To 64-Bit or Not to 64-Bit. That is the question.

Hawk

Hey Everyone,
I'm building a new semi-budget system that's quite an upgrade to what I have at the moment.
And I have a few questions nagging at me about it before I load the OS, MB drivers, Video Drivers, etc.
Here's what I'm putting in the system build...

ASRock AOD790GX/128M AM2+/AM2 AMD 790GX ATX AMD Motherboard
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813157141

AMD Athlon X2 7850 Black Edition Kuma 2.8GHz (unlockable)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819103678

Thermaltake CL-P0464 DuOrb 80mm CPU Cooler
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835106114

1 X Western Digital VelociRaptor WD 150GB 10000 RPM 16MB Cache SATA 3.0Gb/s 3.5" Internal Hard Drive
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822136296

OCZ Platinum 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 1066 (PC2 8500) Dual Channel Kit
1066MHz @ CL 5-5-5-18 timings
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820227298

POWERCOLOR AX4870 1GBD5 Radeon HD 4870 1GB Video Card
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814131148

Sony Optiarc Black 24X 2MB Cache SATA DVD/CD Rewritable Drive
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16827118030

CORSAIR-650TX ATX12V / EPS12V SLI Ready CrossFire Ready Active PFC Compatible with Core i7 Power Supply
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817139005

NZXT TEMPEST ATX Mid Tower Case
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811146047

I'm putting Win 7 OS on it.
I've been using the 32-bit ver since it came out for testing.
I'm very pleased with it and will continue to use it.
So should I get Win 7 64-bit or 32-bit?
I assume I need to use all the Vista drivers on the CD that came with the MB unless I can get Win 7 drivers.
I checked the ASRock site and they don't have Win 7 drivers.
There are some Win 7 drivers I can get for it from AMD though, which I will.
Do I need to or should I put Win 7/Vista 64-bit & drivers or just Win 7/Vista 32-bit & drivers?
I put the Win 7/ Vista because I'm not sure I can get all Win 7 drivers so some may be Vista drivers.
All of my software and anything I can think of is 32-bit of course, because I've never run anything 64-bit.
Can I get most of the 64-bit software/drivers etc for what's in this sytem?
I already have some available that I've collected in the last few days.
If I can't get 64-bit software and I have 64-bit OS on it, will the 32-bit software/ programs run on it?
Is there any benefit to getting all 64-bit applications/ mobo / gpu /etc. drivers ?
I wasn't sure if this MB and all I'm putting in it would run better or benefit from using the Newer 64-bit.
If you recommend the Win 7 64-bit, let me know if there's anything I should watch out for or make sure to get.
One thing I'm wondering about is installing the SATA drivers and where do I get the latest version for 64-bit or 32-bit?
I have installed Sata raptors in most of my other systems.
Hit F6 when the OS install asks. Put the floppy in. That's on XP though.
Don't know if Win 7 does it differently. This will be a fresh install.
Because the drive is Sata 3.0 and I want it to run to it's full potential.
And yes I know I will be re-installing when Win 7 comes out.
I've already pre-ordered for all my pc's and lappy.
Ok, Any replies/suggestions are welcome. Thnx all.

primesuspect

There's no reason NOT to go 64 bit now. Memory is just gonna get cheaper and cheaper, and you'll be wanting 4gb, then 8gb sometime soon. May as well jump in now while you're reinstalling.

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Thrax

So should I get Win 7 64-bit or 32-bit?

64-bit.

I assume I need to use all the Vista drivers on the CD that came with the MB unless I can get Win 7 drivers.

Never assume that. The drivers that come on the CD are old and out of date. Download the individual drivers from the companies that made the chipset (AMD), video card (ATI) and sound card (Realtek or ADI).

If you can't find Windows 7-specific drivers, use Vista x64 drivers.

I checked the ASRock site and they don't have Win 7 drivers.

Never go to a motherboard manufacturer's site for drivers. They're almost guaranteed to be out of date.

All of my software and anything I can think of is 32-bit of course, because I've never run anything 64-bit.

All of your software will run just fine. 64-bit gives you the ability to run 64-bit programs; it doesn't take away the ability to run 32-bit programs.

Can I get most of the 64-bit software/drivers etc for what's in this sytem

You'll be able to get x64 drivers for every device in your system. More than likely, you'll only have to download chipset and video. Windows 7 should take care of the rest.

If I can't get 64-bit software and I have 64-bit OS on it, will the 32-bit software/ programs run on it?

Just to reinforce the point: 32-bit software will run just fine on a 64-bit OS.

Is there any benefit to getting all 64-bit applications/ mobo / gpu /etc. drivers ?

You'll have to get 64-bit drivers if you want them to work.

I wasn't sure if this MB and all I'm putting in it would run better or benefit from using the Newer 64-bit.

You won't be able to use all 4GB of your RAM if you don't use 64-bit, and there's no difference in the experience between 32-bit and 64-bit. You install drivers, install your apps, and you're done. It's Windows. Nothing special.

One thing I'm wondering about is installing the SATA drivers and where do I get the latest version for 64-bit or 32-bit? I have installed Sata raptors in most of my other systems. Hit F6 when the OS install asks. Put the floppy in. That's on XP though.

They'll come bundled with the chipset driver. You will not need to install SATA drivers during installation as Windows 7 has generic SATA drivers that it can use during installation to detect devices configured for AHCI.

shwaip

often times, you can get driver updates from windows update - windows update has had almost all the drivers i needed for win7 64. I did upgrade some others outside of windows update, it definitely had enough to get things started.

Hawk

Yep Prime,
I used it for ordering all this stuff. It all arrived this afternoon.
And I'll use it for all my future ordering too.
I made sure I got the 2 x 2GB of ram. And this mobo will take more ram when needed.
I'm doing this build on money from selling my lower systems that have been laying around for a yr or so.
Lot's of family and friends that want to just get on the net and do e-mail and read news etc.
And few that want to upgrade from older systems.
My 1-2 yr old sytems are great for that and more, so all are happy.

Thrax,
Thnx man. Yes I have been DLing drivers from the individual companies.
I stopped until I made a decision on which Win7 version I was going with.
Thnx to you guys I'll make the jump to Win 7 64-bit.
Oh, And I'm so glad it has the generic SATA drivers to load SATA drives now.
Whoopee! No more floppy loading drivers.

shwaip,
Thnx for the input.
Yes, I was really pleased when I installed Win 7 32-bit and it loaded drivers for just about everything in my system.
I'm glad to hear it does the same for 64-bit too.

I appreciate all your input guys and I'll let you know how it goes.

GnomeWizardd

you will love your 4870!

EDIT: Oh and go 64bit, I am using win 7 64, LOVE IT