I had authored a funny and detailed a response, but for some reason it was censored by the admins.. SO here is a quick down dirty response.
I paid $109 for my Q8400, but I after a few searches I found them as cheap as $150.
I really looked into an OCZ Vertex 2 120Gb SSD drive, but I decided on the two 300Gb 10K RPM WD Velocipraptor HDD's (RAID 0). It was 60% more storage for 40% cheaper. Everything I read they are faster HDD solution besides SSD.
I went with the nVidia FX580 because of the cost and Photoshop and Sony Vegas performance. I contemplated soft modding a GTX250, but I wanted stable environment.
I agree, we are getting closer to a really good Optiplex 330. I am really happy with all my mods. My rendering times in Sony Vegas 10 64Bit have been cut in half. Photoshop CS5 is working great. The machine is still so quiet, I can only hear the fan when it boots. All the USB external drives are louder than the machine.
OS will ship microcode updates too so unless you're running an old OS for which the vendor has stopped provided such updates, you don't need microcode updates in BIOS.
Ok Censored Again. I post a few picts of the memory and memory in the case and the Online Dell configuration Survey. I received an email stating they removed my post because of "Your post contains language that we believe reveals non-public information about Dell or another company or person. The Terms of Service do not allow users to post this type of information, which generally includes the names, telephone numbers and/or personal email addresses of Dell employees and Dell Community participants, as well as tracking numbers, customer numbers, order numbers, or service tags." Here is the text I put in the post.
" 8Gb of RAM!!!! Success, I performing test right and will post results. Here are some picts for you folks."
Needless to say. I installed the 8Gbs of Ram and ran some tests. It works great. Here is another pict..
WOW That's awesome!! I'm reading your posts and that's cool you got 8GB RAM running. Now I can upgrade after I find a quadcore chip for a good price. While I'm getting updates from this forums I'm installing Windows Home Server 2011 on my dinosaur AMD Athlon 64 2.2Ghz and 2GB ram so my Optiplex 330 and Dell D610 laptop can all connect to each other and WOOO HOOO they are all talking and streaming everything back and forth.
This is the list of "tested processors" I received from DELL-Chris M of the Dell forums. The E8400 shows up on that list. Chris said that the E8500 was the fastest that they'd tested. Obviously other people have tried some Quad Cores like the Q8400 with reported success as you'll see from other postings, and are also now trying 8GB RAM. However these have not been officially approved by Dell.
From: DELL-Chris M Subject: Optiplex 330 CPU Upgrade
I got censored too, and frankly I found it a bit freaky. Since I spedify equipment (Dell / Aitch Pea) for business clients, it's left me wondering about the former.
Posting about video cards, Q9505 processor, 8GB RAM and the A08 BIOS seems to be about normal type of topics. I wonder how these could have touched a raw nerve at Dell. Perhaps it's the A08 BIOS issue.
Let's see what Chris tells us about this A08 BIOS update. Specifially I'd really like to know what changes have been made to the microcode and what these affect, especially what processors or memory levels are now supported (or have become unsupported...), and whether this A08 BIOS update is reversible.
tkawika I do not see anything wrong with your previous post. You removed characters from the service tag and express service code so the AI should have let it be. The only information I have about A08 is what is posted on the driver page - "Updated CPU microcode". They do not release anything else to me.
JRBC1, Your post was fine. I have no idea why the AI moved it.
OK, well I'll try again, editing out anything that could be considered spam or advertising or false advertising or whatever!
----------------------
The Q9505 might also be a solution - Quad Core 2.83 GHz w/6MB L2 cache 95W (at a bit over two hundred dollars) [or Q9505S 65W at over four hundred dollars - pricey!]. If anyone tries either of theseor any other Quad Core please let us know!
I'd also like to hear if anybody has run Quad Core like the Q8400 successfully using the A08 BIOS. Please keep us posted!
8 GB sounds like the limit then for RAM
An SSD would certainly speed everthing up dramatically - over two hundred dollars for a 120GB version at a vendor near LA (which issues eggs as rating points).
