A little advice please about mb's (core2duo? crossfire?)

[Snugglemonster]

I took a hiatus from computers for a couple years, next thing I know
there's Core 2 Duo and Crossfire motherboards on the market and I have
no idea what they are or how they perform.

I upgraded my PC last month to an MSI 500 SLI motherboard with an
AMD 64x2 3800+ CPU and 1 gig ram (and a geforce 7600gt). I mostly use
it for gaming.

Now I am wondering.... did I just buy something old and out of date?

So I have some questions:

#1. Is my motherboard a decent motherboard and will it serve me well
for a couple more years? Or is it on its last legs compared to what's
out there now?

#2. What is the difference between Duo Core and Core 2 Duo ?

#3. What is the Crossfire motherboard all about? I see that ATI is
associated with it - would an ATI graphics card perform with a
Crossfire motherboard better than nvidia card ?

#4. What is the difference between the Core 2 Duo and Crossfire? And
which is better?

I'd appreciate your advice. I'm wondering if I should return my PC.

Thanks in advance!

 

[Michael Hawes]

I took a hiatus from computers for a couple years, next thing I know
there's Core 2 Duo and Crossfire motherboards on the market and I have
no idea what they are or how they perform.

I upgraded my PC last month to an MSI 500 SLI motherboard with an
AMD 64x2 3800+ CPU and 1 gig ram (and a geforce 7600gt). I mostly use
it for gaming.

Now I am wondering.... did I just buy something old and out of date?

So I have some questions:

#1. Is my motherboard a decent motherboard and will it serve me well
for a couple more years? Or is it on its last legs compared to what's
out there now?

Motherboard is OK, but you could have fitted a faster CPU.

#2. What is the difference between Duo Core and Core 2 Duo ?

No such thing as Duo Core, Dual Core means 2 CPUs on one ptece of
silicon in package, which is what you have. Core 2 is Intel successor to P4,
Core 2 Duo is dual core version.

#3. What is the Crossfire motherboard all about? I see that ATI is
associated with it - would an ATI graphics card perform with a
Crossfire motherboard better than nvidia card ?

SLI is Nvidia way of using two matched video cards for better
performance, Crossfire is ATI equivalent. It only applies if using pair of
cards to drive single monitor. With one card, does not apply.

#4. What is the difference between the Core 2 Duo and Crossfire? And
which is better?

Apples and Oranges, does not compute.

I'd appreciate your advice. I'm wondering if I should return my PC.

Does the system do what you want it to? You can fit faster CPU and
more powerful video card, at a price.

 

[GT]

I took a hiatus from computers for a couple years, next thing I know
there's Core 2 Duo and Crossfire motherboards on the market and I have
no idea what they are or how they perform.

I upgraded my PC last month to an MSI 500 SLI motherboard with an
AMD 64x2 3800+ CPU and 1 gig ram (and a geforce 7600gt). I mostly use
it for gaming.

Now I am wondering.... did I just buy something old and out of date?

Not out of date, but modern/low end power.

So I have some questions:

#1. Is my motherboard a decent motherboard and will it serve me well
for a couple more years? Or is it on its last legs compared to what's
out there now?

I don't really see a need for you to upgrade anything yet - you have bought
an entry level system that will last for many years and will cope with
modern games for a year or 2. You could upgrade the graphics to a DirectX 10
card in maybe 6 months, but otherwise, if you are happy with the gaming,
they stick with it! I would advise a little more RAM - perhaps take the
machine to 2GB, but only if you find the hard disk is thrashing round when
loading games or working in Windows (using the swap file lots).

#2. What is the difference between Duo Core and Core 2 Duo ?

'Duo Core' isn't a term I have heard of. If you mean 'Dual Core' then this
means there are 2 cores (processors) in the 1 physical chip. Core 2 Duo is
Intel's version of this. The AMD 3800+ 64x2 is a dual core processor from
AMD.

#3. What is the Crossfire motherboard all about? I see that ATI is
associated with it - would an ATI graphics card perform with a
Crossfire motherboard better than nvidia card ?

Crossfire is a term concerning running 2 graphics cards in the same
motherboard for better performance than just 1 card. It 'can' require a lot
of power from the PSU and will result in a hot case. Google for more
information. Also Google for SLI. Crossfire and SLI are both the same
thing - 2 graphics cards working together. One is ATI and the other is
NVIdia

#4. What is the difference between the Core 2 Duo and Crossfire? And
which is better?

See above - Core 2 Duo is a CPU, crossfire is dual graphics card technology.
Thats the difference between them, so its not relevant to say which is
better - like saying is a cloud or a pencil better!

I'd appreciate your advice. I'm wondering if I should return my PC.

To who - the shop isn't going to accept a used PC back because you found
something faster - they will just laugh at you! In my opinion, there is no
need to return your PC. You could perhaps upgrade the CPU to a faster AMD
dual core processor or upgrade your graphics card, but only do these things
if you are not satisfied with the speed at which the PC performs your tasks.

 

[Brian Cryer]

I took a hiatus from computers for a couple years, next thing I know
there's Core 2 Duo and Crossfire motherboards on the market and I have
no idea what they are or how they perform.

I upgraded my PC last month to an MSI 500 SLI motherboard with an
AMD 64x2 3800+ CPU and 1 gig ram (and a geforce 7600gt). I mostly use
it for gaming.

