X2 3800+ or X2 4400+?

[BroadbandGamer]

I'm ready to upgrade to an X2. My 3500+ runs at 2.2GHz so I kinda feel like going with the 3800+ would be a downgrade. What do you guys think?

So should I go with the 4400+? Is it worth the extra money?

I'm not into overclocking so OCing the 3800+ is out of the question.

I do a lot of DivX encoding for my Archos AV 500 so the two cores would come in handy.

Thanks,

 

[Griswold]

The 4400+ also has 1MB L2 cache, compared to the 512KB on the 3800+. Thats, depending on what you do, good for maybe 5% performance increase on average.

But 200MHz is 200MHz. Its not peanuts in the AMD world.

 

[tommo123]

well i have both although i;ve only clocked the 3800+ so far. the 4400+ is my main rig so havent plucked up the courage to clock it yet.

personally, i would get the 3800+ and just clock it, or at least give it a go - mine goes upto 2.75Ghz on air and most seems to do 2.5ish anyways.

like you said, if you dont overclock, the 3800+ is still a good chip and a fair bit cheaper (depending on where you look) than the 4400+

 

[Puffnstuff]

I'd have to say get an opteron dual core and go from there.

 

[BroadbandGamer]

Originally posted by: Puffnstuff
I'd have to say get an opteron dual core and go from there.

Why would I want to buy and Opteron instead of a X2?

 

[Griswold]

Originally posted by: BroadbandGamer

Originally posted by: Puffnstuff
I'd have to say get an opteron dual core and go from there.

Why would I want to buy and Opteron instead of a X2?

They're generally cheaper than the X2 pendant. And they all come with 1MB L2 cache as well. If you still can find one, that is. The match for the 4400+ would be the Opteron 175. It has the exact same specs. The 170 runs at 2GHz and the 165 at 1.8GHz.

Edit: Only the Opteron 1xx line is available as socket 939. The 2xx and 8xx are all socket 940 chips.

 

[Leper Messiah]

You guys are feeding him false info. You simply can not find the 165 or 170s for anywhere close to what they were going for. 165s I think now a days are more expensive than the 3800 X2s, depsite being a bit slower. And he's not into OCing. 200MHz isn't going to make a huge difference, but 200MHz+ dbl cache will be noticible. With the GPU you have, you could be a little CPU bound with the 3800 un-oc'ed.

 

[Griswold]

Originally posted by: Leper Messiah
You guys are feeding him false info. You simply can not find the 165 or 170s for anywhere close to what they were going for. 165s I think now a days are more expensive than the 3800 X2s, depsite being a bit slower. And he's not into OCing. 200MHz isn't going to make a huge difference, but 200MHz+ dbl cache will be noticible. With the GPU you have, you could be a little CPU bound with the 3800 un-oc'ed.

Guess why I said "if you can find one, that is". And thanks for repeating what I said about the extra cache and 200MHz more.

And just for the record, here in europe, the opterons are still listed for less than their X2 counterpart - alot less. The problem is, you'll have to test your luck and order one and hope you actually get it. So, if you can get an opty, get it. If you cant, go for the 4400+ if you can afford it.

Maybe you should be more specific as to what "false info" you're refering to before you generalize all postings in a thread.

 

[Skott]

Well, stock vs stock the 4400 will beat out the 3800 and 4200. Anyone that tells you otherwise is well...lets just say they aint right. Now if you are talking overclocking then things can be different. Lot of overclockers on this forum thats why you see alot of talk of 3800 or 165 Opty as best vs the 4400. Cost vs performance they would be correct.

For those that dont overclock and want best performance go with the old addage 'Buy the most cpu you can afford'.

 

[Leper Messiah]

Originally posted by: Griswold

Originally posted by: Leper Messiah
You guys are feeding him false info. You simply can not find the 165 or 170s for anywhere close to what they were going for. 165s I think now a days are more expensive than the 3800 X2s, depsite being a bit slower. And he's not into OCing. 200MHz isn't going to make a huge difference, but 200MHz+ dbl cache will be noticible. With the GPU you have, you could be a little CPU bound with the 3800 un-oc'ed.

Guess why I said "if you can find one, that is". And thanks for repeating what I said about the extra cache and 200MHz more.

And just for the record, here in europe, the opterons are still listed for less than their X2 counterpart - alot less. The problem is, you'll have to test your luck and order one and hope you actually get it. So, if you can get an opty, get it. If you cant, go for the 4400+ if you can afford it.

Maybe you should be more specific as to what "false info" you're refering to before you generalize all postings in a thread.

Sorry, my bad. I was assuming that he was in america. I just figure its best to not get people's hopes up that they can get an opty for less than a X2 when they're becoming really hard to find. 175s are going for like $550+ over here I think, dunno how much a 4400 is going for.

 

[BroadbandGamer]

Thanks guys! I ordered the 4400+ X2 from newegg. I should get it Tuesday.

Anyway, is there anything I need to know when I make the swap? Is there any software and/or BIOS adjustments I need to make after I install it?

THnaks,