I will probably install a GT440 (96 cores) video card with 1GB DDR5. Going from DDR3 to DDR5 almost doubles the memory bandwidth from 25.6 GB/sec to about 52 GB/sec so helps a lot with video processing speeds.
The GT440 by Zotac takes up two video slots and so is less ideal (although I have no need of a second video card in the slot), but on the other hand only asks for a 300W power supply, as found in the Optiplex 330 (minitower at least), so I'm assuming with 18A on the 12V rail.
The GT430 and GT440 by eVGA specify 22A at 12V, which leaves me a little concerned. I'm currently running their GeForce 9500 GT (32 cores, DV-I x 2, HDCP) which needs 18A, and which equals the Optiplex 330 mintower spec.
I would sincerely like eVGA to bring out a 1GB DDR5 version either of the GT240, 430 or 440, as have other manufacturers, but they appear unwilling to do this currently, despite myself and others asking them to do so. They have released 512 MB DDR5 versions of these cards, or 1GB DDR3 versions, but generally NOT 1GB DDR5 versions of the mid priced cards like the 430 and 430, as other companies have.
For doing heavy duty graphics like CS5 video editing, one of those card types (available from several manufacturers) should be pretty good. They can handle Blu Ray 3D, OpenGL 4 family and Direct X 11 and but the GT 240 by various manufacturers (Direct X 10.1 OpenGl 3.1) seems to be slicker in some other respects. However DDR5 to me is the way to go. If you Search the words "cs5 cuda acceleration" on the net you can find articles about this. I often find the first article in my search results is the most relevant, but I'll leave each one of you to choose which articles you read, since I would not want to be thought of as promoting an article which might have advertising in it.
An article I like lets you know which video cards may be best for running CS5 Premiere including video editing, and to make a fix to get the Adobe programs to recognize the full functionality of your video card(s) and therefore to unlock the Mercury Playback engine (which requires at least 896 MB of memory). Otherwise you're stuck on very expensive video cards 'approved' by the manufactuer of CS5 like the GTX 285, 470 or the hyper expensive Quadros (6000 etc) - which, of course are made by several manufacturers. The article I like best might be a little dated since nVidia apparently just released some new driver updates which work better with CS5, but I'd recommend this article's overall advice on cards.
For Photoshop CS5 and other somewhat lighter duty programs, you can see which cards the software manufacturer is ok with if you do an internet search under "cs5 approved cards photoshop". As I said before, I often start with the article at the top of the results, but I'll lleave that choice up to you.
I will probably get a GT440 video card by Zotac or another manufacturer where they only require a 300W power supply and 18A on the 12V rail, and definitely with DDR5.
That's all for now. We seem to be getting closer to the "Ideal Optiplex 330". Other useful tips very welcome!
I have to update my previous CPU temp post. I recently ran a system stress test. It thoroughly pushed the CPU to 100%. I had figured rendering a full video would do the same thing. But alas I was wrong. Previously I stated the highest my temp was 54.8 C, well after a hour running the stress test on Performance Test, the temp reached a high of 71 C but average 68 C. Haha, a little higher than my previous high. The processor is still running great. Im loving the 8Gb's, running Photoshop and Sony Vegas are running great together, but I still turn off most programs when rendering. Old habits die hard.
Thanks again for your original post, it has saved me a lot of money.
When you switched to your Q8400, what did your Windows Experience Index go to on calcualtions per second? and what was it before with which processors?
Also what was your memory Windows Experience Index before and after 8GB?
I really don't use Windows Experience Index to gauge my computer performance because I have read in multiple articles that the score is based on equipment not actual performance. For instance, the highest Index score a single mechanical drive is 5.9. My laptop has a Momentus 7200RPM drive with a 5.9, before I setup the RAID with my 10k drives it was 5.9. So, I have stopped using the index as any type of performance number. I am using PCMARK and Performance Test. My score has increased 400 points on Performance Test since my upgrades.
