Conroe 6600 or AMD Athlon 64 X2 4600+ (AM2)

Oaken

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Aug 20, 2006
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Hi, I am building a system. Tell me what you think. :?

I cant decide on CPU..... Which is better for game's and future upgrades? The intel is about $200 more... then the AMD.

Conroe 6600 OEM -ThermalTake Golden Orb II
ASUS P5N32-SLI SE Deluxe Socket T (LGA 775) NVIDIA nForce4 SLI X16 ATX Intel Motherboard

OR

AMD Athlon 64 X2 4600+ 2.40GHz / 1MB Cache / 2000MHz FSB / Socket AM2 / Dual-Core (Windsor) / Processor with Fan
ASUS M2N32-SLI Deluxe Wireless Edition Socket AM2 NVIDIA nForce 590 SLI MCP ATX AMD Motherboard - Retail




My Rig

CORSAIR XMS2 2GB (2 x 1GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 (PC2 6400)

Seagate Barracuda 320GB 7200 RPM SATA 3.0Gb/s Hard Drive

EVGA GeForce 7900 GT KO / 512MB GDDR3 / SLI / PCI Express / Dual DVI / HDTV / Video Card

NEC 16X DVD±R DVD Burner Black

Microsoft Windows XP Professional X64 Edition

Ultra Black Aluminus ATX Mid-Tower Case w/550-watt

Viewsonic VX2025WM / 20.1" / 8ms / 800:1 / WSXGA+ 1680 x 1050 / DVI-D · VGA / Widescreen LCD Monitor
 

Oaken

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i Still have no clue what your talking about... srry
would that ball CPU fan be ok for the 6600? or should i go stock fan same price?

C2D=6600?
 

ElMoIsEviL

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Hi, I am building a system. Tell me what you think. :?

I cant decide on CPU..... Which is better for game's and future upgrades? The intel is about $200 more... then the AMD.

Conroe 6600 OEM -ThermalTake Golden Orb II
ASUS P5N32-SLI SE Deluxe Socket T (LGA 775) NVIDIA nForce4 SLI X16 ATX Intel Motherboard

OR

AMD Athlon 64 X2 4600+ 2.40GHz / 1MB Cache / 2000MHz FSB / Socket AM2 / Dual-Core (Windsor) / Processor with Fan
ASUS M2N32-SLI Deluxe Wireless Edition Socket AM2 NVIDIA nForce 590 SLI MCP ATX AMD Motherboard - Retail




My Rig

CORSAIR XMS2 2GB (2 x 1GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 (PC2 6400)

Seagate Barracuda 320GB 7200 RPM SATA 3.0Gb/s Hard Drive

EVGA GeForce 7900 GT KO / 512MB GDDR3 / SLI / PCI Express / Dual DVI / HDTV / Video Card

NEC 16X DVD±R DVD Burner Black

Microsoft Windows XP Professional X64 Edition

Ultra Black Aluminus ATX Mid-Tower Case w/550-watt

Viewsonic VX2025WM / 20.1" / 8ms / 800:1 / WSXGA+ 1680 x 1050 / DVI-D · VGA / Widescreen LCD Monitor

Hmmm,

Think about it this way.. under games the Core 2 Duo E6300 is about on par with an AMD Athlon64 X2 4600+. The Core 2 Duo E6600 you're contemplating about is faster then any AMD processor (including AMD's flagship Athlon64 FX-62).

So it's not really choosing between two comparable systems. The price difference of $200 is mainly due to the Core 2 Duo rig being totally dominant over the Athlon64 rig you posted.

As for upgradeability, well, we know that current 965P and 975x Intel chipset based boards support Intel's Quad Core Kentsfield processor (as Xtreme Systems have shown) as for the nForce board you're looking at... who knows.

I'd be more inclined to believe that the Intel based board offers a longer lifespan. But seeing as it's not an Intel chipset I cannot claim this with certainty. Therefore my opinion is firmly only based on the performance. Which still brings the E6600 as my recommendation.

If the price difference means you need to penny pinch in order to purchase the Core 2 Duo E6600 then you're better off getting the E6400. Either way, in your price range.. AM2 is out of the question.. especially for a long term gaming rig.
 

Assman

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Jan 7, 2005
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i Still have no clue what your talking about... srry
would that ball CPU fan be ok for the 6600? or should i go stock fan same price?

C2D=6600?

c2d= core 2 duo = E6XXX

get e6600 retail (not OEM), retail comes with a stock cooler and 3 yrs warranty.

if you are not going to oc it then stock cooler will do the job just fine(make sure you have a good case thou)

if you are going to oc then get zalman 9500
 

Mex

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Feb 17, 2005
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For performance, I'd pick the Core 2 Duo.

For upgradeability, it's a mixed bag. AMD has specifically stated that Socket AM3 (Socket AM2's successor) CPUs will be drop in compatible with AM2 motherboards. Don't assume that to be 100% true, since AM3 is a year off. Socket 775 will be around for another year or two, since Kentsfield is also supposed to be drop in compatible, but Intel's compatability track record is less than perfect, due to their constant switching on chipsets.

I'm curious - is there a reaon why you specifically chose the E6600?
 

Oaken

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Intel Core 2 Duo E6600 2.40GHz / 4MB Cache / 1066MHz FSB / Dual-Core / Socket 775 / Processor with Fan

$400

Intel Core 2 Duo E6400 2.13GHz / 2MB Cache / 1066MHz FSB / Dual-Core / Socket 775 / Processor with Fan

$270

Is the extra 2MB cache worth it? I have never had that much?
 

Assman

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Intel Core 2 Duo E6600 2.40GHz / 4MB Cache / 1066MHz FSB / Dual-Core / Socket 775 / Processor with Fan

$400

Intel Core 2 Duo E6400 2.13GHz / 2MB Cache / 1066MHz FSB / Dual-Core / Socket 775 / Processor with Fan

$270

Is the extra 2MB cache worth it? I have never had that much?

check this out 4mb vs 2mb
 

Oaken

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Thanks alot assman/ElMoIsEviL . That helped me out a lot.
I am going to go with the 6400. Not worth the price for up to 10% gain. 8O
 

Samat

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Upgradeability over 1 year+ could be a bit longshot for either system (if you care about that). Intel is releasing new chipset (Bearlake) next year (http://www.digitimes.com/news/a20060818A7034.html and AMD has AM3 socket coming out next year also? (AM3 socket processors are rumoured to be compatible with AM2 motherboards http://blogs.zdnet.com/hardware/?p=34).

Give or take get what best suits your needs :D

Edit: Seems you made a decision while I was typing/getting links, not a bad choice :D
 

col-p-todd

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I would say C2D but there is a big price difference.

+-$100 dollers on the board and CPU so that's +-$200 more, but if you have the money go for it.
 

Oaken

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Should i go with the ASUS P5N32-SLI SE Deluxe Socket T (LGA 775) NVIDIA nForce4 SLI X16 ATX Intel Motherboard? or another?


BTW i just got the 6400 it will be in my mitts in 4 days :D
 

DaveUK

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The Conroe 6600 would slap the AMD X2 4600+ hard, bend it over for vigorous anal, and then wipe on its curtains after finishing.

In short, owned.