Building/Upgrading a PC for TS2
jsalemi:
Here's a CPU question -- given that they're virtually the same price at newegg these days, if you were building a new PC would you go with the Core 2 Quad Q6600 2.4GHz or the Core 2 Duo E6850 Conroe 3GHz processor?
Hegelian:
Quote from: jsalemi on 2008 February 20, 23:05:54
Here's a CPU question -- given that they're virtually the same price at newegg these days, if you were building a new PC would you go with the Core 2 Quad Q6600 2.4GHz or the Core 2 Duo E6850 Conroe 3GHz processor?
Personally, I would probably go with the faster dual-core CPU because I don't think I run anything that would benefit much from a quad-core at this point, and speed is still a consideration regarding relative performance (although no longer the single overriding factor it once was). It is something I would want to research though, if I were actually in the market. If I was running software that would enjoy a significant benefit from the quad-core CPU, I would probably go with that.
I have seen some remarks in passing here and there on the Web that seem to suggest that in some instances quad-core can actually cause some problems with certain BIOSes or software or both, but I didn't read any of them carefully so I don't know what that's about. It is something I would want to research to determine whether dual or quad would be more beneficial for my particular use.
EDIT: You might want to take a look at this recent article at Tom's Hardware:
The New Core 2 Duo: 45 nm Wolfdale Replaces 65 nm Conroe
It might be worth looking for a motherboard that will run the E8400 at ~USD240.
jsalemi:
Thanks, I'll look at that. I don't really do anything that needs a Quad Core. The only processor intensive thing I do (other than playing the Sims) is video editing with Pinnacle Studio, and they only recommend a Dual Core or higher for HD editing. Since I don't have an HD video camera, and probably won't for quite some time, it would purely be a speed thing. So the 3Ghz seems the way to go right now.
Yea, newegg has the E8400 for $240, although they're currently out of stock. It looks like the GIGABYTE GA-P35-DS3L LGA 775 Intel P35 ATX All Solid Capacitor Intel Motherboard you recommended in your last MATY PC list supports it (at least newegg thinks it does). I'm also looking at the ASUS P5K-VM LGA 775 Intel G33 Micro ATX Intel Motherboard, because it has more USB ports, and I have a LOT of USB devices to connect to it. But with the chip out of stock, it'll be a bit before I get either one, I guess.
ETA: I ended up buying the Gigabyte GA-EP35-DS3P LGA 775 Intel P35 ATX Dynamic Energy Saver Ultra Durable II Intel Motherboard -- a bit more expensive, but it has a boatload of USB and eSATA connections, and doesn't waste space on useless parallel or com ports. I ordered everything but the new CPU in fact, due to some really nice rebates that expired on 2/21 -- wanted to get the order in in time to take advantage of them.
Now I'm waiting to see if the E8400 shows up at newegg anytime soon -- if not, I'll just go with the E6850. Alternatively, a couple of eBay Express sellers have it for $10 more than newegg, so if it doesn't show up there soon, I can go the eBay route. No big rush, though, since my current machine works fine. It's just reaching the end of its 'lifecycle'.
ETA #2: Well, it looks like the E8400s are in very short supply, and no one has any estimate when they'll get more in stock, so I went with the eBay Express seller that had one left. It was only $10 more than newegg, so it was worth it.
Question -- will I run into any problems just taking my current system drive out of my current computer and using it in the new one? I mean, it'll boot so I can update the system board drivers, right? I plan on upgrading it to a 150GB WD Raptor in the near future (it's only 80GB), but I don't want to have to reformat and rebuild the drive if I can avoid it.
jsalemi:
Ok -- just wanted to report back that the system is up and running, and it's a screamer! I used to be able to go get a cup of coffee between the time I started TS2 and the neighborhood menu appeared -- now it takes less that 2 minutes. And when the game goes into speed 3, like when the sims are sleeping, the clock spins so fast that I can barely see the numbers. Night now passes in a couple of minutes. And it boots up in about 1/3 of the time.
Anyway, here's the almost final state of the new PC:
SILVERSTONE Kublai Series KL02B Black Aluminum front panel, SECC body ATX Mid Tower Computer Case
GIGABYTE GA-EP35-DS3P LGA 775 Intel P35 ATX Dynamic Energy Saver Ultra Durable II Intel Motherboard
PC Power & Cooling S610EPS EPS12V 610W Continuous @ 40°C Power Supply
ARCTIC COOLING Freezer 7 Pro 92mm CPU Cooler
Intel E8400 3GHz Core Duo CPU (got the last one available from sellers on eBay Express)
4 GB DDR2-800 RAM
SAMSUNG 20X DVD±R DVD Burner with LightScribe Black SATA Model SH-S203N
Western Digital Raptor WD1500ADFD 150GB 10,000 RPM SATA 1.5Gb/s Hard Drive
Total cost so far: a bit above $1k (all from Newegg, except for the CPU)
Moved from my old Dell:
80GB 7,200 RPM SATA drive (formerly C:, now D: in the new PC)
100GB and 320GB USB 2.0 external HDs
40x IDE DVD-ROM reader
Radeon X1300 512MB video card
22" widescreen LCD monitor
XP Pro
The only weak link right now seems to be the X1300 video card -- it just can't keep up with the amount of data the CPU is throwing at it. I have the CPU on the Gigabyte C.I.A. 2 automatic overclocking, at the second level, which pushes it up to 3.3GHz (about 10%) when the CPU is under load. I tried the 3rd level, which goes up to about 12-15%, but ended up with BSODs from the ATI driver when there was a lot of graphics activity going on (both in TS2 and when I was doing some heavy video editing). So I ordered a HIS Hightech H385QX512NP Radeon HD 3850 512MB 256-bit GDDR3 PCI Express 2.0 x16 from Newegg that should be arriving tomorrow. That adds about another $200 to the cost, but I have a system that'll keep me happy for quite some time. :)
So thanks for the suggestions Hegelian, especially about the E8400!
KatEnigma:
I love my new 3850 card. However, be warned that there's a bug in TS2 that prevents the 2xxx and 3xxx cards from showing the damn video games and shows/movies on the TV and computer screens, in game. Instead, they go black. I didn't know about it until I'd uninstalled/reinstalled trying to fix it. :P
Navigation
[0] Message Index
[#] Next page
[*] Previous page