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Which CPU & Mobo is a Better Choice?

L

l8lack0ut

Junior Member
OK so my Prob is simple. I have about 1,500 bucks to get a rig. I've picked out everything for an Intel system and everything for an AMD system. The Intel system is about 90 bucks more, but price is not a factor.

Which is a better system? Any advice from somone that's an expert on AMD and Intel both would be greatly appriciated.
FYI, I'll be using it to game alot, but also when not gaming I usually have about 6 programs running while surfing the net (Antivirus, Excel, IE, Word, Movies, etc)

Abit AA8XE-3rd Eye Intel 925XE P4 1066FSB LGA775
Intel Pentium® 4 630 Processor Prescott 3.0GHz, 800MHz FSB, Socket 775, 2MB Cache
pqi 1GB (2 x 512MB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM Unbuffered DDR2 533 (PC2 4200) Dual Channel Kit System Memory

OR

MSI K8N Neo4 Platinum nForce4 Ultra Athlon 64 Skt939 DDR ATX Motherboard w/Audio, Gigabit LAN, RAID/Serial ATA
AMD Athlon 64 3200+ Venice Integrated into Chip FSB 512KB L2 Cache Socket 939 Processor
Patriot 1GB 184-Pin DDR SDRAM Unbuffered DDR 400 (PC 3200) System Memory

I've read alot from the forums, so I understand that the AMD will rock the intel in game performance, but I read alot about the prescott being overclocked at a stable 4.0GHz. Not alot of info on overclocking the Venice.

Also the difference in what the Mobo's take as far as memory goes. Will the DDR compared to the DDR2 make a big performance difference?
 
I have a feeling that this thread is going to turn into another Intel vs AMD flame ware, but... The Athlon 64 is much better for gaming. I'm sure you'll also have no problem running 6 programs at once. The Athlon 64 will most likely overclock better; some people have gotten like 2.8Ghz on air out of a 3200+. If you really want to overclock high, go with the DFI Lanparty Ultra-D board. It provides great voltages and is the best Athlon 64 overclocking board on the market. Also, you might want to pick up an XP-120 heatsink and some other better cooling if you're heavily overclocking.
 
Venice (according to a review I saw) can be oc'd 500-600 mhz without even changing the voltage. Figuratively speaking, that 500-600 mhz overclock on an AMD sytsem is like a 1200-1300 mhz on an amd system
 
For gaming, the A64 setup would be king. For your general multitasking usage, the Pentium 4 will be king, but the A64 isn't going to struggle.

I would value the gaming performance on top of the fact that your room will run a few degrees cooler, so I would choose the AMD system.
 
I would go with the AMD system. The multitasking you are gonna be doing is not heavy on the proccessor. The A64 will run cooler, and be faster for gaming. As for DDR vs DDR2, ddr is less expensive, and DDR2 has higher latency and is more expensive, so it doesn't really have an advantage until maybe 800mhz. And while you might get to 4ghz with the prescott, you will need very good cooling, as even with water cooling, my prescott at 3.82ghz runs hotter than most overclocked A64's on air, and an OC'd A64 will outperform it anyway.
 
About multitasking, some people seem to be confused. The Pentium 4 is better at multitasking heavy tasks, nobody doubts that. Things like AIM, antivirus, word, etc... any processor will multitask these. If you're going to be encoding and gaming, that's where a Pentium 4 would do better, but keep in mind both applications will be slow.

Hundreds of processes run at once no matter what you do, AMD processors do just fine with these.

That said, I also recommend the AMD system, it's very hard to recommend a Prescott today.

DDR vs. DDR2 is not really a valid question, because they suit systems differently, DDR2 in its current form would hurt AMD systems and DDR (maybe not the highest bandwidth DDR) would hurt Intel systems.

If you're overclocking I'd go with a Venice, they overclock very well according to many people that own them (look at some signatures to see). Prescotts may also get a good overclock (you mentioned 4.0 on air) but keep in mind, a few Prescotts throttle even at stock speeds, let alone overclocked speeds - Your 4.0 could turn into much less due to throttling (because of excess temperature).
 
Originally posted by: l8lack0ut
Hmmm I don't think I can use the SLI with my card (ATI Radeon 9800 Pro)
Click to expand...

Wait hold on, you have an AGP video card?

None of these motherboards have AGP, they all use PCI-Express now. If you want to keep the same video card you'll need a different motherboard than the ones we're talking about so far.
 
Woah seriously? I thought this Radeon was relativly good.
What a downer.

Well. I guess new question then... What Mobo do I buy for a Radeon 9800 Pro
 
Radeon is good, but the 9800Pro is an AGP card. SLI only works with the more expensive PCI-E nVidia chipsets. NO radeon can be used in SLI, and NO AGP card can be used in SLI.

Since you're buying a new system, could you sell your 9800Pro, and get a 6600GT/6800GT (if you want SLI) or X800XL. It would be pointless buying an AGP motherboard now, as it will be outdated fairly soon.

RoD
 
Damn... I see your point. I bought the card a year ago thinking it would last me for at least 3 years. Bad Idea
It seems my new rig may cost too much now.

Maybe I'll wait until MS Longhorn comes out before I buy everything fresh.
 
your rig shouldn't cost 1500 if you werent planning to upgrade your video card right?
Neo4 Platinum SLi - $172
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16813130487
3200+ Venice - $190
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16819103535
Patriot Signature Series 2x512 DDR400 CAS 2.5 - $81
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16820220057
Connect3d Radeon x800xl - $283
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16814142036
Total - $726
Now you still have $774 for the rest, still within budget right?
 
I've had my 3200+ for a year now, and I :heart: it. I honestly am not considering upgrading for at least a year, possibly 18months. Go the AMD route.
 
definately upgrade the video card now. get a dfi ultra-d with a 3200 venice and a 6800gt or x800xl and some nice cheap ram. get a nice psu, and a cooler, and theres no way that will cost over $1500
 
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