CPU Upgrade Dilema

[JKatCL]

I have a P4 2.4ghz,512 of 2100 ram, running a 9800 pro card.

Benchmarks: 2k1 12600
2k3 5300

My Question:If I upgrade to a 3.06 533 fsb proc. what are your thoughts on what gains i might achieve. I am stuck with 2100 type ram.(board limitation). Would i gain enough to warrant spending $250.

 

[RM_Bulldog]

not really better off spending the money on a new motherboard and better ram at least that is the path i chose

 

[BillLeeLee]

Are you happy with your performance now? What are your upgrade habits like (when would you move on to new mobos, newer procs, etc.)?

The 2.4B with a 9800 Pro is still a pretty good combination. You could try OCing the 2.4, but since you're limited by memory, maybe not, but I don't think you'd notice drastic changes by going to a 3.06, although it introduces HT into the mix.

I'd say save the money for when you plan something more substantial, and don't judge everything based on 3DMark or other synthetic benchmarks.

 

[JKatCL]

Thanks for your replys.(bulldog and bill). I am quite happy with my rig's performance but I keep seeing these fantastic benchmarks and I think what are these people acheiving in gaming that i'm not. I'm not into multiplayer and do not play on line.

 

[Walleye]

i dont know where you're getting the performance hit. 3dmark2k1 is not really cpu dependant, and my machine does 13800, and it's somewhat worse than yours.

I think your problem is the memory bandwidth. i'm personally using pc1066 RD RAM, half a gig. and a 2.66 ghz processor, and a radeon 9700 (non pro.) what's worse, this is a DELL.

I personally think you'd gain more from a different approach. dump the board, the processor, and the RAM. buy a 2.4C (or hotter) and some pc3200 RAM, and a good OCing board. overclock it, and drop the 9800pro in there. you should beat 16-17000 easy...

 

[JKatCL]

Thanks for your input walleye. Excuse my ignorance but what does the c after 2.4 mean. I've seen a b also thanks

 

[BillLeeLee]

A Northwood C has a 200 Mhz base FSB (800 Mhz effective) and the chips all have Hyper threading.

A Northwood B has a 133 Mhz base FSB (533 Mhz effective) and do not have hyperthreading, except for the 3.06 Ghz B chip.

 

[Captain Rehab]

Why don't you just get a new mb and some fast RAM?

 

[CleanSlate]

another vote for new mobo and better ram + OC that 2.4 to ~2.8-3.0

 

[JKatCL]

Thanks for your input CapRehab and CleanSlate. I agree with you both. The problem is I've got a Dell.(learning the hard way). It has a propietary mob that can only be replaced by a similar one bought from them. My only option to increase performance(other than changing computers) is to replace the 2.4b with the 3.06. I'm wondering(everything remaining the same) how much this change would add to my 2k1 score.(12600 now). I know this would only be an estimate but with the background of alot of the members it could be somewhere in the ballpark. Thanks

 

[Captain Rehab]

Honest, you will tweak and tweak on the dell and never be satisfied. Take your $250 and buy a real nice case and PSU and start saving for the rest of the goodies - build yourself a nice enthusiast pc. You will have so much more freedom to work on it, and will learn a lot in the process. Keep the dell and set up a little network just to learn. Soon you will have more PCs than you know what to do with.

Muhahahahahahahahah!

 

[MemoryInAGarden]

A case, PSU, and motherboard will work wonders for your system. If you're lucky, you might even get 3.0 out of the processor.

 

[JKatCL]

Thanks guys. I am already putting together a list to build a new computer. There is a ton of info on these forums. I also just found out from Intel that my mob will not accept the 3.06 I was hoping to upgrade to. 2.8 is tops.
I'll keep the 2.4 on the Dell and network. Buy a new Intel 2.8 with HP for the new computer.