Opetron 170, AMD X2 4200+ or AMD X2 4400+?

[dreamie]

Hi all,
I see my question has been overasked but I am asking again because my needs are a bit different. I'm not playing games on the pc but I am a 3D artist, doing mostly intense simulations that needs strong cpu calculations. Working on Autodesk's Maya and other stand alone simulation tools such as Nextlimit's Realflow which is HEAVY on the CPU.

I'm thinking of buying the following computer:

* Kingston ValueRAM PC3200 2GB 2X1GB DDR400 CL3-3-3 184PIN DIMM
* EVGA E-GEFORCE 7800GT CO 470MHZ PCI-E 256MB 256BIT GDDR3 Dual DVI-I HDTV VIVO SLI Ready Video Card
* DFI LANParty UT NF4 ULTRA-D Motherboard ATX S939 NFORCE4 Ultra DDR 2PCI-E16 SATA RAID Sound LAN 1394
* AMD Opteron 170 Dual Core Processor S939 Denmark 2.0GHZ 2MB L2CACHE 90NM 64BIT Retail

I'm not sure about the CPU. I guess I will try OC'ing but I don't plan to abuse it as well. I still want dual core for multitasking instead of getting one strong single core. Which of the CPU's in the topic would be best for my needs? Maybe I should get the Opetron 175 but that's the most expensive one.

Also correct me if I'm wrong, but I understand that without OC'ing the stock heating that comes with the AMD cpu's is enough and I don't need to get an extra cooling fan? And which cooling is recommended if I do overclock?

Thanks in advance.

 

[dvdpiddy]

well dude do get get the opty but dont get the kingston ram and if you wanna oc on air either get a zalman or coolermaster for water same brands and yes the new stock amd heatsink is better it still can't beat a good aftermarket cooler

 

[ThunderGodThor]

Better get one fast too as the supply is rather limited on those. My self just bought 165. Cant wait to plug that thing in.

 

[dreamie]

So should I go for the 170 or the 175? There's a $100 price difference, I wonder if it worth the performance difference.

Maybe if I get the 175 and OC it to 2.6 I woudln't need an exta cooling, I've read the 175 comes with a great heatsink..

What's wrong with the kingston rams?

 

[luminaris]

Yeah, they do come with great heatsinks. That's why its almost just as good to go ahead and go for the 165 and OC it to 170 or 175 speeds and save your money.

Nothing wrong with Kingston if your going to run stock speeds. Using them for overclocking is usually not preferred.

 

[dvdpiddy]

luminaris listen to yourself kingston are the suxors there ram breaks alot and is way overpriced!

 

[luminaris]

Well, I hear ya there man I do agree with you to a degree. I wouldn't use them for OC'ing at all but, I've used them many times for every day use and I've never had a problem with them.

 

[dreamie]

So it's better going for these?
OCZ Performance PC3200 2GB 2X1GB DDR400 CL3-3-3-8 184PIN DIMM Dual Channel Memory Kit W/ Ramsink

It's a bit more pricey.

Sorry for the noobie question, but do I have to modify the voltage of the memory if I overclock the cpu? I can't just increase the cpu a little bit and leave the memory untouched?

 

[avatar3k]

i got a 165, but now, considering the value of the media work i do on my system, i probably should have gotten the 175 (the extra $XXX is easily outweighed by any marginal increase in performance I would have gotten out of it)... I've basically decided to do all my heavy work on a quad g5 and leave my 165 for basic rendering and image pp.

EDIT: 2x1gb of any reasonably good ram is fine - my corsair valueselect works great

 

[dvdpiddy]

ehh kingston ram is one of the worst i have ever used!

 

[pmr]

i got a 165, but now, considering the value of the media work i do on my system, i probably should have gotten the 175 (the extra $XXX is easily outweighed by any marginal increase in performance I would have gotten out of it)... I've basically decided to do all my heavy work on a quad g5 and leave my 165 for basic rendering and image pp.

EDIT: 2x1gb of any reasonably good ram is fine - my corsair valueselect works great

Man, how is it working in a quad g5 like?
I´ve got a dual 1.8 and I think I'd never upgrade for a quad one. Considering the price.... How much faster would it be? Rendering, etc...

 

[dreamie]

Ok, now I'm not sure about these two:

OCZ Performance PC3200 2GB 2X1GB DDR400 CL3-3-3-8 184PIN DIMM Dual Channel Memory Kit W/ Ramsink

Or OCZ EL Gold GX XTC PC4000 2GB 2X1GB DDR500 CL3-4-3-8 184PIN Dual Channel Memory Kit.

Basically they're the same price after rebates. From one hand the DFI MB doesn't support DDR500 so why bothering going for the gold XTC? The PC3200 has better latency too. From the other hand I've read the XTC one might be better for OC'ing. What do you ppl say?

As for the CPU I think I'll go for the Opetron 170. Just found it for 489CAD. Pretty good deal for the price.

 

[luminaris]

yeah, that's good memory and yes, you can just up the CPU and not touch the voltages. When OC'ing, I find it better to just take the FSB up as far as I can without adjusting the voltages. You would do good with that memory and an opty 165.

 

[admiral25]

just oc the cpu leave the memory at ddr400. I myself have a 165 oced to 2.6gz running 289x9 with a 7/10 divider with the 4 heatpipe cooler thats with it is. Highest oc on air sofar is 2.8ghz (1.45volts) with 311x9 and a 2/3 divider. you need a good motherboard to get over 300mhz fsb, im running a dfi landparty ultra d max fsb I tried sofar was 315.

 

[MeNaCiNgACE]

When talk about Ram, I've got some questions over here... I got this Kingston Hyper X KHX3200AK2/1G with my last P4 Prescott system, thought of upgrading to AMD Opty 165 w Asus A8N32 SLI Deluxe but dun feel like waste the RAM for new OCZ or Ballistix. I def. will OC, ... say to 2.6Ghz?? Can my ram go to that far and what might be the best settings on the ram?

 

[avatar3k]

I've worked with some of the older G5s from a year or two ago, and they're pretty good too. However, I thought that the upgrade was solid in terms of performance - unless you really need loads more power, it's not worth the upgrade, but if you do, it's terrific. Even now, I feel as if when I do basic 2d image pp work, the older G5 is just as fast as my PC.

In my case, I don't do too much of the really hardcore rendering or anything like that - most render jobs I do will complete in a day on the newer machine.

 

[admiral25]

When talk about Ram, I've got some questions over here... I got this Kingston Hyper X KHX3200AK2/1G with my last P4 Prescott system, thought of upgrading to AMD Opty 165 w Asus A8N32 SLI Deluxe but dun feel like waste the RAM for new OCZ or Ballistix. I def. will OC, ... say to 2.6Ghz?? Can my ram go to that far and what might be the best settings on the ram?

From what I hear kingston is crappy ram... also with a dual core, you must be a multitasker(if not then get a 3700+ with 1mb cache and oc that) so getting ocz 2gig is a must. Trust me I tried 1gig and it did not work well whatever you do get a dfi landparty board they get 300fsb/htt highest I tried sofar is 315fsb/htt.