2.6C and Barton 2800, which one to choose

[thanniel]

I am considering to build my first system, between 2.6c on Asus P4P800 board and Barton 2800 on Asus K7N8X deluxe.

I also plan to use dual DDR 3200 but I am not sure if I should aim for 512 mb or 1 Gb at this time due to tight budget.

I do some 3D gaming and use computer mainly for internet and normal applications like Microsoft office.

Please help me choose which system will be better in terms of performance and stability without consideration to overcloking potential.

Thanx.

 

[pitsi]

Are you kidding? Even by doing a *minor* research you would be able to find your answer. Anyway, the answer here clearly is that if you have the money, go with Intel. 2.6C will offer you much better performance than Barton 2800+ but of course by spending more money. Also regarding memory, if you are indeed on a tight budget then stay with 512MB, since it's more than enough for today. Beware though to buy two sticks of 256MB for taking advantage of dual-channel memory, a feature found on both the A7N8X or the P4P800.

So to sum up, Intel route offers better performance, AMD route is cheaper. I have been using only AMD processors for the last 5 years but if I had to buy a new system today, I'd go with Intel.

 

[sirak]

Go for 2.6c definitely.

 

[xeenrecoil]

heya thanniel;

It may also be wise to just go ahead and buy 1x512 module, even though you will be only running in single channel mode for the time being, it is better then having 2x256 for stability reasons, since you plan to add more memory in the near term future, because you would end up having 2x256 + 2x256, and todays memory has enough trouble running 2 modules as it is on the i865 and i875 chipsets let alone 4 modules with any stability.
This is a consideration you may not have thought about, i just thought i would throw it out there for ya.

XeeN

 

[nfaq]

Well... The P4 isn't the fastest at everything.

The P4 shines in these areas:

Media encoding (Making DIVX files, MP3 files ,etc), playing such files, any 800Mhz computer can handle these. And 3D Rendering programs (like making Animation or 3D artwork).

In certain games and Office productivity, the AMD tends to be faster.

Here's one link:
<A HREF="http://www6.tomshardware.com/cpu/20030217/cpu_charts-24.html" target="_new">http://www6.tomshardware.com/cpu/20030217/cpu_charts-24.html</A>

With the work youre doing, I doubt you'll need more than 512mb. Many of us were doing a lot more with 128mb a few years ago.

What kind of video card are you looking at?

A P3 2.6ghz with a $100 video card would get its doors blown away by a AMD 2600 with a $200 video card.

Also, to save a few bucks, for about $100~110 - buy an AMD Barton 2500, retail version. (I use globalWin for a little more cooling power without paying a lot of $$$, very quiet)

Without adding voltage or Super-Cooler, my 2500 is operating like an AMD 2900. I've only gained 2degress C. in heat. The CPU wasn't completely locked, allowing me to change the multiplier from 11x to 12.5x without modifications.

I get a 3DMark 2001 over 10300 (Vs. 2500 for my old P3-866 w/ GF2MX400) and I get about 60~90fps in UT2003 which is respectable and very playable. As you an see from the link above, having a $300 Radeon9700 can double the frame rate... even lookint at the chart, having a 1000Mhz computer with a KICK ASS video card can result in more performance. (I bought my 4200 when the ATI9700 was $400)

So get the most you can with your money... get a better video card, a bigger monitor ($300 for a good 19" CRT), bigger HD, a real sound card. Having a $60~100 sound card such as the Audigy2 can give you about 10+ fps over the on-board sound on most boards (Nforce Boards are quite good thou)

What other parts are you looking at? What is your buget? I've seen people buy these $20 cheap cases... which have bad air-flow, cheap power supplies, etc... Having a $100 case will last you years and give you less chance of failure.


Pop in a $100 GForce 4200 or 5600 or ATI 9500~9800.

In the real world with what most people do,

Amiga - The Original Power

 

[thanniel]

Thank you for all your comments. I will go with 2.6c for sure then. I plan to get ATI 9600 pro for my video card.

As for the ram, since I will not overclock, would it be ok, if I use DDR3200 CL3 modules since they are much cheaper than others and in this way I can afford to get upto 1 Gb? Or would it be better if I get just 512 Mb of good qualilty ram?
What modules would you recommend for cheap and stable system?
Thanx.

 

[Mephistopheles]

Well... The P4 isn't the fastest at everything.

The P4 shines in these areas:

Media encoding (Making DIVX files, MP3 files ,etc), playing such files, any 800Mhz computer can handle these. And 3D Rendering programs (like making Animation or 3D artwork).

In certain games and Office productivity, the AMD tends to be faster.

I hate to be the one to have to tell you this, but you're most likely wrong with that claim. You linked to a review in which they only had the 2.66B, not the 2.6C (there's a 266Mhz FSB difference in that... the B has 533Mhz FSB, and the C has 800Mhz FSB...). The 2.6C annihilates the 2600, and destroys the 2800+. It's more on par with the 3000+...

<font color=red><b>M</b></font color=red>ephistopheles

 

[nfaq]

So...

Does that also prove the Mhz Doesn't always mean everything?

AMD 2500 is also faster than the AMD2600, yet about 200Mhz slower in actual clock rate.


Amiga - The Original Power