A New Computer

[darksideleader]

I have always been an AMD fan and since the AMD CPU's prices are dropping rapidly due to the release of the Core 2 duo, i couldn't be more happier. This is what I'm thinking of getting:

Motherboard: All crossfire ready, AMD x580 Chipset
ASUS M2R32-MVP or MSI K9A Platinum or ECS KA3 MVP
CPU: AMD Athlon 64 X2 4000+
Memory: Corsair DDR2 PC2-5400 667MHz 2GB
Video cards : 2 of ASUS EAX1650XT CrossFire/2DHT/256M/A

Now my question are which motherboard will benefiet me the most? They all have the same chipsets and their price is rather close so which one are they going to make any difference? Should i get a faster CPU than the one im planning to get? I do a lot of gaming. And lastly, for the crossfire thing to work, do i need 2 crossfire ready video cards linked up or just 1? 1 will really lower the price on the machine but will it be useless by itself?

 

[Anubis1980]

Hate to say this as im a huge AMD fan too, if ur a gamer u cant go wrong with the core duo's, wish id got one now. BUT if u want to go with AMD id recommend a slightly faster cpu if u can afford it, in fact the faster u get the better! As for the mobo's, well i love my MSI, great for overclocking, performsa much better than my old ASROCK, and has so many options in the bios, its amazing. Never tried the other 2, so hopefully someone else can help there.

Ram wise, id try and get the fastest ram, 800 wud be better for games and general performance, is it value ram? One thing ive learnt, and i wouldnt do again is get value ram. Its great for what it is, i mean ive overclocked mine to ddr440, but this really stops me from overclocking my pc, not sure if u plan to OC. I have no idea of ATI lol sorry

 

[darksideleader]

Gaming switching to intel? Mabye not for me, the crossfire ready boards for intel are expensive
A faster CPU i can do, will 5200+ work?
Ram wise though, the DDR2 800 performance ram is just way too expensive and in my experience, i'd always get the middle speed in the ram. right now the clock speeds are 533,667,800 The middle one is usally not that expensive but the end one is fastest but a lot more expensive.

I'm always trying to do the best with my money, even though Core 2 duo is better its almost 2x more expensive. Even the high end of AMD Athlon FX-62 is only around $850 CAD while the Core 2 Xtreme is $1249 CAD

 

[Anubis1980]

What kind of price is the 5200? and can i have one please lol. I guess if its stupidly priced, like the 800 compared to the lower specced ram, maybe getting faster isnt worth it. u can always overclock a lower chip. But if u can afford it a 5200 sounds nice!

 

[darksideleader]

yea 5200+ is only 280 CAD so i think i can get it... before it was 360 CAD big price drop

 

[Jenox]

I went with a Socket 939 CrossFire 32x board, meaning each PCI-e x16 gets full bandwidth, a true x16 slot for each GPU. My motherboard is in my signature, I paid $109.99 for it. Very much worth it.

 

[Anubis1980]

U guys in the States and Canada get things so much cheaper than me here in Spain and where im originally from, UK, no fair lol.