Technology has moved at a fast pace, as usual, bringing Core 2 Duo and Quad Core processors to the home segment to support software like the Microsoft Vista 64 bit edition and hardware hungry games.
Initially I thought of upgrading to an Intel Crore 2 Duo Processor like the E8400 or the E8500 or a Quad Core Processor like the Q6600 or the Q9300. Even considered the i7 processor announced by Intel.
The E8400 looked like a decent upgrade in terms of price and performance. This processor comes with a clock speed of 3 Ghz, 6 Mb L2 cache, 65 watt TDP manufactured under a 45 Nm Fabrication Process. However, with Intel announcing the i7 architecture, future upgrade for a LGA775 socket processors becomes limited.
AMD recently announced their triple core processor – the Phenom II X3 720 Black Edition, a AM3 processor, which exhibits a unique combination of good single-threaded performance (thanks to its high core clock speed), good multi-threaded performance (thanks to its third core), and easy-as-pie overclocking (thanks to its unlocked upper multiplier). That means it's competitive with the pricier Core 2 Duo E8400 in single-threaded apps, but it's generally quite a bit faster in both multi-threaded apps and multi-tasking scenarios. I also saw reports where this processor was overclocked to 3.5GHz with a modest voltage boost. The processor clocks 2.8 Ghz (default), has a 1.5 Mb L2 Cache, 6 Mb L3 Cache, manufactured under a 45 Nm Fabrication Process and has a TDP of 95W.
Going with an AMD platform at this stage also makes sense from the upgrade point of view. The Latest AM3 processors are compatible with AM2+ mobos. Therefore, as DDR3 prices come down in the future, you could just move to a mobo that supports DDR3. AMD, unlike Intel, builds the memory controller into the processor and therefore the AM3 processors can handle both DDR2 and DDR3 memories.
So that settled the processor choice – AMD Phenom II X3 720 Black Edition.
The Gigabyte Ultra Durable GA-MA790-GP-UD4H looked like a good mobo for the Phenom. This mobo comes with a AMD 790GX chipset with an integrated ATI Radeon HD3330 graphics, supports Dual Channel DDR2 1200+, has a Built-in 128MB DDR3 1333MHz SidePort Memory, provides for a 2 PCI-E 2.0 x16 interface with ATI CrossFireX/ Hybrid CrossFireX support, Blu-ray playback supported by high quality 106dB SNR ALC889A HD audio, support for Dolby Home Theater audio, integrated HDMI/ DVI interface for Full HD 1080 Blu-ray playback with HDCP, Patented DualBIOS with dual hardware BIOS protection.
Prime ABGB in Lamington Road gave me the processor-mobo combo for Rs. 17,500/-.
While I was looking for the Corsair 550 VX CMPSU, I had to settle for the 450 VX as the 550 was out of stock. The 450 looked better than the 650 watt Tagan as the 450 gave more amps on the 12V rail. I also liked the sleeved cables in the 450.
2x2GB Crosair DDR2 800 Mhz memory, a 500 GB Segate SATA hard drive along with my existing Antec Super Lanboy cabinet and Asus 16x DVD writer completed the set up.
Took me some three hours to put the rig together. Around 8 in the morning I was pretty thrilled to see the Gigabyte BIOS screen.
Initially I thought of upgrading to an Intel Crore 2 Duo Processor like the E8400 or the E8500 or a Quad Core Processor like the Q6600 or the Q9300. Even considered the i7 processor announced by Intel.
The E8400 looked like a decent upgrade in terms of price and performance. This processor comes with a clock speed of 3 Ghz, 6 Mb L2 cache, 65 watt TDP manufactured under a 45 Nm Fabrication Process. However, with Intel announcing the i7 architecture, future upgrade for a LGA775 socket processors becomes limited.
AMD recently announced their triple core processor – the Phenom II X3 720 Black Edition, a AM3 processor, which exhibits a unique combination of good single-threaded performance (thanks to its high core clock speed), good multi-threaded performance (thanks to its third core), and easy-as-pie overclocking (thanks to its unlocked upper multiplier). That means it's competitive with the pricier Core 2 Duo E8400 in single-threaded apps, but it's generally quite a bit faster in both multi-threaded apps and multi-tasking scenarios. I also saw reports where this processor was overclocked to 3.5GHz with a modest voltage boost. The processor clocks 2.8 Ghz (default), has a 1.5 Mb L2 Cache, 6 Mb L3 Cache, manufactured under a 45 Nm Fabrication Process and has a TDP of 95W.
Going with an AMD platform at this stage also makes sense from the upgrade point of view. The Latest AM3 processors are compatible with AM2+ mobos. Therefore, as DDR3 prices come down in the future, you could just move to a mobo that supports DDR3. AMD, unlike Intel, builds the memory controller into the processor and therefore the AM3 processors can handle both DDR2 and DDR3 memories.So that settled the processor choice – AMD Phenom II X3 720 Black Edition.
The Gigabyte Ultra Durable GA-MA790-GP-UD4H looked like a good mobo for the Phenom. This mobo comes with a AMD 790GX chipset with an integrated ATI Radeon HD3330 graphics, supports Dual Channel DDR2 1200+, has a Built-in 128MB DDR3 1333MHz SidePort Memory, provides for a 2 PCI-E 2.0 x16 interface with ATI CrossFireX/ Hybrid CrossFireX support, Blu-ray playback supported by high quality 106dB SNR ALC889A HD audio, support for Dolby Home Theater audio, integrated HDMI/ DVI interface for Full HD 1080 Blu-ray playback with HDCP, Patented DualBIOS with dual hardware BIOS protection.
Prime ABGB in Lamington Road gave me the processor-mobo combo for Rs. 17,500/-.While I was looking for the Corsair 550 VX CMPSU, I had to settle for the 450 VX as the 550 was out of stock. The 450 looked better than the 650 watt Tagan as the 450 gave more amps on the 12V rail. I also liked the sleeved cables in the 450.
2x2GB Crosair DDR2 800 Mhz memory, a 500 GB Segate SATA hard drive along with my existing Antec Super Lanboy cabinet and Asus 16x DVD writer completed the set up.
Took me some three hours to put the rig together. Around 8 in the morning I was pretty thrilled to see the Gigabyte BIOS screen.
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