CPU Comparison

[Dj_Chow]

I need some help figuring out which CPU is the best for video/audio editing and playing games.
a)Intel P4 Processor 550 3.4GHz LGA 775 FSB800 1MB Prescott
b)Intel P4 Processor 640T 3.2GHz LGA 775 2MB Prescott
c)Intel P4 Processor 3.4EGHz FSB800 1MB HT Prescott

Both A & B have the following parts:
Memory: GEIL 1GB Kit DDR2 533MHz (GX21GB4300DC) Dual Channel
Motherboard: ASUS P5GD2 Motherboard
HDD: WD 160GB 7200RPM 8MB Cache Serial ATA
Video: Sapphire ATI X600Pro 256M DDR TV-OUT DVI PCI-Express
TV Tuner: LEADTEK TV2000XP EXPERT TUNER+FM+REMOTE
Power Supply: 480 Watt Thermaltake Butterfly Power Sup.Dual Fan + Cooler

B has the following parts:
Memory: GEIL 1GB(2x512) DDR 400 (GE1GB3200BDC)
Motherboard: ASUS P4S800 Motherboard
HDD: WD 160GB 7200RPM 8MB Cache Serial ATA
Video: ASUS N6600 GEFORCE 6600 AGP8X 256MB DDR TV-OUT DVI
TV Tuner: LEADTEK TV2000XP EXPERT TUNER+FM+REMOTE
Power Supply: 480 Watt Thermaltake Butterfly Power Sup.Dual Fan + Cooler

Should I think of whats powerfull today or think of the future when 64bit software and drivers are available?

[Dj_Chow]

Would an AMD Athlon 64 3800+ 939 Pins 512K L2 Cache kick Intel's ass?

Here is the system:
CPU: AMD Athlon 64 3800+ 939 Pins 512K L2 Cache
Memory: OCZ 1GB Kit DDR400 CL 2.5-3-3-7 (OCZ4001024PDC-K)(512MBx2)
Motherboard: ASUS A8N-SLI
HDD: WD 160GB 7200RPM 8MB Cache Serial ATA
Video Sapphire ATI X600Pro 256M DDR TV-OUT DVI PCI-Express
TV Tuner LEADTEK TV2000XP EXPERT TUNER+FM+REMOTE
Power Supply 480 Watt Thermaltake Butterfly Power Sup.Dual Fan + Cooler

[JANINE]

by all means go for AMD athlon. by the way 939 is the socket type not 939 pins.

this cpu will kick intels #### alright but it'll also run warm so make sure you've got some good cooling in your machine (4 fans at least)

have fun

[Dj_Chow]

Oh...im planning on having 3 case fans, 1 vertical fan and the Thermaltake Beetle which is a massive cpu cooling fan. Link is at end of page. the weird thing is that according to Tom's Hardware Guide CPU Charts....the only time the AMD kicks Intel's butt is when it comes to games. Every other time Intel wins and AMD is right behind......Why is AMD better than Intel...or the other way around??

Tom's Hardware Guide CPU Charts
http://www23.tomshardware.com/index.html

Thermaltake Beetle
www.thermaltake.com/coolers/4in1heatpipe/cl-p0086beetle/cl-p0086.htm

[belama]

Yeah AMD is the best for gaming but mostly not in other usage. If you use your PC for games most of the time you might want to buy from AMD.

I myself have Intel's 650. Im not a very big fan of AMD and at the same time I dont see the point in buying a CPU only because I like games. Especially that over 75% of my time on the computer is not about games. On top of that, the framerate difference of most games with my CPU and the AMD's competitor is less than 10fps.

[Coconut Monkey]

by all means go for AMD athlon. by the way 939 is the socket type not 939 pins.

A "939 socket", supporting a CPU with 939 pins!

[Catweazle]

Yeah AMD is the best for gaming but mostly not in other usage. If you use your PC for games most of the time you might want to buy from AMD.

That's not a very good indication of relative uses. The AMD64 chips outperform Intel processors of equivalent model in every respect, basically, other than those uses which can draw from the benefit of 'Hyperthreading'. Not all computing tasks actually benefit from that feature.

