which cpu

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03-08-2009, 11:51
dlundie

which cpu

AMD Phenom II X3 720 BLACK EDITION Triple Core 7.5meg CACHE 2.8Ghz Socket AM3

INTEL CORE 2 DUO E8500 3.16Ghz 6m CACHE 1333FSB LGA 775

which is best for a gaming rig guys, thanks for any feedback regarding these two choices
03-08-2009, 14:14
Lemur

Re: which cpu

The Intel Core2Duo will yield better results in gaming. It's just a better design, runs faster, cooler, etc.

However, you're going to find that the GPU affects your gaming experience even more than your CPU does ...
03-08-2009, 20:14
ICantSpellDawg

Re: which cpu

what about the phenom x4 over an intel quad?
03-09-2009, 01:49
Lemur

Re: which cpu

My understanding, from looking at the benchmarks, is that a dollar-for-dollar equivalent CoreWhatever is going to outdistance what AMD's offering. This is quite a turnaround; for years AMD was spanking Intel's booty all over the floor.

AMD is a great choice in budget boxes. For gaming, at this moment I'd say go with Intel.
03-09-2009, 01:59
Whacker

Re: which cpu

CoreWhatevers are great stuff, solid performance for a decent price. I have a CoreWhatever and it works fine!

~;p

OK, really though.

i7 is the latest offering from Intel, and they're apparently both well received by gamers and still manage to whoop what AMD can throw out right now. If I were to upgrade right now, that'd be what I'd get.

:balloon2:
03-09-2009, 02:13
Papewaio

Re: which cpu

I've got a Q6600 (the minimum Quad Core from Intel). Plays DoW II very nicely.

I would love to get an i7... they have gotten through the FSB hurdle by redesigning the whole thing. In fact the chip architecture looks very much like a star hub for networks with duplexed paths so the RAM and Chip have a separate in and outbound pathway direct to each other and no slowing down for interrupts such as I/O for harddrives... very cool.
03-09-2009, 02:39
ICantSpellDawg

Re: which cpu

does anybody buy from newegg? I'm narrowing it down and looking for advice. Here are three pc's that I am looking at. The intel is an "open-box" that I want, but am wary of.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...2E16883227116R

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16883229063

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16883229074

Here is a monitor that I'm about to pull the trigger on

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16824236052

Here is the UPS that I'm going with for the right price

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16842101344

I have no idea what backup drive I'm getting, but this one gets good and consistent reviews for an acceptable price.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16822204069

I have a sickness that causes me to take forever and get an absurdly low price before I buy, so I'll be asking for advice for a long time - until I A: find one that has fallen off of a truck or B: learn anough that advice is redundant.

THanks guys - I love these forums.
03-09-2009, 10:44
dlundie

Re: which cpu

thanks for the info guys, i was leaning to the dual core because of power and heat issues, the amd offering is great but seems to be a power munger and runs pretty hot, i already have a 4870 graphics card planned and dont want extra heat in the box. the Duo is still a little more expensive but seems a good choice for a budget gaming rig
03-09-2009, 14:56
Lemur

Re: which cpu

Quote:

Originally Posted by TuffStuffMcGruff

does anybody buy from newegg?

Everybody. Everybody buys from NewEgg. It's kind of a geek shrine. Although most people buy parts, not boxen.
03-09-2009, 15:32
Furunculus

Re: which cpu

roughly speaking there is a price/performance parity between AMD and Intel right now when talking about:

AMD PII X3 vs Intel C2D (100 - 130 GBP)
AMD PII X4 vs Intel C2Q (140 - 180 GBP)

It used to be that quality intel boards cost more than quality AMD boards, but they are both in the same 100-125 GBP ball-park these days.

Where this doesn't apply is the <100 GBP market as AMD A64 dual-cores are not competitive and the >200 GBP market where AMD does not compete at all.
As a general rule of thumb I would never spend more than 66% the price of the intended graphics card for the CPU, so if you are buying a 1GB nVidia 280GTX GPU for £270 then i would not spend more than £180 on a CPU which would mean either a Phenom II X4 3.0GHz or a C2Q 9400 at 2.66GHz to create a well balanced system.
03-09-2009, 21:02
ICantSpellDawg

Re: which cpu

Quote:

Originally Posted by Lemur

Everybody. Everybody buys from NewEgg. It's kind of a geek shrine. Although most people buy parts, not boxen.

The prices on pre-built are good, from what i see. I don't usually buy online though.
03-10-2009, 02:22
Lemur

Re: which cpu

Quote:

Originally Posted by Furunculus

roughly speaking there is a price/performance parity between AMD and Intel right now when talking about:

AMD PII X3 vs Intel C2D (100 - 130 GBP)
AMD PII X4 vs Intel C2Q (140 - 180 GBP)

It used to be that quality intel boards cost more than quality AMD boards, but they are both in the same 100-125 GBP ball-park these days.

Where this doesn't apply is the <100 GBP market as AMD A64 dual-cores are not competitive and the >200 GBP market where AMD does not compete at all.
As a general rule of thumb I would never spend more than 66% the price of the intended graphics card for the CPU, so if you are buying a 1GB nVidia 280GTX GPU for £270 then i would not spend more than £180 on a CPU which would mean either a Phenom II X4 3.0GHz or a C2Q 9400 at 2.66GHz to create a well balanced system.

Um, if you want to get into the nitty-gritty you might as well do your own reading. Here's Anandtech. Whacker likes HardOCP. Do a little digging around those two sites and you'll get a good idea of which CPU is for you.
03-10-2009, 04:56
Furunculus

Re: which cpu

i am into the nitty gritty, i build gaming PC's for me and my mates. :balloon2:

been a member of those sites since 2002'ish.
03-10-2009, 14:25
naut

Re: which cpu

If I were you TuffStuff I'd have a look on IBuyPower first, which is where those NewEgg rigs are from anyway. Since you can swap out anything you don't like, etc.
03-10-2009, 16:18
ICantSpellDawg

Re: which cpu

I figure that price is more important, so i'd like to have a rig that they set up and put on clearance. The prices on Neweg for cyber/ibuy are lower than the site itself.