AMD vs. Intel

Hey there, im building a computer and have been posting in the new system build forums first of all. The link is
http://www.tomshardware.com/forum/ [...] ild-review

I had all but decided on the E8400 intel CPU when i began talking to a member of my extended family who has a license for buying computer parts at lower prices for his company (dba license i think it was called?), for a little history he has been building computers for himself and others for the past 15 years and has his masters degree in computer science. Therefore i cant ignore when he tells me that AMD is a much better decision in a CPU/mobo, though he has been biased towards AMD for his own computers.

Reason being: (and i am still new so bear with me), According to him, Intels mobos have a lower FSB than the AMD variants resulting in a higher load being placed on the CPU, which results in higher heat production which in turn can wreck your cpu/mobo whatever... I have been reading up on the cpu i have initially chosen (E8400) and have noticed that there are some rumors(?) of :

turpit wrote: (CPU Buyers Guide)
E8XXX series. Attractive price/performance ratio, but due to the relative immaturity of these processors taken in concert with unverified rumours of temperature/temperature sensor problems, these CPUs fall into the catagory of 'unverified' for the time being...purchase at your own risk

Now i dont pretend to have much experience nor a vast knowledge of the internal workings of cpus/mobos but i am learning quickly and would appreciate it if you gurus out there could discuss this so i can decide whether to go with Intel or AMD finally. I realize that at the moment Intel dominates the market for speed of processors but i would like to look at this from a more technical standpoint of quality as well as power. Dont sugarcoat it

Im apologize if this post does not belong here but since the announcement of the Tri cores for AMD i figure we have some AMD enthusiasts in here as well as Intel to argue the good points! Thank you for your time

Would you argue that for ~around the same price, choosing a higher end AMD X4 series cpu would benefit me more in the end? I dont do alot of video editing or programs that would warrant having a quad core but i dont want to rule out the possiblity. Im more of a gamer than anything else, but i do multitask heavily at times due to work.

Okay thanks for your comments! One last question, as a gamer im looking forward to the next 'generation' of games that most likely will make better use of the multi threading technology of the quad cores etc. While these games arent out yet, i would rather be better equipped when they do come out than have to rebuild all over again (though lets face it, in a year or two the system will be obsolete anyway). Some games i am looking forward to are Age of Conan (may2008) and the much anticipated Warhammer Online : Age of Reckoning (pushed back til who knows when)... will the E8400 satisfy the needs i will have for these games, or will it be based solely on the graphics card(s) i have installed (currently looking at the geforce 8800gts g92)

From the weeks of research and learning about how to do these builds its a common if not dominant occurance of Intel stomps AMD, so i will just go with my instincts and get the Intel.

Not to mention i was reading the CPU history of some of the forum users in a post, and MANY of the long term AMD users switch to the Intels which they use current or are planning on going to the Intels.

With all that said, thanks for putting my mind at rest and RetiredChief.... i envy your BA in basketweaving. I wish i had one.

It depends if the majority of things you do on your PC are single-threaded, in which case the E8400 will be a better bet.
If it were my money I'd go with the Q6600, as for me a 2.4GHz CPU is going to be more than enough for single-threaded apps. You can never add cores in the future either

Basically, EVERYTHING you have been told is incorrect or wrong.

Older P4 Chips ran hotter than AMD Chips, but this had nothing to do with FSB speeds.
Current Core2Duo Chips run much cooler than AMD Chips.
There are not ANY motherboard reliability issues for either AMD or INTEL Chips in this regard.

There is not any "HEAT SENSOR" issues with the E8400 Either.

Some Mobo's w/o an properly updated BIOS may detect that the CPU is running warmer than it really is.
This is because the sensors don't read the actual temperature, but calculate it based upon a specific forumla for different CPUs. In a Worst Case Scenario, the Mobo will throttle your CPU because it thinks it is running hot when it is not. There is never a danger of damage since the CPU is running COOLER than the mobo thinks. However, even when the Mobo is not reading the correct temp, this issue is only seen when performing Extreme OverClocks of the CPU. This is the only time the CPU may even get close to the temperature threshhold causing the over-estimated temperature to kickin.

Thanks Zen, while i suspected my own ideas were right after reviewing so many of the posts and articles on multiple forums/websites its hard for a first timer to ignore the experience of someone with a fancy degree in things i barely understand. Im more than satisfied with the responses you have all given me and yes... i will go with the Q6600.
Would any of you suggest a different mobo or is the ABIT IP35 Pro still a wise choice?

Kaine, I once had an idiot tell me I wasn't qualified to identify trans-fat as hazardous simply because I didn't have a degree in toxicology.

(fyi this is the stuff that kills turkeys, pigs, and other animals force-fed it; you won't find it in pet foods. Not even mold will grow on it, and ants won't carry it off. Only humans are dumb enough to eat it).

Im starting to like AMD again with the announcement of the Phenom 9850 However Im hard pressed recommending it to anyone, great choice on the Q6600.

So if i were to be purely gaming oriented - Would you recommend an AMD board that supports AM2+ and going with a simple solid CPU like the AMD X2 5000 Black Edition, which would be much easier to OC once i get my feet wet with building the system?

This would also allow me to save money to put towards a better GPU such as the 9800 GTX.... just throwing these questions out there ! With the announcement of the Tri-cores and inevitably the better quad cores or even 45 nm cpus from AMD eventually makes me wonder

Oh no.. definitely not. If you're planning at some point to jack up the clock speeds on the CPU it will be definitely and infinitely easier to use a Core 2 CPU (Be a dual core or a quad core) for your purposes. I'm just saying that AMD is starting to make me happy again, they are at least *TRYING* to catch up to the Q6600.

Besides we're in a weird spot right now with intel and AMD, before AMD had great cheap motherboards (And they still do, just not for overclocking), but right now intel has very competitively priced P35 motherboards that are insanely good (Look at GA-P35-DS3L). That's why I'm saying that I'm still looking for the chance to find a Phenom a happy home, I just don't think the Phenom will be as happy with you as an intel Quad would be.

Use this analogy for better comparison and help you understand:

Think of Intel as a racing car running at 120mph and AMD closing in at 100-110mph, but Intel can easily step on it and run at maybe 180mph, while AMD can only go at maybe 130-140mph at their very peak.

The only difference would be that Intel racing car is worth maybe $500,000 monopoly dollars (i.e. Q6600 $250-270), while AMD racing car is worth $375,000 monopoly dollars (i.e. $190-210)

True but if noone cares too much about performance ie granny just needs a home pc for serving the web and excel ra ra ra

AMD is cheaper.. look there top of the line Quads (AMD) are cheaper than the Q6600 of intels.. hehe..

AMD are desperate to rake some $$ back to help that deficit of theirs..

GO AMD...

PS I have a 6420 (3.2Ghz) Water cooled no longer a supporter of AMD .. sorry .. but maybe again in a few years eh ?

There are plenty of good applications for AMD processors (I'm using one in my next build), but top-of-the-line gaming isn't one of them. AMD rules the low price and low power arena (which is why I'm using one for my HTPC) but not the top by a long shot.