With the advent of the upcoming dual-core processor models, where the hyperthreading feature is no longer present, the architecture of the AMD64 will give a processor which outperforms equivalent Intel chips in all tasks. At that point in time AMD processors will be the clear leaders in budget, mid-range, performance and server apllications of all types.

[JANINE]

A "939 socket", supporting a CPU with 939 pins!

ok. i never count the pins, i just go get what i want and put it all together.:lol:
im a much bigger AMD fan even though in this machine im running an Intel P4 1.6GHz.

in the other machine a nice size 2.8GHz AMD chip (well i think its a 2.8 anyway, i cant remember):lol:

gaming not a problem on either machine. both handle high performance games jsut as well as each other. I only play Sim City anyway.:cool:

[Dj_Chow]

I fully understand that AMD is the way to go if its purpose is to play high detailed games. But like I said before....I plan on using the computer for digitial video editing, graphic rendering, some digital audio editing and some games. The main purpose of this computer is to allow me to edit my projects at home instand of at school. That being said....Intel is for a wide varity of uses and AMD is mostly for gaming......right?

[Catweazle]

Athlon64 single core processors are only a bee's whisker behind equivalent single core Pentium processors for performance in such tasks. With the upcoming dual-core processors, the AMD will be better.

No, AMD64 is not 'just for gaming'.

[Dj_Chow]

But dual-cpu systems is going to cost a great deal of money once it comes out and the price wont lower for at least a year or 2. The point was to buy a computer that was powerful enough to handle post production programs and the odd game while being at no more than $1700 Canadian. and thats just the system alone...no monitor. The AMD Athlon 64 4000+ 939 Pins 1MB L2 Cache is currently $615.00 while the AMD Athlon 64 FX-55 is $1,043.00. While on the other hand the Intel P4 Processor 660T 3.6GHz LGA 775 2MB Prescott is $777.00 and Intel P4 Processor 650T 3.4GHz LGA 775 2MB Prescott $532.00. (All prices are in Canadian dollers.) Both the Intel cpu's are 64bit ready. Man......there are soo many different options and choices that Im starting to think that it isnt worth the confusion. So many people say AMD is better than Intel but an equal amount of ppl say that Intel is better. Honestly...all i wanted is a computer that was strong enough to handle my requirements, was within a reasonable price ($1600-$1800) and could perform without me needing to do any hardware upgrading for at least 3 or 4 years. (hardware upgrading doesn't include extra hard drives.)

[belama]

I bought the Intel 650 recently. Im very satisfied with its capabilities. For the performance difference, I didnt want to spend too much more. I would have liked to buy a more powerful 700$ + cpu but computers are not the only thing I have in my life so I opted for 500$ range cpu.
Both Intel and AMD have their flaws so buy want you feel is best for you and your budget. ;)

[Catweazle]

That 4000+ is $AU725. The 3500+ (Venice core) is $AU405 (or cheaper if you shop around) and is the equivalent performer of the 3.4GHz Pentium you mention, which itself is $AU579

The 4000+ should cream both those Pentiums in just about any task you put it to, because it is a more highly rated chip than the 3.6Ghz Pentium.

You might get a slight performance improvement from the Pentium(s) with rendering, because that task will take advantage of the hyperthreading capability of the Pentium. You'd need to throw a 4GHz Pentium at me before I'd be prepared to concede that it was a better choice for anything really. The Athlon64 chips are considerably better at most tasks, perfectly adequate at the tasks Pentium is reputed to be better at, runs cooler and is cheaper.

My advice would be to get it and save the extra money for the components in your PC that actually do the work. There is FAR too much emphasis placed on the processor in today's PCs. Using finances wisely to maximise the other components in the system brings much more functionality.

[Dj_Chow]

First of all...thx (all of u) for taking the time to help out :)....secondly...i decided that im going to wait til the end of summer and see if the prices lower and recheck my budget.....i still dont know if im going Intel or AMD but im going to make sure its 64bit ready and just let faith direct me in the right direction......but just to be on the save side...im upgrading to 2GB of RAM just in case. Im pretty sure that in the end its going to be between the AMD Athlon 64 3800+ 939 Pins 512K L2 Cache and the Intel P4 Processor 640T 3.2GHz LGA 775 2MB Prescott. Hopefully it will be able to last for a few years or until dual-cpu is a lot more affortable. :cheesy: