Upgrading Advice needed!

eoindc

I am planning on upgrading my computer,

Currently im using: an old mobo from a dell dimension 4600
Pentium 4 - 2.79ghz cpu
512mb DDR ram :eek:

I have already bought a nice case, 500gig samsung hard drive and 450 watt psu.

I was looking at these 3 parts next:

CPU: AMD Athlon 64 X2 6000 Dual Core AM2 1MB 3.1GHz:
http://www.dabs.ie/productview.aspx?Quicklinx=57Y0&CategorySelectedId=11125&PageMode=1

Mobo: Gigabyte AM2 AMD 690G ATX DDR2 A L
http://www.dabs.ie/productview.aspx?Quicklinx=4LYB&CategorySelectedId=11125&PageMode=1

Ram: OCZ Technology OCZ Technology 2x1GB 240DIMM PC2-9200 Reaper
http://www.dabs.ie/productview.aspx?Quicklinx=4KZL&CategorySelectedId=11125&PageMode=1

i know the mobo doesnt support PC2-9200 ram but i thought that since it is going cheap, i may aswell go for the slightly better one! is this a good idea? i asume the mobo will just use the ram as much as it can?!! :P

Can anyone tell me if these parts are all compatible?!!
it would be a real help as this is my first real build! thanks!

Landa2

http://www.dabs.ie/productview.aspx?Quicklinx=4KZM&CategorySelectedId=11150&PageMode=1&NavigationKey=11150,4294952408,4294955011,4294953829

Better than getting 2gb of ram thats not supported... Slower clock speed but the same latency timings as your 9200 ram not to mention twice the capacity... you will need a 64 bit operating system mind you to utilise the second ram stick.

Anti

Dont bother going down the AMD route, their cpu's just cant keep up with even the cheaper intel models. Perhaps do some research first before you jump into it. Would be a shame if you wasted the money.

jonny72

Just get 6400 ram, theres only slight tiny percentage increases with faster ram, unless you are big into overclocking..

I recommend the intel route too.. better and cheaper processors at the mo..

2 gig ram 6400 ram = 35 euros
gigabyte motherboard = 60 euros
e8400 core2duo = 130 euros

delivery 20 or so

eoindc

thanks ppls,

landa2, i will probably go with that ram. i am sticking with xp for the moment but will try n get a 64bit vista at some stage.

i decided to try amd because of the price difference:

Athlon 64 X2 6000 Dual Core AM2 1MB 3.1GHz

---

€70
Intel Core 2 Duo E8400 3.00GHz 6M Cache S775 1333MHZ

---

€140

(both on dabs.ie)
the price of motherboards for these processors are identical so why would i chose intel?!!
It is a huge price difference so what does intel give you for that extra €70?


thanks again

eoindc

i went with amd in the end because of the price difference.
the whole build came to a total of just over €300.
thanks again for the advice

DanGerMus

http://www.tomshardware.com/charts/cpu-charts-2008/compare,369.html?prod[1267]=on&prod[1252]=on

If you peruse that you'll see that the intel outperforms the amd in every bench by 25% and up. You can't simply compare the clock speed of two completely different CPU architectures. The intel for one has more cache.
But i suppose the fact that it costs twice as much probably doesn't justify they gains.
You won't be surprised why enthusiasts rave about them though when you consider the e8400 can be clocked to 4ghz+ on a fairly cheap mobo with no extra voltage.