So you want to buy an Opteron.

I know that this is a little late and probably should have been done a little earlier but I have been busy lately with my dry ice project. This guide will help you with making the right decision of which Opteron to get. There are many different steppings and speeds. Remember to make sure that it is a Socket 939 and not Socket 940 Opteron.

What motherboards work with Opterons?

In theory Opterons should work with most motherboards that are Socket939. It would be a good idea to upgrade to the latest bios before you install your Opteron. I personally know that the DFI nF4 LanParty boards work the Opterons but many have had success with others such as Asus and Gigabyte. I ask that if you currently have an Opteron and don’t see it in the list below please leave a reply in this thread with the brand and model name. I will update it to the list.

Known Compatible motherboards:

DFI LanParty nF4 Ultra – D
DFI LanParty nF4 SLI – D
DFI LanParty nF4 SLI – DR
DFI LanParty nF4 Expert SLI-DR
Gigabyte K8NXP SLi
Gigabyte G8-K8NSC-939 NF3
A8N-SLI BIOS v1013.004 or later
A8N-SLI Deluxe BIOS v1015.004 or later
A8N-SLI Premium BIOS v1009.003 or later
A8N32-SLI w/1009 Bios

What stepping is best for me?

Here is a list of the single core steppings that I have done hours of research on.

CABNE: First of the Opteron steppings released. Has been known to easily attain 3 GHz and beyond with minimal voltage increase. Good choice for Dry Ice or Phase change cooling. CABNE stepping is the same silicon as the FX 57 and some of the same steppings have been found on the FX series.

CABGE: The second Opteron stepping released around October. They are the same as an Athlon 3700, 3800, and 4000. Have been known to clock to 2.8- 2.9 GHz. Some have reached 3 GHz but this was very rare. They are also a decent dry ice or phase change chip often reaching 3.4 GHz. They are not as good as the CABNE under dry ice or phase change.

CABYE: One of the third steppings released. Easily hit 3 GHz with some voltage and good cooling. Has been known to reach up to 2.8 GHz on stock voltages. This chip would be best for high end air cooling. They aren’t the best chips for chilled water, phase change, or dry ice.

CAB2E: One of the most recent steppings released it is a little better overclocker than the rest on air and water. Reaching 2.9ghz stock voltage core is not un normal for this stepping. I have seen up to 3.2ghz on some plain water cooling and voltage increases. This is one of the best chips for high end water or even chilled water. How ever if you are using super chilled water under 10 degrees Celsius this is not the chip for you. It doesn’t do very well under phase change or dry ice.

Confused on what model to buy?

All Opterons have 1mb of L2 cache and a default HTT speed (a.k.a. Front Side Bus, FSB) of 200mhz.

144
·Single core
·9x multiplier
·1.8 GHz stock clock
146
·Single core
·10x multiplier
· 2 GHz stock clock
148
· Single core
· 11x multiplier
· 2.2 GHz stock clock

150
· Single core
· 12x multiplier
· 2.4 GHz stock clock

165
· Dual core
· 9x multiplier
· 1.8 GHz stock clock

170
· Dual core
· 10x multiplier
· 2 GHz stock clock

175
· Dual core
· 11x multiplier
· 2.2 GHz stock clock

180
· Dual core
· 12x multiplier
· 2.4 GHz stock clock

For single core and a good overclocking motherboard the 146 or 148 are all good chips and can be found fairly inexpensive. The 144 is also a great chip and is the cheapest currently but I only recommend that if you have a DFI LanParty motherboard because of the higher HTT that must be used to achieve the same clocks due to the lower multiplier.

For dual core the 170 and 165 are both great choices reaching an average clock speed of 2.7 GHz. The 175 and 180 haven’t really been played around with much because of the high prices. The 170 also seems to out clock the 175s from my research.

I hope that this guide has given you a little help when choosing your Opteron. Any questions feel free to put a reply in the thread and I will help you out to the best of my knowledge.

Interesting, and thanks . I really want one of these, and this will help alot of I actually get the money together. One thing though, is that there are 152 and 154 models available in the UK. There very expensive though.
http://www.scan.co.uk/Products/Produ...ilterKeywords=

Nice write up Planet, that sure is some good info for all the guys around here wanting to get into the Opteron overclocking world

My CABYE chip hit 2.9Ghz on stock voltage, if you wanna update your guide.

Quote: Originally Posted by Dex Nice write up Planet, that sure is some good info for all the guys around here wanting to get into the Opteron overclocking world My CABYE chip hit 2.9Ghz on stock voltage, if you wanna update your guide.

