Keeping the future in mind

[jamesro]

Just curious as it is time to get a new computer.

with Intel looking at the 45nm desktop production and AMD looking at new desktop processors and along with that new sockets LGA 1366 for built in mem controller integrated graphics and LGA 715 and AM2+ AM3 as well as DDR3 and PCI-E 2 along the way

what is my best bet keeping upgrade-ability in mind for the future..

get a current motherboard (such as the Gigabyte X38-DQ6 MB, Foxconn P9657AA-8KS2H or similar that supports the increased FSB speeds as well as the DDR3) and go with a temp CPU and Ram?

or is the performance increase not justifiable when looking at the money premium for ddr3.

and a P35 chipset the logical? do they support the new 45nm production

Gamer, budget in mind

 

[jamesro]

NO SLI OR CROSSFIRE NEEDED
MILD TO HIGH OVER CLOCKING NONE OF THAT EXTREMIST FOR ME

 

[o1die]

I'd wait for nehalem. It will require a new board. By then, amd may have some .45 cpus of it's own, and may be going with a newer socket.

 

[jamesro]

only problem is that is a long wait...

 

[rolli59]

Buy what you want now. There is always something in the near future that is a step ahead in technoligy that makes it not to feasable to upgrade current systems, new chipsets, new bus speed, new ram standard, new socket, and new interface.
What it boils down to is that even todays tophardware is not going to be top of the line 6 months from now.

 

[geofelt]

rolli59 has it right.

The performance is determined by the CPU, not the chipset. Many of the P35 boards will run penryn, check the manufacturer's claims. There is no current upgrade path. Nehalem which will require a new mobo.

Go DDR2, DDR3 is more expensive, and does not perform better in real applications.

If you are a gamer, spend your extra dollars on the best VGA card you feel comfortable buying. Current cpu's like the E6850 and Q6600 will not be the bottleneck for almost all games. FSX might be an exception.

 

[zenmaster]

P35 will work fine with the Penryn.
I think the E2160 is a great CPU right now.
Very Cheap and OC's very very well.
Toss in the 8800GT that will be available in a couple days, you will be able to build a Gaming monster w/o too much cost.

Just worry about the future in the future.
DDR3 is just too plain expensive right now.

If you need serious computing power, the Q6600 or E6750 are not bad choices, but most will do just fine with an E2160 OC'd to about 3.2 Ghz.

Then in a year or so, just drop in a blazing fast Penryn Quad and clock it to the rumored 4.5ghz.

 

[jamesro]

thanks heaps for the feedback.

So with my goals in mind.. get a P35MB good DDR2 ram E2160 until i can afford a good Penryn quad. i was thinking of 2900Pro but few ppl have been talking of the 8800GT what are its specs?

Also are Intel likely to drop the 775 socket as quick as AMD did with their 939 and 754 when they moved to their AM2?

My thinking atm is that if i were to get an x38 chipset that supports full ddr3 speeds that i wont need it anyway because in the future if i can afford the ddr3 then ill want a new cpu and intels nehalem will be on another socket. so theres no point paying the extra in the chipset if p35 can do me well for now with ddr2.

Then by the time nehalem becomes feasible for me ill seriously look at another upgrade... *thinks* and again ill probably be in this same situation.

technology is GREAT!

im a biot all over the place

but thanks for the help

 

[jamesro]

8800GT specs compared to the 2900Pro which one has more performance in the tank for something like CRYSIS

 

[jamesro]

If i grab an 8800GT which utilises PCI-E 2.0
will a mb that doesn't have PCI-E 2 be a bottleneck for the card?

x38 support SLI? is SLI capability worth the money if i dnt use it within a few months..

 

[zenmaster]

No, this card will not be bottlenecked.

x38 does not support SLI at this time - Just XFire.
You would need the 680i at this moment.

 

[jamesro]

ok so what are my options... if i want
just for it to be there in the future...
45nm cpu compatibility...
1600FSB...
PCI-E. 2.0
DDR3 for later on
SLI... for later on as well

 

[geofelt]

How far into the future do you want?

In 12-14 months:
Your best option for the future is to take those funds that are burning a hole in your pocket now and invest them for one year, then revisit the situation. Buy what you need now, and no more. Future-proofing in PC's is a hoax.

Nehalem will launch, and EVERY currint mobo will be obsolete.

Until then, most current motherboards will run a 45nm penryn.

Don't know about 1600FSB, does it matter for performance? Probably not.

Pcie 2.0 does not matter, it is up and down compatible, and no VGA cards on the horizon will be able to use all the bandwidth of pcie-1.0.

DDR3 will not be economic before then, and will not perform better.

SLI has been a poor choice for anybody but those who are not satisfied by the current high end card, the 8800GTX-OC. There should be a higher end card based on the 8800GT die shrink within the year.

Tell us again, why you want these things??

 

[jamesro]

until nehalem requires a new socket end of next year the earliest..
im thinking well
i want the MB to last as long as it can provide knowing these upgrades are the next thing for computers... so by the time they all become feasible i'll wont have to get a complete new mb and can run penryn quad with ddr3 and SLI if i want that option after next year...
so for now it is true i would be sticking with DDR2 and a mid length term temp CPU

isn't it safer to keep my options open at the end of the day?

 

[geofelt]

A good P35 mobo will not melt and become useless. It will run a penryn quad until the cows come home.

A sli mobo will cost you more up front for an option you hope you don't need.

A DDR2/DDR3 combo modem will cost you more up front. You can run DDR2 OR DDR3 on them, but not both together. You will have to abandon whatever DDR2 memory you bought to buy DDR3 which to date, has shown no real performance improvements over DDR2. For the extra you pay up front for a SLI/DDR3 mobo now, you could replace the simpler mobo with another one later.

Realize that the penryns are only a die shrink, not a new architecture. Clock for clock they are perhaps 5% faster, and you can probably get 10% more clock speed for your dollar in 1Q-08. Just get a faster C2D now, or wait for the affordable penryns.

If you want a good future-proof PC investment, look at the best large screen monitor you can afford.

Options are good, but only if the price is right.

 

[jamesro]

OK.
so i need some advice.
for now ill be going with either the E2160 or E6750 as a temp until im ready for a quad penryn.
ill be looking at MOST likely a Leadtek 8800GT. i don't know if i will want SLI in the future but i think it may be beneficial to keep that option open.

Im not sure what type of RAM i want to get but i know it will be DDR2.
6400 sufficient enough? faster needed?
and not sure bout using ddr3 down the track. but by the time i want to use ddr3 i think i'll go for a new mb with new nehalem CPU.

and recommendation for a MOTHERBOARD?
quick question
if the ratio between your CPU and RAM hypothetically is 333:333 and the MB supports FSB of 1600 or 1333 does that mean the FSB bandwidth is underutilized by 1000 or 1267mhz?

ill be over clocking the CPU and RAM and GPU if i can handle myself. And it will be my first time. so something thats going to be as noob friendly as possible.

 

[jamesro]

help me guys