5200+ or not?

[viper26]

I really need some help here because I am going to lose my mind!

I am building a new gaming rig. It will be primarily for gaming and music/video crap. I want it to be a powerhouse.

I am looking at the AMD Athlon 64 X2 5200+. My question comes about after learning that the Intel Core 2 Due E6600 smoked the AMD 64 X2 5000+. Is the 5200+ better enough to take the win against the Intel chip? Is there a better chip than the 5200 in the same price range? I will over-clock eventually, but no right off the bat.

I want a strong chip, but I want to be sure before dumping the cheese. I was all set to order the 5200 when I read the review comparing the E6600 vs the AMD 5000. That made me wonder if the 5200 I picked is any better than the 5000 and would I be better off with an Intel chip.

Thanks a million people!!
Cheers!

 

[n7]

The 5200+ is basically an FX-60 in performance terms. (2.6 GHz w/ 2x1 MB L2 cache).

The E6600 is more powerful overall.

If you decide to overclock, then even the slowest C2D (E6300) can easily beat even the FX-62.

 

[viper26]

Okay.
Say I go with the 6600; what chipsets have been running well with it?
Is the 590 good with it or should I look to the 680 family?

Thanks for the reply too.

Cheers

 

[n7]

590 is not good for overclocking, thus it's shunned by pretty much all tech forums.

If you need SLI support, then you pretty much have to go 680i.

If you don't need SLI, then i'd recommend P965 or 975X.

 

[viper26]

680i...gotcha

I do plan on running SLI...two eVga's.

Thanks for the help!