PCI-E or not

sy64004

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Can some one please clear something up for me?

I'm looking to upgrade to a whole new machine sometime soon. I'm trying to get something that will last me a while so I was looking for a 64bit AMD system. On the whole people are recommending slot 939 so I was looking at the ever popular Neo2 platinum and then I read that people are recommending PCI express so when I investigate further I see that the MB doesn't have it.

Can some one clear things up for me please??

Is that the best board??

Am I better to go for a PCI-E board and gfx card or stick with AGP??

I also hear that the 6800GT is the best gfx card but is that available in PCI-E??

Can any one suggest a good MB and gfx solution because my head is about to explode!!!

I don't want to get a new system and then 6 months later think "bugger why didn't I go for PCI-E/ AGP" so does any one have any ideas how things are developing and what is best for a "future proof" system.

If you have a time machine can I borrow it for a minute or -2 so that I can see how this ends?? :D

Thanks to anyone who can help
 
I'm on the fence with PCI-E at the moment. THere ad advantages to moving over and there are advantages to staying with AGP for now.

6800GT is the best for gaming at a resonable price (its an ultra clocked slower is all).

but to save you the hassle of "bugger why didnt I gor for pci-e" heres a suggesttion:

MSI K8N Neo 4 Diamond (nforce 4 PCI-E, SLI) + 6800 Ultra PCI-E edition.

that will cost youo a fair bit on the vga card but you should be future proof.

Its best I can come up with with my current knowledge, I'm sure oters ahve viable alternatives (but please folks dont suggest via chipsets :D )
 
Thanks LordofLA. I also heard that VIA chipsets had taken a nose dive so I intend to stay clear.

I'm just looking at the Leadtek web page and the "Leadtek WinFast PX6800 GT TDH" has PCI=E support so this has really confused me!!
does any one know if this is a good card or not??

Thanks
 
whats wrong with via chipsets?

please dont post for the sake of furthering bias for one IHV or chipmaker w/o valid proof...

there is nothing wrong with via chipsets... they had the first fully working/functioning a64 chipset...

wrt pci-e v/s agp... the industry is moving towards pci-e @ the moment... it would be advisable to go that route yourself... next gen cards are going to be pci-e.. no point in having to upgrade your whole kit again in the future again just coz of the gfx port...
 
the idustry as a whole is making a big push to 64 bit processing and PCI-E and SLI, and/or PCI-E/SLI. There is no doubt that within 2 years IMHO you will be forced to go 64 bit and the most widely supported is in the 939 platform.

Graphics on the other hard is still wishy washy, but I think that PCI-E with SLI support will become the base platform for graphics.

Sorta interesting is that SLI was originally inteded to be the competition for PCI-E but instead they seem to have joined forces and the combination is becoming the emerging trend. The only real standoff is the very high prices for the vid cards, and for most a high end vid card in an PCI-E and SLI format is just too expensive with the cost of $600/ ea vid cards. But even with that said I feel that the momentum will carry the technology.

Future Proof (aka: no such thing - LOL), I think would be the 64 bit cpu in the 939 platform hands down and PCI-E with SLI support. Not cheap by any means but the nice thing is that SLI is selective so you don't have to fork out big bucks X2 if you don't/can't want to.

Disclaimer: Past performace and emerging trends are not always accurate predictors for future events. Consult your employeer reguarding overtime possibilies incase I am wrong and you have to buy more stuff. :nervous:

^ hehehe I liked that so much I made it my sig LMAO
 
well ive got the neo2 and just bought it 1 month ago. well i had a huge debate to go pci-e or agp. but in conclusion, if in the future, say 2yrs from now, u might as well get a new system all together cuz ddr2 533, emm by then should be some bs ddr2 800 or something like that..yes it is indeed future proof but by then, everything else might not be. plus the 6800gt should last u quite a while.

and yes, theres nothing wrong with via chipsets...:/ well nothing on mine and my last mother board the a7v266-e.
 
sy64004, Leadtek's PX cards are PCI-Express (hence the PX in the front). the other cards, such as the A400GT TDH, are AGP 8X (which is the card that i'm using, and love it, though i might have to buy a new fan since it sounds like the fan in mine's gonna die sometime soon). basically, they're the same card, just a different interface with the mobo. both should perform the same afaik
 
IMHO very simply put:-

Got money to burn and want the "GTi" - PCIexpress is for you

Want VFM (Valur for Money or Bangs for Buck) - steer clear

:cool: :) ;)
 
there are alternate technologies to SLi that will be introduced this year by a few different companies (namely ATi and Via amongst others)

whatever upgrade path you choose, you will have to factor in the choice of products you are looking to get for current use and possibly in the future as well :)
 
Thanks guys, still not too sure what to do, I'll probably go for the K8N Neo 4 Diamond and the PCI-E gfx card but i'm probably a month or so off ordering yet so I'll see what proces are like then.

Personally I have nothing agasint VIA. All my previous boards including my current one were VIA chipsets, but I read recently that they weren't performing as good as of late. Sorry if I've upset any one in the VIA fanclub :)
 
sy64004 said:
...Sorry if I've upset any one in the VIA fanclub :)

LOL I doubt you will find such a thing - there might be a VIA anti-fan club here, if you can have such a thing though :lick:
 

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