Hey I was wondering what the PCI-E in this machine is limited to. One of main reason's I went to the Quadro FX580 was because of my belief that any PCI-E v2 or higher cards couldn't take advantage of the bus speeds hence no real great advantage. I understand the memory are usually greater in the newer cards.
tkawika
18 Posts
0
May 5th, 2011 04:00
Well Liverocket,
I had authored a funny and detailed a response, but for some reason it was censored by the admins.. SO here is a quick down dirty response.
I paid $109 for my Q8400, but I after a few searches I found them as cheap as $150.
I really looked into an OCZ Vertex 2 120Gb SSD drive, but I decided on the two 300Gb 10K RPM WD Velocipraptor HDD's (RAID 0). It was 60% more storage for 40% cheaper. Everything I read they are faster HDD solution besides SSD.
I went with the nVidia FX580 because of the cost and Photoshop and Sony Vegas performance. I contemplated soft modding a GTX250, but I wanted stable environment.
I agree, we are getting closer to a really good Optiplex 330. I am really happy with all my mods. My rendering times in Sony Vegas 10 64Bit have been cut in half. Photoshop CS5 is working great. The machine is still so quiet, I can only hear the fan when it boots. All the USB external drives are louder than the machine.
My non humerous and hopefully non censored post.
t
Zuxy
9 Posts
0
May 5th, 2011 21:00
OS will ship microcode updates too so unless you're running an old OS for which the vendor has stopped provided such updates, you don't need microcode updates in BIOS.
tkawika
18 Posts
0
May 5th, 2011 23:00
Ok Censored Again. I post a few picts of the memory and memory in the case and the Online Dell configuration Survey. I received an email stating they removed my post because of "Your post contains language that we believe reveals non-public information about Dell or another company or person. The Terms of Service do not allow users to post this type of information, which generally includes the names, telephone numbers and/or personal email addresses of Dell employees and Dell Community participants, as well as tracking numbers, customer numbers, order numbers, or service tags." Here is the text I put in the post.
" 8Gb of RAM!!!! Success, I performing test right and will post results. Here are some picts for you folks."
Needless to say. I installed the 8Gbs of Ram and ran some tests. It works great. Here is another pict..
More test results to come..
Liverocket
8 Posts
0
May 6th, 2011 00:00
WOW That's awesome!! I'm reading your posts and that's cool you got 8GB RAM running. Now I can upgrade after I find a quadcore chip for a good price. While I'm getting updates from this forums I'm installing Windows Home Server 2011 on my dinosaur AMD Athlon 64 2.2Ghz and 2GB ram so my Optiplex 330 and Dell D610 laptop can all connect to each other and WOOO HOOO they are all talking and streaming everything back and forth.
Live
DELL-Chris M
Community Manager
•
56.9K Posts
0
May 6th, 2011 06:00
Always update the bios first.
JRBC1
18 Posts
0
May 6th, 2011 08:00
Hi Chris
Can you let us know what the "Updated CPU microcode" actually changes in this A08 BIOS update?
Also, can the update to A08 be reversed back (to e.g. A07)?
Thanks a lot,
John
JRBC1
18 Posts
1
May 6th, 2011 10:00
Hi Zip48
This is the list of "tested processors" I received from DELL-Chris M of the Dell forums. The E8400 shows up on that list. Chris said that the E8500 was the fastest that they'd tested. Obviously other people have tried some Quad Cores like the Q8400 with reported success as you'll see from other postings, and are also now trying 8GB RAM. However these have not been officially approved by Dell.
