Socket A for AMD


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there are so many forums at hardwarezone that i am sooo lost..
its been a while since i step foot into that site.

anyhow.

was wondering
.....what is the highest/best CPU i can upgrade to if i have a socket A mobo?


i have a Shuttle XPC SN41G2 and according to the website... it says

# Socket A for AMD Athlon / AMD Athlon XP / AMD Duron
# AMD processors from 600MHz to Athlon XP 2700+ or higher
# Support for 200 / 266 / 333MHz FSB


1) so what is the fastest CPU i can upgrade to? (can i even get this at SLS?)
2) how much would that CPU cost?
3) would it make sense to upgrade to the CPU or just buy a new cpu and board? (its been 2 years since i followed the trends)
 

it depends in your bios, if you have upgraded them anot, i am not using a shuttle SSF, so i dunno which one u upgraded to...

but from what i see, which cpu u using now? if u using 2700+ den no point already, unless a bios is out to let you use 3200+, think thats the highest for amd athlon xp.
 

If you can find a suitable Socket-A processor running at the max speed and you can't set the multiplier needed, you may be able to use this http://www.upgradeware.com/english/product/xptmc/xptmc.htm

The XP-TMC adapter only sets the multiplier. Your processor must still "cooperate".

If you look at the compatibility list, under "Shuttle" is listed the MN31/N board which has basically the same specs as the board on your machine (I know because I bought and built your barebones unit for a friend some time ago). Someone has written that he has been able to use a Mobile Athlon on his MN31.

I have one of these adapters that I bought and didn't use because I eventually gave the PC I wanted to upgrade away. Might have accidentally torn the instruction manual but it's still intact. If you want you can make me an offer for this. It's just sitting in my cupboard. :)

Oh you would want to check the heatsink clearance first since the barebones unit uses a funny heatpipe heat exchanger if I recall correctly.
 

haagen_dazs said:
there are so many forums at hardwarezone that i am sooo lost..
its been a while since i step foot into that site.

anyhow.

was wondering
.....what is the highest/best CPU i can upgrade to if i have a socket A mobo?


i have a Shuttle XPC SN41G2 and according to the website... it says

# Socket A for AMD Athlon / AMD Athlon XP / AMD Duron
# AMD processors from 600MHz to Athlon XP 2700+ or higher
# Support for 200 / 266 / 333MHz FSB


1) so what is the fastest CPU i can upgrade to? (can i even get this at SLS?)
2) how much would that CPU cost?
3) would it make sense to upgrade to the CPU or just buy a new cpu and board? (its been 2 years since i followed the trends)

Hi haagen_dazs,

Don't lose heart! You CAN still get a pretty good socket A processor for a good price @SLS.

Althon XP is almost totally phased out of the market now. so forget about it.

Socket A Sempron/Duron is still available @SLS:

Best value is Sempron 2800+, available at Fuwell or Laser Distributor for about S$150. (I have one running on a $99 MSI KM4M-V MB with 1GB of DDR333 RAM, works great: I am running C1 Pro, Adobe CS2, even Marcomedia 8 pro with this combo with no problem whatsoever.) Yes, it generates more heat than a P4.. so a good CU cooler is important. I use a Scuthe/KATANA. Though weired looking but I found it to be very effective.

Sempron 3000+ is probably the highest socket A cpu speed that you could still find but harder to get and costs more (about $200, not worth it IMHO.)

cheers,
allegro
 

ahh thanks!
finally something tangible.
cool
appreciate all other comments above.
so i posted this topic when i wasnt at my own computer.

i just checked.

i have a XP 2600+ 1.92Ghz

is it then worth it to even get a 2800+

Why is the 3000+ difficult to get?


Allegro said:
Hi haagen_dazs,

Don't loose heart! You CAN still get a pretty good socket A processor for a good price @SLS.

Althon XP is almost totally phased out of the market now. so forget about it.

Socket A Sempron/Duron is still available @SLS:

Best value is Sempron 2800+, available at Fuwell or Laser Distributor for about S$150. (I have one running on a $99 MSI KM4M-V MB with 1GB of DDR333 RAM, works great: I am running C1 Pro, Adobe CS2, even Marcomedia 8 pro with this combo with no problem whatsoever.) Yes, it generates more heat than a P4.. so a good CU cooler is important. I use a Scuthe/KATANA. Though weired looking but I found it to be very effective.

Sempron 3000+ is probably the highest socket A cpu speed that you could still find but harder to get and costs more (about $200, not worth it IMHO.)

cheers,
allegro
 

hmm i m using one of the legacy 2500+ cpus on my rig :sticktong one of the best batches from amd stable for o/c but doubt i need to power anymore :sweat:
 

haagen_dazs said:
ahh thanks!
finally something tangible.
cool
appreciate all other comments above.
so i posted this topic when i wasnt at my own computer.

i just checked.

i have a XP 2600+ 1.92Ghz

is it then worth it to even get a 2800+

Why is the 3000+ difficult to get?

I don't think you could detect much difference in speed improvement from XP 2600+ to an S2800+. OTOH, if you up your RAM to 1GB (2 x 512M is about $150), you would immediately feel the improvement in speed. Of course, they are other small little things you could do to make your PC fly.. setting DisplyablePagingExecutive & LargeSystemCache in HKEY LOCAL MACHINE is one example, reducing eye candy by choosing Best Performance in Control Panel>Performance and Maintenance is other. Anyway..

3000+ is the only version that has a bigger cache and would improve the performance substantially. However, as Sempron 3000+ and above are already available in the newer 939 socket of the newer MBs, not many shops are willing to carry the socket-A version (plus it is not cheap to say the least.)

