P4 EE 3.46 or 3.73?

[Sunfox]

I'm trying to choose between the above two CPUs. First, I should mention that my primary concern is keeping heat down so that I can run fans at low RPMs, and hopefully have a mostly-silent computer. I have no plans to overclock (at least not to any significant degree).

Although for some of you the choice would be clear-cut, for me it's not...

3.46EE
+ idles much cooler
+ takes less power

3.73EE
+ 64-bit support (not that I have plans to use it)
+ overall slightly faster

My case of choice is the Antec P180 combined with a Zalman 7700 cooler, which I think might be able to handle the 3.73 with low RPM fans, but then I read posts and reviews mentioning how *hot* the 3.73 runs (never mind the 840EE that was my initial CPU of choice) and I start leaning towards the 3.46 again.

My current cpu is an old 3.2ghz Northwood that runs at acceptable temperatures in my current case with very low RPM fans, which is why I'm still leaning towards a non-Prescott CPU...

Anyone have any thoughts?

 

[ssvegeta1010]

To be the first one to tell you, many people here will recommend you ditch Intel, and buy an AMD processor. I may also suggest this, but it depends on what you want to do with your computer.

What exactly are you planning on doing with your computer?

 

[n7]

Seeing as how you have money to throw out the window (sorry, but any P4 EE = pure waste), here's a few better options:
AMD Athlon 64 FX-57
or
AMD Athlon 64 X2 4800+

If you must stick with Intel & want just single core, get the P4 670. For Intel dual-core, the 840 EE...

 

[Capt Caveman]

I would oc your 3.2ghz northwood to 4ghz. Just get a XP-120 heatsink and a Panaflo L1A(low-speed) 120mm fan. I had an Intel 640 3.2ghz, oc'd it to 4ghz and had temps at load @ 46c w/ the listed hsf set-up.

 

[monster64]

It all depends what you are going to do. Home PC=3.46, Workplace= 3.73 however if it is going to be a home pc then why get the 3.46 at all? Im guessing its for some form of encoding at your office. Then I'd go with the 3.73. I doubt you need an upgrade at all though, 3.2 to 3.46/3.73 will be barely noticable. If its a workplace pc go with dual core. That will be significantly faster.
EDIT: I'm sorry, I forgot intel's DUAL CORE requires a NEW MOTHERBOARD 🙂

 

[dguy6789]

You could use the 3.73EE and a cpu cooler such as the Thermaltake Big Typhoon and run cool and quiet.

Oh and just so you know, you won't see a difference in anything whatsoever going from a 3.2Ghz Northwood to a 3.73EE.

 

[Sunfox]

OK, first off I do realize that I'm not going to see much difference going from a 3.2 to a 3.46 or 3.73. However my current system is over two years old now (which really shows the sorry state of Intel's progress), and I'm expecting bigger improvements from other upgrades. And, since this is a business PC, cost is not a strong concern.

Old System
3.2GHz P4
2 x 512mb Corsair DDR
Intel D875PBZ
ATI AIW 9800 Pro AGP w/Zalman ZM80D-HP
2 x Seagate 160gb SATA
Antec SX835II, Zalman CNPS7000-AlCu

New System
??? CPU
4 x 1gb Crucial DDR2
Intel D955XBK
ATI X850XT PE PCI Express (possibly w/Zalman ZM80D-HP)
4 x Seagate 400gb SATA in a split RAID 0 / RAID 10 array
Antec P180, Zalman CNPS7700-Cu

The most demanding use of this PC will be HDTV video editing, thus my decision to go with Intel. However I have a real thing against fan noise, and from reports on Intel's dual core solutions they double very nicely as furnaces and practically need water cooling, so I'm no longer even looking at them.

 

[MegaWorks]

get the 3.73EE

 

[Bona Fide]

Extremely Expensive?

If I could be completely honest with you, get an Intel dual-core, preferably the 840EE. You'll see huge improvements.

 

[Avalon]

I'd say to keep your current CPU + Mobo. Else, I'd recommend against getting an EE, but instead get a non EE 6xx series chip. They don't run too warm, according to most who own them. It'll save you some money in the long run over buying the EE. Should be able to run it with a low RPM fan as well.

 

[Hard Ball]

Just get an regular 840, the EE versions are a huge waste of cash, and lags way behind FX and X2's in terms of performance. The regular 8XX series, however has the advantage of being much lower in prices than the top AMD offerings.

 

[Sunfox]

...Except that everything I've heard says the 840 is a huge heat generator - like 2 Prescotts in 1. I don't think even the massive Zalman 7700 could handle that at low RPMs.

Anyone know of good reviews on the 840/840EE that goes into temperatures?

Also, I'm fairly stuck on this particular course as I already own the 4 gigs of DDR2 memory. 🙂 Also have the hard drives and video card waiting.

 

[willstay]

I don't see much point in moving from 3.2 GHz to 3.4/3.7 GHz if you still want to stay in single core chip. Except that your bread and butter depends on hours of encoding you do and every minute you gain worth additional topping, you better go for HT enabled dual core EE.

If not, wait for Athlon X2 to come down price charts.

 

[gwag]

X2 if time really matters.

 

[Hard Ball]

Originally posted by: Sunfox
...Except that everything I've heard says the 840 is a huge heat generator - like 2 Prescotts in 1. I don't think even the massive Zalman 7700 could handle that at low RPMs.

Anyone know of good reviews on the 840/840EE that goes into temperatures?

Also, I'm fairly stuck on this particular course as I already own the 4 gigs of DDR2 memory. 🙂 Also have the hard drives and video card waiting.

I havn't seen too many reviews with TDP as focus, but the P4 EE probably would output just as much heat as the non-EE versions of PD, if not more. Since the PD HT was disabled, and the clock limited to 3.2 to keep the TDP low enough to be about the same level as the higher clocked P4s.

Honestly, even if you sell the 4GB RAM, take a little loss, and get an A64 X2 4400+ with 4GB of DDR, you would still get a much faster computer while saving a couple hundred USD. DDR would be quite a bit cheaper, and P4EE typically are priced way out of line with their performance.