custom built PC

**lynx** · 03-11-2005, 06:47 AM

Originally Posted by harrycary

If you want to invest in the latest and are planning on getting an AMD, then socket 939 is the way to go.

This is not a performance issue either. It has to do with future upgrades. The socket 939 is probably going to be the type AMD will use when they release dual core processors. (AMD hasn't commited to it quite yet but industry insiders expect them to anounce this soon)

Any other style of CPU will deny you future upgrades once dual-core technologies become the norm. And dual-core, while slower clock speeds, will surpass the performance of any single-core CPUs currently available.(think of them as 2 CPUs in 1)

Up to this point is ok, but quite frankly, the rest of this is total bollocks.

As far as PCI Express is concerned, it is the future but right now there are no video games that even take full advantage of its' throughput speed. I mean, there are other bottlenecks in a system that negate any performance gains to be had.

The interface is simpler which reduces costs. Worth getting on that basis alone.

Also, a PCI-Express video card requires a seperate power connector as it doesn't get it's power from the mobo but directly from the power supply. This means buying a power supply with this capability($$).

The PCI-Express graphics slot is just as capable of providing power to the card as AGP. Only the top end cards need extra power connectors, and that's just as much true for AGP as it is for PCI-Express.

For 99% of users out there, a mobo with an 8X AGP slot will be fine for many years to come.

As I stated earlier, the April issue of MaximumPC magazines addresses these very issues and most certainly is worth reading.

Nearly ALL the new graphics cards worth buying are PCI-Express. Sure, the old models are still available and will be for some time, but in your first paragraph you were talking about getting socket 939 for future-proofing. The same applies to graphics cards. If you want to be able to go for the latest cards then PCI-Express is the way to go, even if you don't care about cost.

SATA, Serial ATA(as opposed to parallel ATA) is a different protocol of data transfer. The hard-drive you choose must be of the serial type and the mobo must be compatible with it. The power connector used is uniquely different then current parallel ATA hard-drives as well.

Maxtor and Western Digital SATA drives will accept power from conventional connectors or the new SATA power connectors. Seagate only allow SATA power connectors. Others (including early Maxtor and WD SATA drives) only have conventional connectors. A power supply which has both has great benefits.

But, SATA drives are not very common yet and quite expensive relative to size. The only true performance benefit is a boot time in mere seconds and maybe faster video processing when editing. This is not to mention their much smaller capacity(the largest 10,000 rpm SATA drive is only 74Gb).

SATA drives are now VERY common, and are available in exactly the same capacities as conventional Parallel ATA drives. There are a few expensive 10000 rpm drives (such as WDC Raptor) which have comparatively limited capacity, but that isn't the norm.

Please try to avoid posting things which are factually incorrect, it just causes confusion.

**bigdawgfoxx** · 03-11-2005, 12:38 PM

I dont see anything about darkclown on newegg....wth lol But yeah, I wouldnt go with anything but a 64bit system now.

**tesco** · 03-11-2005, 01:37 PM

Originally Posted by bigdawgfoxx

I dont see anything about darkclown on newegg....wth lol But yeah, I wouldnt go with anything but a 64bit system now.

that was a joke. darkclown was the guy who's always posting about motherboard problems and clocker or someone said the darkclown was the problem, not the motherboard or whatever it was he had problems with.

**Snee** · 03-11-2005, 01:37 PM

If anything, pci-express is capable of supplying more power through the slot than agp. (@harycary)

Looking at for instance the 6600gt, it's fairly common that the pci-e cards don't have a molex when the agp version does.

**lynx** · 03-11-2005, 01:51 PM

Originally Posted by SnnY

If anything, pci-express is capable of supplying more power through the slot than agp. (@harycary)

Looking at for instance the 6600gt, it's fairly common that the pci-e cards don't have a molex when the agp version does.

My 6600gt (AGP) doesn't have a molex.

**Snee** · 03-11-2005, 03:52 PM

Astounding.

**numba1xclusive** · 03-12-2005, 09:51 PM

Originally Posted by lynx

As you say the X300 is PCI-Express so you would need a PCI-Express mobo, it won't fit your current mobo.

But PCI-Express is replacing AGP for graphics cards, just like AGP replaced PCI a few years ago. Most new graphics cards are now PCI-Express, with a few of the higher spec Nvidia cards also available in AGP.

PCI-X isnt stable yet. It wont be for a couple years I think.