Hope these help.

allegro
 

Allegro said:
I don't think you could detect much difference in speed improvement from XP 2600+ to an S2800+. OTOH, if you up your RAM to 1GB (2 x 512M is about $150), you would immediately feel the improvement in speed. Of course, they are other small little things you could do to make your PC fly.. setting DisplyablePagingExecutive & LargeSystemCache in HKEY LOCAL MACHINE is one example, reducing eye candy by choosing Best Performance in Control Panel>Performance and Maintenance is other. Anyway..

3000+ is the only version that has a bigger cache and would improve the performance substantially. However, as Sempron 3000+ and above are already available in the newer 939 socket of the newer MBs, not many shops are willing to carry the socket-A version (plug it is not cheap to say the least.)

Hope these help.

allegro

that helps alot
thanks!
i am wondering what my fsb is on my ssytem.
is there a way i can check without having to reboot or something?
shucks i forgot how to check it..
 

haagen_dazs said:
that helps alot
thanks!
i am wondering what my fsb is on my ssytem.
is there a way i can check without having to reboot or something?
shucks i forgot how to check it..

The FSB frequency can be found in the BIOS' Advanced Chipset Features (see P.61 of your MB's manual, available at Shuttle's site). If your "System Performance" field of your BIOS is set to "OPTIMAL", your FSB is auto-detected (one of these: 200/266/333/400 MHz.)

Since your MB can take only 2 slots of RAMs (max. 1gB x 2, but EX!), I reckon that the best value would be 1GB RAM (512M x2). DDR333 is most cost-effective, as you almost don't get any improvement by using the more expensive DDR400 due to the chipset used.

allegro
 

haagen_dazs said:
there are so many forums at hardwarezone that i am sooo lost..
its been a while since i step foot into that site.

anyhow.

was wondering
.....what is the highest/best CPU i can upgrade to if i have a socket A mobo?


i have a Shuttle XPC SN41G2 and according to the website... it says

# Socket A for AMD Athlon / AMD Athlon XP / AMD Duron
# AMD processors from 600MHz to Athlon XP 2700+ or higher
# Support for 200 / 266 / 333MHz FSB



1) so what is the fastest CPU i can upgrade to? (can i even get this at SLS?)
2) how much would that CPU cost?
3) would it make sense to upgrade to the CPU or just buy a new cpu and board? (its been 2 years since i followed the trends)

Go to this Shuttle web site for your computer information: http://global.shuttle.com/Product/barebone/brb_OverView.asp?B_id=11

You computer cpu support list: http://global.shuttle.com/Support/SupportList.asp?Item=SN41G2
Support List for the RAM is also in the above web page.

Go to this web site to see full AMD Athlon CPU list: http://www.tomshardware.com/cpu/20051121/images/cpu_table_amd_big.gif

You can go to this shop (or others) to see if they have your cpu: Cybermind, #04-59/09, Sim Lim Squ (if you are base in Singapore).

If you cannot find the cpu, you may need to try to get a 2nd hand cpu from Singapore Yahoo Auction (if you are base in Singapore).
 

Allegro said:
I don't think you could detect much difference in speed improvement from XP 2600+ to an S2800+. OTOH, if you up your RAM to 1GB (2 x 512M is about $150), you would immediately feel the improvement in speed. Of course, they are other small little things you could do to make your PC fly.. setting DisplyablePagingExecutive & LargeSystemCache in HKEY LOCAL MACHINE is one example, reducing eye candy by choosing Best Performance in Control Panel>Performance and Maintenance is other. Anyway..

3000+ is the only version that has a bigger cache and would improve the performance substantially. However, as Sempron 3000+ and above are already available in the newer 939 socket of the newer MBs, not many shops are willing to carry the socket-A version (plug it is not cheap to say the least.)

Hope these help.

allegro

"DisplyablePagingExecutive"

Absolutely no offence but whenever you tell someone to do a registry hack, it helps to ensure that the spelling is correct. Because a registry hack is usually a serious thing to screw around with, especially for the neophyte

For a list of power tweaks to Windows XP that includes Allegro's otherwise excellent suggestion (you need a large amount of RAM for some tweaks), see http://kadaitcha.cx/performance.html

Just a note: there's usually no need to add the two lines of code

"DisablePagingExecutive"=dword:00000001

"LargeSystemCache"=dword:00000001

as per the article (you certainly need to if you scroll to the relevant portion and you don't see both entries for some reason). Just double click the entries and change the values from 0 to 1
 

kahheng said:
"DisplyablePagingExecutive"

Absolutely no offence but whenever you tell someone to do a registry hack, it helps to ensure that the spelling is correct. Because a registry hack is usually a serious thing to screw around with, especially for the neophyte

For a list of power tweaks to Windows XP that includes Allegro's otherwise excellent suggestion (you need a large amount of RAM for some tweaks), see http://kadaitcha.cx/performance.html

Oops!!

Thanks kahheng for the correction and the link.

allegro
 

Allegro said:
The FSB frequency can be found in the BIOS' Advanced Chipset Features (see P.61 of your MB's manual, available at Shuttle's site). If your "System Performance" field of your BIOS is set to "OPTIMAL", your FSB is auto-detected (one of these: 200/266/333/400 MHz.)

Since your MB can take only 2 slots of RAMs (max. 1gB x 2, but EX!), I reckon that the best value would be 1GB RAM (512M x2). DDR333 is most cost-effective, as you almost don't get any improvement by using the more expensive DDR400 due to the chipset used.

allegro

what is the cost of one 1gb stick ddr333 in singapore now?
 

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