3 Choices of CPU/mobo......what to get?

[raymondlin]

Getting my PC upgraded by the manufacturer that i got it from. so the choice of parts is limited thou all are good parts. Here are the options.

1 - Pentum 4 2.8Ghz Northwood 800FSB / Asus P4C800 E Deluxe = £250

2 - Pentum 4 3.2Ghz Northwood 800FSB / Asus P4C800 E Deluxe = £290

3 - AMD A64 3200 / Asus K8V Deluxe = £250

Secret Option 4 - Prescott choice, no idea what mobo and how much.

I mainly do some video ripping, photoshop, and play the odd game like COD and Farcry. Will use the existing ATI9700pro with whatever i choose for a while yet, so what options should i go for? The rig won't be overclock as the case only has 1 case fan so i don't want to risk overheat.

 

[skitlets]

How about a socket 939 motherboard + athlon 64 3500. I have no idea what the price is in your currency, however.

 

[GokieKS]

Quote:

Originally Posted by skitlets How about a socket 939 motherboard + athlon 64 3500. I have no idea what the price is in your currency, however.

Well, he says it's being done by the manufacturer, so his choices are limited.

If Photoshop usage is anything more than just a once-a-week occurance, I'd say go with the P4. If you don't want to OC, then you might as well go for the 3.2 if you can afford it. And generally speaking, the 875P mobos are still better featured than the A64 boards.

~KS

 

[Stephonovich]

Being an AMD fan, I'd say go for the 64 3200+. They're certainly no slouch, and can hold their own with the P4.

And what's this about the board not having a big enough featureset? Asus has always been a leader in including goodies. That particular board has DDR400 support, HyperTransport, Gigabit LAN, 5.1 audio, Firewire, Parallel and Serial ATA, and RAID 0, 1, and 0+1 support. Also, of course, Asus's usual slew of OC and safety/troubleshooting tools.

Final words: don't get a Prescott. Just don't. They run hotter (MUCH hotter), don't really offer any performance gains, and if you ever decided to OC, they suck at that.

(-:Stephonovich

 

[Iron_Dreamer]

Do'h I foolishly missed the part of your post about heat concerns, in that case you are definitely better off with AMD (fancy saying that 4 years ago).

 

[tiberian]

option 3.

 

[terrymx]

i know you were concerning about the heat but for the works your doing i have to say get option 3 also.

 

[bootman]

I'm as big of an intel fan as you can get,
but the A64 will give you the most bang for the buck.

If you are concerned about heat stay away from the prescotts.

 

[D-EJ915]

AMD, for sure.

 

[dd3mon]

I'm gonna go against the flow here and say either one of the Intel setups will make you happy.

Why? Stability. Intel systems are stable on a whole other level from AMD systems. This isn't AMD's fault, but instead those who make chipsets for them. Intel makes their own chipsets (at least all the popular ones) - and they test them relentlessly with resources far beyond what Via or even AMD themselves could even dream about. I've seen Intel's testing facilities, it's ridiculous. Thousands upon thousands of bare motherboards in racks being put through torture tests until they're totally sure that their chipsets and CPUs are solid as a rock.

I've built about 15 systems in past 5 years for myself, friends and family. An Intel CPU on an Intel chipset is simply the most stable (consumer) setup out there. New AMD systems generally have their little quirks - I much preferred them before they stopped making their own chipsets. Yes, AMD will give you more bang for your buck in most cases - but it's a bit of a roll of the dice IMO if you're going to get a 100% trouble-free system (that includes driver conflicts, random freezing, perfect compatibility with other hardware, etc).

-dd3mon

 

[raymondlin]

Quote:

Originally Posted by dd3mon I'm gonna go against the flow here and say either one of the Intel setups will make you happy. Why? Stability. Intel systems are stable on a whole other level from AMD systems. This isn't AMD's fault, but instead those who make chipsets for them. Intel makes their own chipsets (at least all the popular ones) - and they test them relentlessly with resources far beyond what Via or even AMD themselves could even dream about. I've seen Intel's testing facilities, it's ridiculous. Thousands upon thousands of bare motherboards in racks being put through torture tests until they're totally sure that their chipsets and CPUs are solid as a rock. I've built about 15 systems in past 5 years for myself, friends and family. An Intel CPU on an Intel chipset is simply the most stable (consumer) setup out there. New AMD systems generally have their little quirks - I much preferred them before they stopped making their own chipsets. Yes, AMD will give you more bang for your buck in most cases - but it's a bit of a roll of the dice IMO if you're going to get a 100% trouble-free system (that includes driver conflicts, random freezing, perfect compatibility with other hardware, etc). -dd3mon

I have to confess, my Dell Centrino 8600 laptop has been the most stable computer i have EVER had, this thing never crashes, no memory leakage, i just wish my desktop is the same. But the desktop is a AMD 2200+/Asus A7V333 (VIA chipset), which has given me problems since i got it really. That was 2 years ago, the first year it was ok ish, except AutoCAD would crash for no reason, chuck me out of online games between maps, and then the last 6 months it had weird problems that comes up so random i dunno if its luck or the computer. bluescreen and then reboot when the computer is idle at doing Nothing, cpu is at 0% as i was away eating dinner when it only has IE and outlook running on top of the anitvirus/firewall.

Then when i tried to format the last time, it totally went BSOD on me, I've tried 3 different HD, taken out PCI slots, RAM, Optical Drives, it still wouldn't install windows. The CD is Mint, and to make sure, i've tried 2 other copies, same thing. I am sure the PSU can handle the windows install, if i can play COD online the day before for 3 hours (on a good day it's fine).

So here i am, sick of it's random reboots (with a quick BSOD that is too fast for me to see what's on it). Looking for the next core parts for my PC that will last another 2 years, and Stablilty is PARAMOUNT. The reason is that i am going to do a law conversion course at college in 4 weeks time, i do not have time to muck around with the little quirks it might have, i just want it to be fast, stable and do what it's told.

 

[meat01]

Another vote for AMD. It is just as stable and a lot better value than Intel.

 

[Iron_Dreamer]

IME random reboots are often caused b inadequate power supplies, which are often found in most non custom-built PC's.

 

[dd3mon]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Iron_Dreamer IME random reboots are often caused b inadequate power supplies, which are often found in most non custom-built PC's.

This is a much overlooked component, a quality power supply is vital. A cheap power supply is the #1 RAM killer out there, as well as killing stability in various other ways.

-dd3mon

 

[Jasper994]

My AMD system has been extreamly stable (Athlon XP 1900+ on a Soyo Dragon+ mobo)...

I'd vote for the AMD too. I think Intel is still getting milage from the fact that they used to be a lot more stable. I don't think it's the case one way or the other anymore. Fanboys may be fanboys, but they will only put up with so much crap before they jump ship...