Which Opteron to buy?

SUp.

Well as u can see in my sig. the overclock was a bit disappointing....and ive heard about Opterons reaching crazy speeds. SO with the current mobo and setup....what opteron do u recommend for excellent overclocking?

Budget: $250 CAD.

thanks.

My former rig was an Opty 170 OC'd to 3.0Ghz:

Model: OSA170DAA6CD
Stepping: CCBBE 0610DPMW
Serial: 1430261C60932
Core: Toledo

This stepping is the highest overclocker of the 939 Opty 170's, commonly reaching 2.8 to 3.0Ghz on high end air. 8)

The above stepping is for a 170. 165's don't typically OC as high as 170's, so they're well worth a few extra bucks. Some vendors provide stepping info, otherwise, it's a roll of the dice.

Good luck. 8)

Yes, a clean Opty 165 will typically OC 50% from 1.8 to 2.7 Ghz, but 2.8 to 3.0 Ghz is unusual on high end air. On stock cooling 2.5 to 2.6Ghz.

Keep in mind that every silicon semiconductor device is unique, and has different basic properties of electronics such as resistance, capacitance, inductance, impedance, and transconductance. Although two consecutive serial number CPU's from the same fabrication, with the same stepping codes, may appear identical, they're yielded from different location on the silicon wafer from which they're manufactured, and like diamonds, each has it's own unique flaws.

Even though their dynamic operational characteristics may be very similar, no two CPU's will overclock to exactly the same stable maximum speed, at the same voltage, at the same temperature. Additionally, in a dual core processor, one core will always become unstable before the other.

Hopefully you'll receive a clean CPU that will be a good overclocker, but you won't be able to predict your OC until you actually try it out.

Hope this helps. 8)

If you can find a vendor from which you can purchase specific steppings at a competitive price, then yes. Also remember that when you buy a CPU, you're also paying for the multiplier. This is partially why it's easier to OC the Opty 170, because you don't need to push the FSB as high as the 165.

3.0Ghz = 300Mhz FSB x 10 multiplier Opteron 170.

2.7Ghz = 300Mhz FSB x 9 multiplier Opteron 165.

Hope this help. 8)

What is an example of high end air cooling.
Oh and I'm thinking of getting an opty 165 w/ a DFI Lanparty 939 board, and a gig of good 'ol ocz ram.
How long do u think it'll be until those lanparty boards are out of stock on newegg because I've still got to raise funds.

The Opterons come with a decent stock heatpipe HSF. You can always upgrade later to the one in my sig, or others as good or better. Some users are very passionate about expressing their opinions concerning HSF's, so I won't comment. Google the CPU cooler reviews.

Too bad; the 170 is faster, and 1Gb RAM is minimal for the upcoming release of Vista, but if you must, then go with 1 module in single channel mode temporarily, then buy the second module when you can afford it.

The rulebook committee revolked my crystal ball license years ago, on the grounds of crystal ball abuse, and Newegg got the memo, so ever since then, they refuse to answer any of my questions about DFI MB's, or anyrhing else for that matter...

The memory will simply operate in single channel mode rather than dual channel, but it won't effect your OC. 8)

If you read through NewEgg's customer reviews, you'll see Opty's being used on this DFI. 8)

Not true in this case.

As has already been stated above:

Model: OSA170DAA6CD
Stepping: CCBBE 0610DPMW
Serial: 1430261C60932
Core: Toledo

http://www.overclock.net/amd-cpus/ [...] -core.html

This stepping is the highest overclocker of the 939 Opty 170's, commonly reaching 2.8 to 3.0Ghz on high end air. 8)

Considering the information already provided, and your experiences with Opterons, what are your recommendations for style69, k0rn_h0li0, and HotSauce?

Here is a list of stepings and overclocks
http://forums.extremeoverclocking. [...] p?t=246130
The fact is that the 165 and 170 are the same things. Same steping=same overclock, but you need a better mobo and RAM for the lower multiplier.

My 165 will do 3ghz with the stock cooler (CCBBE 0615 DPMW on a DFI nF4 Ultra-D with OCZ PC-4000.) Since your Asus may not do 333 HTT the 170 is the better choice.

Hey i went from a X2 3800 to an Opty 165 and as you can see mines at 3.0Ghz right now. i just got it there today i was running 2.7 for the past month. But what you need to look for is a mobo that can run the high "FSB" speed. Since im at almost 350 on my motherboard. i still need to bring my volts down since i cranked it up so it was not a limiting factor but i got mine from the egg and it was a really good buy as far as i was concerned... more than 1ghz OC, pretty impressive if you ask me.