'd always planned on stretching my current platform with an eventual CPU/RAM upgrade (OS permitting). Had my work circumstances been better recently I'd most likely have a newer machine already.
But them's the breaks. :03: