overclock the 3000+ Venice or a new cpu to overclock?

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CorNut

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I am in the market for a new cpu, I was trying to read about the x2 and some said it isn't worth it for a gamer(all I do) and others say it is so I don't know?? I am guessing it is not worth it for me and I should grab up a 3700 or 3800??

I can get an a64 3700+ for $184 shipped

I can get the a64 3800+ for $228 shipped


is it worth the extra $40+ for the 3800?? or should I just get the cheaper one?? I am actually planning on attacking an overclock for the first time.. my current setup is:


A64 3000+ Venice
Biostar N4SLI-A9 MB
4x7k80 80gb SATA II drives in Raid 0
2GB(2x1024) PQI Turbo DDR400
eVGA 6800GS

for cooling, I have a Zalman CNPS7000B-AlCu for my CPU, a Zalman VF700-CU for my video card, 6x80mm fans(3 exhaust, 1 side, 2 intake), and an Ultra X-Connect dual fan power supply(yes I know it is crappy but it works).

What are the benefits from upgrading my processor?? should I just try overclocking my old Venice that I already have and get another 6800GS and run an SLI?? or is it going to be worth getting a new cpu instead?? Is my ram only being PC3200 holding me back on overclocking the 3700 or 3800 to the point that it won't make much of a difference?? sorry for all of the questions.. but I am willing to blow ~$250 on my machine... what will make the biggest difference?? I heard the 3200's overclock well?? But I assume the 3800 would overclock better :D

I appologize for all of the questions... it's just that I have been into building computers, and playing games on computers for oh... almost 10 years now, and I want to finally take my chances and overclock to have a beast of a PC.. How is my cooling?? I appreciate all of your help, thanks for your opinions guys/gals



-Cory
 
The 3700+ would be the better choice. It is known for it's overclocking abilities and it also has 1MB cache compared to the 3800+ 512k cache.

PC3200 is currently the fastest that runs on AMD so getting ram over PC3200 is currently pointless. But AMD will make use of DDR2 or DDR3 when there new M2 socket is released next year.


I had the choice between a 4000+ and a X2 3800+ and i have chosen the X2 3800+ because it will be more future proof, and new games and drivers are allready starting to make use of the dual core.
 
id go with the dual core, i just got the 4000+ a few weeks ago, ( i had a 3000+) an honestly it didnt give that much greater performance in games, dont get my wron it did but only a few fps, so u mayaswell go with a x2 so u can multitask better.
 
Overclock what you have! These things are great. I'm getting 2250 mhz out of mine, and it's on stock cooling with no voltage raise. The thing runs flawlessly in prime 95 for 18+ hours. I got the stupid thing to 3500+ speeds with a horrible overclocking motherboard. (My board maxes out on 250mhz HTT)

Ryan
 
Sprooty said:
The 3700+ would be the better choice. It is known for it's overclocking abilities and it also has 1MB cache compared to the 3800+ 512k cache.

PC3200 is currently the fastest that runs on AMD so getting ram over PC3200 is currently pointless. But AMD will make use of DDR2 or DDR3 when there new M2 socket is released next year.


I had the choice between a 4000+ and a X2 3800+ and i have chosen the X2 3800+ because it will be more future proof, and new games and drivers are allready starting to make use of the dual core.

X2 3800+ has 1MB cache, 512*2 so they are the same, i woudl go with the dual core cause games are coming out supporting dual core processors and beating the single core ones
 
thanks for the replies guys.. Just curious? what games "do" support the dual core?? does BF2 by chance?? I'm still stuck in the BF2 phase to where that is all I play. Does that 1mb cache in the 3700 make a big difference compared to the 512 3000+?? Do you think my cooling is good enough to handle much? The fans I have are the Enermax ones that are basically silent and my cpu/vid card fans are the Zalmans which are more geared towards being silent than the best cooler(so I think) but are they good enough for overclocking too? better than the retail fan? I really appreciate the input to help me make a decision. You'd think that after these many years of building I would have attempted to overclock by now, guess I'm the paranoid type :) I like the comfort of knowing everything is under warranty, and all I do is a year or so after warranties run out, I typically build a new system and just sell my old one on fleabay. If I ended up just overclocking the 3000+, should I even get another 6800GS for SLI?? will it be a huge difference?? I can already run at full quality in BF2, but it does get "kinda" choppy every once in a while, think the SLI will cure that or do you think that since it is only "sometimes it is more the servers fault than my PC's? Thanks!


-Cory
 
ATM FEAR and Farcry are made for dual cores, i don't know about Quake 4 Tho. Im also pretty sure UT2007 will be made for Dual Cores.


If you want to get a 3000+ and OC it that would be fine.
 
Sprooty said:
If you want to get a 3000+ and OC it that would be fine.

Ive already got a 3000+ Venice

just trying to get input on what I should spend ~$250 on for an upgrade.. I've got the $ to blow so I am trying to make the most of it and cant decide if I should get a new cpu, another 6800 gs to run in SLI, maybe sell my single GS and buy a 7800GT?? I dunno what to do.. anything else that might help that i'm overlooking? Should I just get a better PSU u think? better hs/fans?? lol.. I dunno what I wanna do.. I'm so confused :(


-Cory
 
Save the cash. You don't need anything new. Go buy an aftermarket air intake for your truck. (I hope you have a truck and not a girly-man ricer.)

Ryan
 
lol, I have both actually... a girly man ricer mobile you could see a few pics of on my website under "Cory" and I have an F250 Super Duty as well ;)
 
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