Opteron 165 vs 170 ...and which monitor?

[Fogel]

// Start useless chatter... feel free to skip to the end of this chatter bit

For those who helped me in my other thread, thank you. I thought about it some more and figured if I am to build a 2nd computer now is the time. Granted this one will be built knowing full well its the last of its kind, there's no hopes of upgrading it down the line since AMD is moving to AM2 and Intel finally came up a good response to AMD, in the name of Core 2. I have no desire to alpha test either, plus I doubt AMD is gonna stand idle while Intel kicks their butt with the Core 2. So its probably going to be a price war and high tech stand off for awhile. Also I got memory and a gpu collecting dust, I might as well put them to use.

 

What I'm tossing my gray matter on is the Opteron. I have to admit that I'm bandwagoning this b/c I never considered this chipset before. I don't even know much about them, I don't even see them used in benchmarks from the major review sites. I got single core now so i want my next to be dual core. People with the chips I thought were good (4400 and 4800) are saying they want the Opterons so hence this thread.

// End Chatter

 

So now I'm debating on the 165 and the 170. I don't mind shedding out an extra $69 since I can skip a nite or 2 of drinking or a few nights of going out to eat to compensate. But that doesn't mean I want to spend $69 just to spend it. Its still a lot of money and Ramen CAN get old. If I'm gonna bust my arse to pay for it and skip some entertainment luxuries it better pull its weight if you know what I mean.

 

This is the system I'm thinking of making:

 

Opteron 165 ($327) or 170 ($396) Denmark

DFI Lanparty ULTRA-D

OCZ Gold Series 2x1GB PC4000 (3-4-4-8 ...going from memory here, HA, I made a sad funny!:eek:)

7800GT eVGA

WD 74GB 10,000 RPM 16MB Cache Serial ATA150 (x 2 for Raid 0)

OCZ GX700 PSU

Thermaltake Big Typhoon Fan/HS

Thermaltake Armor Case

 

The RAM and GPU are really the only things that can't let go since they are collecting dust atm and they are the reason I am doing this upgrade. Well not the only. I do kind of want a websurfer/media machine (my current) while I game on the primary. (the one I'm thinking of building) I noticed the two big core chipsets for the Opteron that Newegg offers is the Italy (the HIGH priced stuff) and the Denmark. There were two others (Sledgehammer and Venus) but nobody here seems to use them.

 

1 - Is the 170 worth the price difference? ...whether you OC or not? (I do plan on trying my hand @ OCing)

 

2 - From what I've read here its hardware specific but given the info above, does it look like i'll have the ability to OC fairly well?

 

3 - People seem mixed on TT's stuff. The people who have the Big Typhoon seem happy but should I be looking elsewhere for a Fan/HS?

 

4 - I know some really hate TT cases and I have to admit that the Tsunami probably wasn't the best case to build my 1st system on since it was a pita to worth with (never did install the firewire ...oh well, not like I need it anyway) but other than that I don't mind it. The doors on the Armor don't look like the best design but I'm rarely changing CDs/DVDs so not really an issue for me. I don't plan on lugging it around so the weight is not an issue either. Other than those things, does anyone see where the Armor might be a bad choice for a case? I DID look at the CM Stackers and while they look far more functional than the Armor, they just look too boring to me. And while 90% of the time I side on the side of functional... sometimes you just need some style too. Course if the inside of mine looked half as cool as Happy_Gamer's than I might re-consider. But I know it won't. I'll be lucky if I can tidy up the wires to look halfway decent.

 

5 - Thinking I'd go with the 700w PSU since it MIGHT last me till the next system or GPU update. Or will it really be good enough for the AM2 or Core2 and maybe I should just go with the 600w version? The difference is $30 so 30cents per watt for that extra 100w.

 

6 - Any monitors worth looking at more than others?

 

Ok, more questions than a simple 165 vs 170, but eh. :cool: Since i'll be dumping some hard earned future money & time in this I'm gonna press my luck as much as i can here!

