Which CPU is best for this situation

[pcoffman]

Originally posted by: kudzu22
don't the Duo's communicate using the FSB while the x2's have some better / faster mechanism?

The memory controller of the X2 primarily gives it an advantage over the Pentium D. Intel somehow overcame this disadvantage in Core Duo, even though Core Duo also uses a FSB for access to memory. Click here for an article that has benchmark data showing a 2.0 GHz Core Duo neck and neck with a 2.0 GHz A64 X2. BTW, this article also shows Pentium D performance (@ 3.0 GHz!), so you can see the margin of difference between Core Duo and the Pentium D. Core Duo is a worthy chip.

I just saw the virtualization stuff from WinHEC and it looks like 64 bit is going to be even more important for me now

You realize that virtualization and 64-bit support are two different things?

AMD only this week released chips that support virtualization. It may be a while before it's included in AMD laptop chips. Intel has had virtualization in chips for a while, but not all of their chips have it. Core 2 Duo should have it.

 

[kudzu22]

Originally posted by: robertk2012
I honestly would go matx and pick up a x2. Intel mobile solutions on a desktop will be much more expensive as they have shown to be in the past. Now there is some lower power AM2s that have been released I think but I couldnt make a reccomendation on a good board.

I found a Mini-ITX that takes P4's and even D's. Needs a normal power supply though. I'm still considering, but what it looks like is that I'll wait for the AM2 stuff or the DuoT2700. The duo's have VT, but not EM64T, which it appears I will need now too. I did some digging elsewhere, and EM64T is not just an "extension" but evidently what makes it 64 bit - ie not just memory access but it is a hybrid but what you need to run 64 bit OS's, not something seperate. Dunno WTF they couldnt make it clear like AMD does what is 64 bit and what is not.

On the Duo2, Intel's site sucks too. Talks about it, but nothing on what it will contain except for marketing fluff. You could read the description for a 386 and it might not sound much different. Anyone have any details on the Duo2 or DuoExtreme?

 

[kudzu22]

Originally posted by: pcoffman
though Core Duo also uses a FSB for access to memory. Click here for an article that has benchmark data showing a 2.0 GHz Core Duo neck and neck with a 2.0 GHz A64 X2. BTW, this article also shows Pentium D performance (@ 3.0 GHz!), so you can see the margin of difference between Core Duo and the Pentium D. Core Duo is a worthy chip.

Thanks. That article was perfect! Exactly what I've been looking for and as of yet failed to find. The multitasking benchmarks are pretty imppressive and while not 1:1 are probably the best metric of the type of multithreaded stuff I'd be running.

You realize that virtualization and 64-bit support are two different things?

Yes of course. But look at the WinHEC announcements about Windows Virtual Server, it was all only 64 bit. This is the Longhorn 64 bit stuff...

AMD only this week released chips that support virtualization. It may be a while before it's included in AMD laptop chips. Intel has had virtualization in chips for a while, but not all of their chips have it. Core 2 Duo should have it.

CoreDuo2 might be my ticket then. If its August, I can probably wait until then. I'll be on vacation soon hopefully anyways.

 

[kudzu22]

The mobile Core 2 Duo will have EM64T. It should be available in August.

This is great news - it looks like if I wait until August I can choose from Duo2, or maybe an AM2 chip. Will Duo2 fit in a standard slot for Duo?

I'd use the new Seagate 750G perpendicular drive in that enclosure

This is a great performing drive.[/quote]

Another thing I considered was get a laptop with a drive bay. Buy the drive adaptor for the drive bay and run a SATA extension connector to an external drive. It would still be slower, but faster than USB 2.0. I'm actualy seeing pretty good performance using an external USB, but I'd really like to build something nice and it looks like a MiniITX is doable in a few months as I need it...

 

[kudzu22]

Originally posted by: v8envy
First, emt64 is Intel's implementation of amd's 64 bit instruction set. Just about any modern P4 laptop will have the same kind of 64 bit support as an AMD laptop. But, it'll run hotter, and if hyperthreading is enabled, run slower. These were my findings doing long runs of J2EE apps.[\q]

Well I'm doing similar, but .NET.

External USB2 or FireWire hard drives are not a great solution. With the best chipsets you'll get 40 MB (megabytes, not bits) per second in sustained read/write

Thanks for the detailed reply here, see my other reply though.