From: DELL-Chris M
Subject: Optiplex 330 CPU Upgrade
D923J Conroe E8500, 3.16GHz, 6MB, WFD, E0
H399J Conroe E8400, 3.00Ghz, 6MB, WFD, E0
MP628 Conroe E6850, 3.00Ghz, 4MB, 1333FSB, G0
MP162 Conroe E6750, 2.66Ghz, 4MB, 1333FSB, G0
PN416 Conroe E6700, 2.66Ghz, 4MB, 1066FSB, B2
KU345 Conroe E6600, 2.40Ghz, 4MB, 1066FSB, B2
MP160 Conroe E6550, 2.33Ghz, 4MB, 1333FSB
DX484 Conroe E6420, 2.13Ghz, 4MB, 1066FSB, B2
DX485 Conroe E6320, 1.86Ghz, 4MB, 1066FSB, B2
Y933C Conroe E4700, 2.60Ghz, 2MB, 800FSB, G0
CY593 Conroe E4600, 2.40GHz, 2MB, 800FSB, M0
MP159 Conroe E4500, 2.20Ghz, 2MB, 800FSB, M0
RX522 Conroe E4400, 2.00Ghz, 2MB, 800FSB, M0
HU587 Conroe E4300, 1.80Ghz, 2MB, 800FSB, L2
T944D Conroe E2220, 2.40Ghz, 1MB, 800FSB, M0
RX391 Conroe E2180, 2.00Ghz, 1MB, 800FSB, M0
YU563 Conroe E2160, 1.80Ghz, 1MB, 800FSB, M0
YU562 Conroe E2140, 1.60Ghz, 1MB, 800FSB, M0
Y934C Wolfdale Dual Core E8500, 3.16Ghz, 6MB, 1333FSB, 65W, C0
Y935C Wolfdale Dual Core E8400, 3.00Ghz, 6MB, 1333FSB, 65W, C0
Y932C Wolfdale Dual Core E8200, 2.66Ghz, 6MB, 1333FSB, 65W, C0
X198G Wolfdale Dual Core E7200, 2.53Ghz, 3MB, FD, 65W,M0
I hope that is of some help.
John
JRBC1
18 Posts
0
May 6th, 2011 14:00
I got censored too, and frankly I found it a bit freaky. Since I spedify equipment (Dell / Aitch Pea) for business clients, it's left me wondering about the former.
Posting about video cards, Q9505 processor, 8GB RAM and the A08 BIOS seems to be about normal type of topics. I wonder how these could have touched a raw nerve at Dell. Perhaps it's the A08 BIOS issue.
Let's see what Chris tells us about this A08 BIOS update. Specifially I'd really like to know what changes have been made to the microcode and what these affect, especially what processors or memory levels are now supported (or have become unsupported...), and whether this A08 BIOS update is reversible.
DELL-Chris M
Community Manager
•
56.9K Posts
0
May 6th, 2011 15:00
tkawika
I do not see anything wrong with your previous post. You removed characters from the service tag and express service code so the AI should have let it be. The only information I have about A08 is what is posted on the driver page - "Updated CPU microcode". They do not release anything else to me.
JRBC1,
Your post was fine. I have no idea why the AI moved it.
JRBC1
18 Posts
0
May 6th, 2011 20:00
OK, well I'll try again, editing out anything that could be considered spam or advertising or false advertising or whatever!
----------------------
The Q9505 might also be a solution - Quad Core 2.83 GHz w/6MB L2 cache 95W (at a bit over two hundred dollars) [or Q9505S 65W at over four hundred dollars - pricey!]. If anyone tries either of theseor any other Quad Core please let us know!
I'd also like to hear if anybody has run Quad Core like the Q8400 successfully using the A08 BIOS. Please keep us posted!
8 GB sounds like the limit then for RAM
An SSD would certainly speed everthing up dramatically - over two hundred dollars for a 120GB version at a vendor near LA (which issues eggs as rating points).
I will probably install a GT440 (96 cores) video card with 1GB DDR5. Going from DDR3 to DDR5 almost doubles the memory bandwidth from 25.6 GB/sec to about 52 GB/sec so helps a lot with video processing speeds.
The GT440 by Zotac takes up two video slots and so is less ideal (although I have no need of a second video card in the slot), but on the other hand only asks for a 300W power supply, as found in the Optiplex 330 (minitower at least), so I'm assuming with 18A on the 12V rail.
The GT430 and GT440 by eVGA specify 22A at 12V, which leaves me a little concerned. I'm currently running their GeForce 9500 GT (32 cores, DV-I x 2, HDCP) which needs 18A, and which equals the Optiplex 330 mintower spec.