 

(*sniff* So long 939, you'll always carry a soft spot in muh heart)

[CPDMF]

With Almost all of the AMD CPU's taking so well to dividers I would say the 165 would be fine.

Memory looks good.

May want to look into the Hitachi Sata 2 drives. You won't get the same access times but performance other than that would be on par with 2 Raptors and cost 1/3 as much.

Never owned a TT anything, can't help you there.

You can never have too large of a Power Supply, go for the 700 as I am pretty confident the next gen boards, maybe 2 will be EPS compliant models.

I haven't seen an LCD monitor that really sets me back yet. I have a Samsung 940BF 4ms LCD, it's very nice, but as far as picture quality it is just a hair behind my NEC CRT.

[Fogel]

My threads don't seem to attract very many people into responding ...not sure why , so I definitely appreciate you taking the time to respond.

 

I kind of got impatient last night and ordered the Raptors since they have a $30 rebate on them. And unlike most rebates, I can actually use it for two purchases instead of just 1. I suppose worse comes to worse I can return the drives. I've always been a bargin bin hunter especially when it came to HDDs so I was gonna try a stab at some high dollar ones for a change. I see you have Raptors, you not pleased with them?

 

And I guess I spoke too soon about not seeing anyone using the Venus core Opteron. I really have no clue about the different models. There does not seem to be much documentation explaining them. None of the review sites I have been to have I readily seen them used in benchmarks. Its always the mainstream 939 stuff.

 

I'm not really married to TT, just heard a lot of good things about both the Big Typhoon and the Armor. So if you know another Fan/HS to try or case, I'm all ears. Other ones I seen recommended are the T-90 or T-120 i think it is. And the Scythe Ninja? (tried searching for it on Newegg, no luck)

 

I have Samsung 940b atm (8ms) but it ghosts way more than I'd like... especially in BF2. And I have to admit I like my parents View Sonic more ...did much better w/ BF2 than my comp did. The 940b is also a little too light in many colors. Not sure if its just the model I got or if the later Samsungs are the same. I was also curious about the Ben Q monitors. Not exactly main stream stuff but seen some flattering reviews on them, just curious from people who actually use them day to day rather than just from a quickie review.

[ciberfog]

Well if u have luck with the 165 u can hit 3.0 ghz easy. a 600w will be enought. the question for a monitor is how much u want to spend on it, and for what u will use it.

[Fogel]

Pure gaming machine. Maybe some multi-media (movies etc.) and 2-D graphics generation. Do you think I need memory with tighter timings to achieve 3.0Ghz? Since the memory is bought and paid for and way past return date its really a loaded question just to see if my OC headroom is low so maybe the 170 is better for my case or if the 165 just plain has more headroom to work with.

 

Kinda curious if the 170 is really the same chip as the 165, just factory overclocked?

 

I could list some monitors but I wanted to see if I left it open if I'd get more suggestions.

[Phsophate bond]

I'm assuming you know the 3800 X2 will price drop to $170 and I think even the 4600 X2 will be about $300. (EDIT: re-reading your post. I have no idea why anyone with a 1 MBx 2 L2 cache X2 would want an opteron unless it was something like a 175 at least)

 

 

 

 

Hopefully the 165 will price drop to sub $200 as well, but this hasn't been announced.

[Frenchy2k1]

And I guess I spoke too soon about not seeing anyone using the Venus core Opteron. I really have no clue about the different models. There does not seem to be much documentation explaining them. None of the review sites I have been to have I readily seen them used in benchmarks. Its always the mainstream 939 stuff.

To answer this: Opteron are the professionnal equivalent of the X2. They come in 3 categories:

• 1xx: single CPU processor
  
• 2xx: double CPU processor
  
• 8xx: 4xCPU and up to 8xCPU.
  

. You need difference categories for this on AMD platform as the CPU are directly connected to each other (point to point Hypertransport link) and hence you need more port to connect more processors together (1 port in 1xx, 2 ports in 2xx and 3 ports in 8xx).

