Dual CPU system experience ... AMD? Intel??

[TheInformer]

Anyone have any experience with dual CPU machines, such as which software programs utilize the extra CPU, how hard was it to set up, what kind of cost is involved, etc??

There have been endless discussions on single CPU systems but very little on multiprocessor systems.

Obviously to work Win NT/2K/XP will be needed so no need to bring that up ;^)

[cuervo]

I've got both Intel (IWILL DVD266 w/ 1 GHz P3's)and AMD (TYAM Tiger MP w/ 1.2 Ghz Palomino) systems up and running.I MUCH prefer the AMD system for speed, but, both systems seem about the same for stability unless I overclock the IWILL mobo. Setup required a full re-install for both chipsets. The Intel system runs at 35-39 C while the AMD system runs at 40-43C. The biggest advantage I see is that I can do other tasks while I'm processing digital video without the system locking up. Not too many programs are multi-threaded, Photoshop and TMPGEnc being two that are.

I moved up from an ASUS P3V4X and would trade that old system for either one of these, anyday. I really like the TYAN system the best...it's my daily workhorse.

[chinky]

Just wondering what sound card you're using on your system?

[nfl2k2]

another sound card question - does a 70$ sound card sound 60$ better than a 10$ sound card? or is it not worth it?

[Shabubu]

Depends what features you want. If you play games, listen to mp3's and stuff like that, then yes the $70 soundcard is the way to go. Toms Hardware Guide does regular reviews ( http://www.tomshardware.com )

[chinky]

I was under the assumption the high end SoundBlaster cards sometime cause system hang-ups. If so which is really the best sound card out there to use as a home stereo?

[alucard2050]

i have the creative soundblaster pro128. its not a big thing but don't need it for gameing or cranking some mp3's. i got it for 40 bucks. cards can run up to 200 bucks or more. depending on what you want to use it for.........

[d4n13l]

I have a SB Platinium Live! 5.1 PCI sound card. (Inlcudes the Live! Drive which uses a front face plate)
It is well worth the money, no system hang ups or any problems like that - ever. Works under any OS as well with no problem.
It is only worth getting if you are into audio though, Eg. creating your own music, Sound editing etc... It has all the connections that you could ever want.
It is probably the best purchase that I have made for my PC.

[Shabubu]

I have a Live Player 1024, there have been lots of reports of incompatability with VIA chipsets, especially AMD ones. I think they've fixed this in the Audigy series, another atlernative is the Hercules Game Theatre, seriously go to Toms Hardware, he has an article that goes thru the pros and cons of each of the major soundcards out there.

[WildStyle]

If your building a new system get an SB Audigy. Not only is it a good card, you get a firewire port to capture with too! Works flawlessly with Premeire.

[tinycorkscrew]

I have a dual-Athlon 1.2 ghz Palamino system on a Tyan Thunder K7 motherboard.

The system is very stable, especially since downloading updates for Windows XP a week or so ago.

As a previous message stated, the greatest benefit of two processors is multitasking. I can play games while encoding MPGs for example. TMPGEnc, Premiere, Photoshop, After Effects, and Microsoft's own WMV Movie Maker program all make use of multi-threading. Quake 3 does, as well.

As for soundcards, I have a Soundblaster Live 5.1. It is a well-known fact that Sounblaster Live cards do not work well in a multiprocessor setup, but I've had few problems. I've had almost no problems since installing the newest drivers.

As for cost, we spent just a little more than the cost of a Pentium 4 Dell computer and got much more.

Specs:
1.2 ghz AMD Palamino x2
Tyan Thunder K7 motherboard
Seagate Cheetah 18 gb 15000 rpm SCSI drive
1gb Crucial DDR RAM
Old 3gb Western Digital IDE drive from an older computer
HP 8100 CDRW from old computer
Geforce 256 DDR
NCR 22 inch monitor (equivalent of Mitsubishi 2040u)
MAG Innovision 14 inch monitor from old computer (driven by onboard ATI video)
Sounblaster Live 5.1
Addtronics W8500 case w/ 9 Panaflo fans
2 Volcano II heatsinks
NMB 460 watt power supply
OEM Firewire card (for a Gateway computer, I think)
Generic floppy drive

There are two onboard LAN ports. One connects to a cable modem, the other connects to the home network.

The computer was remarkably easy to build. The huge Addtronics case made it easy to mount the motherboard. We bought our motherboard, processors, and heatsink from Monarch Computer, so they installed and tested (for free) the processors and heatsinks on the motherboard before they shipped to us. We bought the case and fans from the same place, so the fans were already installed when the case was shipped.

When Tyan released a BIOS update to allow for multiple monitors, I dug up our old MAG Innovsion. I love having two monitors. I would have never known that there were any benefits to having them if I hadn't tried it out myself.

Don't know if there's anything else to add. I'm not into benchmarking, but I'd be happy to share my subjective feelings about performance, etc.

[gimp]

I'm running the Tyan Tiger with 2 1.2GHzAMD Paliminos this is the most stable system I've got & used. I recommend it to anyone! I built it 99% for video editing.

Hey tinycorkscrew you in the Atlanta area???

Tyan Tiger
2-1.2GHz Athlon MP Paliminos
1 GB Viking ram
1-100 GB Harddrive
1-Pioneer DVD-Rom
1-Yamaha 3200 24x10x40
1-Yamaha 2200 20x10x40
ATI AIW Radeon 32MB/DDR/AGP
Sound Blaster live 5.1+MP3
A

[tinycorkscrew]

I'm in Chicago.

But I like Atlanta. I've got a few friends there.

[sommersby]

What did your systems cost and do you have to run dual power supplies, is cooling a problem?

[gimp]

My system in total cost probaly around 3,000 I will have to sit down & do the figuring (been meaning to do just not enough time in the days anymore) I don't have any cooling problems, I use the Black Antec case like Alien hardware does. It has a 330watt power supply!!!!

[docfly]

Hey gimp,
Where did you get the black Antec case from. My cousin wants me to build him a machine and having a black case is very important to him. He would love the Alienware case.



Thanks

[gf]

Hi Gimp
I was wondering how is your success with the ATI AIW Radeon 32MB/DDR/AGP in your system? I use to own a all in wonder 128 pro in my system. It never worked right. I installed in a Pentium & Athlon systems and garbage. Lost frames, lockups,...

[ssober]

Just found this out. Antec buys all their computer cases from "another manufacturer". Go figure. You might be able to find the cases under another name cheaper than Antec sales them for. Check out http://www.chieftec.com/. I don't think they sell directly but you might be able to make some calls. I bought my Antec case at a local CompUSA store.

[vigilante]

the dang o' case you want is probably a worstation chieftec case, you can find it at http://www.newegg.com under pc cases for $45, it says it doesn't come with any fans of power supplies but actually comes with two fans. You need the power supply, this can be your chance to get a 400w rather than the 350w - most come with. you can also find the same case in the same site under pc cases and the enermax (or something like that). It runs for about 99$ but comes with 3 fans and power supply. I hope this helps. Let me know.

[gimp]

docfly,,,sorry so late to get back to you been busy lately. I bought the case at circotech.com out of California they have black, white, and a purple case the it's the model 970 medium server case!!!!!!LOVE IT!!!!