P4 vs. AMD Athlon XP

[Guest]

I soon will be building a new computer, and I would like to hear some opinions on wether I should get a P4 or an AMD CPU. I have been finding mixed reviews on the net, and it seems like most people perfer Intel chips for gaming and 3D apps. Also, how much does the FSB (front side bus) speed affect system performance?I'm sure I'll be posting more about this as soon as I start building ;).Thanks!

[Guest flightpro08]

I'm a fan of both Intel and AMD (strange, eh? ;-) ) Basically, here's how I look at it. Overall, P4's are faster right now, but quite a bit more expensive than the AMD Athlons. So, if you're on a budget, and looking for a better price/speed ratio, get an AMD Athlon. If you're got quite a bit of money, get yourself a P4 2.8GHz processor and you'll be set for awhile.Ryan-Flightpro08 :-cool VATSIM Pilot/ControllerZLA ARTCC Senior Controller (C-3)SAN TRACON Lead [link:www.taxiwaysigns.com|Taxiwaysigns.com] Scenery Designer-----------------------------My "Home Made" System Specs:Intel Pentium 4 2.2GHz ProcessorTurbo Gamer ATX Mid-Tower with 420W Power SupplyEPoX 4G4A Motherboard with Intel 845G ChipsetVisiontek XTASY GeForce4 128MB Ti4600 (Det 30.30 Drivers)512MB PC2100 DDR RAM40GB Matrox 7200RPM Hard DriveWindows XP Home Edition SP1*No CPU or GPU Overclocking*3dMark2001SE Score: 11298-----------------------------Click [link:ftp.avsim.com/library/esearch.php?DLID=&Name=&FileName=&Author=Ryan+Fretwell&CatID=Root]Here to Download my New American Eagle POSKY CRJ-200!

[Guest]

I found a P4 2.4ghz. CPU for $189 on http://www.newegg.com.The Athlon XP 2400+ is $199. That's pretty much the only reason I am considering the P4. Price is an issue, I don't get too much money.

[Guest Dean]

Well this is going to bring a variety of suggestions from all sides. I prefer AMD for the price/performance ratio. It appears the Intel line currently has the edge at the very top end but is it worth the price difference? Not to me when I can put those dollars into other areas of the PC. The P4 is also supposed to be slightly better suited for some multi-media applications than the Athlon but I don't care. I run Office and flight simulators so the Athlon is a better choice from a performance/price point of view.

[Guest Dean]

>I found a P4 2.4ghz. CPU for $189 on http://www.newegg.com. >The Athlon XP 2400+ is $199. That's pretty much the only >reason I am considering the P4. Price is an issue, I don't >get too much money. Well this thread has grown while I wrote my first post. You also need to consider the cost of the motherboard and ram. Especially RDRAM. You can go the PCprogress and build a system price quote and see what the whole package would cost you with either chip.

[Guest Dean]

Sorry about the double post. Meant to edit the above.

[Guest]

Athlon XP is a definate winner in the performance/price category. If the decision was for a P4 2.0 or an Athlon XP 2000+, I would go with the AMD. However, if you are willing to pay top dollar, AMD simply doesn't have a comparable chip to the P4 2.400-2.533.FSB is extremely important as is simply the quality of motherboard you buy. You can go out and spend $400 on a P4 2.4 and end up having a AMD Athlon XP 1800+ running circles around the P4 simply because you got the wrong MoBo, memory, etc.Your computer is only as fast as its weakest link. Therefore you need to carefully make sure that the chipset, memory, AGP card, and processor are all of roughly equal quality. Otherwise, you are simply wasting your money buying superior components only to saddle them to other inferior components.My advice:-Get AMD Athlon XP: Most gain for the least pain. Also you will have more options in terms of chipset, memory, etc.-Get DDR333 or RDRAM: Make sure the CL on DDR is 2.0, not 2.5 2.5 will prevent your processor from showing its potential. Its just a few bucks more for 2.0 for a lot more performance (Corsair makes excellent high speed memory)-Get a high quality MoBo. Usually Gigabyte and Soyo are really good, but read MoBo reviews at www.tomshardware.com-Get an ATI Radeon 9700 (or GeForce 4 if you insist on Nvidia). The Radeon is the fastest (for now) plus another benefit of buying from ATI is you only have to go to one source if you have trouble. ATI makes the card, the chipset, and the drivers.-RESEARCH, RESEARCH, RESEARCH! This is your money, spend it wisely. Read as many reviews of as many products as possible. www.tomshardware.com is a great source for info on components.