 

Opterons were only on the s940 (NOT the AM2) platform, but AMD decided to leverage their nice s939 platforms for their workstation processors and hence released s939 1xx processors. As those are qualified for workstation and professionnal equipment, they are tested to higher standards or quality. As AMD wanted to push their workstation market share, they sold them for cheap. Overclockers caught this bargain (similar specs but cheaper than X2s, highly overclockable from the thorough testing). AMD raised the prices (slightly). The opterons are still a great bargain.

[Praz]

Assuming your chip will be 3.0 stable ( and that assuming a lot) your memory will be fine with either processor. 165 - 334x9/3006MHz, 150 divider/251MHz. 170 - 300x10/3000MHz, 166 divider/250MHz. If you're not going to overclock then the 170 gives you 200MHz more at stock settings but statistically the 165 overclocks better if thats your goal. But with all overclocking its a shot in the dark.

 

I've been looking for a new case for a while. I've poured over everything I could find. I finally ordered a Lian Li PC-G70. There's a couple of things I don't like about it but I think from a functional standpoint it's about as perfect as can be gotten right now. But it doesn't have the looks of the Armor.

[Phsophate bond]

I've been looking for a new case for a while. I've poured over everything I could find. I finally ordered a Lian Li PC-G70. There's a couple of things I don't like about it but I think from a functional standpoint it's about as perfect as can be gotten right now. But it doesn't have the looks of the Armor.

 

How did you like your Antec p160? That's the case I got after reading reviews (previous to that I was leaning towards one of the Lian Li cases)

[Praz]

Its a nice case. The airflow is great. I have a Nexus 120mm/7V fan in the front and the stock fan on the rear and the temperature never exceeds 3C above ambient. I built a box that contains the radiator and pump that it sits on. I really don't have a need to switch cases. I guess I'm just bored. So I thought I'd move everything inside the case but I didn't want it to look crowded.

[Fogel]

Now we are talking!!! This is the kind of discussion I was hoping to ignite.

 

 

Phsophate bond,

Ya, Pakmanis alerted me to this in another thread. I want a dual core with the next build so that rules out the 3800, plus its not really enough of an upgrade from my 3500 to base a whole new system on. Though you do bring up a good point in that I have not considered the 4600 hard enough. The Manchester line I always kind of ignored because they were always lacking in the gaming department compared to their Toledo brothers and sisters (ie. 4200 vs 4400, 4600 vs 4800). But it is a linear progression with the model #s so a 4600 will outperform a 4400 - all things being equal (like running at stock speeds).

 

So when the price cut happens that would put the 4600 at $301, which it put it from almost $100 more to over $150 less than the 4400. This DOES make the 4600 more attractive the more I think about it. Its definitely on my radar now, thanks.

 

I guess the question now is... how does the 4600 OC and how would it compare to a Opty 165 OCed?

 

 

Frenchy2k1,

Thanks mate, thats a good bit of history. At least I know a tad more about the Opterons than I did before.

 

Praz,

Awesome OC potential info. Thats kind of information I'm looking for. I know I won't be building the best but I still want to get the most bang for my buck. I'm also thinking this will be the perfect system to try things out I was too afraid to try on my 1st system - Overclocking, 10k rpm HDDs (well not scared, more like too cheap to try these before), wiring my system the proper way! (i need to look for a tutorial :cool:) etc. Know if the 7800GT OC's well? I hear it runs a LOT cooler than my current 6800GT.

 

Both of those cases look nice, lots of room. My Tsunami was a PITA to work with so I'm praying the Armor isn't TOO bad. If its not worse I think I should be ok. Why can't they make a case thats the best in functionality AND style?!? Gah, you wouldn't think it would be THAT hard. Seems like you always gotta give up 1 to take the other ...guess thats just how life is tho. Just praying it could be different with computers than it is for women - at least you can control a computer...

[calvintang]

why get raptor?

if your that 'rich' then its ok.. but hitachi's in raid can do the job..

and dont just get the raptor... what happens if one of the drive fails? you lose ALL your data..

well... your monitor.. get one that fits your graphics card resolution...