New PC Suggestions

[quantus]

Turbo Memory speedup.

http://anandtech.com/cpuchipsets/intel/ ... i=2985&p=4

Wow, that speedup is so blinding, I totally missed it...

[Jonathan]

No comment.

[Jonathan]

http://theinquirer.net/default.aspx?article=39763

PCIe2 by the end of the year for double bandwidth.

[VLSmooth]

Just to make sure, with the June 4th release of the P35 chipset ( anandtech ), does it sound wise to wait for it.

Or would going with the MSI P6N SLI Platinum LGA 775 NVIDIA nForce 650i SLI ATX Intel Motherboard ( newegg ) be fine?

[Jonathan]

In a few months, you'd definitely want the P35. DDR3 is still really freakin expensive, though, so if you're making a purchase now I'd stick with the DDR2 board.

[VLSmooth]

Also, from here ( newegg ) it seems that:

• Intel Core 2 Duo E6420 Conroe 2.13GHz 4M shared L2 Cache LGA 775 Processor - Retail
  is the best bang for the buck
• Intel Core 2 Quad Q6600 Kentsfield 2.4GHz 2 x 4MB L2 Cache LGA 775 Processor - Retail
  is tempting, but should require a lot more cooling, which translates to more heat, leading to more noise?
• The other two didn't seem especially worthwhile
• I'm also not counting the "extreme" series, which blows the cost/gHz out of the water

With some luck, I'll be ordering parts in early June.

[VLSmooth]

Meh, after reading more, it looks like I'll be an early P35 adopter. I sense lots of review reading in the 1st week of June...

[Dave]

What monitor you gonna use with your new systemi?

[Jonathan]

http://processorfinder.intel.com/detail ... Spec=SL9UM Q6600 - 105W
http://processorfinder.intel.com/detail ... Spec=SLA4T - E6420 - 65W

[VLSmooth]

What monitor you gonna use with your new systemi?

My old 24" widescreen Dell 2405fpw, unless a "good" 30" with multiple inputs comes out.

Although, I have tinkered with the idea of getting a 30" just to watch anime on (probably won't unless it has more inputs!)

[VLSmooth]

http://processorfinder.intel.com/detail ... Spec=SL9UM Q6600 - 105W
http://processorfinder.intel.com/detail ... Spec=SLA4T - E6420 - 65W

Looks like an E6420 in a P35 motherboard for me! (then possibly tossing it for a Penryn CPU!)

Thanks for the heads up,

[Jonathan]

http://theinquirer.net/default.aspx?article=40093 - There are conflicting reports about AMD's Barcelona launch. It'll either be late or early, fast or slow. The launch will be soon, but volume is not expected until after the launch.
http://theinquirer.net/default.aspx?article=40088 - Some AMD price cuts. Didn't go through the list myself.

[VLSmooth]

What role does core voltage play in desktop processor selection?

Specifically, I noticed there are two (2) E6600's listed by Intel's processor finder

• SL9S8, Core Voltage 0.850V-1.3525V
• SL9ZL, Core Voltage 1.187V-1.325V

Newegg's E6600 lists a Core Voltage of 0.850V-1.3525V, so I'm guessing it's an SL9S8. I'm not sure if this is a good or a bad thing...

From a Newegg perspective, I'm still debating between these two:

• E6420, ($186/2.13GHz) =~ $87.32/GHz
• E6600, ($223.90/2.4GHz) =~ $93.29/GHz

They both seem to have a TDP* of 65W, so that's a non-issue. I don't mind spending ~$6/GHz for more processor. Is there any compelling reason to go with the E6420 that I don't know of?

For the curious, here's my current Newegg Wish List, which will be dumped into my shopping cart. Cooling fans aren't included since Newegg doesn't carry the ones I want. For that, see this old post.

Miscellaneous Notes

• I still need to "confirm" what memory to get.
  * Definitely going for 4GB of 240-pin DDR2 memory
  * Don't know the voltage needed (1.8V is standard, I think)
  * Don't know the speeds/latencies needed
  * I think I want at least PC6400 DDR2-800, but I'm honestly not sure how far beyond that to go
  * I think this is what I want : CORSAIR XMS2 4GB(2 x 2GB) DDR2-800 (PC2 6400), but suggestions are welcome
  * Alternative : mushkin 4GB(2 x 2GB) DDR2-800 (PC2 6400)
  * The cheaper ones with better timings seemed to have voltage issues
  * If I remember correctly, I'll need to run a 64-bit OS to see more than 3 GB of RAM?
• Yep, I'm planning to buy the retail DVD of Vista for both the 32-bit and 64-bit versions, and the ability to change motherboards. However, if the 32-bit version can't see 4 GB of RAM, I'll have to use the 64-bit version.
• I'm not splurging for a quad-core or high-end Core 2 Duo because the P35 chipset can support Penryn processors, when they come out
• I'll be re-using my BFG 7800GT for graphics
• My old SN25P is going to my brother (who has the 2nd 7800GT already)
• Interesting Link : Ars June 2007 Hot Rod

* TDP = Thermal Design Power

[Jason]

* Definitely going for 4GB of 240-pin DDR2 memory
* If I remember correctly, I'll need to run a 64-bit OS to see more than 3 GB of RAM?
[*]Yep, I'm planning to buy the retail DVD of Vista for both the 32-bit and 64-bit versions, and the ability to change motherboards. However, if the 32-bit version can't see 4 GB of RAM, I'll have to use the 64-bit version.

