Clawhammer 3200+ vs. Sempron 3100+

[Antoneo]

Hey guys! I will be pairing the CPU up with a DFI NF3 250GB. I have my choice of a AMD 64 Clawhammer 1MB 3200+ and a Sempron 64 Palermo 3100+ for similar prices, the Clawhammer being slightly more expensive. I was wondering how these two CPUs would compare at stock, performance wise and thermal characteristics (I like quiet computers). I'm planning to pair the purchase with some sorta Corsair/Mushkin/Crucial PC3200 value RAM.

An Anandtech trader mentioned that his Clawhammer overclocked to 2.3GHz. Now, which of the CPUs would produce an easy and more value producing overclock? I will have to purchase a HSF if I buy the Clawhamer. What would you do in my situation?

 

[RichUK]

Apparently that mobo has really bugy BIOS?s as this NF3 chipset is new to them (the NF3 250 skt 939 anyway) .. so good luck on that.

But with regards to your question i would go with the Clawhammer (CG Core) .. this will pwn the sempron, semprons are just value processors, and will be a waste on that mobo.

 

[Furen]

Originally posted by: RichUK
Apparently that mobo has really bugy BIOS?s as this NF3 chipset is new to them (the NF3 250 skt 939 anyway) .. so good luck on that.

He's going socket 754. The LP NF3-250gb is great (or at least, I think so).

Now, back to the topic at hand. The Clawhammer is a 2GHz/1MB part while the Sempron is a 1.8GHz/256kB part. This means that the clawhammer will outperform the sempron substantially (by like 15%) at stock. If you overclock them both then I'd guess the Sempron will hit a higher max clock speed but will end up matching the performance of the overclocked clawhammer (since it has to make up for its lack of cache). Personally I'd go for a Sempron since its also much cooler than the Clawhammer (the hammer is a 130nm chip, the sempron should be 90nm--as long as you dont buy a paris core) but only if I was going to overclock for sure. If not then the Clawhammer will be better.

Overclocking the CPUs would be the same for both except for the fact that the Sempron will probably reach a much higher HTT (with a lower multiplier, though). I'd stay away from Corsair value ram because it's pretty crappy.

 

[Antoneo]

What would the choice be if I were to throw in a Newcastle for around $120ish (3200+?) into the mix?

 

[RichUK]

sorry quickly skimmed i automatically presumed s939 (should have realised that there is no s939 semprons yet).

 

[Antoneo]

Originally posted by: RichUK
sorry quickly skimmed i automatically presumed s939 (should have realised that there is no s939 semprons yet).

I thought s939 Semprons were released but OEM only?

 

[RichUK]

Originally posted by: Antoneo

Originally posted by: RichUK
sorry quickly skimmed i automatically presumed s939 (should have realised that there is no s939 semprons yet).

I thought s939 Semprons were released but OEM only?

is that right, i tried to find some once for a friends cheapo PC, so he could upgrade to a better Proc later on using the same mobo "s939" (Bearing in mind im in the UK), and i couldnt find any

 

[hurtstotalktoyou]

First of all, where are you getting this Clawhammer? The only place I can find which carries it is StarMicro, and there it costs a ridiculous $198. Newegg has the Clawhammer DTR 3200+ for $145 OEM. Pair that with a $12 cooler, and you're still $50 more expensive than the Sempron 64 3100+ retail.

According to Newegg reviews, the OC limit of the DTR Hammer seems to be about 2.3 GHz. The Sempron 32 gets to about 2.47 GHz, according to NewEgg users, and since the 64-bit version is basically identical, you can expect the same from it.

Would a Hammer @ 2.3 GHz & 1MB L2 out-perform a Palermo @ 2.47 GHz @ 256KB L2? Probably, yes, but not by much. The higher-clocked Palermo would almost certainly out-perform the Hammer in audio/video editing applications.

But I think you're looking at the wrong CPUs, here. The Venice 3000+, which costs less than the Clawhammer 3200+, has been known to get to as high as 2.7 GHz on retail cooling. Even a modest 2.5 GHz overclock would be preferable to a Hammer @ 2.3 GHz. If you have $150 for a CPU and $85 or so for a motherboard, get the Venice. If not, get something like my setup, which costs less than $150 for mobo, CPU & fan. The Sempron 64 2800+ will overclock to about the same speeds as the 3100+, yet costs ~$30 less.

Also keep in mind that the Venice CPUs and also the new Palermo series have SSE3, whereas the Clawhammer does not. Usually that doesn't matter, but you never know when you might need an instruction set. OS X comes to mind as an example.

