amd or intel

[dexter84]

hi i wanna build a new pc with amd or intel cpu(amd 64 preffered). i am a casual gamer so i have socket 939 motherboard(nvidia 6150 onboard graphics) and amd 64 3200+ in my mind.
but i have heard that there will be a new socket for amd ( am2) . i am confused that in future would i be able to mount my processor socket 939 to new am2 socket motherboard .
the real question is that should i go for socket 939 or wait for socket am2 or should i look towards intel processors.

another thing as like amd, intel r lauching new tech called conroe will it suport lga 775 ?

suggestions r welcome

 

[raven_87]

Unless you feel like waiting until mid summer, jump on 939 now.
If your just a casual gamer, then really any CPU would be fine for you
be it Intel or AMD.

If you have the 6100 and 3200+ still in mind, It would make a fine combination. I'm just wonder, when you say casual gamer, do you mean not that often, or not the "latest" games?

 

[gahleon]

Well this post is something that needs to heed great care when answering cause the amd/intel subject is very very touchy with some on these boards. They are both fine for gaming and everyone has their preferences. Trust be told that intels run hot right now and they are slower. Their technology is old. However, like AMD coming out with the new platform so is Intel. It has yet to be seen whether intel will finally be "king of the mountain" once again but according to their own benchmarks they will be. You can't trust AMD or INTEL when it comes to them benchmarking their own products. Toms will hook us up as soon as those products are ready! If you want to game right now go for it. I would get a 3200 amd 64 and some type of graphics card. Don't use the onboard man if you do anything 3d. You will be hopelessly disappointed. Get an entry level graphics card or midrange either will perform much better than onboard plus it won't use your system memory!

 

[dexter84]

thanks Gahleon & Raven_87 for being so quick

i would like add some info that i have a internal 50i pinnacle tv tuner card & creative 7.1 sound blaster and creative 5.1 inspire 5200 speakers so i'm looking to make it a home theatre type pc ok.

and regarding games i'm a bit " not that often" type guy but definately want checkout some new games.

for now i'm holding on to onboard graphics a moment coz they give me a sufficent time before i choose 1(graphic card) depending upon my useage and price/performance ratio.

also my question remains that would socket 939 processors would be compatible with socket am2 mobo's.

 

[raven_87]

Short and sweet...No. I could explain why, but current 939 boards will
NOT support AM2.

If your going too look into "newer" games, then I'll be backing up his post by saying that your going to need a dedicated GPU. IGP isnt going to cut
it. However since you have some time before your purchase, find out
what game(s) you would like to play, let us know, and we'll take it from there on recommending you a GPU.

 

[TabrisDarkPeace]

Socket AM2 is 3-6 months away, and Intel Conroe is 6+ months away aswell. I don't think you want to wait that long.

If so consider: http://www.foxconnchannel.com/products_motherboard_2.cfm?pName=6150K8MA-8EKRS
; then just whack in a GeForce 6800 GS/GT or GeForce 7600 GT or Radeon X1800 GTO / X1900 XT when you can afford it.

Depends how 'casual' we are talking, and what games you play (eg: Quake 3 engine games using the onboard GeForce 6150 will run fine). If we are only talking World of Warcraft at basic detail then yeah, the GeForce 6150 is good enough, but you'll want to be able to upgrade it later.

The board has a damn fine Yukon Marvell Gigabit Ethernet LAN, SATA + NCQ support, Socket 939, Dual Channel DDR, etc.... it will keep overall costs down, and upgradability (to Athlon 64 FX-60 - which is dual-core, or AMD Athlon™ 64 X2 Dual-Core 4800+ - easier to get later on, etc), and supports high end PCIe x16 video cards. (Radeon 1900 XTX, GeForce 7900 GT, etc).

http://www.amdcompare.com - Lists all the AMD processors, you can even filter it to show Socket 939 ones only, with 1024 KB L2 cache, etc

Just make sure to pair it with a decent Power Supply Unit (PSU) and a well ventilated case for maximum lifespan. (The Antec TX640B is what I normally recommend here for new-starters).

You can install 2 x 1024 MB on it, then add another 2 x 1024 MB later on to have 4 GB of RAM, which is going to run Windows Vista damn fine.

Onboard sound is OK, often ample even for frequent gamers, but the more extreme gamers, or when you feel like it, can just slap in an 'affordable, but high end' Creative X-Fi Xtreme Music (or any other PCI sound card) when you feel like it.

If you are only looking at the single-core Athlon 64 3200+ this board will cover you for a processor upgrade to high end dual-core, and also support any graphics card on the market. Some over 10x as powerful than the onboard, so if you only game casually you are covered very well indeed. The final 'total system price' may also surprise you.

 

[jap0nes]

I think if you go AMD 3200+ and a 6600GT or above will be a pretty good machine. You should consider pricing when AM2 or conroe comes out, and you can have a pretty decent computer with parts avaiable right now without the risk of getting obsolete

 

[gahleon]

Dex if media center is your ideal way to go and you aren't too into newer games then you can get by with lots less. However, like others mentioned previously you will want to get a dedicated gpu for graphics. For that matter however, if you want to hook that TV into your graphics card and make a true media type PC then you will want a good graphics card as well for the dual monitor support and the S-video out. Your soundcard will already support theater speakers however onboard graphics will suck for anything dual monitor.