Planned Sempron 2800+ system

mimwdv · Post by **mimwdv** » Sun Apr 17, 2005 4:54 pm

I’m planning to build my own computer for the first time ever – upgrading from an XP1700+ machine. I’ve only in the last year or so got up the courage to “pop the case” on my computer to tinker with its insides, so I’m a bit nervous about it. I don’t play games at all, but do record & process quite a bit of TV (SD, not HD) and do a lot of digital photography. I’m on a tight budget, so I’m trying to use parts I’ve already got:

Zalman PSU
Arctic cooling Copper Silent 2L
Samsung Spinpoint 160GB HD (I’ll be getting another HD in the future, either a Samsung or a Seagate, probably SATA)
DVICO Fusion HDTV DVB TV tuner card (I’ll be getting a second one of these at some point)

And I’m planning to buy

Asus A7V880 motherboard
2 x 512MB Geil matched RAM
Sempron 2800+
Radeon 9200SE video card
Antec SLK 3000B case

Any thoughts? Suggestions? Is there something that is totally not going to work? Or that’s really noisy? Is the Copper Silent is sufficient to cool the Sempron 2800+, or do I need another solution? I do run my current CPU at 100% quite a bit when processing videos.

VERiON · Post by **VERiON** » Sun Apr 17, 2005 11:41 pm

Consider buying sempron 3100+ instead, since it is just A64 without 64bit capability. And 3100+ i cool'n'quiet enable and has newer, cooler-running core than 2800+.

Where I live, the price of 3100+ is mere 10$ higher than 2800+.

lisch · Post by **lisch** » Mon Apr 18, 2005 7:23 am

Consider buying sempron 3100+ instead, since it is just A64 without 64bit capability. And 3100+ i cool'n'quiet enable and has newer, cooler-running core than 2800+.

I think it depends on which 2800+. I guess the old Thoroughbred core ones run hotter, but what about the newer 90nm feature-size, Socket 754 Semprons? They would have to be using the Palermo core, wouldn't they? Surely a 1.6 GHz 2800+ Palermo runs cooler than a 1.8GHz 3100+ Palermo?

Also, AMD's web site says that Semprons have PowerNow, but not Cool'n'Quiet, but the new Semprons being just mini-Athlon 64s suggests that they would have Cool'n'Quiet. Perhaps it's just a branding issue. After all, AMD's own web site lets you download Cool'n'Quiet software for Semprons.

I'm also considering buying a Sempron. I want to get the coolest one that still has enough power to decode HDTV (with MPEG-2 hardware assist). So I'm definitely getting a Palermo-core, but which one?

mimwdv · Post by **mimwdv** » Mon Apr 18, 2005 3:52 pm

I'll have a think about that temperature issue, thanks. The downside is, though, that the 2800+ is $30US cheaper than the 3100+, and the 3100+ needs a 754 mobo (which is another $40US). I'll have to weigh up the pros and cons.

lish, any of the semprons should do the HDTV - my old 1700+ (1.5GHz) and GeForce MX440 cope fine - watch live TV, watch a recording, no probls. But demuxing or editing or whatever is sloooooow....

lisch · Post by **lisch** » Mon Apr 18, 2005 4:34 pm

the 3100+ needs a 754 mobo

All the Palermo core Semprons (that is, all the new, cooler ones) need Socket 754.