I would sincerely like eVGA to bring out a 1GB DDR5 version either of the GT240, 430 or 440, as have other manufacturers, but they appear unwilling to do this currently, despite myself and others asking them to do so. They have released 512 MB DDR5 versions of these cards, or 1GB DDR3 versions, but generally NOT 1GB DDR5 versions of the mid priced cards like the 430 and 430, as other companies have.
For doing heavy duty graphics like CS5 video editing, one of those card types (available from several manufacturers) should be pretty good. They can handle Blu Ray 3D, OpenGL 4 family and Direct X 11 and but the GT 240 by various manufacturers (Direct X 10.1 OpenGl 3.1) seems to be slicker in some other respects. However DDR5 to me is the way to go. If you Search the words "cs5 cuda acceleration" on the net you can find articles about this. I often find the first article in my search results is the most relevant, but I'll leave each one of you to choose which articles you read, since I would not want to be thought of as promoting an article which might have advertising in it.
An article I like lets you know which video cards may be best for running CS5 Premiere including video editing, and to make a fix to get the Adobe programs to recognize the full functionality of your video card(s) and therefore to unlock the Mercury Playback engine (which requires at least 896 MB of memory). Otherwise you're stuck on very expensive video cards 'approved' by the manufactuer of CS5 like the GTX 285, 470 or the hyper expensive Quadros (6000 etc) - which, of course are made by several manufacturers. The article I like best might be a little dated since nVidia apparently just released some new driver updates which work better with CS5, but I'd recommend this article's overall advice on cards.
For Photoshop CS5 and other somewhat lighter duty programs, you can see which cards the software manufacturer is ok with if you do an internet search under "cs5 approved cards photoshop". As I said before, I often start with the article at the top of the results, but I'll lleave that choice up to you.
I will probably get a GT440 video card by Zotac or another manufacturer where they only require a 300W power supply and 18A on the 12V rail, and definitely with DDR5.
That's all for now. We seem to be getting closer to the "Ideal Optiplex 330". Other useful tips very welcome!
tkawika
18 Posts
0
May 7th, 2011 00:00
Zuxy,
I have to update my previous CPU temp post. I recently ran a system stress test. It thoroughly pushed the CPU to 100%. I had figured rendering a full video would do the same thing. But alas I was wrong. Previously I stated the highest my temp was 54.8 C, well after a hour running the stress test on Performance Test, the temp reached a high of 71 C but average 68 C. Haha, a little higher than my previous high. The processor is still running great. Im loving the 8Gb's, running Photoshop and Sony Vegas are running great together, but I still turn off most programs when rendering. Old habits die hard.
Thanks again for your original post, it has saved me a lot of money.
Tkawika
JRBC1
18 Posts
0
May 7th, 2011 21:00
Tkawika/Zuxy/Liverocket
When you switched to your Q8400, what did your Windows Experience Index go to on calcualtions per second? and what was it before with which processors?
Also what was your memory Windows Experience Index before and after 8GB?
Thanks
tkawika
18 Posts
0
May 7th, 2011 22:00
JRBC,
I really don't use Windows Experience Index to gauge my computer performance because I have read in multiple articles that the score is based on equipment not actual performance. For instance, the highest Index score a single mechanical drive is 5.9. My laptop has a Momentus 7200RPM drive with a 5.9, before I setup the RAID with my 10k drives it was 5.9. So, I have stopped using the index as any type of performance number. I am using PCMARK and Performance Test. My score has increased 400 points on Performance Test since my upgrades.
T
rmorrison100
1 Message
0
May 8th, 2011 03:00
Thanks guys for the info. I am planning to upgrade mine now.
WoW Enchanting Guide | World of Warcraft First Aid Guide
tkawika
18 Posts
0
May 8th, 2011 04:00
Hey I was wondering what the PCI-E in this machine is limited to. One of main reason's I went to the Quadro FX580 was because of my belief that any PCI-E v2 or higher cards couldn't take advantage of the bus speeds hence no real great advantage. I understand the memory are usually greater in the newer cards.
Any thoughts?
T