AMD or Intel

[GuildBoss]

I'm ready to upgrade from my MSI K7 Master/1ghz T-bird to a new CPU/Mobo combo but I'm not sure which route to take, AMD or Intel. Give me some advice. 🙂 Here's what I want (this is purely a gaming rig):

I'll go with either an AMD 2400+ or a Northwood 2.4(b)?

1) Stability stability stability! I don't intend to overclock. I don't have time to fuss with tweaks. 🙁

2) Quiet. My new P4 2.0 Dell at work is utterly SILENT and yet it's still nice and cool. In contrast, my AMD at home sounds like a freight train with all the damn fans required to keep it cool.

3) Price. I'd like to keep it under $250 for the combo.

4) Chipset. nForce2 or i845PE

5) Extras. Nothing too fancy. USB 2.0 and onboard LAN--that's really it. I don't need SATA, RAID, onboard sound, etc..


The ASUS P4PE/L looks like good at $113 delivered (newegg).

Whaddya think? TIA!

 

[Vette73]

Originally posted by: GuildBoss
I'm ready to upgrade from my MSI K7 Master/1ghz T-bird to a new CPU/Mobo combo but I'm not sure which route to take, AMD or Intel. Give me some advice. 🙂 Here's what I want (this is purely a gaming rig):

I'll go with either an AMD 2400+ or a Northwood 2.4(b)?

1) Stability stability stability! I don't intend to overclock. I don't have time to fuss with tweaks. 🙁

2) Quiet. My new P4 2.0 Dell at work is utterly SILENT and yet it's still nice and cool. In contrast, my AMD at home sounds like a freight train with all the damn fans required to keep it cool.

3) Price. I'd like to keep it under $250 for the combo.

4) Chipset. nForce2 or i845PE

5) Extras. Nothing too fancy. USB 2.0 and onboard LAN--that's really it. I don't need SATA, RAID, onboard sound, etc..


The ASUS P4PE/L looks like good at $113 delivered (newegg).

Whaddya think? TIA!

1. You can have a stable AMD or Intel setup, depends on the parts you use

2. With copper heatsinks out there, quiet is very easy for both

3. Now for Price AMD wins hands down

4. nForce2 all the way. Make sure it has the MCP-T southbridge so you get the good sound card, USB2.0, firewire, etc.....

5. Read 5


I just helped someone build a new system. The got a Athlon 1700+ and put it in a NF7-S abit board (nForce2) and clocked it to 10 X 166 at 1.6volts with a $13 dollar copper heatsink from newegg.com. VERY fast, quiet, and cheap overall. Yet the board supports the Future 400FSB Athlons.

He also used the onboard sound with his 640 5.1 speakers, and it blows away the Sound blaster live by a mile.

 

[GuildBoss]

Thanks for the info. WHat fan does he use with the heatsink?

He also used the onboard sound with his 640 5.1 speakers, and it blows away the Sound blaster live by a mile.

That's the SoundStorm APU right? Any ideas how that compares with a Turtle Beach Santa Cruz?

 

[Megatomic]

Originally posted by: GuildBoss

That's the SoundStorm APU right? Any ideas how that compares with a Turtle Beach Santa Cruz?

Quite well. I gave up a TBSC when I migrated to my Epox 8RDA+. Sound quality is excellent and CPU utilization is very low. But if you get an 8RDA+, or any of the other boards with the MCP2-T south bridge that don't come with a S/PDIF connector it's not really Soundstorm. The S/PDIF connector is needed for official Soundstorm certification. But you can get 5.1 sound from the onboard RCA jacks, you just give up the MIC In jack (no biggie for me, I haven't connected a MIC to my PC in years).

 

[Vette73]

Originally posted by: GuildBoss
Thanks for the info. WHat fan does he use with the heatsink?

He also used the onboard sound with his 640 5.1 speakers, and it blows away the Sound blaster live by a mile.

That's the SoundStorm APU right? Any ideas how that compares with a Turtle Beach Santa Cruz?

This is the Heatsink and Fan he uses on a Athlon 1700+ running at 1666Mhz (10 X 166)


And like the other person said, soudstorm is great. So unless you don some major sound editing, sell the sound card and pocket the cash 🙂

 

[GuildBoss]

Originally posted by: SeekingTao

Originally posted by: GuildBoss

That's the SoundStorm APU right? Any ideas how that compares with a Turtle Beach Santa Cruz?

Quite well. I gave up a TBSC when I migrated to my Epox 8RDA+. Sound quality is excellent and CPU utilization is very low. But if you get an 8RDA+, or any of the other boards with the MCP2-T south bridge that don't come with a S/PDIF connector it's not really Soundstorm. The S/PDIF connector is needed for official Soundstorm certification. But you can get 5.1 sound from the onboard RCA jacks, you just give up the MIC In jack (no biggie for me, I haven't connected a MIC to my PC in years).

Hmm, I use my MIC a lot.

It doesn't look like the NF7-S has the S/PDIF input either.

