Computer building help (processors)

hi im building another computer im just wondering which about some stuff
how big of a difference would there be between these processors they are all within my price range which would be fastest? im going for gaming

all prices are in canadian dont worry about them really unless u can tell me EXAMPLE** the 2.2 is worth 50 bucks more then 2.0 cuz there is a hugeee differnece or somthing like that ty :slight_smile:

AMD Athlon 64 3000+ 1.8 GHz Socket 939 $159.99
AMD Athlon 64 3200+ 2.0 GHz Socket 939 $184.99
AMD Athlon 64 3500+ 2.2GHz Socket 939 512k L2 Cache $232.99
AMD Athlon 64 3700+ 2.2GHz Socket 939 1MB L2 Cache $256.99

AMD Opteron 144 1.8 GHz Socket 940 1MB L2 Cache $259.00

Intel Pentium 4 630, 3.0 GHz, 2MB L2, 800 MHz FSB, Socket LGA775, HT Technology $208.99
Intel Pentium 4 640, 3.2 GHz, 2MB L2, 800 MHz FSB, Socket LGA775, HT Technology (Retail Box)** $249.99
**
Intel Pentium D 805, 2.66GHz, EM64T XD Dual Core, 2X1MB, Socket LGA775 (Retail Box)$166.00
Intel Pentium D 820, 2.8GHz, EM64T XD Dual Core, 2X1MB, Socket LGA775 (Retail Box)$263.00

is there a big diffbetween 512k and 1mb l2 cache? wuts the cache do???

Out of Those id get the AMD 64 3700+, but otherwise see if you can squeeze in some money for a X2ā€¦ I dont think Intel right now is the way to go.

AMD Athlon 64 3700+ 2.2GHz Socket 939 1MB L2 Cache $256.99
compared to the x2 3800 2.0 hhz at $355

what would the diference in fps be ??
u have a range in mind?

like 3700 - > 60 fps
x2 3800 -> 135 fps?
ne ideas? how big of a difference

I worked at a computer store in the States (NJ!) not too long ago (2 months) and Iā€™ll tell you that AMD is definitely the way to go, especially for what your doing. Gaming needs a large processor but at the same time will only limit your frames up to a certain point. Most games for instance donā€™t really take advantage of the dual core processors so thatā€™s totally unneccesary. The processors youā€™ve picked out are all pretty good. What is going to limit your frames is the video card(s) you pick. Dual video cards (sLI) is probably about the best you could get right now. Or you could get a ATI Radeon X1900XTX for about $600 (US). But thatā€™s a bit extreme. Check out newegg.com for decent pricing.

Also, you wanna go with the more cache. More is always better. Itā€™s basically like the ram memory thatā€™s the absolute closest to the processor. Itā€™s the pipe line that dumps directly into the processor so the bigger it is the more info the processor will be fed at once. This goes for Hard drives as well. Used to be that all HDD had 2mb of cache, then it went to 8mb, NOW its at 16mb. So the more the better. Always.

Donā€™t go with some crappy company to make it for you. Make it yourself, or with a knowledgable friend just in case you have no experience. Itā€™s childs play. And if your worried aout warranty nonsense, donā€™t be. Most manufacturers have at least a 1 year warranty their boards. If it goes within that first year, RMA it back to them for a new board. If it doesnā€™t go within the first year, then itā€™ll probably last you forever. I have had boards go within a month (flukes of nature) while I have a P2 400 that I built that still runs like a champ and probably will assuming she doesnā€™t get hit by lightning.

This is the place to ask for help. Anymore questions?

I just put an AMD Athlon X2 3800 and love it. It runs so fast (2.0 ghz dual core 64 bit). I love it and they are about $300 now. I think it is very worth it.

Goto www.tomshardware.com and find the CPU and look at their FPS on new games. Problem solved.

Not to ruin the party, but dual core processors are going to be used in games some day. It might be better to purchase now if you can afford it.

Anywho!
I still agree with the overall that AMD is the way to go.
They might spend more energy working, but it way more silent than Intel.

Another thingā€¦
The main thing about the diferences between processor speeds are related to the ā€œoverclockā€ they do to them, which is legal and doesnā€™t break warranty.
If you know how to overclock on your own, you might want to get a 2.0Hz and overclock it. I personally donā€™t overclock anything.

With no overclock just go for the most you can afford, as Iā€™ve heard that is usually better.

Yet another pointā€¦
The number of FPS your hardware can render is equal to the Hz your monitor uses. So there really is no point in going over that.
Another thing is you shouldnā€™t have fps below 25 and Iā€™d say itā€™s pointless to go over 60 or so. At least in a gameā€¦ Of course your monitor refresh per second rate really determines that.

More cache is better every time.
Cache is ā€œsort ofā€ really fast RAM.

Just a heads upā€¦ This is there should be some new tech coming into the market this year, so you might want to save up for some of those.
AMD and Intel will be releasing their new processors. That means new support for faster RAM on either side of the fence, and loads moreā€¦

I just put an AMD Athlon X2 3800 and love it. It runs so fast (2.0 ghz dual core 64 bit). I love it and they are about $300 now. I think it is very worth it.

I also have this processor and I am very happy with it. I defintely recomment it:thumb:

I would recommend using an Intel Core Duo (but itā€™s a little tricky to install windows:D)

Theyā€™re laptop only (until Conroe) ā€¦ and itā€™s not the processor that makes it difficult to install windows, itā€™s the BIOS, which is part of the motherboard.

Nevermind, you missed the joke Ī»:)

Iā€™d recomend a dual core amd 64 :slight_smile:

@slow - thats a mighty fine processor you got there :slight_smile:

Iā€™ve had the FX-55(2.4ghz) for like 2 years now and i have to say its really nice for gaming, never have a problem with processor power.

But if you plan to be minimising and talking with people or running other things get the Dual core.

But to tell you the truth games now-a-days are using more GPU than actual cpu so it wont matter a whole lot unless you have programs in the background.

Well the AMD processors you have listed are the single cores. For gaming, purchase the AMD A64 3800+ and overclock it. Unless you overclock it, you need a good enough stock CPU. Otherwise, AMD AM2 3800+ (Dual Core) would be good.

Edit: With the dual cores you can use DDR2 but I donā€™t know about the compatible mothboards yetā€¦

lol see? :slight_smile:

Heh. The discrete ā€˜get a Macā€™ comment always manages to sneak into these threads :wink:

Even if it was a joke, I still had to correct you :wink: