Intel or AMD

[gvblake22]

Well, currently the Core 2 Duo chips are better than the Athlon 64 X2's at everything including gaming and encoding/decoding media. Previously, the Pentium D processors were able to keep up with or perform better than the AMD X2 processors in media encoding/decoding just because of sheer clock speed, but AMD had the clear performance advantage when it came to gaming.

[RevolutionaryRob]

Hi, I appreciate what was said, and I suppose I agree but I truthfully don't necessarily get what is so great about these processors. What is killing me is that we freakin have been living off 1.6-2.0ghz Core Duo's.

This is my idea, so tell me if it's completely idiotic: I know we can't usually predict these things, but I'd prefer to buy an AMD chip, I had the Athlon X2 6000 in mind, it's 239.00 and it seems to be fast by the benchmarks I looked at. At $239, I'd be happy to buy a much faster chip that I could upgrade in 6-9-12 months (presuming the slot and MB allow it).

Does anyone have any advice on what is my best bet for buying a chip/architecture from AMD that I can likely upgrade to something even faster in the future? Is my only concern if AMD continues to use the AM2 slot?

Also with the money I presumably save with my AMD chip now... I want to get a Raptor Drive - now THAT will make a difference in speed, no?

[Hitman]

If your going to buy an AMD then your going to buy one. Look at all the benchmarks you want, Intel is the clear winner right now. AMD cut all their prices because it's the only way they can compete with intel.

[gvblake22]

Originally Posted by RevolutionaryRob

This is my idea, so tell me if it's completely idiotic: I know we can't usually predict these things, but I'd prefer to buy an AMD chip, I had the Athlon X2 6000 in mind, it's 239.00 and it seems to be fast by the benchmarks I looked at. At $239, I'd be happy to buy a much faster chip that I could upgrade in 6-9-12 months (presuming the slot and MB allow it).

Does anyone have any advice on what is my best bet for buying a chip/architecture from AMD that I can likely upgrade to something even faster in the future? Is my only concern if AMD continues to use the AM2 slot?

Well, there are a couple things at play here. First off, AMD's next generation of processors (codenamed Barcelona) will be an AM2 derivative, but will require a refreshed AM2 motherboard which will most likely be labeled as AM2+. Current AM2 chips should work in AM2+ motherboards but I don't think Barcelona chips (K10) will work in original AM2 motherobards. So you might need a new motherboard if you want to upgrade to Barcelona (given you buy a motherboard today). But again, this is all mostly speculation from the random news stories I've read around the web up until now. You are better of waiting until launch (sometime probably during the second half of 2007) to find out for sure.

The AMD Athlon 64 X2 6000+ will perform similarly to an Intel Core 2 Duo E6600 (but uses more power than the intel). You can get a full lineup of benchmarks HERE...
The 6000+ X2 is currently AMD's top of the line AM2 processor, so if you already have an AM2 motherboard and want the best performance possible, that would be the chip to get. Comparing only price, the 6000+ is cheaper and will arguably give you better bang for your buck than the E6600, especially if you already have an AM2 setup. But if you compare performance per Watt, then the E6600 may come out on top. It's a tough call, as both processors offer great performance. And if you are into overclocking, there is likely much more headroom left in the E6600 than the AMD 6000+.

Originally Posted by RevolutionaryRob

Also with the money I presumably save with my AMD chip now... I want to get a Raptor Drive - now THAT will make a difference in speed, no?

This is a somewhat controversial question actually. Many people swear by the performance of the 10,000rpm drives while others could care less and are happy with a good 7,200rpm drive. I've tried both and while the Raptor does offer a little bit better performance here and there, it isn't usually worth the extra cost, especially if space is of concern. If this is going to be the only drive in your system and you want it to hold all of your data, then I would suggest saving some money and getting a good Seagate Barracuda 7200.10 drive. But if you are looking for peak performance, are willing to pay extra for it, and aren't really concerned with storage space, then you have no other choice than to get a Raptor.

[RevolutionaryRob]

I looked at the benchmarks, so I sort of get it now - but this lack of not-comparable speed numbers sucks!