Win7 or new CPU
Upgrading my current system in stages until I can move to an i7, (or i9 when they come out next year)
Just upgraded the mobo on my HP m8200n to an GIGABYTE|GA-MA785GM-US2H
Now I'm considering either getting Win7 64bit or upgrading my dual core AMD Athlon 64 x2 6000+ to a Quad core AMD Phenom II X4 965 Black Edition.
I'm leaning towards Win7 since I'm on Vista 32bit now.
The cost is nearly the same, and both upgrades will happen at some point. But which should I do first?
Just upgraded the mobo on my HP m8200n to an GIGABYTE|GA-MA785GM-US2H
Now I'm considering either getting Win7 64bit or upgrading my dual core AMD Athlon 64 x2 6000+ to a Quad core AMD Phenom II X4 965 Black Edition.
I'm leaning towards Win7 since I'm on Vista 32bit now.
The cost is nearly the same, and both upgrades will happen at some point. But which should I do first?
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On the other hand, buying Windows 7 now is pretty sound since we won't see price drops for the OS any time soon. The 965BE doesn't offer that luxury. It'll be cheaper the longer you wait, and for the same money something faster will take its place. If you don't need the raw power at this very moment, you might be better served financially by getting Win7 first.
Still, you're going to want Windows 7 ASAP. It's also an incredible upgrade.
Welcome to Icrontic
I could also add consideration of upgrading Ram from DDR2-667 to DDR2-800 or DDR2-1060, But I'm thinking the RAM is a diminishing return vs performance.
4GB DDR2 667 in dual channel (2x2GB)
would I really see a big difference in performance going to 4GB1066?
I think my motherboard, GIGABYTE|GA-MA785GM-US2, only supports one dimm of 1066 per channel due to a AMD CPU limitation, which kills the advantages of dual channel memory.
I would just caution you that if you are thinking you may want to do a new build altogether at some point make sure you buy a full retail license that you can install on new hardware later on.
As to what others have said I am using a 965 BE and its a huge leap forward in terms of processing capability compared to your 6000+ which certainly is a respectable dual core.
What is your main computing objective? What kind of jobs are you hoping to accelerate?
I'm looking at achieving less lag with adobe Lightroom when using the local adjustment brush. Less lag in photoshop when working in liquefy or working on large files. and my Wife wants to work in Revit MEP without too much rendering lag.
As for win 7 I would have to get a full version and do a fresh install as my current system is 32bit and I'll be moving to 64bit....I was thinking about the OEM/system builders route to get a copy.
If your apps use lots of ram (from the sounds of things, you definitely do) then I recommend 8GB of 800 ram. 8GB at 800 compared to 4GB at 1066 with the apps you are talking about would simply scream. The extra 4GB would prevent paging which is the biggest bottleneck in a system right now. Extra ram (even if it was running 533 MHz) is 1000 times faster than your HDD.
I agree. More RAM instead of faster makes allot of sense, keep in mind you would have to upgrade to the 64 bit OS first.
On the topic of AMD Quad Cores, keep in mind that that newegg still has the 955 model which is close to eqivilant for about $25 less. Its not a giant savings, but if budget is a limiting factor I think its probably the better deal.
the 965BE would give the biggest boost to raw processing abilities
More Ram is better then faster, but would require moving to a 64bit OS (my wife just got 4GB extra on her work system now at 8GB on 64bit vista....no noticeable change in lag in Revit MEP....I question if this is a good route to go, or if the work she does causes Revit to still hit the paging file with 8GB of ram...how to test if the paging file is the issue, or if CPU or GPU processing is the issue)
64bit win7 is a necessary upgrade at some point, and before more ram.
still leaves open the question of which is better, 32bit vista or 64bit win7 on a dual core???
and leaves open the question of Quad core vs dual core on 32bit vista?? (ok maybe not fully open as the 965BE rocks but how much less does it rock in 32bit?)
the final question is 64bit win7 on a dual core vs 32bit vista on a 965BE? (mostly answered, since the 965BE is a power house compared to the A64 6000+)
Sledgehammer70, do you want to justify your point of view?
My honest opinion having used Vista 32 and 64 and Windows 7 64. Windows 7 is worth every single dime of the upgrade price. As an enthusiast your going to want a 64 bit OS, to eventually address more RAM and leverage 64 bit optimized software. At some point, Windows 7 64 bit is a no brainier. Will the software itself speed up your power tasks? Probably not by much, but its just a leaner better optimized Windows experience, everything about 7 is better than Vista. At this early stage it might even be worth considering a full retail license, just in case you want to rebuild down the road.
The thing is, the software will likely hold its price, but CPU's constantly depreciate, so if you hold off a little on that you might get a better deal.
Windows 7 is the way forward, so is 64-bit, why invest in anything else? You are limited to 4GB of ram (and you won't even see/use all of that) with anything 32-bit (XP, Vista, or 7).
You have already talked about using some heavy hitting programs, there is just no reason to get any other OS, in my opinion.
In less than 2 years, EVERYTHING is going to be aimed at 64-bit.
the 965BE would give the biggest boost to raw processing abilities
64bit-Win7 would give minor performance advantages, but is the way forward.
looks like most people are recommending 64bit-Win7
I have one issue with 64bit-Win7, Photoshop and Revit are not yet certified for 64bit-Win7 only Lightroom is certified. I could try running the uncertified programs in XP-mode or just accept any potential issues.....seems there is as many questions as there are answers to this issue.
I don't think you'll have any issues with Revit, either.
The days "64bit not working with stuff" are long gone.
BuddyJ, thanks for your input on the compatibility question.
Now for a decision on the $200 question.....I'm still torn.....the new CPU let's me rebuild my old mobo into a decent (but large) netdesk for just surfing and other office stuff.....
ok I've thought it through.....I'll do the CPU upgrade.
Then I'll sell off all my old computers until I have enough for win7 and maybe some more Ram.
Any one interested in any of the following....Off to craigslist and ebay they will go
AMD Athalon 900Mhz, 768 sdram, Ecc|K7VZA motherboard, AGP Ati Rage 128 (no hd)
P4b 1.6 GHz, 768 MB DDR, AGP ATI radeon 7000, Asus|P4B266 motherboard with 80GB HD and win2k
Dell Precision 530 Workstation, Single Xeon 1.8 GHz, 512MB ECC Rimm Ram, Geforce4 440 AGP8x 200GB HD and winxp Pro
Dell Precision 530 Workstation, Two Xeon 1.8 GHz CPU, 1.5 GB ECC Rimm Ram, Nvidia Quardo2 Pro with 180GB HD and winxp Pro