Can I run an opteron CPU?

[ComicDom1]

Well of course if you just look at the specs AMD puts out there's no difference between a dual 2.2GHz/1MB 939 opteron and a dual 2.2GHz 939 Athlon64, it's just well known by overclockers that the opteron, being a server chip, overclocks better. A chip's ability to overclock has little to do with its spec sheet from AMD. In fact overclocks can vary widely between different steppings for which AMD publishes identical specifications. The only exception I know of where the specs directly affect the overclock is if the chip is designed to operate at a lower voltage than normal (AthlonXP-M, Athlon64 X2 EE), or of course if it's a server chip.

 

I do not know if its well known by overclockers that server chips overclock better. What is known is that server chips or workstation chips have stricker guidelines as to what will be acceptable and what will not be. Steppings always change based on production, and that is really no secret.

 

You really do bring up an interesting point here. Do chips designed for servers really overclock better? Intel released a line of Duo Core Xeons, I think the 3060 is the one I am thinking of. It has the same spec as the E6600. I wonder if they overclock better just because they are Xeons?

 

Jason

[Poisonsnak]

That would be my guess, though I hardly know anything about intel CPUs. But even looking at overclocks between Athlons and Opterons you'll notice the Opterons usually either hit a better clock on average or hit the same clock with a lot lower Vcore.

 

This next bit is a lot of hearsay and speculation but I've heard that AMD just cranks out 939 CPUs (for example, should apply to any one though) at their factory and tests them and puts them in different bins (called chip binning). Chips that run higher clocks or the same clocks at lower voltage are binned as mobile CPUs (although there is no mobile 939, bad example), FX series, or Opterons, and chips that do worse are binned as Athlons depending on their speed, and chips that do really poorly have part of their cache disabled, are retested for speed, and binned as Semprons.

[k€lticknight]

I see no need for that, seeing as you have a 680W PSU. How many amps does it have on the 12v rails though?

 

+12

23a

14a

15a

=

52 amps

isn't recommendation more like 60 amp

[k€lticknight]

looking at ocz gx 700 psu

my +12 rails are 14a,23a,15a and 0.5 a

where the ocz 700 is 4 x 18a

is this better

[ComicDom1]

That would be my guess, though I hardly know anything about intel CPUs. But even looking at overclocks between Athlons and Opterons you'll notice the Opterons usually either hit a better clock on average or hit the same clock with a lot lower Vcore.

 

This next bit is a lot of hearsay and speculation but I've heard that AMD just cranks out 939 CPUs (for example, should apply to any one though) at their factory and tests them and puts them in different bins (called chip binning). Chips that run higher clocks or the same clocks at lower voltage are binned as mobile CPUs (although there is no mobile 939, bad example), FX series, or Opterons, and chips that do worse are binned as Athlons depending on their speed, and chips that do really poorly have part of their cache disabled, are retested for speed, and binned as Semprons.

 

Yes I am aware of all of that. I have several different systems and I overclocked an Athlon XP-M 2500+ Barton core in my Gigabyte 7NNXP. If I recall right, XP-M chips or mobile Cpu's, used Power Now technology for battery saving purposes, and they were lower voltage binned to help control the heat and conserve battery life.

 

I think the Jury is still out on the differences between processors like the Intel Conroe E-6600 and the Xeon 3060. The Xeon 3060 is designed for workstation and I do play on making a call to Intel to find out if there is any difference but I doubt they would tell me that they just rebadged the same Conroe chip under a Xeon name. The pricing between the two is very close.

 

It certainly would be the same thing with Opteron Dual core vs X2's I really doubt that AMD is going to tell me that they just rebadged the chips for marketing purposes.

 

Jason

[27floyd]

Either way a 165 is the way to go. Best bang for the buck.