Edit: Nevermind. Abit's website claims the NF7-S has:

- 1 x S/PDIF Out port
- Audio connectors (Front Speaker, Line-in, Mic-in, Center/Sub, Surround Speaker)

 

[classy]

Intel gets the nod right now. A 2.4 on a 845pe is about as fast as a 2600+. The boards for these processors cost about the same. But Intel right now has less problems than AMD. I can't recomend anyone buying an AMD setup right now.

 

[AndyHui]

If you haven't got time for tweaks, just go straight for the Intel P4 2.4B then. Put it together, it works.

At 2.4/2400+, AMD isn't cheaper.

 

[ShinSa]

Originally posted by: classy
Intel gets the nod right now. A 2.4 on a 845pe is about as fast as a 2600+. The boards for these processors cost about the same. But Intel right now has less problems than AMD. I can't recomend anyone buying an AMD setup right now.

And just what kind of problems are you referring to??

I've never had a single problem with my 1600XP+ AGOIA @152Mhz and ABIT Kr7A-RAID

 

[classy]

Originally posted by: ShinSa

Originally posted by: classy
Intel gets the nod right now. A 2.4 on a 845pe is about as fast as a 2600+. The boards for these processors cost about the same. But Intel right now has less problems than AMD. I can't recomend anyone buying an AMD setup right now.

And just what kind of problems are you referring to??

I've never had a single problem with my 1600XP+ AGOIA @152Mhz and ABIT Kr7A-RAID

The only platform worth building a new pc with AMD is the Nforce2 boards. And they have had everything from bios corruption to voltage problems. Far more nusiances than an average Intel setup. I have said this before and will continue to say it. AMD will never get ahead and stay ahead of Intel because they refuse to build chipsets for their OWN processors. The best chipset ever made when it came to stability and speed for AMD processors was the AMD 751. Via, Nvidia, and SIS have done an admiral job, but AMD should have continued to build chipsets for their processors, period. By the way my main setup is KT333r with a 1800+. The three best motherbaords I have used in this order are

1. Asus P3BF
2. MSI K7 Pro (AMD 751)
3. Abit BM6

 

[yodayoda]

Originally posted by: AndyHui
If you haven't got time for tweaks, just go straight for the Intel P4 2.4B then. Put it together, it works.

At 2.4/2400+, AMD isn't cheaper.

Intel Pentium 4 at newegg for ~$160
AMD AthlonXP 2400+ for ~$130

and Anand gives you a paycheck? thank god your not his accountant

 

[classy]

Originally posted by: yodayoda

Originally posted by: AndyHui
If you haven't got time for tweaks, just go straight for the Intel P4 2.4B then. Put it together, it works.

At 2.4/2400+, AMD isn't cheaper.

Intel Pentium 4 at newegg for ~$160
AMD AthlonXP 2400+ for ~$130

and Anand gives you a paycheck? thank god your not his accountant

Your AMD needs a heatsink. So add $30. The P4 has a decent heatsink and it can overclock just fine with the retail box heatsink. The AMD won't. So as I said earlier there really is not much difference in price. And the 2.4 Intel will outperform a 2400+.

 

[EXman]

OK Googlegear has retail 2.4b for 162.50 (has a HSF)

and Newegg has the BH7 (PE chipset) for only $92 now down $10 since last week

Ya that is where I got my stuff but hey I think they are pretty close to what you want. Oh and the BH7 has decent audio so you set there too!

 

[Megatomic]

Originally posted by: classy

Originally posted by: yodayoda

Originally posted by: AndyHui
If you haven't got time for tweaks, just go straight for the Intel P4 2.4B then. Put it together, it works.

At 2.4/2400+, AMD isn't cheaper.

Intel Pentium 4 at newegg for ~$160
AMD AthlonXP 2400+ for ~$130

and Anand gives you a paycheck? thank god your not his accountant

Your AMD needs a heatsink. So add $30. The P4 has a decent heatsink and it can overclock just fine with the retail box heatsink. The AMD won't. So as I said earlier there really is not much difference in price. And the 2.4 Intel will outperform a 2400+.

You were saying?

And I'd like to know your source on this "outperform" claim of yours. Please.

 

[KidChaos]

Your AMD needs a heatsink. So add $30. The P4 has a decent heatsink and it can overclock just fine with the retail box heatsink. The AMD won't. So as I said earlier there really is not much difference in price. And the 2.4 Intel will outperform a 2400+.

The AMD retail heatsink is indeed not as good as intel's but one could get a cooler master HAC-V81 heatsink+Fan for as little as $12 - great for overclocking.

And if he enjoys quality audio in games, he'll probably have to get a sound card for the intel setup.

 

[boyRacer]

Originally posted by: yodayoda

Originally posted by: AndyHui
If you haven't got time for tweaks, just go straight for the Intel P4 2.4B then. Put it together, it works.

At 2.4/2400+, AMD isn't cheaper.

