• Some users have recently had their accounts hijacked. It seems that the now defunct EVGA forums might have compromised your password there and seems many are using the same PW here. We would suggest you UPDATE YOUR PASSWORD and TURN ON 2FA for your account here to further secure it. None of the compromised accounts had 2FA turned on.
    Once you have enabled 2FA, your account will be updated soon to show a badge, letting other members know that you use 2FA to protect your account. This should be beneficial for everyone that uses FSFT.

a64 socket 939?

A

akapaul

n00b
Joined
Jun 21, 2002
Messages
36
i'm looking into upgrading my current tbird 1.4 system to a a64 system.
it seems like the 754 socket is getting phased out
and socket 939 is the next step for athlon64s.

i want to get 939 as it is futureproof. however, the cpus are simply too expensive at this point.
should i just wait for the 939 chips to drop in price( till $200 or so)
or should i just get a 754 system??
 
Considering that you have't upgraded your processor for three or four years, do you plan on upgrading your processor within, say, the next two years? Socket 939 will probably be phased out on the high-end side of things in about two years, but if you see yourself upgrading in a year, maybe Socket 939 would be worth waiting for. Otherwise, if you're going to buy for the long haul, Socket 939 doesn't really offer anything better than what Socket 754 offers, except a brighter future in terms of upgrading during the next two years.
 
I agree. 754 (at least for us po' folks) sounds like the way to go right now.
 
xonik said:
Considering that you have't upgraded your processor for three or four years, do you plan on upgrading your processor within, say, the next two years? Socket 939 will probably be phased out on the high-end side of things in about two years, but if you see yourself upgrading in a year, maybe Socket 939 would be worth waiting for. Otherwise, if you're going to buy for the long haul, Socket 939 doesn't really offer anything better than what Socket 754 offers, except a brighter future in terms of upgrading during the next two years.
Click to expand...

Not so sure about that. I believe socket 939 will be around (at the top) for a good 3-4 years. Especially since they're pulling dual cores on it.

Unless you saw some roadmap I missed.
 
another question,

how good is an athlon64 3000+ compared to a barton clocked at 2.6 or 2.7 Ghz?
would it be better to just get a mobile barton and OC it?
 
akapaul said:
another question,

how good is an athlon64 3000+ compared to a barton clocked at 2.6 or 2.7 Ghz?
would it be better to just get a mobile barton and OC it?
Click to expand...

Depends on your budget and how soon after you're planning to upgrade.

Imo right now anything below an A64 isn't worth more than a year. The only exception to this would be the Sempron 3100 which shares many of the A64 benefits/characteristics.
 
Decelerate said:
Not so sure about that. I believe socket 939 will be around (at the top) for a good 3-4 years. Especially since they're pulling dual cores on it.

Unless you saw some roadmap I missed.
Click to expand...
The dual cores that AMD will introduce on Socket 939 can only have provisions for, at best, a 128-bit memory interface. That means that each core will get a dedicated memory interface, but it will be single channel only. It's a compromise solution, and one that will need to be resolved with a new socket, one way or another. Also, DDR2 or DDR3 support, both of which are coming within the next few years for AMD, will require a new socket.
 
xonik said:
The dual cores that AMD will introduce on Socket 939 can only have provisions for, at best, a 128-bit memory interface. That means that each core will get a dedicated memory interface, but it will be single channel only. It's a compromise solution, and one that will need to be resolved with a new socket, one way or another.
Click to expand...

it will be a high performance solution that will sell really well. Intel would be lucky just to keep up with it (in performance).
 
xonik said:
The dual cores that AMD will introduce on Socket 939 can only have provisions for, at best, a 128-bit memory interface. That means that each core will get a dedicated memory interface, but it will be single channel only. It's a compromise solution, and one that will need to be resolved with a new socket, one way or another. Also, DDR2 or DDR3 support, both of which are coming within the next few years for AMD, will require a new socket.
Click to expand...

