Time to upgrade

yeah i'd be looking at intel at this point. the newer intel chips rip the shit out of AMD. i'm probably building an extra box to export some plug-in processing (music apps) and it's most certainly gonna be a quadcore intel.

gonz the 8800GT has almost the same real work performance as the GTS for a lot less money.

my main box runs XP 32 and 64 (dual boot)... 64 is sweet but there's still a lot of things that won't run quite right on it. i'm not touching vista until sp2. then i'll be happy to use the 64 bit version with stupid amounts of RAM.
 
Gonz said:
Where's the beef?

:D


They appear generally similar & I wanted a 64bit.
Click to expand...

That graph should be read more carefully. Says lower is better, and the FX-62 is pretty high compared to a lot of the Core 2 stuff.

Intel's latest stuff (Core 2 duo, quad, extreme, supercalifragilisticexpialidocious, etc) all implements pretty much the same 64-bit extensions as AMD does.

64 does not indicate the processor will be twice as fast as a 32-bit. 64-bit actually refers to how big of an integer each register can store while it's doing its calculations. In other words, a program needs to be changed to make use of 64-bit numbers (18 quintillion something, versus 4 billion something), and then it could be twice as fast if crunching big integers is all it needs to do.

Games mostly use floating point numbers, which see no benefit from a 64-bit processor

x64 editions of Windows are generally considered more trouble than they're worth in most cases. For one thing, all the drivers you install MUST be compiled natively for Windows x64. There is no compatibility mode for 32-bit drivers like there is for 32-bit applications. Secondly, 32-bit applications run in a Windows emulation environment called WoW64 (windows on windows x64) which can make them a tad slower.

That said, the x64 editions are remarkably stable. In my experience with XP x64, I've never once had a bluescreen or an application crash. And you know my history of breaking computers & pushing them to their limits.

However, if what you're going to do is game (and it sounds like it, with an 8800) - then XP 32-bit offers the best chance for compatibility, and the best framerates overall. Theoretically, it will run every game out there today.

My recommendation: BFG Geforce 8800 GT OC (says sold out online, but check your local stores for availability)

This is the best bang-for-the-buck out there right now, as far as I can see.

Check out this review that has it mopping the floor with everything, even in some cases a few cards that are twice its price.

http://www.neoseeker.com/Articles/Hardware/Reviews/bfg8800_GT_OC/
 
Where's the beef was refering to the comparable Conroe wasn't listed at all.

Already got the GTS.

Got this case too.

I'm tearing apart system one to use some parts. The new system is mostly assembled now...just finding time to install the OS & a few needed programs.

Hopefully I'll be zooming by this weekend.

Initially installing XP Pro 64 trial. That'll give me time to get a University version of Vista or decide to stick with XP.
 
Piggybacking on what Gonz is saying, I'm still using a 17" CRT. I'd like to upgrade my monitor and video card, but most high-end cards do not come with the old VGA D-plug anymore. If I go LCD, which one is good for gaming without costing me body parts?
 
Gato_Solo said:
Piggybacking on what Gonz is saying, I'm still using a 17" CRT. I'd like to upgrade my monitor and video card, but most high-end cards do not come with the old VGA D-plug anymore. If I go LCD, which one is good for gaming without costing me body parts?
Click to expand...

umm yeah but they pretty much all come with the adapter for the legacy blue pluggy thing.
 
my bro has been using xp pro 64 for gaming, for a little while now, and
has had no problems much.

There may be some differences if you want to 'server' with it.

I still don't like ie7. It sux.
 
Nixy said:
I want a Macbook :D
Click to expand...

Lori's isn't all that great... it is two years old or so, though. Hopefully the newer power adapters aren't the major pieces of shit the ones supplied with macbooks at the time Lori bought hers were... it had a tendency to zap her frequently, and died quickly. The cheap Macally knockoff that gets scary hot has lasted a lot longer.

Meanwhile, the power adapter that came with my Gateway laptop only gets slightly warm to the touch.
 
2minkey said:
umm yeah but they pretty much all come with the adapter for the legacy blue pluggy thing.
Click to expand...

While I'm sure the monitor would have a VGA socket, I'm was talking about the card. If I go with a high-end card, I'm probably going to be stuck with a DVI port or an HDMI port...which would require the new monitor. ;)
 
Gato_Solo said:
While I'm sure the monitor would have a VGA socket, I'm was talking about the card. If I go with a high-end card, I'm probably going to be stuck with a DVI port or an HDMI port...which would require the new monitor. ;)
Click to expand...

no really the last two PCI express cards i've bought - including the 8800gt i got a month ago - have come with DVI to vga adaptors. in any case those adapters are like $6 at newegg.
 
2minkey said:
no really the last two PCI express cards i've bought - including the 8800gt i got a month ago - have come with DVI to vga adaptors. in any case those adapters are like $6 at newegg.
Click to expand...

Great...now how can I convince the wife I have to get both...:grumpy:
 
You will find that XP x64 has piss poor driver support. I still use it ( I did make the mistake of buying it), but I also have Vista Ultimate. Thing is I use one or the other for games now and Ubuntu 7.10 for everything else.
 
My printer (Canon I850) & PCI network card (GA311) are absolutely not supported by XP64. So far, that's been the extent of the problems. (aside from recalling all the correct settings). Fortunately, the mobo hsa built in LAN & the printer is on mommas machine.
 
Oh there you could be in luck. Canon printers can often be "tricked" by using a driver built into XP x64 (should you ever need to) that works with your printer but isn't the right one. For instance I run a Canon S330 on here but I use the Bubble-Jet BJC-8000 driver.

Another thing is that many Network cards are able to be "unofficially" rewritten for use with XP x64, so be on the lookout for "hacked drivers" because most network cards that are not supported can be made to work by those who know how.

So if you ever need those ones to work with XP x64, know that it can be made to happen even if not officially supported.
 
I've made the decision that; I imagine I'll regret.

Vista Premium 64.

The drivers I need are not written & will not be written for XP but they are available for Vista. Since all my parts are new enough, I'll suffer with the growing pangs. Which will be relatively few.

God help me.
 
Gonz said:
I've made the decision that; I imagine I'll regret.

Vista Premium 64.

The drivers I need are not written & will not be written for XP but they are available for Vista. Since all my parts are new enough, I'll suffer with the growing pangs. Which will be relatively few.

God help me.
Click to expand...

/me points and laughs at Gonz until he realizes that his wifes laptop is using Vista...:mope:
 
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