# Which Vista is best?



## hat (May 20, 2008)

I was planning on giving Vista a whirl... what version is best? Is it best if I use 64 bit?


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## erocker (May 20, 2008)

If you want to run 4gb's or more of RAM I see no reason not to use Visa 64.  It has it's nuances and things you have to manually fix but it works quite well for me so far.


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## Snake05 (May 20, 2008)

Vista Ultimate x64 is what I use, and I love it.  I haven't tried any other version to compare it to, but I'd say stick with x64, it has less driver errors than the 32 bit version, and of course more available RAM.  It is pretty much reversed from XP in my opinion.


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## kyle2020 (May 20, 2008)

hat said:


> I was planning on giving Vista a whirl... what version is best? Is it best if I use 64 bit?



if im correct, the benefit of using 64 bit versions of vista over 32 bit versions are the RAM ammount - in 32 bit you could have 4GB total but only 3. something be useable. in 64 bit, however, i think your only limited to how much RAM you can afford / install haha. But i dont think there are any other major differences between the 2, but no doubt someone will correct me


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## vega22 (May 20, 2008)

if moneys not an issue then ultimate but if it does premium has nearly all the features.

64bits the only way to go.


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## hat (May 20, 2008)

Hm... I could always get another set of the same RAM I have now... 4gb... DDR800... 5-5-5-15. It would have to be at 2T for 4 sticks though right?


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## oli_ramsay (May 20, 2008)

I've used 64 and 32 bit versions of Vista Ultimate and they're both great.  Looks a lot nicer than XP and after a couple of months, you'll not want to go back.

The only difference between the two is that you can use 4GB+ of ram in x64.  I've had no problems finding drivers for the x64 version at all.

Hope this helps


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## farlex85 (May 20, 2008)

64-bit for sure. Ultimate is, well, ultimate. Most features you would ever use are on premium though. If you got the cash, go for the gold though.


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## hat (May 20, 2008)

I'm gonna wait till all my money comes in... foxconn rebate and birthday, and that money I never got from last Christmas lol.

Then see what I can do witg memory.


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## wolf2009 (May 20, 2008)

ultimate x64 . i'm not going back to xp unless i discover a serious flaw with this os from somewhere .


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## erocker (May 20, 2008)

hat said:


> Hm... I could always get another set of the same RAM I have now... 4gb... DDR800... 5-5-5-15. It would have to be at 2T for 4 sticks though right?



Yeah, you'd have to run at 2T


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## hat (May 20, 2008)

erocker said:


> Yeah, you'd have to run at 2T



What if I had 2x2GB?


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## Psychoholic (May 20, 2008)

I, myself prefer business edition 64bit, seems like its the successor to XP Pro.  Ultimate rocks though, but to me it just has to many extras and seems a little too bloated.

business edition doesn't have the media center capabilities though, one thing to note.


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## spearman914 (May 20, 2008)

Home premium 32-bit = 2-3.5 GB RAM with a decent CPU
home premium 64-bit = 4 GB + RAM with a high-end CPU
ultimate 32-bit = 2-3.5 GB RAM with high-end cpu
ultimate 64-bit = 4 GB + RAM with a overkill CPU


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## hat (May 20, 2008)

hat said:


> What if I had 2x2GB?



It seems this here question of mine got passed up


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## Azazel (May 20, 2008)

2x2gb will be fine..  and better in case ya need an upgrade...in the crazy future of gameing


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## hat (May 20, 2008)

The question wasn't 2x2gb vs 4x1gb in terms of performance. I was asking if I would have to run 2T if I had 2x2gb.


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## JC316 (May 20, 2008)

I run Premium 64 bit and I have no problems with it. I like it much better than XP or Ubuntu.


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## spearman914 (May 20, 2008)

hat said:


> The question wasn't 2x2gb vs 4x1gb in terms of performance. I was asking if I would have to run 2T if I had 2x2gb.



Yes of course...


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## Azazel (May 20, 2008)

i should read first....


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## WhiteLotus (May 20, 2008)

doesn't completely depend on what your going to se it for?
no point in forking out for professional if all your going to do is word process and a few games here and there.


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## mrhuggles (May 20, 2008)

i am loveing my business 32bit. it really loves my ATI videocard [xp didnt]

[lots of ways to get business 32bit for free]


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## jonmcc33 (May 20, 2008)

kyle2020 said:


> if im correct, the benefit of using 64 bit versions of vista over 32 bit versions are the RAM ammount - in 32 bit you could have 4GB total but only 3. something be useable. in 64 bit, however, i think your only limited to how much RAM you can afford / install haha. But i dont think there are any other major differences between the 2, but no doubt someone will correct me



Not entirely. 