Thanks yea but thats a very rarity in the CABYEs I wanna keep it average.

Quote: Originally Posted by Cpt.Planet Thanks yea but thats a very rarity in the CABYEs I wanna keep it average.

Heh now I feel special

Cool, thanks. I've recently been thinking about Opties. Not that I am going to buy one any time soon, but I have wanted to know more about them and it sounds like youve done your research.

VERY nice write-up, Capt. I'll have to give you rep as soon as it lets me rep you again.

Nice post, but a little detail:
the title says "and Opteron"

Quote: Originally Posted by eZe Nice post, but a little detail: the title says "and Opteron"

Opps could a mod or admin fix that please?

ordered an opteron 146 the other day, too bad i got this email the nex day "Per our website, the item you ordered can take about 2 weeks to ship as it is a special order".....I broke things.....

Since captain graciously set is up with a guide on which Chip is what and which to choose.
now heres a lil price guide and most popular locations

Monarch computer :
retail Oem
144 $198.63
146 $201.63 $206.00
148$229.73 $207.63
150 $331.63 $311.00
152 $799.00 $775.00
165 $312.97 $339.98 Yes Oem is more expensive
170 $462.63 None
175 $525.00 $461.63
180 none none

newegg:
retail Oem
144 none none
146 none none
148 $233.00$216.00
150 $335.00 $311.00
152 none none
154 $855.00 none 2.8ghz single core
165 $345.00 none
170 $465.00 $420.00
175 $535.00 $495.00
180 $810.00 $775.00

Zipzoomfly:
retail
144 $189.00
146 $189.00 (out of stock backorder
148 $238.00 $226.10 (says open box)
150 $369.00
152 $800.00
165 $313.00
170 $400.00
175 $513.00
180 $839.00

Tigerdirect:
retail Oem
144 $169.99 $149.99
146 $199.99 $179.99
148$299.99 $279.99
150 none
154 none
152 none
165 $349.99 $329.99
170 none
175 none
180 none

hopefully this will give light to availability
you can find these chips elseware and on ebay. but this will give you an Idea to what you are looking at.

If you can get a 146, it is worth the wait. My Opty daily driver runs at 2.9 on air with a minimal voltage increase and a 1:1 memory ration with 2GB of Corsair PC4K. By far the fastest CPU I have at the moment, and smokes my 3800+ and 4400+ X2 even when I clock the hell out of them.

Soon I'll be joining the Opty up with a 7800GTX and hope to kill some benchmarks. Great writeup CPT.

Quote: Originally Posted by BigAkita If you can get a 146, it is worth the wait. My Opty daily driver runs at 2.9 on air with a minimal voltage increase and a 1:1 memory ration with 2GB of Corsair PC4K. By far the fastest CPU I have at the moment, and smokes my 3800+ and 4400+ X2 even when I clock the hell out of them. Soon I'll be joining the Opty up with a 7800GTX and hope to kill some benchmarks. Great writeup CPT.

Which 7800GTx you going for the 512 or 256?. If your going with a 256meg GTX I think eVGA or XFX is the way to go. If you end up getting the 256 give me a hollar I'll mod the bios for you so you get a couple extra points in 3dmark.

I just bought a 170 opty today for $400.00 shipped, I decided on spending the extra money for it to get the 10x multiplier.
http://www.zipzoomfly.com/jsp/Produc...ctCode=80107-R

I also ordered some OCZ gold gx 2GB memory , paired together Im hoping this will get me close to FX 60 speeds.

The FX-60 has two cores both running at 2.6Ghz, you should be able to pwn them speeds

Oh and Planet, you can add the Gigabyte K8NXP SLi to your compatible motherboards list

dang.. nice write up planets.. props for you bro

Quote: Originally Posted by Dex Oh and Planet, you can add the Gigabyte K8NXP SLi to your compatible motherboards list

Done. Thanks to all you guys for the rep. I really hope that this helps alot of you guys out.

very nice thread you got there planet, + rep to ya! thanks for the info!

sweet write up. I was just beginning to look at the Optys today. I'm probably gonna go with one for my new rig and this thread just helped me a bunch. Thanks!

My opty 170 arrived today,or rather I came home from buying a digital camera and the box was sitting out on the front steps ,covered in snow where anyone could just walk off with it.
Gotta Love fedex.

The stepping is CCBWE.
The cpu cooler is pretty sweet looking,although I'll be using my zalman cn7700 cu cooler instead.
Hopefully the memory will come soon and I can post how far this Bad Mofo will go.
WEEE... FX60 here I come