You need a 64-bit OS to address higher than 4GB of memory. Com'on vinny, what's 2^32?

Secondly, what the heck do you need 4GB for? The only thing I put that kind of power into is a database system. You're not encoding things yourself? I literally can't fathom a reason.

[Dave]

I've got 8GB DDR on my work machine. That's just how we MEs roll. (slowly)

[Jonathan]

First cut:

Low end of voltage reduces idle power. Good for blades and laptops. Not particularly pointful for desktop, but I guess it may lower fan noise slightly when there's nothing running. Hard to say if that would even be detectable. Anyway, it's a good thing.

32-bit means a single process has a linear address space max of 4GB of memory. In practice, an OS usually restricts this to 2 (Windows) or 3 (Linux, though you can recompile your kernel for a different value). All recent 32-bit server boards and some desktop boards have a physical address space greater than 32, usually around 36 recently. This is so you can have multiple 2GB processes running simultaneously. The cheap motherboards won't support the larger physical memory, but if your mobo can do it your 32 bit OS can address it. Just be realistic about the memory you can harness.

64-bit gives you 64 per process, but doesn't change the physical you can address. I haven't looked into it, but I think modern platforms are still in the 36, maybe 38 max range. The physical number creeps up slowly over time as new platforms are introduced.

6420 vs. 6600. No particular reason to get the cheap one. Cause you're a cheap college student?

FSB really limits the performance gains you can get from higher bandwidth memory. If you overclock the FSB, then it can be worthwhile. Lower latency does help, but for video decode memory just isn't your bottleneck. I'd say go for capacity.

[Jonathan]

On further reflection:

Microsoft Windows Vista Ultimate DVD - Retail $358.99

Ow. No Argon discount program?

[Jonathan]

Maximum Memory Supported 8GB

33, woo!

I stand by what I said earlier. However, the motherboard manufacturer may not give you everything the chipset can handle.

[VLSmooth]

You need a 64-bit OS to address higher than 4GB of memory. Com'on vinny, what's 2^32?

Yes, I know what 2^32 is:

4294967296 = 4*1024^3 = 4 GB.

However, it's unwise to guess without knowing the details, especially if it's at the threshold and/or there's overhead somewhere. Here's one of the memory reviews I was reading, with an interesting excerpt:

Unfortunately using 4 GB of main of memory is not as easy as it seems. After installing the memory, the BIOS may only recognize around 3 GB of it. This is because the PCI and PCI-Express devices claim memory ranges in the address space of 4 GB. A way around this is to enable the "memory remap" feature in the BIOS. Then the BIOS will correctly detect all the installed memory. The problem here is that your motherboard may not have this option in the BIOS, so you would lose access to 1 GB of memory.

The next problem would be your operating system. If you want to use 4 GB with Windows XP (all 32-bit versions), you are out of luck. Even with PAE Windows XP can only support 4 GB of memory. Since the PCI devices will need some address space to live at, you will usually lose about a gig of memory here as well. This means that using any 32-bit Windows XP version you are stuck with a maximum of 3 GB of addressable physical memory.

...

Of course if you use your computer in a workstation-like environment with 64-bit applications or Linux (32-bit and 64-bit) you will fully benefit from the installed memory.

Secondly, what the heck do you need 4GB for?

Microsoft Vista.

From reading some reviews, Vista is an INSANE memory hog due to crazy amounts of pre-caching.

[VLSmooth]

6420 vs. 6600. No particular reason to get the cheap one. Cause you're a cheap college student?

I was just wondering if anything special came from the "20", besides the 4 MB of L2 cache. I think I'll be going 6600 then

FSB really limits the performance gains you can get from higher bandwidth memory. If you overclock the FSB, then it can be worthwhile. Lower latency does help, but for video decode memory just isn't your bottleneck. I'd say go for capacity.

The Asus P5K3 Deluxe natively supports DDR3 1333/1066/800, meaning that I wouldn't be overclocking? I'm hoping this also extends to DDR2. If so, buying only DD2-800 isn't taking advantage of the board. However, 800 seems to be the highest "standard". As such, anything beyond 800 causes prices to skyrocket.

Your latter point hits home though, so I'll probably stick to DDR2-800 with the potential to upgrade if I so choose.