Help me decide - Prosessors

Im getting a new PC, and i get to choose what i put in,
iv got a huge bugget, so no prob..

i just want help deciding which prosessor to use, i really want to stick to Intel...but most ppl go for AMD

so what do u ppl think

Ive only had a Intel and its been very good! But i hear Amd's are faster and cheaper!

My bro uses an AMD in our computer, Ive never really compared the two but I think an AMD is better and faster.

Try finding out the differences online somewhere or from a computer "geek".

[Oscar]

I've had AMD in the past and it broke down faster than I can type this line. Intel has been very reliable for me.

Intel ... period. AMD are flaky and cannot always be trusted, especially for any online gaming.

Originally posted by TConwell

Intel ... period. AMD are flaky and cannot always be trusted, especially for any online gaming.

A geek's opinion.

Conwell....look at the benchmarks. AMD beats Intel left right and center in nearly everything.

Zan, you have a large spending budget? I'll leave the case up to you, and for a power supply, go for something about 500W (watts) or above and look for about $75 to spend on a quality one. There is a 550W on www.newegg.com. I believe it's a chameleon something or another? My friend has one, and it's great. It's quiet, keeps cool, and doesn't spike power at all.

Motherboard: (SOCKET 939 HIGHLY RECOMMENDED)
The latest craze is nForce 4, which can support 2 video cards running simultaneously to achieve mind-blowing results. However, wait a bit and perhaps Gigabyte will develop their 3D1 technology some more (2 Graphics Processing Units on one card), which will only work on a Gigabyte motherboard. If you can't wait, look at MSI and the Asus A8N-SLI series. I'd wait a bit on this if you do go for it.
For nForce3 or any other VIA chipsets, well, there are some motherboards still being manufactured for these types, but they're falling apart. You can grab a cheap one though for about $60-90, and it'll still be pretty decent.

CPU:
Headtowards an AMD 64 3400+ Socket 939 ($225USD). They're great overclockers and are great for gaming. Just make sure you get proper cooling, and if possible, get an OEM version (just without all the other junk in the box) and buy yourself better CPU cooling. If your budget really is HUGE ($2000+) then you may want to start considering water cooling. I'll get to that later.

RAM: Corsair XMS, any OCZ, PQI, well pretty much everything is good. The heat spreaders don't really matter that much, and as long as it's DDR400 or above, you'll be fine (PC3500/3700 is really good stuff). A 512MB stick should run about $60USD and if you head for 1GB, get dual channel low-latency RAM which should run about $170-220, but it's worth it.

General Cooling:
Water cooling will obviously take the cake here. Of course, it is very expensive and compatability issues seem to come up everywhere. If you do this, I recommend a Koolance EXOS system, a Swiftech, or a Danger Dan. It's all expensive stuff though.
For your case, get a couple extra fans if you have any spaces (make sure they're the right size, (they come in 80mm, 92mm, 120mm) and be sure you don't pay too much. Also make sure your motherboard can handle it.
RAM cooling doesn't matter. The end.
As for video cards, if you have 2 running in SLI mode, then it won't matter. However, if you plan to overclock a ton, then be sure to cool your video cards to their needs by replacing the fans (again check for compatibility).

Video Cards:
Are you a gamer? Well if so, then nVidia's SLI stuff is the way to go. If you want 2 x 6600GTs, get the XFX brand, they're the best. For 6800GTs and Ultras, eVGA is also pretty good. Make sure your motherboard can handle them both though. Also remember the 3D1 by Gigabyte I was mentioning? I'd wait a bit for that. For a single card around $250, the XFX 6600GT pwns. For about $350-$400, the ATi Radeon X800XL is great, and so it the 6800GT. If you overclock, make sure you don't go overboard.

Sound:
As for me, I don't care. But Creative Sound Audigy 7.1 just pwns. The end.

Check these places out:

http://www.anandtech.com
http://www.hothardware.com

They're both excellent sources.
Well, I guess that's my two cents...

[Dirk_Ermen]

i've heard that amd is sometimes very good.

Originally posted by Hyper_Goliath

A geek's opinion. Conwell....look at the benchmarks. AMD beats Intel left right and center in nearly everything.

A Sysadmin's opinion:
Opinions on actual performance (versus cutting and pasting with some gentle formatting of stats from an article) do vary, Hyper.

[;)]

That's true, I mean Intel does have its advantages. But overall I think AMD beats them out, highly due to the general lower prices of the processors.

Hey thaknx Hyper_Goliath, ill look into that

for the graphics card..i was thinking of Gforce FX or Gforce 6800 ultra....the i think that the 6800 is better

Intel is the Best Damn Processors Period.

A lot of this depends on what you wanna do fellas ... there are pros AND cons to either that could be effectively argued.

[coolbeans326]

well, if you have the money, go blow it on that new AMD processor. It's like 2.6 ghz, I think, but it out performs the an Intel 3 ghz processor. But that thing is almost a grand. I reccommend getting w/e you can afford. I have a 2.4 ghz processor, and it has been very reliable for me. And I am satisfied with it, and I don't have the urge to get it upgraded any time soon, but, I recommend w/e you can afford, and don't go with something to cheap as to where its out-dated the next year.

when they gonna have a 4Ghz intel p4?

Originally posted by RCTfansMal818

when they gonna have a 4Ghz intel p4?

I am sorry, but that question is so stupid you should be slapped with a stick. They are at 2.6 now, geesh man ... as if 2.6 is not good enough for you. And I would SEVERELY doubt if we were still using a P4 when the 4Ghz arrives ...

What?! Intel is already at 3.8GHz/1066MHz FSB. That's a failure considering the Prescott was designed to achieve 5GHz. I scoff at your Prescott *scoff!*
2.6GHz is what AMD has right now, and sadly enough, they're still equal or better than Intel! (debatable). Intel has run out fo room until they get some new architecture.

It ain't stupid for me, TConwell, but sometimes 4Ghz is around the corner and it will get bigger numbers like 5.0 or even 10.0 in a quarter of a century from now.[:D]

4GHz is entirely possible on a P4 with proper cooling etc. 5.0 will be done with proper cooling also (tomshardware did it) and 10 may come with dual processing.
Anyways, get on topic guys, don't hijack the thread plz.

Originally posted by RCTfansMal818

It ain't stupid for me, TConwell, but sometimes 4Ghz is around the corner and it will get bigger numbers like 5.0 or even 10.0 in a quarter of a century from now.[:D]

25 years ... yeah, I would wait that long to finally get my hands on a good machine. (eye roll)

LOL Hyper ... I was trying to keep it simple for him as we both know the kid is not out researching parts to build his own machine.



However, I still really feel that the Intel has the better "lasting" value versus the glam of the AMD -- just my opinion of course.