[nightmare3215]

I was thinking, I wanted to get a barton 2500+ ($90.00) with an NF7-S v2 ($90.00, until tomorrow at 4pm), and some mushkin LVL II dual channel 512mb pc3200 ram sticks (2x256).

I thought I might be able to spend the extra $ on a 2.4c setup, without getting such nice/expensive ram.

BTW, the p4 2.6c is the same amount (if not cheaper) than the 2.4c right now at newegg, so which one is better?

I've got about $330 to spend on a ram/cpu/mobo combo, so should I go for a 2.4c setup with $50-$70 on ram, or a barton 2500+ with really expensive/nice ram an the nf7-s?

I heard that you can get insane amount of oc'age on the 2.4c and the 2500+, but which ends up the winner in the end? I'm going to do lots of encoding and such, so should I go intel for the hyperthreading?

[Bon3thugz43v3r]

Well in the end, depending on the cooling of course, it will be close. I think they would both be the same probably. If you just push your fsb to 200 outta the box without even adjusting the vcore on the barton, your gonna have something that compares to a 3.0 p4 with hyperthreading. With the ram your getting you would get so much higher. I would almost guarantee you that you would get 220 x 11 with that barton. I've never used to intel so I don't know much about overclocking them, but I guess its the same concept. I think it would be very close, so your final decision may be a tough one. Whatever you get its going to be fast so enjoy.

[bchur83]

I would say that for encoding, the 2.4C would be the best bet. As for the 2.4C vs 2.6C, the 2.4 will "probably" OC better with the right ram. I have the 2.6C and my max OC is 3.26Ghz @ 1.6v. I don't like higher vcore, so I don't want to push it anymore than that. If you go with the 2.4C, you may need better ram than PC3200, or you will need to use the 3:2 divider. Hope that helps a little.

[nightmare3215]

I also don't want to bump voltages up that much (if at all), so what should I go for ram/mobo wise for $160-170?

[batboy]

For encoding, there is no doubt, P-4 all the way. AMD can't even come close. Intel memory bandwidth is what you want for encoding. It will also beat AMD in almost everything else too.

At Zipzoomfly they still have the retail SL6Z3 2.4C 800 MHz wonder chips for $164. Most will do 3.4 gig and some even go up to 3.6 gig with really good cooling. The Abit AI7 is $100, it's a good overclocker with a ton of features. The trouble is finding you RAM for only $66 that you have left over. It just ain't going to happen. You need to sell your soul or something to boast your budget a little. Newegg.com has dual channel packs 2X256 of Kingston HyperX PC3000 for $108, those really do good, I have a pair of them myself. That's only $42 over budget, but well worth the extra cash.

Edit: Ok, I found a way to shave $20 off. Instead of the Abit Ai7 mobo, get an Abit IS7-E mobo from newegg.com for $80 which means all you have to do is come up with an extra $22 now. Look in the sofa cushions and you'll find a couple bucks in change. Now all you have to do is borrow $20 from a friend.

[nightmare3215]

kk, I'll see if I can get the extra $. thanks for the info.

[nightmare3215]

Stock hsf right? then do I need extra cooling? I'm thinking about putting a duct in and a front intake fan

[bchur83]

Better cooling isn't a must have right now, but would be a great upgrade in the near future. At least until you can afford it. The Thermalright SLK series is the best choice, with a Thermaltake Smart Fan 2 strapped to it. A SLK-900U and a SFII will run you about 40bux.

[tom10167]

In this case I would say AMD because if you get cheap ram you're REALLY going to be limiting you're overclock on an Intel. Those guys get some SERIOUS FSB.

[batboy]

Hope you're not implying my KHX PC3000 RAM that I have and that I recommended can't handle a good overclock. I have it in my 2.4C system listed in my signature. Although it wasn't stable, I got a max O/C of 3.7 gig. It does better than my OCZ PC3500 EL RAM. Here is a screen shot of what my "cheap" RAM can do. That's with my 2.4C at 283 FSB (3.4 gig). I'd say that's pretty tight timings and a nice overclock for a dual channel Intel system, huh?

[bchur83]

At the very least, with "cheap" ram, you can run the 3:2 divider and get by with "cheap" ram.