 

[RichUK]

hmm "OS X x86" .. makes me think about upgrading my CPU even more so

 

[Powermoloch]

you'll be fine with the sempron..I'm happy with my 3100+ sempron. It is stable since then.

 

[cbolt67]

Originally posted by: Antoneo
Hey guys! I will be pairing the CPU up with a DFI NF3 250GB. I have my choice of a AMD 64 Clawhammer 1MB 3200+ and a Sempron 64 Palermo 3100+ for similar prices, the Clawhammer being slightly more expensive. I was wondering how these two CPUs would compare at stock, performance wise and thermal characteristics (I like quiet computers). I'm planning to pair the purchase with some sorta Corsair/Mushkin/Crucial PC3200 value RAM.

An Anandtech trader mentioned that his Clawhammer overclocked to 2.3GHz. Now, which of the CPUs would produce an easy and more value producing overclock? I will have to purchase a HSF if I buy the Clawhamer. What would you do in my situation?

Just put a Sempron64 2800+ in my LAN party 250GB, and its solid at 2.5GHz with stock HSF. Here is a nice article on Overclocking the Sempron. In it they show the neglible influence on L2 cache size in the K8 architechture.

http://www.xbitlabs.com/articles/cpu/display/sempron-2600.html

 

[mindwreck]

Originally posted by: cbolt67

Originally posted by: Antoneo
Hey guys! I will be pairing the CPU up with a DFI NF3 250GB. I have my choice of a AMD 64 Clawhammer 1MB 3200+ and a Sempron 64 Palermo 3100+ for similar prices, the Clawhammer being slightly more expensive. I was wondering how these two CPUs would compare at stock, performance wise and thermal characteristics (I like quiet computers). I'm planning to pair the purchase with some sorta Corsair/Mushkin/Crucial PC3200 value RAM.

An Anandtech trader mentioned that his Clawhammer overclocked to 2.3GHz. Now, which of the CPUs would produce an easy and more value producing overclock? I will have to purchase a HSF if I buy the Clawhamer. What would you do in my situation?

Just put a Sempron64 2800+ in my LAN party 250GB, and its solid at 2.5GHz with stock HSF. Here is a nice article on Overclocking the Sempron. In it they show the neglible influence on L2 cache size in the K8 architechture.

http://www.xbitlabs.com/articles/cpu/display/sempron-2600.html

very good article, its what got me to decide on a sempron and OC the livin hell out it.

 

[Powermoloch]

Originally posted by: mindwreck

Originally posted by: cbolt67

Originally posted by: Antoneo
Hey guys! I will be pairing the CPU up with a DFI NF3 250GB. I have my choice of a AMD 64 Clawhammer 1MB 3200+ and a Sempron 64 Palermo 3100+ for similar prices, the Clawhammer being slightly more expensive. I was wondering how these two CPUs would compare at stock, performance wise and thermal characteristics (I like quiet computers). I'm planning to pair the purchase with some sorta Corsair/Mushkin/Crucial PC3200 value RAM.

An Anandtech trader mentioned that his Clawhammer overclocked to 2.3GHz. Now, which of the CPUs would produce an easy and more value producing overclock? I will have to purchase a HSF if I buy the Clawhamer. What would you do in my situation?

Just put a Sempron64 2800+ in my LAN party 250GB, and its solid at 2.5GHz with stock HSF. Here is a nice article on Overclocking the Sempron. In it they show the neglible influence on L2 cache size in the K8 architechture.

http://www.xbitlabs.com/articles/cpu/display/sempron-2600.html

very good article, its what got me to decide on a sempron and OC the livin hell out it.

wowza :thumbsup:

 

[Avalon]

My 2800+ Sempy on a DFI NF3 hit 2.7 on air, and that's with bigtime multiplier limitations too (only 8x, I had to hit 345HTT). With a 3100+ Sempron 64 Palermo, you should be able to do 2.6 if you have a decent chip. That will be slightly better than a 2.3ghz Clawhammer, and will run much much cooler.

 

[Antoneo]

Yep, I'll be going Sempron 64! Thanks for the advice!

 

[ItsAlive]

Good choice

 

[Zap]

If you're going for the expensive DFI board and Clawhammer, may as well spend about as much for socket 939. If you want to go cheap, I'd say go really CHEAP. Get a cheaper board such as low end Epox or Chaintech for about $60 and get whatever cheap Sempron you want.