Intel or AMD? Best budgeted system for Content, Data Encoding

[irenealan]

Hi:

I post a thread earlier to ask about overclocking 2600+ Barton, now it comes to mind that whether it's the best processor choice for me to perform my daily tasks. I currently looking to spend no more than 300 for a processor, motherboard and ram and wonder what combo would be best if my daily task is to: Decrypt DVD; Encoding Video; Download, decompress and burn movies and games; run IE and MS Office; sometimes run games like SIMS but not heavy graphic type of game.

Can someone tell me what's the best configuration (w/wo overclocking) that would give me the best value system for the type of tasks I do and the money I budgeted for.

Thanks very much for everyone's opinion. As I am new to this forum but I already found alot of helpful people around here who gives detail responses within a short amont of time. Thanks.

 

[irenealan]

Sorry forgot to mention, I also do some programming. Usually I do remote file copies from another machine then load up some Java development IDE program to perform my tasks. So I would do compilation and tomcat. Would that take into account for the type of AMD or Intel processor I should get? Thanks.

 

[myocardia]

You need an Intel system, with probably a 2.8C, an Abit IS7 mobo, and a minimum of 2x256MB of ram, preferably with 2x512MB sticks of ram. That's going to cost you about $350-$450, but it's going to absolutely kill a Barton 2600 in all of the media encoding. Most of us with an Athlon have to set it up to be done while we are sleeping, since it takes so long.

 

[NFactor]

Well, you just basically listed things on both sides of each processor's strengths. Encoding and Compressing being Intel's and Gaming and Compiling going towards AMD. I don't think it really matters which brand you get in this case, for less than 300 for everything you would have to find the highest model that you can buy and that will suit you well.

And thats what newegg is for.

 

[Jeff7181]

Originally posted by: myocardia
You need an Intel system, with probably a 2.8C, an Abit IS7 mobo, and a minimum of 2x256MB of ram, preferably with 2x512MB sticks of ram. That's going to cost you about $350-$450, but it's going to absolutely kill a Barton 2600 in all of the media encoding. Most of us with an Athlon have to set it up to be done while we are sleeping, since it takes so long.

Not true... I encode divx movies every now and then... I just set the process to low and go about my business. The only thing I don't do is play games while a divx encode is running. It takes about 15 minutes to rip the DVD, 5 minutes to set up Gordian Knot, about about 2 hours to do a 2 pass encode. That's hardly an overnight project.

No doubt P4's are faster... but the margin isn't as huge as people make it sound.

 

[irenealan]

Sorry to post so much criteria but that's basically what I do with my system... I don't play much games so the gaming part can be ignored. I think intel should do a good job on SIMS or similar type of game and I don't play DOOM3 or any related game. Basically less than 10% of the computer time is used on playing games. But 60 - 70% of time I do file extraction, dvd decrypting, video encoding and dvd burning. Around 20 - 30% of time I use it for Compiling and Running Java, Tomcat.

Should Intel win over AMD on compiling Java or do Java development with Tomcat? Just curious since NFactor mentione that AMD is better. Thanks for everyone's help and comment.

 

[irenealan]

sorry forgot to mention, will Intel win over AMD if I do multi-task? Jeff7181
just reminded me that most of the times I would decrypt or encoding when burning DVD or browsing IE. It would be nice if I can decrypt, encoding at the same time I compile or run Java and Tomcat. But with my budget, I don't know if I can get a high-end enough chip to do that. Would HyperThreading work and does AMD has similar type of technology for multi-tasking? Again thanks for everyone's help.

Do any of you guys have experience converting avi to dvd or vcd format? That's something I would like to do and don't know which chip would perform better or such job. If AMD or Intel, which chip model, motherboard and ram should I choose to fit under my $300 budget? Thanks a million!

 

[FrustratedUser]

Originally posted by: myocardia
You need an Intel system, with probably a 2.8C, an Abit IS7 mobo, and a minimum of 2x256MB of ram, preferably with 2x512MB sticks of ram. That's going to cost you about $350-$450, but it's going to absolutely kill a Barton 2600 in all of the media encoding. Most of us with an Athlon have to set it up to be done while we are sleeping, since it takes so long.

This is true.

DVD Shrink 3.1 on my P4c @2.8 at work is much faster than my Barton +2500 @ +3200 speeds at home.
I'd say 30 - 40% faster.

