I have ( actually had) a tyan 2885s mobo which recently shorted out and now won't work (Disk Read Error; flashing the bios did not help and I believe a chip is shorted out).

I have 2 amd 250 optys @ 2.4 ghz + radeon x800xt (AGP of corse).

I have some cash on hand and was wondering, should I upgrade to this:

A socket F Opteron 2210 Santa Rosa 1.8 ghz for $280 (2 of these should be faster than one F socket @ 2.0 ghz for $419?)

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6819105021

An ASUS KFN5-D SLI Dual Socket 1207 MOBO $290

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6813131038

1 CPU + MOBO = 570

2 CPU + MOBO = 850

-------------------------------------
OR
-------------------------------------



ASUS P5W DH DELUXE/WIFI-AP Socket T MOBO $270

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6813131025

Core 2 DUO E6600 @ 2.4 ghz $360

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6819115003

CPU + MOBO = 630

------------------------------------------------------------------


If I can't use my DDR 400 ram (for now), i'd get this

OCZ Gold 2GB (2 x 1GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM Unbuffered DDR2 800 $210 bucks

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6820227124

Vid Card:

SAPPHIRE 100150L Radeon X1900XTX 512MB@ $355 (unless someone mentions one for a better price).

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6814102037



AMD: 2 CPU = 850 + 210 + 355 = $1375
AMD: 1 CPU = 570 + 210 + 355 = $1135
Intel: 1 CPU = 630 + 210 + 355 = $1135


I plan on using the system for years to come and once I "retire" it, if its server hardware (AMD), I'll convert it over to a true back up server. If I go the Conroe route, I'll just replace the Tyan 2885s MOBO later and then have a stand alone server. Either way, this computer will be used for the next 3 + years.

I use it for work as well as games.

Having DDR2 and PCI Express is a big step over my AGP and DDR board. For server applications, I doubt having DDR2 (and PCI express would be useless for pushing data in and out) would really help in terms of data movement to back up stuff enough to warrant the upgrade for purely server purposes.

This Thread is for you.

It would seem the Core 2 Duo may end up giving you more performance over the dual Opteron rig you're looking at (especially in games).

Plus it costs less..

Unless you're going to be doing work that requires the use of the 4 core (dual Opteron Dual Cores) then I would definatly look towards the Core 2 Duo E6600.

This article might be worth something (I haven't had the chance to read it):

http://tweakers.net/reviews/646

It's not a direct comparison - they compare a Socket F Opteron to the Dempsey and Woodcrest core Xeons. But, since the Woodcrest is a Core 2 Duo design for servers, it should still be relevant.

Also, would a dual-core socket 1207 be better than a socket 940 for the price if i went the AMD ROUTE?

2 CPUS (both DUAL CORE)@ 1.8 ghz Santa Rosa socket 1207 $280x2

VS

1 CPU (SINGLE CORE)@ 2.6 ghz 252 TROY socket 940 $461x1

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6819103511

OR

1 CPU (DUAL CORE)@ 275 Italy 2.2GHz $540x1

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6819103551


I know this is a lot of info, if not the AMD, just disreguard this specific post.

Thanks guys.

Going the CONROE route would probably be best. Its never a good time to upgrade. I'm lookin forward to seeing what the K8L from AMD will do, but I guess thats a year away (at the least).

The conroe should hold me for a few years at least, especially with good ram and a good vid card.

Thanks guys.

No prob..

Core 2 Duo's are great processors... trust me.. it's not just that it's faster.. but when exiting Battlefield 2 my computer is instantly available no slow down at all.. hell it loads levels much quicker too.

But that's for gaming...

And in case you're wondering what I'm comparing it too.. well I have an AMD Athlon64 X2 4800+ oc'ed to 3.2GHz.. that's what I'm comparing too.

definitely get conroe , AMD sucks/

the only thing that sucks is wantabie fanboys that have there post ban. to prove my point here your tread. http://forumz.tomshardware.com/har [...] 99677.html

u suck too, but we still have you sucking here.

No doubt Conroe is good, but to take advantage of your existing hardware, I'd pick up a Tyan S2895 or a Supermicro H8DCE with a nice PCI-e video card, save a wad of cash and not have to totally revamp your rig...unless of course, a total upgrade is something you want to do...either way, good luck!

___________________________________________________________

Dude, I can't believe you actually referenced the bull$hit article to someone. You should hang your head in shame for perpetuating blatant FUD! I'm beginning to wonder about you Elmo...

Dude, I can't believe you actually referenced the bull$hit article to someone. You should hang your head in shame for perpetuating blatant FUD! I'm beginning to wonder about you Elmo...

Why is the article bullshit? Do you have proof that they are spreading FUD?

Dude, I can't believe you actually referenced the bull$hit article to someone. You should hang your head in shame for perpetuating blatant FUD! I'm beginning to wonder about you Elmo...

If I lived my life caring about what others think and living it according to there wants and needs I'd be pretty miserable. you can think what you like about me, it's your right afforded to you by the Constitution of your country (unless you live under some dictatorship regime).

That article is not FUD at all. Given the software used in that article and the authors needs are quite similar it makes sense to compare them. Also it's about the only real comparison we have between these two set's of systems aside from those at Xtremesystems which also point to the Core 2's strengths.

It won't win every benchmark.. but the fact that it stays competitive is convincing enough.

By the article writer's own admission it was not a direct comparison. Recommending that article is perpetuating bad/poor info/advice.

By the article writer's own admission it was not a direct comparison. Recommending that article is perpetuating bad/poor info/advice.

Ummm no he meant it was apples to oranges given the fact that the Opteron was able to process 4 threads simultaneously as opposed to the Core 2 Extreme X6800's 2 threads simultaneously.

This would indicate a definite advantage for the 2-Way Dual Core Opteron system in the tests conducted. So it's apples to oranges. But of course the results surprised him. They didn't surprise me as we've been discussing this over at Xtremesystems for quite some time.

Apple = Consumer Processor
Oranges = Server/Workstation Processor

Apples to Oranges.

EDIT:

I also wanted to analyze the authors comments.

Apple to Oranges.

It's apple to oranges because of thise..