Posted by Freewheeling on 08/31/06 13:23

Wes Newell wrote:
> On Tue, 29 Aug 2006 10:19:59 -0700, Freewheeling wrote:
>
>> I took the ATI board back. A question about the Sempron Socket 754
>> 3000+. The processor speed is listed at 1.8Ghz, so strictly speaking
>> it's only marginally faster than the Thunderbird at 1.4Ghz. Would it be
>> advisable to get a newer motherboard *and* a faster CPU? Alternatively,
>> can the Sempron be overclocked to get it above 2.0 Ghz? If a new
>> motherboard, what would you suggest?
>>
> don't get a socket 754 3000+, get the 3100+. It has twice the cache.
> Either will clock well over 2GHz. I'm running a 3100+ at 2.1GHz now
> (9x233) and i didn't even raise vcore from 1.35v And you can't compare the
> 1.4 of the old Tbird to 1.4 of a K8. Even at the same speed, the K8 will
> be quite a bit faster. As for a 754 MB, I'd get one with Nforce 3-250
> chipset or newer. If you want to consider an upgrade path I'd get a new
> AM2 MB. The one I'm using now is excellent and has all the bels and
> whistles you are likely to need for many years. it does require DDR2 ram
> though. But it will run anything from a Sempron to an X2 dual core.
>
>> Also, there appear to be 2 flavors of the same CPU: 90nm SOI and 130nm
>> SOI. Does it matter which? Finally, will my board take a 754 pin? It's
>> supposed to be a Socket A. What's the difference? Just curious.
>
> No, your board won't take a 754 Sempron, and you don't want a socket A
> Sempron because your board won't run at the default 166Mhz FSB speed. if
> you want to use your board, you'll need a cpu with a default 133MHz fsb or
> an unlocked model. upgrading your cpu is definately the cheapest route for
> more cpu power, but if you want to not leave yourself stuck, then an AM2
> MB and new cpu and ram won't cost too much if you start with a cheap CPU
> that will still be much faster than your tbird 1400. I know. Too many
> options.:-)
>
I noticed that the bios on my board allows you to increase the FSB speed
in 1 Mhz increments. I was sort of scared to try it, but basically
there's a menu item for +1Mhz or -1Mhz, and you apply it repeatedly. I
suppose one can't assume that this would actually work, but it's
interesting that the bios software allows it.

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