 

[irenealan]

Just wonder if extracting (i.e. WinRar) the similar type of task as video encoding? So if Intel is good at encoding then should it be good at extracting also? Thanks.

Originally posted by: FrustratedUser

Originally posted by: myocardia
You need an Intel system, with probably a 2.8C, an Abit IS7 mobo, and a minimum of 2x256MB of ram, preferably with 2x512MB sticks of ram. That's going to cost you about $350-$450, but it's going to absolutely kill a Barton 2600 in all of the media encoding. Most of us with an Athlon have to set it up to be done while we are sleeping, since it takes so long.

This is true.

DVD Shrink 3.1 on my P4c @2.8 at work is much faster than my Barton +2500 @ +3200 speeds at home.
I'd say 30 - 40% faster.

 

[Vette73]

Well for about another $100 you could get....

Retail Athlon 64 3000+ $223
Albatron K8X800 ProII $117
Mushkin 512mg PC3200 $80

I HAD a P4 and went to a Athlon64 system (using the CPU and Board listed above) and it is as fast or faster then my old p4 setup


Or get a Mobile AthlonXP and clock it at 2.4-2.6Ghz as most have been doing and rock that out for the cheap setup

 

[Jeff7181]

Give me a minute... I'll find a link to a site that did a pretty extensive multi-tasking comparison... keep in mind though, they compare the A64 to the P4C... not an Athlon XP.

 

[irenealan]

Thanks for the info, but is A64 really that much faster and better than P4? I was thinking since there's no OS or Software support for 64 bit yet and the price for sure will drop when such OS or software comes out, why not wait to buy it later. That's why I only consider P4, Athlon XP Barton or Mobile since I want a system now and within around my $300 budget!

Can some A64 owner tell me how the processor compares to P4 (and what model or speed of P4)? That would give me much info on whether it's worth to get A64 over P4. Thanks again!

 

[Jeff7181]

here's the article... take a look... multi-tasking isn't exactly Intel's territory unless you're running two CPU intensive applications.

 

[Duvie]

Originally posted by: Jeff7181
here's the article... take a look... multi-tasking isn't exactly Intel's territory unless you're running two CPU intensive applications.

He is right here....Cpu intensivce apps will show the strength which generally pushes 15-25% gains in some single instances with apps enabled for HT, and in multtasking multiple instances I have seen 40% improvement (2 runsof SETI and FH proteins)....I use tmpgenc with multithreading for my encoding and get 22% faster results...My 2.4c at stock with hT was faster then my barton 2500@3200+....

DVDshrink is HT enabled in deep analysis so I see a nice gain in time there as well....Divx is HT or multthreaded enabled and gets a nice 10-15% gain oevr stock w/o....The list is big on Ht apps and growing....

The fact is DVDshrink is cpu intensive to a point as it can be dragged down by the speed of the dvd-rom drive if you do it straight from the dvd-rom and have a slow ripping dvd-rom...



Don't compare a barton to a P4c with HT....Look at A64 for more of a power comparison. Barton if you are really stuck on that 300 limit cause I don't see you getting many p4c's with mobo and 512-1gb of ram...You will need closer to 400-450 as mentioned...then A64 is comparative in price....

An A64 is pwer to power faster then a barton but will react quite similar in multitasking of multiple cpu intensive apps. IE an A64 running 2 instances of SETI will take twice as long as doing one...Barton the same way...P4 is 44% faster on my rig, as I get 2 wu done faster then doing 2 wus back to back....The question is how much does this apply to you??? The fact is in multtasking apps do not have to be multithreaded to take advantage of hT. In single app mode they need to be HT or multithreaded to take advantage.

You can likley encode faster with a P4c chip but compile slower then an A64...However you can likely do both of them at same time and be faster then the A64 can at the same time. So that is the question you need to ask yourself.....

I fold 24/7 and have for the last 8 weeks and yet I can still do my autocadd rendering and most other applications at speeds near 2-2.4ghz p4...So AMD ppl say so what!!! but the difference is I still get WUs done much faster then amd systems can doing same tasks. AMD systems running FH get usually little to no work done as a cpu intesive app like gaming, encoding, rendering, etc is being done....Unless they change the prioriy of FH and then the other appliations suffer far more severly....Bottom line I wouldn't fold much if I had an AMD box and this being my main system for all my other power uses...


