Upgrade

[silky62678]

I have about 100 dollars to upgrade something. I wanted to know should i upgrade the cpu to a 2500+ overclocked to 3000 speeds, or get another still of memory 256mb 3200, per my specs?

 

[Taurus]

get a 2500+ to replace your 2400+? uh, no... not wise.

get another stick of 256mb pc3200 so you can take advantage of dual-ddr. try to get the same brand and model memory you already have to ensure compatibility.

then try to overclock your 2400+ to 2800+ speeds. (12.5x167, 2.083ghz)

 

[silky62678]

is there a big performance boost with dual-ddr?

 

[Goatman]

he's not gonna keep the 2500+ at 2500+ speeds, I'd get the 2500+ and ramp the FSB up to 200! take 'er up to 3200+ speeds.... it'll take it... (mine can)

 

[Cosmin]

Originally posted by silky62678
is there a big performance boost with dual-ddr?

That the right decision ..

memory 256mb 3200

 

[ming]

Originally posted by Goatman
he's not gonna keep the 2500+ at 2500+ speeds, I'd get the 2500+ and ramp the FSB up to 200! take 'er up to 3200+ speeds.... it'll take it... (mine can)

no point in upgrading to a 2500+ cpu then is there???
he can just OC his 2400+

 

[silky62678]

Which would give me more of a performance boost?

 

[silky62678]

Originally posted by ming
no point in upgrading to a 2500+ cpu then is there???
he can just OC his 2400+

the 2400 dont have the 333 FSB like the 2500, and the 2500 is more overclocking friendly "so ive heard", but which option would give more "bang" for the buck ?

 

[JJB6486]

Get the memory

JJB

 

[silky62678]

Sounds like more memory is the answer, unless i get other options

 

[dubstar]

Memory would speed up your computer way more than a 2500+ could. If you wait a bit, the 2500+ will come down even more, and you'll probably be able to pick it up for $75 by the end of the year if price drops continue the way they are going right now.

 

[TheBlueRaja]

I would agree that your memory is the best way to go, especially if you only have 256Mb.

I recently upgraded to a 2500+ intending to overclock to 3200 speeds - and i simply cant get it that high. I am able to run at 2085Mhz, around about the speed of an 2800+ at 220 fsb, as opposed to the 3200 which is 2200Mhz at 200FSB, which isnt much but is quite annoying - still - my watercooling rig arrives shortly my CPU's gonna pay for its insolence.

However, for the benefit of other posters here, in your case a 2400+ (which i presume is the thorughbred and not Barton core will probably not go much further).

But back to your origial question - games and apps need a lot of memory these days and your probably using the swap file on your hard disk quite a bit which will slow the whole system down. , irrespective of what CPU you have. So if i was you i would definately bung in an extra 256Mb - but make sure and match your mem by getting the same module as you already have.

As for dual-ddr, if your running Intel, then yes - definately this will make a big difference - but i borrowed another 512Mb stick for my Abit N7f Nforce 2 (AMD) mobo and ran Dual-DDr and some benchmarks - didnt do squat for performance, and although this contradicts what i have said above, i already had 512Mb to start with. You will see benefits simply from having more physical memory and not using the swap file on the hard disk so much.
Dual-DDR on AMD is a bit of a PR gimmick in my opinion.

Good luck....

 

[Taurus]

from what i've seen, the 2400+'s aren't bad at oc'ing. i remember one review in particular where they were able to push the fsb to 333 and leave the multiplier intact and end up with a 2.5ghz proc at stock voltage!

of course, you might not get this lucky.. but there should be room for you. i mean, at least try it before assuming it won't oc well.

 

[silky62678]

yeah, i already have it overclocked to 2600+, and i think i have alittle more room to overclock, i overclocked it by the multiplier and not the FSB.

 

[silky62678]

Sweet, i packed 2 more 256 pc3200 sticks and WOW , i thought my system was fast before, it's blazing now when doing things like gaming. Thanks guys, and gals. Now need to work on a video card.

 

[TheBlueRaja]

Another Satisfied Customer...