Need some advice.....

[bfmctango57]

I'm thining about buying a new P4 3.2 CPU. I think I found a cheap one? Is this worth it? Right now I have a 2.4 533 fsb w/2 gigs of ram and I don't understand stepping and all of the other mumbo jumbo. Bascially, with this be a good buy?

Mfr Part Number: RK80546PG0881M
Stepping: SL7B8
Frequence: 3.20 GHz
FSB: 800 MHz
Cache: 1 MB KB
Process: 90 nm
Socket: Socket 478

 

[batboy]

That's a 3.2E Prescott which will run a bit hotter than your current CPU. What motherboard and RAM are you planning on using? Are you currently overclocked and do you plan on overclocking the new CPU?

 

[bfmctango57]

I think I'm going to stick with what I have now rather than buy new hardware. My mobo is an ASUS P4P 800SE and my ram is 2 gigs of Kingston DDR 400 dual channel.

My CPU isn't OC'd and I don't think I'll OC the new one either.

If the new CPU comes with a heatsink and fan, I should scrap it and buy a better one right? Any suggestions?

 

[bfmctango57]

Oops! I better clarify, I still want to purchase the new CPU. I'm just not going to buy new mobo and ram.

 

[batboy]

That's a pretty good motherboard. It will support the Prescott CPU you listed in the first post, although you might have to update the BIOS. If you don't plan on overclocking the new CPU, you won't have to get a different heatsink. But, why not overclock what you currently have instead of buying a new CPU? You might get close to the speed of what you are thinking of buying.

 

[bfmctango57]

Why would I possibly need to update the BIOS?

The mobo I have will easily OC. I just need to set a different OC% to a higher value and it will do it automaticly. How hot it too hot? I will check the temp as it runs right now and report back. I need to reboot and go into the BIOS and check the temp.

 

[bfmctango57]

The temp runs at @ idle is 105F. Is that too high? What should it be running at?

 

[batboy]

We generally use degrees C. here rather than F. (we have members from all over the world here). So, 105 F. is a little more than 40 C. That's not bad for a stock cooler and probably minimal air flow in the case. There should be a program on the install CD to allow temp and voltage monitoring while in Windows.

Your motherboard was made before Prescotts were available. Thus, it will probably need a BIOS update to fully support the newer processors.

 

[bfmctango57]

Ok. I found a converter that converts temps back and forth, so it's all good. How high can I go with the stock cooler?

How do I go about updating the BIOS? I need to flash it right? What are the precautions I need to take and what are the dangers?

 

[bfmctango57]

Oh I almost forgot. What CPU is better? The northwood or the prescott? I heard the northwoods run hotter?

 

[batboy]

No, the Prescotts run hotter.

When comparing a Northwood vs. a Prescott both at the same default speed, the performance is a toss up. The Prescott has an edge for some apps because it has twice the cache, but the Northwood can do a little better in other things. The Prescotts tend to O/C higher, if you can address the heat. The Prescotts are probably cheaper nowadays too.

Safe load CPU temp (in my personal opinion) for the Northwood is probably about 55 C and for the Prescott maybe about 60 C. Obviously the cooler the temps the better.

Yes, updating the BIOS is called "flashing". It is not completely without risk. Might want to look in (or search) the Intel Asus motherboard section and see if there are step by step instructions. I'm assuming the Asus website has a guide too.

 

[bfmctango57]

Ok. Which one is better for games?

I think I messed something up. I went into the BIOS and changed the OC value to a higher %. When I reboot the pooter, the monitor shuts off, the pooter stays on, the HD light stays on, and the pooter does nothing. On the boot up screen, when it checks the amount of ram, CPU speed, drives etc...it says "overclock failed" After that I have to manual shut down the pooter by holding the on/off button until the pooter shuts off. Then I start up the system again and hit F8 to enter the BIOS screen to change the value back to default, the pooter just goes to the Windows XP screen.

 

[batboy]

You might need to clear the CMOS. There should be a jumper you move and move back to reset the BIOS.

 

[bfmctango57]

For some reason or another, my system wasn't detecting my keyboard on boot up. But once my pooter was fully booted up, the keyboard was working. I would hold down the delete button to enter setup mode and nothing would happen. I put in my Win XP cd cuz I thought the USB driver was blown out. While I still had the Win XP cd in, I would getting some totally weird message "searching for ASUS P4P 800 cd-rom." So I put my mobo chipset CD in and I'm back in business! Go figure!

I checked back to see if you's replied, but no luck. I thought of clearing the CMOS on my own, but I wasn't sure where it was. I recently moved and I didn't know where my book was.

 

[bfmctango57]

I use my pooter for 85% of the time for gaming, the rest internet, email etc.... Which CPU is best? Prescott or Northwood?

 

[3line]

Neither--pick up a Dothan (Pentium M) with a CT-479 adapter instead. The whole assembly will put you down about 120 bucks, but it will play games like a 4.5ghz P4 (3ghz Athlon FX) once overclocked.

Really, though, I don't see any need to go out and buy a new CPU. Overclock your northwood. Don't use the percentage OC, as that is worthless. Increase the volts to your CPU and go. Your motherboard (exact same model as mine) will take it.

That 2.4 will go past 3ghz easily with proper cooling, and, if you're lucky, you can get a result like this:

http://www.tweaknews.net/forum/viewtopic.php?t=568

 

[batboy]

The video card is the most important component for gaming. I would save your money and just overclock what you currently have.

 

[JLK03F150]

That 2.4 will go past 3ghz easily with proper cooling, and, if you're lucky, you can get a result like this:

http://www.tweaknews.net/forum/viewtopic.php?t=568

He has a 2.4B, not 2.4C. IMO switching to the 3.2E would be a nice improvement. He'll raise his FSB from 533 to 800 and add Hyperthreading. It would be more of an improvement than just overclocking the 2.4B up to 3.2 GHz. 3.0 GHz is a more likely oc result for a 2.4B on stock air.

That 3.2E is a C0 stepping. It isn't the greatest overclocker, but has the 14x & 16x multiplier. It's fun to play with dropping the multi & pushing the FSB.

 

[bfmctango57]

Yeah you are right JLK03F150, I do have the 2.4b. How can I tell if it is a northwood or prescott without taking off the heatsink? I thought the 2.4b I have already had HT?

I updated my BIOS to a newer version last night as recommended. But as far as OC, I'm a little foggy on how to. I had a friend that was heavy into pooters and he had it all and he OC'd everything!! I think at one time he even OC his case!!! lol But he moved to Colorado.

 

[bfmctango57]

The video card in my system right now is an Nvidia 6800XT. Before I had a ATI 9800 Pro 128mb. The ATI card was way better and I didn't OC either. I even unlocked the Nvidia to 16 pipes and it was still slower.