Now I am wondering.... did I just buy something old and out of date?

So I have some questions:

#2. What is the difference between Duo Core and Core 2 Duo ?

I think that Intel Core 2 Duo is a successor to the Pentium D Dual Core CPU.
Not sure whether the Pentium D was ever referred to as "Duo Core", but its
possible.

 

[ProfGene]

I took a hiatus from computers for a couple years, next thing I know
there's Core 2 Duo and Crossfire motherboards on the market and I have
no idea what they are or how they perform.

I upgraded my PC last month to an MSI 500 SLI motherboard with an
AMD 64x2 3800+ CPU and 1 gig ram (and a geforce 7600gt). I mostly use
it for gaming.

Now I am wondering.... did I just buy something old and out of date?

So I have some questions:

#1. Is my motherboard a decent motherboard and will it serve me well
for a couple more years? Or is it on its last legs compared to what's
out there now?

#2. What is the difference between Duo Core and Core 2 Duo ?

#3. What is the Crossfire motherboard all about? I see that ATI is
associated with it - would an ATI graphics card perform with a
Crossfire motherboard better than nvidia card ?

#4. What is the difference between the Core 2 Duo and Crossfire? And
which is better?

I'd appreciate your advice. I'm wondering if I should return my PC.

Thanks in advance!

The AMD 64 is competetive with the Intel Dual Core but I think my new
dual core is the best computer I ever built. It runs fast and stays fast
and so far now which is about 6 months no problems. But I have not been
using my Athlon 64 as my woman is playing games on it and it seems to be
doing well also and it is a year and a half old.

 

[kony]

I took a hiatus from computers for a couple years, next thing I know
there's Core 2 Duo and Crossfire motherboards on the market and I have
no idea what they are or how they perform.

I upgraded my PC last month to an MSI 500 SLI motherboard with an
AMD 64x2 3800+ CPU and 1 gig ram (and a geforce 7600gt). I mostly use
it for gaming.

Ok, and does it not game acceptibly? If not, the problem
isn't the board or CPU, rather the video card. Don't get me
wrong, a 7600GT is a wonderful combination of
moderately-low-cost performance, and very power
conservative, but right now the video card is the bottleneck
for most 3D gaming unless you are only playing older games,
at lower resolutions, or have (practically) all the eyecandy
turned off.

Now I am wondering.... did I just buy something old and out of date?

Of course, everything is obsolete by the time you have it
assembled and configured the way you want it.

Computer upgrades are a tredmill, unless you are willing to
pay 2-3X as much you wil never have something that isn't
aging and soon out of date. By paying 3X as much you might
get to use it another 6-12 months before it's then aging and
out of date. So as aways, the idea of age is irrelevant,
the relevant parameter is taking the budget and applying it
to your needs most appropriately. Thus if gaming is most
important, you'd want to spend more on the video card next
time. If you have equally important other uses it was a
fair balance to the rest of the system.

So I have some questions:

#1. Is my motherboard a decent motherboard and will it serve me well
for a couple more years? Or is it on its last legs compared to what's
out there now?

It's fine. We can't see what you'll be doing in a couple
years nor know how often you tend to upgrade your systems,
but it is not some antique platform or anything like that.
It was a good value but as always every time you wait a few
months, the next-faster parts have dropped to that price...
and so it was with the parts you bought, a few months
earlier you would have bought slower parts than those for
the same total cost. Don't even think about it like you
are, you will never be able to be satisfied if you can't
accept that computer technology is always rapidly evolving
and there is no way to stay "Modern" if you don't pay a lot
more and upgrade more often than every 2 years. That's just
the way it is. No point thinking about it, you don't have
to be a slave to your computer instead of sticking to your
budget then enjoying it, getting the desired use out of it.

#2. What is the difference between Duo Core and Core 2 Duo ?

One is two words that don't describe any CPU and the other
is an Intel CPU. Maybe you meant "dual core" instead of duo
Core. One is two cores and the other is a specific (Intel)
product with two cores. Another specific (AMD) product with
two cores would be your Athlon 64 X2.

#3. What is the Crossfire motherboard all about? I see that ATI is
associated with it - would an ATI graphics card perform with a
Crossfire motherboard better than nvidia card ?

One has nothing to do with the other. Crossfire is ATI
chipset method of using two cards in parallel for higher
gaming performance. Equivalent to nVidia's SLI. The better
performance depends on the actual video cards you use. Two
slower cards in SLI is slower than two fast cards in SLI (or
Crossfire).

#4. What is the difference between the Core 2 Duo and Crossfire? And
which is better?

You need to do some research on these terms before asking
about them, so you have a basis for asking more applicable
questions.

I'd appreciate your advice. I'm wondering if I should return my PC.

No. Returning your system will have no gain. It is
(assuming you paid the fair market price) what you choose to
spend... if you chose to spend more you would get a faster
CPU or video card, or more memory, etc... but these are
things you can still upgrade at any time so long as the
compatible parts are still in the market.

Why did you buy the system if you weren't sure? It is a
fine value system, but if you have some task it won't
perform satisfactorily, I suggest you upgrade the bottleneck
and in a couple years, make you (then) most demanding task
the criterion for parts selections.