If I was doing this today, I'd get eSATA external enclosures and a mini-itx SFF case/motherboard with at least 1 external eSATA connection. I'd use the new Seagate 750G perpendicular drive in that enclosure.

Thats what I was considering as well.

You can bring the hard drive and RAM in your carry on. Remember that checked luggage gets X-rayed with hardware much more potent than what's used for carry

Not easily. Removable HD's are one thing, but pulling out RAM a few times a week.. Ack... I have 2-3 countries a week very frequently....

on. This allows you to use a harddrive-less tiny mini-itx motherboard, case, and something like the P4 930. A 300 watt PSU should be plenty considering it's not powering neither graphics card nor hard drives. The optical media, if any, can be external as well.

Most Mini-ITX cases take standard laptop optical slimline drives.

 

[icarus4586]

The current generation Core Duos (Yonah core) DO have Intel's Vanderpool virtualization technology. I've got a Core Duo Mac Mini, and there was a BIOS problem with some of them that disabled it. Apple released a firmware update and I can now confidently say that my 1.66GHz Core Duo has virtualization.
I guess I have to put more of a plug in for this chip; I've been very satisfied with it. It may be more on the low-power side than you need, but it is pretty darn fast. It encodes video 3x faster than my Athlon 64 3000+ (1.8GHz, 1MB L2). Granted that's with a multithreaded encoder, but it's still faster per core. Even after encoding for 2 hours with both cores at 100% usage, the fan is barely audible. Very nice chip.

 

[pcoffman]

Originally posted by: icarus4586
The current generation Core Duos (Yonah core) DO have Intel's Vanderpool virtualization technology. I've got a Core Duo Mac Mini ... I can now confidently say that my 1.66GHz Core Duo has virtualization

Good point. The Intel Macs have virtualization, and they use Core Duo, so clearly Core Duo has virtualization.

I wonder why I can't find any documentation for VT for Core Duo on Intel's website?

 

[Viditor]

Just to throw it into the mix...AMD has a rumoured chip (emphasis on rumour) called the "Bulldozer" due out this year...it's not on the roadmaps though, so everything is guesswork.
Link
"Details are very very sketchy right now, but there is definitely a new AMD mobile part starting to make the rounds in Taiwan, and the code name Bulldozer keeps cropping up at the same time. One thing is for sure though, the Turion X2 is far from the only answer the green guys will have for Merom"

 

[pcoffman]

Originally posted by: kudzu22
On the Duo2, Intel's site sucks too. Talks about it, but nothing on what it will contain

Hi,

Details on Core 2 are sketchy, because the chip has not been released yet. Rumors, however, sometimes have an element of truth.

 

[pcoffman]

Originally posted by: kudzu22
Will Duo2 fit in a standard slot for Duo?

It's supposed to. There are exceptions. MacBook Pro, for instance, is not upgradable, because the Core Duo is soldered onto the motherboard.

 

[kudzu22]

Originally posted by: icarus4586
The current generation Core Duos (Yonah core) DO have Intel's Vanderpool virtualization technology. I've got a Core Duo Mac Mini, and there was a BIOS problem with some of them that disabled it. Apple released a firmware update

Yes its the EM64T they are missing, but I just got word that the Duo2's should definitely have them.

 

[kudzu22]

Originally posted by: pcoffman
I wonder why I can't find any documentation for VT for Core Duo on Intel's website?

Click compare processors, or get the PFD and its listed.

 

[kudzu22]

Originally posted by: Viditor
Just to throw it into the mix...AMD has a rumoured chip (emphasis on rumour) called the "Bulldozer" due out this year...it's not on the roadmaps though, so everything is guesswork.

Interesting. Looks like I will wait until Aug timeframe.. lets see what is available then.

 

[robertk2012]

 

[pcoffman]

Originally posted by: kudzu22

Originally posted by: pcoffman
I wonder why I can't find any documentation for VT for Core Duo on Intel's website?

Click compare processors, or get the PFD and its listed.

According to this page, under View Processor Number Details, only the Core Solo Ultra Low Voltage U1400 & U1300 have virtualization.

Clicking compare processors doesn't turn up VT for me. Most Core Duo PDFs make no mention of VT. Could it be that only some models of Core processors have VT?