dual core question...

[KNiGHTMaRe89]

just out of curiosity, when you get a dual core, i know you have to reset BIOS and all, but is there different readings to expect and is there other utilities you need for dual cores rather than a single core cpu? for example, do i have to d/l any drivers for stability reasons etc?

also, as of now i have a 939 board and i don't plan on getting an am2 or intel core 2 anytime soon. so heres another question. do i wait a few more months and buy a 939 dual core when the price goes down. or should i keep what i have and wait a year or so for the am2's to go down in price? -- which in case i would have to get a new cpu and board.

 

[Yoad]

The prices won't go down any lower, if any change takes place at all - the 939 production line will be closed.

Why go AM2? It's a pointless platform, if you wanna wait, wait for the K8L and stuff, but by then intel should have a technology that surpasses AMD's K8L too. but lets let time do his job.


-Jo.

 

[ShoobieRat]

Depends where you're upgrading from, before it's "pointless".

If you're going from a single core to a dual, almost anything's more than "pointless."

If you're upgrading, you should always go with the latest that's available. Currently, the AM2 socket is the newest out, so if you're going to move up to anything (other than an FX) I would recommend you go to the AM2.

The AM2 socket may not stick around forever, but for now it's the one running the AMD dual core X2 chips.

The only thing you're gonna see moving from a 64 to a 64X2 is the benifits of the dual core tech. If that appeals to you, then go for it, but you'll have to do a bit of upgrades to get there (mobo, mem).

If you want to stay with yer 939, and your mobo supports something bigger, the only place you can really go above the 64 servies is the FX chips...which range from $$ to arm-leg.

If you want my opinion, from where you're at...unless you have the $$ for a big upgrade, stay put. Spend the money on MORE RAM and a bigger HDD. That'd be more worth your while at this point.

 

[Nagasama]

not quite pointless at all. read up.
note the transfer rate of 5.2. dang. will be awhile, tho.

http://www.dailytech.com/article.aspx?newsid=3169

 

[KNiGHTMaRe89]

Depends where you're upgrading from, before it's "pointless".

If you're going from a single core to a dual, almost anything's more than "pointless."

If you're upgrading, you should always go with the latest that's available. Currently, the AM2 socket is the newest out, so if you're going to move up to anything (other than an FX) I would recommend you go to the AM2.

The AM2 socket may not stick around forever, but for now it's the one running the AMD dual core X2 chips.

The only thing you're gonna see moving from a 64 to a 64X2 is the benifits of the dual core tech. If that appeals to you, then go for it, but you'll have to do a bit of upgrades to get there (mobo, mem).

If you want to stay with yer 939, and your mobo supports something bigger, the only place you can really go above the 64 servies is the FX chips...which range from $$ to arm-leg.

If you want my opinion, from where you're at...unless you have the $$ for a big upgrade, stay put. Spend the money on MORE RAM and a bigger HDD. That'd be more worth your while at this point.

im actually waiting till after xmas, but im getting 1gb mem, 250gb hdd, 7900gs and either an opty 165,170 or x2 3800+

 

[lancec2c30]

Depends where you're upgrading from, before it's "pointless".

If you're going from a single core to a dual, almost anything's more than "pointless."

If you're upgrading, you should always go with the latest that's available. Currently, the AM2 socket is the newest out, so if you're going to move up to anything (other than an FX) I would recommend you go to the AM2.

The AM2 socket may not stick around forever, but for now it's the one running the AMD dual core X2 chips.

The only thing you're gonna see moving from a 64 to a 64X2 is the benifits of the dual core tech. If that appeals to you, then go for it, but you'll have to do a bit of upgrades to get there (mobo, mem).

If you want to stay with yer 939, and your mobo supports something bigger, the only place you can really go above the 64 servies is the FX chips...which range from $$ to arm-leg.

If you want my opinion, from where you're at...unless you have the $$ for a big upgrade, stay put. Spend the money on MORE RAM and a bigger HDD. That'd be more worth your while at this point.

You actually think there arent any dual core cpu's out for s939? almost all the opterons are available in 939. I am personally going to upgrade to the opty 170 in the near future with my 939 build.

 

[ShoobieRat]

You actually think there arent any dual core cpu's out for s939? almost all the opterons are available in 939. I am personally going to upgrade to the opty 170 in the near future with my 939 build.

Hmm, didn't know the Opteron was dc. My bad. I didn't look far enough down on the list.

 

[Yoad]

@ ShoobieRat, its pointless because for cheaper/same price he can go Intel and gain much better performance [this is true for nowdays at least, thats why I said that if he wishes to wait for anything, then he should wait for K8L]

Plus, You can still find on Ebay quite a lot of S939 Versions of dual core CPUs, and furthermore there are some X2 Core CPU's that are still officialy manufactured for S939.. but as I said, don't expect any more of a price drop on those.


-Jo

 

[The General]

Depends where you're upgrading from, before it's "pointless".

If you're going from a single core to a dual, almost anything's more than "pointless."

If you're upgrading, you should always go with the latest that's available. Currently, the AM2 socket is the newest out, so if you're going to move up to anything (other than an FX) I would recommend you go to the AM2.

Going from 939 to AM2 would mean new CPU, new motherboard and new RAM. If he is doing that, there is no reason to get an AM2 because they are obliterated by LGA775/C2D. I've said it before, and I'll say it again. There is no reason to get an AMD system right now, unless you're just another AMD fanboy who wants to pay more for slower performance.

The AM2 socket may not stick around forever, but for now it's the one running the AMD dual core X2 chips.

So now my socket 939 X2 doesn't exist? BUT I USE IT EVERY DAY!

X2's from 3800+ to 4800+ are on socket 939 and socket AM2. It's the 5000+ and 5200+ that are exclusive to AM2.

The only thing you're gonna see moving from a 64 to a 64X2 is the benifits of the dual core tech. If that appeals to you, then go for it, but you'll have to do a bit of upgrades to get there (mobo, mem).

As if "dual core tech" is something to scoff at... It's exactly the same as having two processors. Twice the workload at once. Not twice as fast.

If you want to stay with yer 939, and your mobo supports something bigger, the only place you can really go above the 64 servies is the FX chips...which range from $$ to arm-leg.

You're forgetting that the X2's come in the 939 package too.

If you want my opinion, from where you're at...unless you have the $$ for a big upgrade, stay put. Spend the money on MORE RAM and a bigger HDD. That'd be more worth your while at this point.

Yes, buy more DDR RAM because it's the industry standard still...

Oh, and get some harddrives too which cost nothing...

 

[bzflag]

Anyways for the original question:

There is a dual core optimizer amd just released that is supposed to help, but its not necessary, but probably a good idea. Computer runs fine without it, but its just a download and install. easy as pie.