What determines a pc's "bit"

jmpb89

jmpb89

Geek Trainee
I was looking for a few components to build my dad a simple pc for the cheapest amount possible. I chose a motherboard, some RAM, and then when i was looking at the CPU's i realised i had not seen any indication of 64 or 32 bit...

What i would like to know is what determines whether a computer is 64bit or 32bit..

i.e. is it the CPU, Mobo or some other thing i havn't thought of?

I just want to make sure i don't choose a 64bit motherboard and a 32bit CPU or anything like that. Or is the mobo the thing that decides and as long as its the right socket type any CPU will fit?
 
I think most (if not all) motherboards will support 64bit cpus. Check the list of supported cpus on your motherboard manufacturers site.

To get a 64bit pc you need to choose a 64bit CPU and a 64bit operating system.

To make full use of your 64bit capability you need 64bit compatable software.

64bit is backwards compatable to 32bit so a 32bit os will work with your 64bit cpu.



To be honest most people cannot make full use of 64bit.
 
A motherboard that supports 64 bit uses 64 lanes on the motherboard, instead of the traditional 32. So that means that twice the amount of data is transferred. Now some CPUs that support 64-bit are:

  • Intel Core 2 Duo (E****)
  • Intel Core 2 Quad (Q****)
  • Intel i7
  • AMD Athlon 64

To use the 64-bit features, you need to run a 64-bit OS. If you want Windows, then I'd suggest Windows Vista x64 (as the 64-bit version of XP is not really supported by hardware manufacturers).

But like Zeus said, most people won't actually use 64-bit features. The only real advantage for home users is that you can use 4 GB or more RAM in your system.
 
Yeah thanks guys, i actually have a 64bit pc, vista 64 and an AMD athlon 64 myself but i just wanted to make sure my purchases wouldn't get muddled up :)

so it's kind of the motherboard that determines the bit but they are backward compatible anyway? :)

i feel enlightened as always when i use this site :chk:
 
jmpb89 said:
so it's kind of the motherboard that determines the bit but they are backward compatible anyway? :)
Click to expand...
To support 64-bit you need a combination of a 64-bit motherboard AND CPU. And only in that combination you get 64-bit mode in your hardware.

It is all backward compatible, EXCEPT the hardware drivers. You can't use a 32-bit device driver on a 64-bit OS. But after Vista x64 was released, 64-bit drivers where getting more available.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top