Intel to AMD upgrade

[Traveler]

I have Pentium D 920 running with 2GB DDR400 and a AGP Radeon 9500 pro.
I want to change the whole system to Athlon x2 3600+ (65nm) with 2GB DDR2800 and PCIe Geforce 6600.

I know it's not going to be a faster machine comparing to machines these days.
But, I want to get a performance step up with the least spending.

In term of CPU, I have not been able to find a comparison between Pentium D and Athlon x2 3600+. But I think they are close.

Any thoughts on this?

 

[GFORCE100]

Originally posted by: Traveler
I have Pentium D 920 running with 2GB DDR400 and a AGP Radeon 9500 pro.
I want to change the whole system to Athlon x2 3600+ (65nm) with 2GB DDR2800 and PCIe Geforce 6600.

I know it's not going to be a faster machine comparing to machines these days.
But, I want to get a performance step up with the least spending.

In term of CPU, I have not been able to find a comparison between Pentium D and Athlon x2 3600+. But I think they are close.

Any thoughts on this?

As many others here will tell you given time, you're best bet is a E4300/4400 or even a E6320 which will overclock very nicely and put that X2 3600+ to shame. It's really a case of can you spend that little bit more on the CPU?

Are you fond or AMD or do you just want to support them because they're not doing so well right now financially? If it's the latter then there's no point buying a cheap CPU from them since it gives them the least profits. If you really love AMD, you need to buy the high-end as that's from where they get their money!

Give us some more info on what you want to do exactly, but in all due respect if you're an AMD fan, I really think Intel has the better chip right now budget or otherwise.

 

[Elias824]

sounds like you have a decent system. you might just consider trying to find a new motherboard like a P35 and new ram. that way you can get a better pcie video card maybe an 8600gt or so.

 

[Arkaign]

That's a nuts upgrade. Performance will go down in encoding, up in games, but the differences overall will be minor. The D 9XX series had 2x2MB L2, and that makes a difference as well.

Are you going to o/c or no?
Budget?
Usage?
Do you already have the 6600 PCIe?

^ Info we need to assist

 

[MarcVenice]

If your on a budget, and you're not gonna overclock, AMD is the way to go. Yes c2d's overclock like hell, but if your not gonna overclock, your better of with a cheaper am2 mobo, and a amd cpu that will perform the same as any c2d's save the top models, remember, hes on a budget. Especially in 2 weeks, when AMD prices might drop some more ...

 

[bryanW1995]

If you're upgrading on a budget, 3600+ brisbane is a good one. Get a tforce 550 (open box on new egg for 49.99), a brisbane (59 oem or 67 retail), 70 or so for ram, and 48.99 after mir for a 6600gto at newegg. That's 237 for a complete system upgrade. Buy the oem brisbane and spend 30 on an arctic freezer 64 to toal out 260 and you can get a great oc on that setup, too.

 

[LightningRider]

In my opinion it is not worth it to 'upgrade' to that chip. It's already getting kinda outdated and you won't really see much of a difference with that CPU over what you have already. If you want to upgrade your CPU, get a Core 2 Duo, if you want cheap get the E4300.

If I were you I would wait until July 21st when prices on Core 2 Duos are dropping by as much as 50% for some I believe across the board. The Q6600 will be $266 USD, and the ones currently around that price will be even cheaper! In my opinion it will be much better to wait and you will get a much better upgrade from that Pentium D. There is really no reason to get a lower end Athlon 64 chip.

 

[MarcVenice]

Hes much better of spending 117 bucks on a amd cpu instead of on the e4300 which costs 117$ at newegg, and get a cheaper am2 mobo. He would get a x2 4400, running at 2.3ghz, for 110$, and trust me, it will keep up with the e4300. And, if he wins the lottery, he can upgrade on his am2 mobo to amd's newer chips!

 

[Arkaign]

Huh? New build, there's ZERO reason to go AMD right now. Get the E2160 + decent mobo + moderate OC = total pwnage of even a 3Ghz X2/Opty.

 

[Traveler]

Originally posted by: LightningRider
In my opinion it is not worth it to 'upgrade' to that chip. It's already getting kinda outdated and you won't really see much of a difference with that CPU over what you have already. If you want to upgrade your CPU, get a Core 2 Duo, if you want cheap get the E4300.

If I were you I would wait until July 21st when prices on Core 2 Duos are dropping by as much as 50% for some I believe across the board. The Q6600 will be $266 USD, and the ones currently around that price will be even cheaper! In my opinion it will be much better to wait and you will get a much better upgrade from that Pentium D. There is really no reason to get a lower end Athlon 64 chip.

