Conroe: to wait or not to wait?

[furball]

What are your thoughts on Conroe; to wait or not to wait? I'm on the cusp of buying a brand new PC (2.8 dual core Presler 65nm (920), new mobo, DDR2, PCI-X, etc. etc.), to upgrade from a 1.4 Celeron (the lag is driving me nuts)...

The 920 CPU itself is going to cost $315 + taxes nowadays...

Conroe has so many promises, as seen with performance preview at Anadtech here (http://anandtech.com/tradeshows/showdoc.aspx?i=2713) and an update to the same article here (http://anandtech.com/tradeshows/showdoc.aspx?i=2716) touting approximately 15-20% performance gains over an FX-60 and/or a 950 Intel chip :o

Latest pricing from The Inquirer (http://www.theinquirer.net/?article=29504) in USD tells me that I can afford the E6400...

E6700 : 2.67 GHz – FSB1066 – 4 MB cache – $529
E6600 : 2.40 GHz – FSB1066 – 4 MB cache – $315
E6400 : 2.13 GHz – FSB1066 – 2 MB cache – $240
E6300 : 1.86 GHz – FSB1066 – 2 MB cache - $210

Supposedly to be lower-clocked, yet run with better performance, and alot cooler... Not sure about whether it can be used with current LGA775 mobos...

Should I wait? Can I buy everything now top of the line, except for CPU (say, a $100 Celeron D chip), then upgrade in 6 months? Surprisingly not alot of info on Conroe.... And waiting 6+ months is killer...

[JoKeRr]

pretty sure your mobo won't support conroe. Only the 2nd revision of 975X (which is coming out in about 2 wks) and Q965 is going to support Conroe.

However, conroe compatible mobo will be able to support any LGA775 CPU.

Pentium D is a waste of $$$ and electricity bill. Aviod at all cost. Get a cheap P4 5xx or 6xx for now and you'll be just fine.

btw, since you have a 1.4ghz Celey, is that S478 or S423?? and what's the max FSB it supports?? Pretty sure you'll need new mobo and ram if u upgrade to Conroe when it comes out, even if you want to upgrade to Pentium D, you'll need new mobo and ddr2 ram too.

[furball]

Why is the Pentium D a waste of electricity?? Compared to WHAT? That's one of the reasons why I'm getting the 9xx series (specifically the 920 is what my budget allows)... It's 65nm versus the 90nm Prescotts... Sure, the 9xx is basically 2 65nm Prescotts jammed together, but there's not much else out there that can do better with respect to heat (Intel camp at least... I'm an Intel guy...)

My question had to do more with: should I buy a BRAND new PC (2.8G dual core Presler, 65nm, "920"), DDR2, PCI-X, etc.) now, or wait entirely for Conroe... Or, can I buy something now (i.e. above specs), but with a cheaper CPU, say a Celeron D. --> But, you're saying the current chipsets don't support Conroe, so I guess I'm screwed... Have to hold out entirely for Conroe... If I want Conroe.

The 1.4G Celeron I'm using now is S370... Actually it's running on an Asus P2B-F motherboard (original specs had a P3-600Mhz CPU as the faster supported) with a Slotket :) ... This PC's gotta go, nothing will be salvaged except for some of the larger IDE HDs.... The Celeron rig will go to a good home...


Pentium D is a waste of $$$ and electricity bill. Aviod at all cost. Get a cheap P4 5xx or 6xx for now and you'll be just fine.

btw, since you have a 1.4ghz Celey, is that S478 or S423?? and what's the max FSB it supports?? Pretty sure you'll need new mobo and ram if u upgrade to Conroe when it comes out, even if you want to upgrade to Pentium D, you'll need new mobo and ddr2 ram too.

[stixxx]

well if you want a fast computer that is good and wil make u wait 4 Conror get a pentuim M and a Asus mobo and Oc by doin that you will have ssomethin that is the same or faster than FX-57. This is the system I am gettin in a few days and I kno it should keep me happy till conroe comes I also wanted to get a board that supported Conroe but there is none yet and by the time there is it will be a month r so.. but if its dual core you want then the 9 series should be fine for u from the intel camp.

[Oversized Rooster]

If you wait for the Conroe, you will get a better performing CPU, but being a new product, the motherboards will be expensive. At least at first.

I am using a Pentium D 830, and it's been treating me fine. Together with 2GB of OCZ Gold EL DDR2-800, I've taken her easily to 3.6GHZ with air cooling and 1.375V.

It can go higher for sure, cuz I've seen reviews where they took the 820 (below mine) to 4GHZ and higher. These are good chips I guess, so long as you provide constant airflow in the case.

Oh, and heat? If I leave my PC on overnight, my bedroom temperature hovers at 22*C. If I shut it down for the night, it goes down 20*C. Mobile heater anyone?

[JoKeRr]

I say you wait till Conroe compatible board is available, and get a cheap p4 cpu till conroe comes out.

[guest3721]

I'll be holding out for Conroe but not when it first comes out. Probably be upgrading around 2007.

[BadDrafter]

I splurged and bought an opteron 165 for overclocking at NCIX yesterday, I could'nt hold back anymore. Since I have a 939 motherboard, this is just a simple chip switch. Should hold me off until the AMD answer to corn row comes out and levels the playing field.