Opteron vs Athlon Do not OC which is better

[YeJX]

Hi I want to build a new PC run both WinXP and Linux
some people suggest
Opteron 165
some suggest Athlon X2 3800+
I would like to do 50% computation 30% surfing 20% game
Can Opteron 165 really work with game?

And what I should consider(video card, hard drive) if I take Opteron?
Thx

 

[Dweekie]

The processor has nothing to do with vid cards or running games or hard drives or any other component. The x2 3800 and opteron can be swapped with no changes in any other component of your computer. As to the x2 vs opteron, lots of threads on that. I'd vote x2 3800 just because the opteron has such a high price tag right now for no reason other than demand and hype. the 165 were orignally LESS than the 3800 and is actually slower for most purposes at stock speeds. Overclocking is different, but even then, it's all luck. By the way, check out the dual core gaming threads on solving issues with certein games during your 20% gametime.

 

[Fallengod]

Id vote for whichever CPU you can find cheaper. Ive seen people sell used x2 3800's lately for $220-$250. Buy whichever is cheaper. Opty 165/170 are good, so is the x2 3800's.

 

[YeJX]

then why so many people recomend

 

[TecHNooB]

Opterons can OC pretty high on stock or minimal voltage. People say 2.7 is garaunteed but to be safe, we'll safe getting 2.5 on both cores on an opteron is practically garaunteed on stock voltage. Some X2's have trouble breaking 2.4 without voltage bumps. The 3800's also have a smaller L2 cache (512k). The Opterons have 1MB L2 cache.

 

[YeJX]

Well, I might not do OC. I never did it before and worry about the stable How should I compare?

 

[TecHNooB]

People don't like to OC because normally to get a good OC, you have to increase the voltage to the CPU, which creates more heat (decreasing the lifespan of the cpu). Since the Opterons are server class chips(although they are really just San Diegos with a different name), they are tested for stability because they have to run for days on end. This makes the quality of chips that pass as Opterons very high, so clocking higher without increasing volts can be done easily. The Opterons also have an L2 cache of 1MB. Only the X2 4400+ and up have that. And the 4400+ costs $500. They're selling Opteron 170s on monarch for 370 shipped.

 

[YeJX]

then Even do not OC, you will still recommend Opteron 165 rather than X2 3800+

 

[TecHNooB]

Yes. It'll be more worth it in the end. You'll OC eventually =)

 

[potato28]

Most people will say watever u can find cheapest. Plus with the Opty shorts, the prices go up. So a X2 3800 may be cheaper than the Opty. All in all, get the cheapest chip possible...

 

[harobikes333]

Is a opteron not fit for your budget?

^Question you need to ask youself I know I did

 

[RussianSensation]

Originally posted by: YeJX
then Even do not OC, you will still recommend Opteron 165 rather than X2 3800+

If you dont overclock, 3800+ is better. It has 200mhz per core extra, which provide much greater benefit than 1mb cache.

 

[YeJX]

Originally posted by: potato28
Most people will say watever u can find cheapest. Plus with the Opty shorts, the prices go up. So a X2 3800 may be cheaper than the Opty. All in all, get the cheapest chip possible...

what shorts do you mean?

 

[YeJX]

I would like to spend around 350$ for the cpu

 

[Unkno]

if you have absolutely no plans of overclocking EVER, then get the X2

 

[AntiStatic]

Originally posted by: Unkno
if you have absolutely no plans of overclocking EVER, then get the X2

why so he can have a chip with half the cache for the same price? get the opteron, it's a better chip.

 

[Zap]

Originally posted by: AntiStatic

Originally posted by: Unkno
if you have absolutely no plans of overclocking EVER, then get the X2

why so he can have a chip with half the cache for the same price? get the opteron, it's a better chip.

No, so he can have a chip that's 200MHz faster. With Athlon 64 family, clock speed is almost always better than amount of cache or speed of RAM.

 

[YeJX]

Originally posted by: Zap

Originally posted by: AntiStatic

Originally posted by: Unkno
if you have absolutely no plans of overclocking EVER, then get the X2

why so he can have a chip with half the cache for the same price? get the opteron, it's a better chip.

No, so he can have a chip that's 200MHz faster. With Athlon 64 family, clock speed is almost always better than amount of cache or speed of RAM.

Yes I guess at this point, only Opteron 175 and Athlon X2 4400+ can be compared as they have same clock speed same catch, only difference is Opteron 175 is 20~30$ expensive