You list 70% intel strengths and 30% AMD strengths....I say you lean towards INtel, but the price of an A64 or P4c will not be had for 300 dollars for cpu/mobo and ram...Keep that in mind....A Barton is still a wise choice for saving cash but getting a fast enough system...

 

[Jeff7181]

an A64 or P4c will not be had for 300 dollars for cpu/mobo and ram...Keep that in mind....A Barton is still a wise choice for saving cash but getting a fast enough system...

That's the main thing to keep in mind. Can you afford to spend another $100-200 right now in order to get stuff done about 30% faster, or get 30% more work done in the same amount of time?

I don't think you'll be disappointed with either CPU... the size of your wallet will probably be the determining factor

 

[AWhackWhiteBoy]

all that talk of video encoding is both right and wrong. encoding doesn't run better on one CPU or the other, it is entirely based on what codec and software you use. Xvid is opitmized for AMD and Divx is optimized for Intel. in my personal experience, Xvid and proper software encoded literally 3x faster than crappy software and Divx. i went from 4FPS to 36.

my barton @ 2.4ghz encodes at roughly 50fps with all Xvid settings maxed for dvd quality. i would consider that respectable in relation to a P4. but like i said, software, codecs, and the way you have your system setup determines EVERYTHING.

 

[RadBrad]

With the quality of your budget, you would probable be happy with quality of either platform.


As Amd is still pricing for market share, you probable get a bit more for 300 with the Amd platform.

That is all.

 

[Zebo]

Intel and budget should never be in the same sentance. In fact Intel or A64 should'nt...you're talking about highend here not budget systems.

Try a t-bred 1800 for $47 or a duron for even less.

Just a cursory view over at pricewatch comparing consumer level processors will tell you that.


$401 - Athlon 64 3400 Highend
$265 - Athlon 64 3200
$205 - Athlon 64 3000
$189 - Athlon XP 3200 Middle end
$189 - Athlon XP 3200 400
$149 - Athlon XP 3000
$158 - Athlon XP 3000 400
$109 - Athlon XP 2800
$107 - Athlon XP 2800 333
$91 - Athlon XP 2700 333
$77 - Athlon XP 2600 Budget
$74 - Athlon XP 2600 333
$75 - Athlon XP 2500
$73 - Athlon XP 2500 333
$63 - Athlon XP 2400
$52 - Athlon XP 2200
$51 - Athlon XP 2100
$48 - Athlon XP 2000
$47 - Athlon XP 1900
$46 - Athlon XP 1800
$41 - Athlon XP 1700
$44 - Athlon XP 1600
$47 - Athlon XP 1500
$91 - Athlon MP 1900
$91 - Athlon MP 1600
$41 - Athlon 1.33GHz 266 FSB
$38 - Duron 1.6GHz
$41 - Duron 1.3GHz
$33 - Duron 1.2GHz
$31 - Duron 1.1GHz
$31 - Duron 1GHz

$418 - Pentium 4 3.4GHz 800MHz Highend
$277 - Pentium 4 3.2GHz 800MHz
$189 - Pentium 4 3.0GHz 800MHz
$214 - Pentium 4 3.06GHz 533MHz
$188 - Pentium 4 2.8GHz Prescott
$170 - Pentium 4 2.8GHz 800MHz Middle end
$158 - Pentium 4 2.8GHz 533MHz
$162 - Pentium 4 2.6GHz 800MHz
$153 - Pentium 4 2.6GHz 533MHz
$137 - Pentium 4 2.53GHz
$149 - Pentium 4 2.4GHz Prescott
$155 - Pentium 4 2.4GHz 800MHz
$124 - Pentium 4 2.4GHz 533MHz
$126 - Pentium 4 2.4GHz 400MHz
$125 - Pentium 4 2.2GHz 400MHz
$123 - Pentium 4 2.26GHz 533MHz
$123 - Pentium 4 2.26GHz
$112 - Pentium 4 2.0GHz Sock 478
$154 - Pentium 4 2.0GHz
$100 - Pentium 4 1.9GHz Sock 478
$229 - Pentium 4 1.9GHz
$100 - Pentium 4 1.8GHz Sock 478
$125 - Pentium 4 1.8GHz
$98 - Pentium 4 1.7GHz Sock 478 Budget
$91 - Pentium 4 1.6GHz Sock 478
$94 - Pentium 4 1.5GHz Sock 478
$75 - Pentium 4 1.5GHz
$92 - Pentium 4 1.4GHz Sock 478
$81 - Pentium 4 1.4GHz
$82 - Celeron 2.6GHz
$70 - Celeron 2.4GHz
$73 - Celeron 2.3GHz
$64 - Celeron 2.2GHz
$68 - Celeron 2.1GHz
$59 - Celeron 2.0GHz
$55 - Celeron 1.8GHz
$52 - Celeron 1.7GHz
$37 - Celeron 1.4GHz
$36 - Celeron 1.3GHz
$36 - Celeron 1.2GHz
$36 - Celeron 1.1GHz
$35 - Celeron 1GHz
$54 - Celeron 950
$38 - Celeron 900
$38 - Celeron 850