Intel Pentium 4 at newegg for ~$160
AMD AthlonXP 2400+ for ~$130

and Anand gives you a paycheck? thank god your not his accountant

thank god you're not his secretary either... 😛 😉 😀

 

[TranceNation]

Intel is the best choice for now. Such a shame AMD fanboys trying to con somebody into buying AMD 🙂

 

[AndyHui]

Originally posted by: yodayoda

and Anand gives you a paycheck? thank god your not his accountant

I have never received a paycheck from Anand.

If you have a look at my profile on the main site, you will also see that I am an accountant.

You obviously are in an informed position about things. Perhaps you would like to contribute a FAQ to answer this question AMD vs Intel. I am sure everyone here will be most appreciative of your contribution.

 

[KidChaos]

Originally posted by: TranceNation
Intel is the best choice for now. Such a shame AMD fanboys trying to con somebody into buying AMD 🙂

Based on GuildBoss's requirements, AMD and Intel are equally recommendable. So it boils down to personal preference - AMD or Intel. Maybe you could help him by recommending a good Intel board. It's a tough decision.😕 I'm leaning towards the AMD choice because Epox 8RDA+ at $98 (MWave) is just an all-around great deal.🙂

 

[GuildBoss]

Originally posted by: KidChaos

Your AMD needs a heatsink. So add $30. The P4 has a decent heatsink and it can overclock just fine with the retail box heatsink. The AMD won't. So as I said earlier there really is not much difference in price. And the 2.4 Intel will outperform a 2400+.

The AMD retail heatsink is indeed not as good as intel's but one could get a cooler master HAC-V81 heatsink+Fan for as little as $12 - great for overclocking.

And if he enjoys quality audio in games, he'll probably have to get a sound card for the intel setup.

I don't really need the onboard sound as I have a Turtle Beach Santa Cruz already.

It seems like everytime I get excited about an AMD mobo with all the extras (SoundStorm, SATA, Firewire) with a good price I head over amdmb.com forums to see what people are saying and it's usually full of problems. Granted, a lot of the issues appear to be due to people OC'ing but there's also many general complaints as well. ANd another thing that scares me away is all the revisions..."don't forget to get the updated BIOS v1.6a, cuz v1.5dd causes blah blah blah....". I just don't want to be bothered with that stuff.

 

[Megatomic]

Well then, I'd say you have talked yourself into an Intel system.

 

[DAPUNISHER]

Originally posted by: SeekingTao
Well then, I'd say you have talked yourself into an Intel system.

Or out of an AMD 😉

 

[classy]

Originally posted by: SeekingTao

Originally posted by: classy

Originally posted by: yodayoda

Originally posted by: AndyHui
If you haven't got time for tweaks, just go straight for the Intel P4 2.4B then. Put it together, it works.

At 2.4/2400+, AMD isn't cheaper.

Intel Pentium 4 at newegg for ~$160
AMD AthlonXP 2400+ for ~$130

and Anand gives you a paycheck? thank god your not his accountant

Your AMD needs a heatsink. So add $30. The P4 has a decent heatsink and it can overclock just fine with the retail box heatsink. The AMD won't. So as I said earlier there really is not much difference in price. And the 2.4 Intel will outperform a 2400+.

You were saying?

And I'd like to know your source on this "outperform" claim of yours. Please.

This article from Tom's is recent, here. Its one of the best comparisons I have ever seen. Well the Intel 2.4 533fsb is on an Aopen PE board. The AMD 2600+ is on an Asus Nforce2 board. You can clearly see that the Intel performance wise is on par with the AMD 2600+. And the AMD is significantly more. I am an AMD user, but right now Intel is winning the war on the performance front and the best bang for the buck.

 

[Megatomic]

Originally posted by: classy
This article from Tom's is recent, here. Its one of the best comparisons I have ever seen. Well the Intel 2.4 533fsb is on an Aopen PE board. The AMD 2600+ is on an Asus Nforce2 board. You can clearly see that the Intel performance wise is on par with the AMD 2600+. And the AMD is significantly more. I am an AMD user, but right now Intel is winning the war on the performance front and the best bang for the buck.

I'm sorry but I don't find Tom's FUD, errr I mean Hardware, to be a reliable source of information. It's been years since I trusted that site.

But I'm going to have to go with you to a certain point, I do find Intel systems to be much more alluring now than they were a few scant months ago. They are fast, they overclock WELL, and they are reliable. I have no problem recommending Intel systems to people. And I too am an AMD user exclusively (except at work).

 

[cleonjr]

Hey Guildboss, ijust built this system for under $800 and it kicksbutt! i gave up getting a sound card cause the built on is 5.1dolby compatible and i run it thru my sony home system it ROCKS!!! right now i thing intel is just as cheap and the better choice as far as stock performance and cooling options. Ihave a t-bird system too so i do know the difference that is why i went amd in the first place was economical reasons now intel is still the standard and they have come down on their prices real good just do the reasearch for yourself you will see,Good Luck!