Yeah I have read about those shortcomings, but I thought it was part of their plan all along. But for some reason I can't picture them releasing a new socket so soon. For referrence, how long ago was socket A introduced?
 
needmorecarnitine said:
are you sure about that?
Click to expand...
Am I sure that AMD will adopt DDR2 and/or DDR3 support within the next few years? Yes, I am very sure. Intel isn't going to drop DDR2 support like it did with RDRAM; DDR2 is already being tweaked for latency and other internal timings. All of the major memory firms are starting DDR2 production; eventually, DDR2 will put the squeeze on DDR production lines and on AMD. Beyond that, it won't be too long until AMD is satisfied with the performance of DDR2. Of course, they won't be too quick to drop Socket 939, but DDR2 support will come, and it will come within the next couple of years. As for DDR3, if the videocard market's DDR3 offerings are of any indication, this is a very successful, valuable design that could push out DDR2 quicker than originally anticipated. I'm sure that both Intel and AMD are including DDR3 in their next five years of plans, if not seriously considering it.
needmorecarnitine said:
it will be a high performance solution that will sell really well. Intel would be lucky just to keep up with it (in performance).
Click to expand...
That's true. I guess it will depend on a lot of factors, but I could see a dual core Dothan successor with integrated memory controllers being a threat to AMD's pending dual core plans. And such a solution from Intel wouldn't be surprising, considering how much of a copycat they have been as of late.
Decelerate said:
part of their plan all along.
Click to expand...
Of course, this plan could easily change if the competition steps up to the plate.
But for some reason I can't picture them releasing a new socket so soon. For referrence, how long ago was socket A introduced?
Click to expand...
They're going to need a new socket when they outgrow DDR; that's just a consequence of moving the memory controller onto the die. In the Socket A era, AMD had the luxury (or was it?) of being flexible with changing memory technologies. In the span of Socket A's heyday, we saw a progression from single PC133 SDRAM all the way to dual channel PC3200. Now that the CPU is married to its memory controller, it will have to evolve as the memory controller does. I for one think that the on-die memory controller was worth the trade-off of relatively frequent socket switches.
 
quick diffference between 754 and 939:
http://www.amd.com/us-en/Processors/ProductInformation/0,,30_118_9485_9487^9492,00.html

939 is worth it, imo. if u think it's too expensive right now (like i do) then wait a few more months and let some other manufacturers get their 939 boards out. prices will begin to drop after that. and hopefully by then nvidia and via would have worked out some more kinks w/ their chipsets.
 
this is how i see it.

I dont dont upgarde for long periods of time...basically i buy the best of the best and then hold on to it as long as possible. Right now i have a 1.4P system which totally sucks lol.

I am getting the 3500 becuase if your going to go all out...sciping on something doesnt seem worth it. If your going spend 230 on a proc..why not just spend the extra hundred and go for the gold to be safe.
 
KarmaPolice said:
I am getting the 3500 becuase if your going to go all out...sciping on something doesnt seem worth it. If your going spend 230 on a proc..why not just spend the extra hundred and go for the gold to be safe.
Click to expand...

considering that the socket 939 3500+ cpu itself costs more than a socket 754 and motherboard combined.........
 
Socket 939 may not need to be replaced with ddr2/3, the board would definately need an update, but wouldn't all AMD need to do is create a new memory controller on die, because opterons and the fx series all have on die memory controllers?
 
It's a simple as this--the DDR interface is a 184-pin affair, at least in the DIMM form. DDR2, however, is 240 pins. How do you account for the extra 56 pins when your processor is designed to interface with a 184-pin system? It seems as if AMD would need more pins, wouldn't you say?
 
KarmaPolice said:
this is how i see it.

I dont dont upgarde for long periods of time...basically i buy the best of the best and then hold on to it as long as possible. Right now i have a 1.4P system which totally sucks lol.

I am getting the 3500 becuase if your going to go all out...sciping on something doesnt seem worth it. If your going spend 230 on a proc..why not just spend the extra hundred and go for the gold to be safe.
Click to expand...

Because you will probably be wanting to swap that mobo out in a few months anyway when AMD boards start shipping with PCIx, etc. Best way to go now is get 754, then go 939 when all the goodies that go with it come out. For the same price as 939 now you can go 754 cpu/mobo combo and then 939 cpu/mobo with new tech combo in several months. All for the total cost of 939 right now.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top