Thanks for all your inputs.

My thought on this upgrade is to sell my current Pentium D 920 mobo (motherboard/cpu/RAM), and then buy a Athlon x2 3600+ mobo. It probably won't cost me anything.
The thing I'm unsure is the CPU comparison. I read from Tomshardware's comparison that Athlon x2 3800+ is faster than Pentium D 920. But I'm not sure about 3600+ in comparison of Pentium D 920.

We all know that C2D is the king now. And I am going to build another one based on C2D in another two months. So the one I want to upgrade now is not going to be my main station for gaming or extreme works.

So, what are your thoughts now?

 

[Arkaign]

Why go through the hassle for no gain? I guess I'm not understanding the point of this?

 

[themisfit610]

Well, if it's not going to be your gaming / high end box, why worry? Your P4D is more than fast enough for office tasks, and honestly should be pretty quick in even more demanding stuff like encoding and photoshop etc...

~MiSfit

 

[Cybercraig]

Get a better Video card no matter what you do. 9500's blow! 6600's suck maggots! Changing platforms? Go Intel.

 

[Traveler]

I guess I just want to step into the DDR2 800 zone intead of DDR 400.

If there is a mb/cpu combo deal around $130 for a C2D, I'll surely go Intel.

 

[MarcVenice]

Arkaign, your talking crap. If you're not a high end freak, and don't OC, then theres absolutely nothing wrong with AMD. AMD is simply offering similar price/performance compared to intel with their c2d's, the only difference is that intel's top of the line cpu's are faster then AMD's top of the line cpu's.

But back to the OP, if you're gonna get a new box in 2 months, then don't upgrade at all like themisfit said. Even if the x2 3600 is slightly faster, it's not worth the hasle imo

 

[Traveler]

Originally posted by: MarcVenice
Arkaign, your talking crap. If you're not a high end freak, and don't OC, then theres absolutely nothing wrong with AMD. AMD is simply offering similar price/performance compared to intel with their c2d's, the only difference is that intel's top of the line cpu's are faster then AMD's top of the line cpu's.

But back to the OP, if you're gonna get a new box in 2 months, then don't upgrade at all like themisfit said. Even if the x2 3600 is slightly faster, it's not worth the hasle imo

Thx for the suggestion.
Actually, once I build a new one in two months, this one will be move to other place as for entertainment, office work, and web surfering purpose.
So, I need two machines anyway.


A thought has occurred to me that I should keep the Pentium D 920 and trade current DDR+motherboard for DDR2+compatible motherboard.
The reason I fall for this whole AMD thing is just that it seems easier to sell cpu+motherboard+RAM intead of just motherboard+RAM, probably for better price too.

 

[Arkaign]

Originally posted by: Traveler
I guess I just want to step into the DDR2 800 zone intead of DDR 400.

If there is a mb/cpu combo deal around $130 for a C2D, I'll surely go Intel.

Are you near a Fry's? They have a Retail E6320 (4MB unified L2, Quad-core-capable mobo) with mobo for $169 right now. It's a massive upgrade, and comparable to the X2-5200/5600 depending on app.

They also often have the E4300/mobo deal for $119.

NOT a great overclocker, but people routinely get into the mid 2ghz range with it, which brings you to E6400 stock levels.

 

[MarcVenice]

he doesn't need a massive upgrade ... Are you reading what he is saying ? He simply thought switching to AMD might gain him some performance boost, and that for free, who would say no to that ? But as people came here, and said nah it won't be to much of an upgrade if any at at all, don't do it, keep the rig as it is ... Especially since it's gonna be a pc for office work, browsing and entertainment ...

 

[Traveler]

Originally posted by: Arkaign

Originally posted by: Traveler
I guess I just want to step into the DDR2 800 zone intead of DDR 400.

If there is a mb/cpu combo deal around $130 for a C2D, I'll surely go Intel.

Are you near a Fry's? They have a Retail E6320 (4MB unified L2, Quad-core-capable mobo) with mobo for $169 right now. It's a massive upgrade, and comparable to the X2-5200/5600 depending on app.

They also often have the E4300/mobo deal for $119.

NOT a great overclocker, but people routinely get into the mid 2ghz range with it, which brings you to E6400 stock levels.

Unfortunately, I'm nowhere near Fry's. Why can't they just put the deals online?

 

[Arkaign]

I know, wish they did

That said, your current PD will do nicely for the stated purposes. Good luck with your upcoming build!