confused on pci express

[peterhoang2002]

im planning to buy a cpu, motherboard, and video card at the same time to upgrade my comp and the last time i was reading about comps, pci express hadnt come out yet.

the cpu i planned to get was an A64 3000+ (754) and chaintech vnf3-250 (754). then i decided to pick out a video card and the x700 pro and x600xt caught my eye. then i saw it says it uses pci express x16 bus but i have no idea what that is and if the chaintech motherboard has it or not.

can anyone help me out here with any info?

 

[misteryuck]

you dont really need to go out and get a pci express motherboard, but if you do you wont see much of a performance gain

 

[Asus]

If you want to go down the PCI Express path then you will need a PCI Express board. Nvidia just came out with their nForce4 chipset which supports PCI Express. If you want, look for boards with that chipset and that support PCI Express (some support AGP). There is nothing tangable that is special with PCI-Express. It is faster but the cards don't make much use of that. It is the new standard so it might be smart to go that route if you have the chance (for future graphics card upgrades) but then again the AGP slot will still be supported for a little while longer (just not their primary priority starting in a few months).

Otherwise you will want an AGP card and you will probably be choosing between the 9800 Pro and the 6600GT (AGP). The X700 probably will be going AGP like the 6600GT but it isn't here yet.

 

[peterhoang2002]

ahh ok, ill probably go with the 9800 pro if i cant find it for around 170.

 

[ranger]

I would go with a 939 socket instead of the 754, just for better upgrades in the future. That is what i did. cause the 3800 (754) is the last 1 they will make.

ABIT AV8 (939)
AMD64 3500
KOOLANCE EXOS AL (CPU/GPU/CHIPSET)
CORSAIR TWIN3200XL 512x2
BFG GF6800 GT OC 256 (411/1000)
500W ultra x-connect

 

[[w0f]Oblivion]

and with socket 939 processors you get dual channel ram heh

 

[Asus]

I would go with a 939 socket instead of the 754, just for better upgrades in the future. That is what i did. cause the 3800 (754) is the last 1 they will make.

3700+

and with socket 939 processors you get dual channel ram heh

Doesn't really matter considering the model numbers factor that in. Sometimes the 3400+ is ahead (1MB cache or 2.4GHz depending on which version). Sometimes the 3500+ is ahead (dual channel memory). Other times they tie.

It's mostly the upgrade factor, currently higher CPUs available for them as well, price is now just as low for the S939 platform as the S754, and the fact that 90nm CPUs are out for S939.

 

[peterhoang2002]

i usually upgrade my processors every 2 years (its said that technology speed doubles every 18 months or 24 months i believe) and by the end of 2 years, there are usually new lines of processors which use different sockets so unless 939 sockets (or the mboard just doesnt support it) will still be widely used by new processors, i dont think theres a reason for me to get 939.

like when i went from 1ghz athlon to 2400+ athlon xp, i wasnt able to use the same motherboard and i dont think i would be able to use the motherboard i buy now in 2 years, correct? is my thinking not logical.

i guess the only reason i would buy 939 instead of 754 is if there is enough speed difference to justify the 20-30 dollar price difference between the 3000+ and mothboards.

being a teen without a job, i cant afford to buy new stuff every 6 months or so.

right now i got 61 bucks in the wallet and i need a new cpu + motherboard since my 2400 seems to have died. i could get another xp proc but i might as well spend a little more and get a A64. Then i need a new video card cause my gf4 mx cant render crap in any of the newer games especially the water...

And then i move on to the laptop... need a 7200 rpm drive cause every game like hl2, farcry and doom takes like 5mins and maybe more to load

 

[Subatomic]

Well, it is a good idea.

Let's say you buy a 2800+ Socket 754 Processor today, and you decide to upgrade in 3 years. Your only choice would be a 3400+ or 3700+.

Let's say you buy a 3000+ Socket 939 Processor today, in 3 years the choices will be a lot different. Maybe you will be able to buy a 5000+, or an FX-57 for cheap!

939 is the way to go!

 

[peterhoang2002]

well chances are the "good" cpu of the day in 3 yeards which id buy probably wouldnt use 939 but ill see...

i got to stretch my budget

 

[Asus]

They will continue to use Socket 939 until they switch to DDR2 or DDR3 memory, whichever it is. Not really sure when that will be considing DDR2 currently gives a performance hit on games. There won't be an incompatiblity like there was on Socket A. The Hypertransport speed might increase but it will still run at the 800/1000MHz speed as there is no performance difference.

What CPU model are you going to look for or what price range? Would you do any OCing?

S939 isn't a big issue for you because you would want a new boards anyway as all the gfx cards would be PCI-Express by then. Of course if you wait and get a PCI-Express S939 board and get a PCI-Express GFX card then you might just have that taken care of.

S939 is a good choice if you want to OC (3000+, 3200+ 90nm CPUs). Otherwise go with the cheaper socket, nForce3 perfered of course.

 

[peterhoang2002]

i planned to get the 2800+ or the 3000+ along with a chaintech vnf-250 motherboard. heard that combo was a good over clocker. and ill add a 9800 pro once newegg has the 256 bit versions that are around 200 back in stock...

unless they new boards with nf4 chips come out within a month or so, ill just go ahead and get the stuff listed above