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[PanopticBlue]

I have a budget of about $220 for a cpu. I've been out of the loop for a while and I'm getting ready to build a new pc but I'm not sure which is really superior between the two. Can anyone offer some suggestions?

 

[Culex]

If you buy online, you can get an Athlon 64 3200+ for about 200 dollars now. Historically, AMD CPU's have always been better with gaming, and the Athlon 64 line continues that trend.

 

[Bregor]

AMD has the upper hand in the low end (Athlon XP) and high end (Athlon 64) CPU's. The Athlon XP and the P4 are competitive in the mid-range.

So if you are looking for a high end CPU, go with the Athlon 64.

 

[Tea Master]

If you buy online, you can get an Athlon 64 3200+ for about 200 dollars now. Historically, AMD CPU's have always been better with gaming, and the Athlon 64 line continues that trend.

Yeah, those K-6 processors were beasts eh?

 

[Tenguman]

Ahtlon 64's >>> P4's in gaming

Especially in UT based games

Get a P4 if you're heavy into image/video editing though.

 

[NotMSRP]

Do you have links to articles that describes the differences between the two CPUs in great detail? I'm looking for what the architectural differences are and evaluting the pros and cons. I think P4 Extreme Edition and AMD 64 FX are the best from each camp.

 

[Shogmaster]

Yeah, those K-6 processors were beasts eh?

For AMD fans, nothing existed before the Athlon.

 

[PanopticBlue]

http://www.newegg.com/app/viewproductdesc.asp?description=19-116-156&DEPA=1

http://www.newegg.com/app/ViewProductDesc.asp?description=19-103-483&depa=1

Why the discrepancy in speed if the AMD is the better performer?

 

[Tenguman]

? Are you talking about the ghz rating? It's been known for a while that Athlon ghz are worth more than P4 ghz. That's why AMD had to rename their cpus

 

[NotMSRP]

There's more to it than just GHz speed of what makes a CPU better than another one..

 

[Bluemercury]

ATHLON FX

 

[Shompola]

Here is a small but good article about athlon 64 and pentium 4.

http://www.hardocp.com/article.html?art=NTI0

I am sure anandtech and such other sites also have good info.

 

[mahttew]

I know they're not 64bit but you might want to look into the Mobile Athlon line of Barton core CPUs. You can pick up a 1.83GHz (PR2500+ rated) mobile chip that'll overclock to like 2.5 GHz (PR3600+) for around 90 bucks. Just get a decent HSF.

These chips will work in most desktop mobos (they have the same pinout as the desktop chips) the only differences are that the multiplier is unlocked and they run at a lower voltage. That adds up to an overclocking nirvana not seen since the days of the classic Celeron. They're basically cream-o-the-crop Athlon XPs without the locked multiplier.

 

[PanopticBlue]

ATHLON FX

.

I have a budget of about $220

 

[dark10x]

Historically, AMD CPU's have always been better with gaming

Oh no, not at all. It wasn't until the A64 that this started to hold true. From the K6 up to the AthlonXP chips...Intel has dominated game performance.

 

[Shompola]

Oh no, not at all. It wasn't until the A64 that this started to hold true. From the K6 up to the AthlonXP chips...Intel has dominated game performance.

False. In the Athlon thunderbird days until now Intel and AMD have been playing cath up. One day AMD was the fastest thing you could get for gaming, but then later on Intel released their latest CPU and the roles were reversed and so forth.

 

[CrimsonSkies]

Both are pretty close, but if 64 Bit catches on then the AMD processors will really beat the crap out of the Intel processors.

I guess the question is just when 64 Bit Catches on? If it never does for the life cycle of computer then the Pentium chips are better overall chips. Games still run better on the AMD processors. Everything else does better on the P4.