[Guest]

I am in the same boat you are and my thought processes consist of the following:1> I want to build a machine fast enough to run FS2002 to my liking which is to run most options to the max at the busiest airports without it looking like a slide show.2> My current system is not doing the job:Athlon 1.2 Ghz 512Mb of PC133 SDRAM32Mb GeForce256DDR videocard30Gb Maxtor 7200RPM HD3> If I am going to invest in a new machine, I want to get as much milage as possible out of it.4> Right now, the P4 2.8Ghz is the fastest CPU out there. However, in less than a month, the P4 3.0Ghz will be released which will require the use of a different motherboard than those currently available due to a signficant voltage increase. In addition, Intel are expected to make a significant change in the P4 core [possibly calling it a P5 (Prescott core)] in the coming year which will most probably require another motherboard: See Anandtech.com and/or Tomshardware.com for more information.5> Right now, AMD's fastest chip out is the 2.4Ghz Athlon which is considerablely less expensive that the Intel counterpart mentioned above but does not perform nearly as well in terms of speed. At the end of October, the 2.5 and 2.6 chips will be available and it may not be until February of 2003 that the AMD "Barton" 3.0Ghz will be released. 6> If I go ahead and build an AMD system with the current king of the hill AMD motherboard, the Asus A7V8X, then I should be able to use all upcoming AMD Athlons until they are discontinued at over 4Ghz sometime in late 2003 because the core voltages will be decreasing rather then increasing dues to the small die of the Barton up until the release of the fastest Barton. At this point, I am rambling, but I think you get my drift.If you get a P4 system now, you will be getting the top of the line system in terms of speed but will most probably limit yourself in terms of upgrading.If you go for an AMD system right now, you will have more options later on but will have less power in your hands right now and will still probably have to compromise in terms of sliders.I am waiting a month for the release of the Wilco's Airport2002 to see what kind of effects it will have on framerates (CPU requirements), and at about that time the NV30 Videocard shall be released.If you can, wait a month and reassess. Sorry for the rambling, but maybe there's something in there that can help you.Robbie

[Guest]

Same here I am also into building new computer just have to wait for the new mobo to come out on the market here so i can build it. Here is what's it gonna be:ASUS P4PE Motherboard P4 2.53 or 2.4 CPU either one 512K, 478 pin 533MHzFSB512 PC2700 @ 333MHzASUS TI4200 GForce4 with 128MB RAMI am on a budget and can not go nuts, however in this day and age you get what you pay for!I have nothing against AMD and if it wasn't for flightsim, I would prabobally get it but I find Pentium to be a lot more compatable with evertyhing and should be a lot more trouble free.I would recomend Pentium 4 Northwood.Do not buy Williamate which is the one with 128K cach but the new Pentium with 512K cache and 533FSB. The above mobo will support P4 of 3MHZ and above so if you buy this MOBO in short future you will be able to upgrade the CPU only once the 3GHz cpu come out and drop in price a bit. the ASUS P4PE should also support current slower 2.x pentiums.Good luck with your new computer when you get it (build it)!Andy

[michal 44]

How about waiting for the ClawHammer from AMD ? 800 Mhz FSB should be quite desirable in FS2002.Michael J.

[Guest]

Andy:Just a quick point. Rambus memory blows the doors off of DDR memory on the P4 at this point.If you can afford a FEW extra dollars, I'd get the ASUS P4T533 mobo and 512MB of 32Bit RAMBUS RIMM4200. The performance difference IS significant.Best,Mike T.

[Guest]

That was my original goal. The Clawhammer was supposed to have been released by now, but it has been delayed until well into next year. In March of 2003, they will release the Sledgehammer for servers and only later, possibly Q4 of 2003, will they release the Clawhammer. I have learned this just over the past couple of days. Go to Anandtech.com and/or Tomshardware.com for more information.Rob

[michal 44]

Well, tomshardware says March (Cebit) 2003 for ClawHammer. Tomshardware article originally inspired me to wait for the ClawHammer.Michael J.

[ErnieAlston 33]

>found a P4 2.4ghz. CPU for $189 on http://www.newegg.com.>The Athlon XP 2400+ is $199. That's pretty much the only reason I >am considering the P4. Price is an issue, I don't get too much >money. An AMD 2400 is a better system than a P2.4, an XP 2200 is probably equivalent to a p2.4.Blame AMD's naming scheme to de-emphasize clock speed for the confusion.Ernie.

[Guest]

Yeah, I read that too. Go to Anandtech.com and look in the NEWS section for an article explaining that the desktop ClawHammer won't be available until late in 03. That is unfortunately true. The reality is that the Hammer is nothing but the old Athlon with a memory controller attached and a 64 bit extension and a few other small additions. It will be very scalable though moving beyong 6-7Ghz eventually.