Here are the differences in all versions in regards to features: http://www.microsoft.com/windows/products/windowsvista/editions/choose.mspx

Here are the differences in 64 bit versions: http://www.microsoft.com/windows/products/windowsvista/editions/64bit.mspx

Note that even the Home Basic version is limited to 8GB total even though it's a 64-bit OS. 



hat said:


> The question wasn't 2x2gb vs 4x1gb in terms of performance. I was asking if I would have to run 2T if I had 2x2gb.



No need to worry about RAM timings. You won't notice a difference.


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## niko084 (May 20, 2008)

I run 64bit, runs fine for most people....


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## mrhuggles (May 20, 2008)

i think i like 32bit over 64bit so far,... but i havnt ran 64bit with sp1 yet, thats probably why ive had an easier time with it


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## MilkyWay (May 20, 2008)

64x ultimate with 4 gb of ram will run like a wonder

i like the grpahical features of vista and the small things that make it an easier experience

64x lets you use 64x apps aswell thats a plus and running some games in 64x is better

64x has a lot of drivers so there usually isnt a problem still you can use old 32 bit apps


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## mrhuggles (May 21, 2008)

question: how do the ATI 64bit drivers stack up to their 32bit counterparts [vista only]?


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## jonmcc33 (May 21, 2008)

I've been wanting to try Windows Vista x64 for a while to be honest. I haven't had a chance to download it from work yet. I'll see if I can download it from the MVLS website tomorrow.


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## MilkyWay (May 21, 2008)

the ATi Vista 64x drivers i dunno because i have an Nvidia card, generaly tho id go with some of the modded drivers like the omega drivers although old or the more p to date tweakforce xg drivers.

The nvidia drivers on 64x are better sometimes but generally its hit and miss for each system so its good to try a few drivers.


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## jonmcc33 (May 21, 2008)

MilkyWay said:


> the ATi Vista 64x drivers i dunno because i have an Nvidia card, generaly tho id go with some of the modded drivers like the omega drivers although old or the more p to date tweakforce xg drivers.
> 
> The nvidia drivers on 64x are better sometimes but generally its hit and miss for each system so its good to try a few drivers.



If  you've never used ATi drivers on Vista x64 then how can you say that nVIDIA drivers are better sometimes? 

ATi's drivers in general have been solid for years for Windows. I cannot say the same for Linux.


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## FatForester (May 21, 2008)

Go for the x64! Ultimate vs. Premium you won't see much of a difference, get whatever's cheapest. If you can, go for the 2x2GB! I wish I did...


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## Solaris17 (May 21, 2008)

spearman914 said:


> Yes of course...



no you dont you can run 1T mad easy im on stock voltages.


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## Squirrely (May 21, 2008)

As everyone else has said, I would get 64 bit. It requires drivers to be signed, so no shifty unsigned drivers can be installed. (Well they can be, but a lot of hastle each time you boot up).

Also Home Premium or Ultimate are great. I have Vista Ultimate x64, and I havent had a problem with it since its been released.


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## mrhuggles (May 21, 2008)

premium has some sutff for multimedia or something? i know business is lacking that stuff, but it has the encryption and some other cool things along those lines, honestly i think i prefer business to premium


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## jonmcc33 (May 21, 2008)

mrhuggles said:


> premium has some sutff for multimedia or something? i know business is lacking that stuff, but it has the encryption and some other cool things along those lines, honestly i think i prefer business to premium



If you are going to do multimedia get non-Microsoft applications. I tried Vista Ultimate out and it's Windows Media Center is quite pathetic.


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## jonmcc33 (May 22, 2008)

Update, I finally got Windows Vista Business x64 from the MVLS at work. Putting it on my file server now.

*Edit-* Cannot believe how great it is! My server runs an Opteron 165 with 2GB DDR400. It seems to be somewhat quicker? Maybe I'm just wanting it to be. I am glad though as being a file server (with UAC and Avast 4.8) it will really help to be safer from viruses now. 

The only thing that didn't work was a Chaintech AV-512 sound card: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16829120102

Uses a C-Media CMI8738 chipset and was used to replace onboard audio on my wife's computer before I got her a laptop. I stuck it in the server just to keep it in use. Worked in 32-bit Vista but there are no 64-bit drivers anywhere, even at C-Media's website. Oh well, didn't need it anyway.

Now I'm going to put it on my main rig and bump up to 8GB RAM too. I run lots of VMs and need as much physical memory as I can get.

*Edit2-* Installed on my main rig as well. Both systems using Windows Vista Business x64 SP1. Feels good to be 64-bit protected. Only 4GB RAM though. Time to make an upgrade.


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