 

[Jeff7181]

Originally posted by: AWhackWhiteBoy
all that talk of video encoding is both right and wrong. encoding doesn't run better on one CPU or the other, it is entirely based on what codec and software you use. Xvid is opitmized for AMD and Divx is optimized for Intel. in my personal experience, Xvid and proper software encoded literally 3x faster than crappy software and Divx. i went from 4FPS to 36.

my barton @ 2.4ghz encodes at roughly 50fps with all Xvid settings maxed for dvd quality. i would consider that respectable in relation to a P4. but like i said, software, codecs, and the way you have your system setup determines EVERYTHING.

There's something seriously wrong with your setup then cause my Barton at 2.2 ghz encodes divx 5.1 at about 65 fps.

 

[ElFenix]

Originally posted by: irenealan
Just wonder if extracting (i.e. WinRar) the similar type of task as video encoding? So if Intel is good at encoding then should it be good at extracting also? Thanks.

extracting rar files is more harddrive dependent than anything else

 

[AWhackWhiteBoy]

Originally posted by: Jeff7181

Originally posted by: AWhackWhiteBoy
all that talk of video encoding is both right and wrong. encoding doesn't run better on one CPU or the other, it is entirely based on what codec and software you use. Xvid is opitmized for AMD and Divx is optimized for Intel. in my personal experience, Xvid and proper software encoded literally 3x faster than crappy software and Divx. i went from 4FPS to 36.

my barton @ 2.4ghz encodes at roughly 50fps with all Xvid settings maxed for dvd quality. i would consider that respectable in relation to a P4. but like i said, software, codecs, and the way you have your system setup determines EVERYTHING.

There's something seriously wrong with your setup then cause my Barton at 2.2 ghz encodes divx 5.1 at about 65 fps.

with the settings maxed out? what program? what pass?

 

[AWhackWhiteBoy]

Originally posted by: ElFenix


extracting rar files is more harddrive dependent than anything else

depends on if your doing high or low compression. if you doing high compression then its going to be all CPU,if you do low its a matter of how fast your hard drive can write.

 

[Jeff7181]

Originally posted by: AWhackWhiteBoy

Originally posted by: Jeff7181

Originally posted by: AWhackWhiteBoy
all that talk of video encoding is both right and wrong. encoding doesn't run better on one CPU or the other, it is entirely based on what codec and software you use. Xvid is opitmized for AMD and Divx is optimized for Intel. in my personal experience, Xvid and proper software encoded literally 3x faster than crappy software and Divx. i went from 4FPS to 36.

my barton @ 2.4ghz encodes at roughly 50fps with all Xvid settings maxed for dvd quality. i would consider that respectable in relation to a P4. but like i said, software, codecs, and the way you have your system setup determines EVERYTHING.

There's something seriously wrong with your setup then cause my Barton at 2.2 ghz encodes divx 5.1 at about 65 fps.

with the settings maxed out? what program? what pass?

I don't know what settings there are to "max out" but I use Gordian Knot. I do two passes and make the size of the file 700 MB to fit on a CD and the quality is very good... unless I sit up close and analyze it almost frame by frame I can't tell the difference between it and the DVD (except for the stereo sound vs. 5.1)

PM me if you wanna know more... don't wanna hijack the thread

 

[AWhackWhiteBoy]

hmm,i've only encoded 2 dvds and 2 hours of camcorder footage on this new barton,i'll have to look into it...

 

[Jeff7181]

Originally posted by: AWhackWhiteBoy
hmm,i've only encoded 2 dvds and 2 hours of camcorder footage on this new barton,i'll have to look into it...

I should mention that when I hate to deinterlace a movie it took an extra 20 minutes.