How viable is pentium M?

hogfather · 15 Apr 2006 at 19:16

Hi guys,

I've got a Antec Aria case, and currently I'm running it with a XP2000 palomino. These babies are hot, I'm talking 66 C idle (!!), so I want to upgrade over the next month to something rather cooler.

The case accepts and micro atx boards, and I've seen a rather tasty looking Aopen board which supports 533 fsb Pentium M, and uses DDR or DDR 2 ram.

Now the board is pricey, at arounf 180 quid, but the chip (1.73) is about the same, so quite cheap. Adding in a 2gb kit of ddr ram brings the total to around 473 or so, which compares favourably to the a64 setups that I've been speccing. Onboard video is fine at the moment as I'm not a gamer, but what I want is SILENCE from this PC.

Its mostly used for watching movies on my 19" widescreen, so silence is good, also fan noise is loud right now.

So basically price wise its very viable, but as a day to day PC, will the Pentium M be enough power? I don't game anymore, but I like my PC to "feel" fast in windows.

Also, I understand these 1.73s overclock quite well? I don't know if the geil value 2gb stuff is any good for overclocking, however.

So would you guys say on balance the pentium m is workable and worth the money over a a64, given I want a cool, quiet pc?

Thanks in advance chaps.

monkeypants · 15 Apr 2006 at 19:18

I use a Pentium M day to day and it's "mad-hot" fast. Try and get an Asus M-ATX board that can support the CT-479, it'll be much cheaper, and better than that AOpen thing.

They're very cool it you're not going to overclock, and Q-fan (on the Asus) will keep the noise down.

hogfather · 15 Apr 2006 at 20:22

Thanks for your input

I've had a look around, the plug in card looks good. Does it work with any socket 478 asus board? Or just a certain few?

Also wouldn't using a 478 platform limit me to AGP?

Soogs · 15 Apr 2006 at 21:16

Currently, the CT-479 supports the ASUS P4P800 SE, P4P800-VM, P4C800-E Deluxe, P4GD1 and P4GPL-X motherboards and the Intel Pentium M processor series.

i think you are limited to agp unless one of those mobos are pcie.

id say go for it

i did and never looked back. tho i moved to pm for gaming but its ace at most other things too

jhmaeng · 15 Apr 2006 at 21:18

Soogs said:
i think you are limited to agp unless one of those mobos are pcie.

The P4GD1 and P4GPL-X motherboards are PCI-E by virtue of being Intel 9XX chipsets. The P4GPL-X is as rare as hen's teeth, though.

hogfather · 15 Apr 2006 at 22:10

I need it to be M-atx, so my only option is the P4P800-VM really.

It doesn't matter much, my 9700 Pro is plenty good enough for what I do, so I've got no problems sticking with it really.

My only concern is that the CT479 will raise the height of the HSF, which brings it nearer the PSU of the aria. But I believe the heatsink that comes with the CT479 is quite small anyway?

monkeypants · 15 Apr 2006 at 22:12

Yeah, the heatsink's not tall, comes to about the same height as a Northwood and its HS/F.

hogfather · 15 Apr 2006 at 22:27

oooo, there's a CT479 in the b grade section for 17 inc vat! Though b grade is a bit dodgy. Weird that OCUK sell Pentium Ms, but no motherboards or the CT479?!

Soogs · 15 Apr 2006 at 23:00

even with the ct adaptor raising the socket up abit the cooler is about half height so you shouldnt have any issues the aria.

hogfather · 16 Apr 2006 at 09:47

sweet.

Damn I'm soo tempted, but it'll have to wait a couple of months for me to get the cash together.

Now the problem is its possible that yonah or conroe will b around by then on desktop. I don't know the timescale of conroe currently, but obviously if its only 4 months off then this is a silly upgrade.

hogfather · 16 Apr 2006 at 15:25

Gah!

No P4P800-VMs in the UK at all it seems :|

Since that's the only m-atx board the ct479 works on, I might have to go for the aopen or dfi board - but its 180 quid :'(

maddness · 16 Apr 2006 at 15:42

i personally wouldnt upgrade to a P-M. Dont get me wrong, performance wise it is very good when clocked. But it is a lot of money.

How about going to P4 Dualcore, like the 805 and a m-atx board. Performance will not be as good at standard, but you can save over £150-£200, maybe get a sugo (nicer m-atx case

), reserator or whatever.

The Running Man · 16 Apr 2006 at 16:38

as above, P-M is a nice novelty.. but tbh might as well go dual core if your throwing that much cash at it!

Tarty · 16 Apr 2006 at 16:44

You say you like watching movies, but with an onboard gfx card, how are you intending on watching high def stuff?

hogfather · 16 Apr 2006 at 16:49

Well, if it turns out there are no P4P800-VMs to be had, I think I may need to reconsider my options.

My attraction to the P-M is the cool temps of it, which would allow me to run it almost silently. The 805 is a p4, so wl be fairly hot, and the A64s aren't all that cool either.

X2s are out of my price range though, so its gotta be whatever runs cool and quick really.

EDIT: my monitor is the 19" acer, so does 1440x900, dunno if that works for high def? Otherwise i can use my 9700 Pro, if its got enough horsepower.

monkeypants · 16 Apr 2006 at 16:52

Considered Semprons? Or are they too slow?

hogfather · 16 Apr 2006 at 17:06

I haven't, to be honest!

I've got no qualms about semprons, but if I'm spending money on an upgrade, I want it to be quick. Possibly a a64 3200 is quite cool. I want to have a near silent cpu heatsink, so the cpu needs to run cool at stock.

Do you think its worth waiting for conroe for this upgrade? Or will they likely just push up the mhz to make it quicker still, and thus removing its cool temps?

The way I see it, 939 is quite warm, unless I go for a low power sempron, but htey are pricey. 754 is as above, 775 is a toaster.

Gah.