Upgrade to 2GHz, or why bother?!

[uncleel]

I got an unexpected Xmas bonus, $350.00 !

I immediately had visions of a Asus A7V333 w/ a nice XP (2000+) & some quality ram (512mb)

But then I got to thinking, or procrastinating, is jumping from a Abit KT7raid w/ a Athlon 1.2 to a XP 1.6 -to- 1.8 GHz really worth it @ this time?

The NEW Athlon XP 2800+ & 2700+ Thoroughbred 'B' 2.25GHz & 2.17GHz are coming out. The price wars have even made a Northwood P4 seem reasonable.

So it seems like I'd be better socking the money away in a savings account & not upgrade until I can go 2GHz or better. Hence, upgrade to 2GHz, or why bother?!

[Paleo Pete]

Don't bother, you'll never see the difference. I believe it was mjc who posted a rather good thread a while back that basically pointed out that unless you upgrade to 3 times your current CPU speed it would not make a noticable difference. I've seen a 1.2GHz Athlon beside a 1.7GHz, couldn't tell them apart.

[BigBlue66]

I agree with the shiny head guy. :D

I can't hardly tell the difference between my youngest son's Athlon one gig system and my XP 1900+ at 1.6.

If you really want to spend some money now, I could use a really nice DVD burner. :)

[Budfred]

Ditto, I would look for other ways to spend the bucks or save and wait for the next big thing. AMD is putting out 64bit chips sometime next year and I am thinking about that.

Budfred

[saphalline]

I agree with Budfred on the AMD 64-bit idea. Unless you use programs/games that would benefit from increased speed (I'm thinking a minimum of a Barton on a 400MHz bus or a new P4 on an 800MHz bus) then just wait for the "64-bitters". The AMD ones have their own built-in memory controller! :D

[uncleel]

Originally posted by Paleo Pete
...unless you upgrade to 3 times your current CPU speed it would not make a noticable difference.
Originally posted by Budfred
AMD is putting out 64bit chips sometime next year[/B]

HAMMER TIME!
Thanks all! This pretty much confirms what I was thinking. I got that KT7 w/ a Duron till I could afford a Athlon. This was coming from a BX6/PIII-500 which is still a good, stable machine. Even if I got the MSI/KT400 Ultra (which my friend swears by) & settled for a lesser cpu, the Hammers will be out by the time I could afford it.

So that money is going in a passbook savings account so I won't be inclined to touch it. I'm not upgrading till 3-4 gigz is a affordable reality.

[mjc]

with going form a Duron to an Athlon you might notice something, because of the larger L2 cache on the Athlon, but would it be enough, across the board to justify the cost...probably not. S I'm with you....save it for something else.

[ranchdog]

...in a way I have to disagree with you guys.

The advancement in NB/SB chipset design makes
a significant inprovement in performance. Meaning
Mboard upgrade.

Realizing that * things * often need to be a
total package for major improvement
ie: RAM, Vid Card, etc. But this can be governed
by what the PC is going to be used for.

I just put together a new system using the new nForce2
chipset. Epox 8RDA+. Coupled with a XP1700+ Thoroughbred.

Unit is clocked at 2005 Mhz on Air w/AX-7 HSF. 11.5 X 190

Did I notice a gain in speed and performance? Certainly.

Total cost for swap = $179

Satisfied with results for $$ spent? Certianly.


RD.

[mjc]

If it is just a CPU upgrade, which is what my impression was, then what was said I agree with (I brought it up originally......hehe), but going for the whole ball of wax, then yes there may be noticeable differences in speed...especially with a better mobo/chipset.....

I noticed a definite improvement just swapping mobos, keeping my old CPU.....

You went to the nForce chipset, which is supposed to be a screamer anyway, so I bet you would have seen improvement with your old CPU (if it is supported by the board).