nightwish
10-29-2007, 01:13 AM
Lets talk about CPUs.
#1. As of "Netburst", MHz and GHz no longer pertain to a CPU's power, scaling of MHz/GHz at the this time period is/was a marketing ploy. Do not ever buy a CPU based soely on its MHz/GHz number.
While a bigger number might be more attractive, it may not do the job as well. Think of it in this way, a 3.4GHz Pentium D CPU is a sports car. Fast, but cant carry many people(2-4). An Athlon X2 is a sedan capable of getting up to highway speeds but can carry more people then a sports car(4-5). Now, think of the Core 2 Duo as a mini-van, slighlty slower then a sedan but can carry a few more people.(6-7).
Only durring VERY long trips will the Pentium D win, since it can travel fastest, however, durring the average use of a PC both other types will beat it out. With the Core based CPU's (Conroe) coming out on top 90% of the time.
This is also known as "Instruction-Per-Clock" or IPC. The higher the IPC, the better.
*Notes.*
1. A 2Ghz Core 2 Duo does not equal 4GHz, it is 2GHz, but it is two proccessor cores, allowing it to do more work at the same time then a single proccessor core. The same applies for Tri, Quad, Oct, etc... cored CPUs.
2. Cache size is also important, however the average user may or may not know the difference. *See 1.8GHz Pentium Dual-Core (1MB L2) vs. 1.8GHz Core 2 Duo (4MB L2 performance.*
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#2. Overclocking = more for less.
Overclocking, or the act of increseing the speed of the CPU through either jumpers on the motherboard, BIOS seetings(Tweaking) or GUI/CLI based apps within the OS shell.
Overclocking is one of the primary methods of incresing overall system performance, this entails incresing the GHz/MHz of a CPU above its normal operating frequency. Current K8 CPUs (Athlon64 and Athlon X2, Opteron and dual-core Opterons) are capable of running up to around 400-1GHz over their stock speeds. (Exluding the 6000+, 6200+ and 6400+ which are near the limit of the K8 architecture.).
Current Conore CPUs (Celeron L, Pentium Dual-Core, Core 2 Duo (Allendale/Conroe), Core 2 Quad and Core 2 Extreme are capable of 500-1500MHz increcements.
Current NetBurst CPUs (Pentium 4, Pentium D, Celeron L) are capable of hitting 5GHz from their ~3-3.6GHz stock, but still arent as powerfull as the K8 or Conroe cores.
When overclocking it is important to select a good motherboard and RAM as well as a good after-market CPU cooler (Zalman, ZeroTherm, Thermalright, etc...) additinal cooling for the RAM DIMMs (sticks) and the NB/SB chips might be needed as well or by user preference.
Remember, overclocking is not garenteed. Expecialy on Quad/Tri core CPUs.
"Extreme" and "Black" edition CPUs are CPUs with an Unlocked Multiplier. The Multiplier x FSB/HT = CPU MHz/GHz. These CPUs are easyer to overclock then non Extreme/Black versions but are more expensive becous of it.
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#3. Four cores are better then two!
Wrong, While Four cores might be better in some tasks, most tasks still appreciate higher-clocked dual-core CPU's over quad-cores. Very few applications or games can use all four cores, or even two cores and the cores not assigned anywork sit and waste power. Quad cores also generate much more heat and use alot more power then dual-cores and most people that use them in a home enviroment to even have the need for them. Do not let the "More is better" adage get into your head.
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#4. Budget, Mainstreme, Performance, Ultimate.(K8 and Conroe): (Socket AM2 (AMD) and Socket LGA775 and Socket LGA771 (Intel)
Budget: $0-120 (Sempron, Athlon64, Athlon X2, Celeron L, Pentium Dual-Core, Core 2 Duo (Allendale)
Mainstreme: 121-250 (Athlon X2, Opteron,Core 2 Duo, Core 2 Quad, Xeon(775/771)
Performance: 251-500 (Athlon X2, Opteron,Core 2 Duo, Core 2 Quad, Xeon(775/771)
Ultimate: 500+ (Core 2 Quad, Core 2 Extreme)
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#5. Athlon X2 = Opteron, Core 2 Duo = Xeon
Opteron and Xeon CPUs are normal Athlons and Core 2 CPUs that have been tested for stability in a high-stress enviroment (sever rooms, large work loads, etc...) Thes CPUs are commonly belived to be better performers or overclockers; this is untrue, the performance is the same, however the overclockability may actualy be less then the chips not tested and named Athlon/Core 2 respectivly.
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#6. Intel and AMD dont have it all and may be to much.
For the average internet browser, grandma or person looking for a cheap file server, the prospect of paying for the energy used by expensive CPU's can be a huge turnoff. Several other companies also make CPUs for computers, the biggest and most well known besides AMD and Intel is VIA.
People looking for low-power sollutions should consider using a VIA C7 CPU (Single core, 900-2000MHz) but have very low power requriements. Not all CPUs should be electron eating monstrosities.
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#+ more to come. to bored to continue atm.
(I am a VIA, Muskin, Intel, DFI, ZeroTherm, WD, AMD, PC&C, nVidia, ATI, Wintec, Lite-On, Seagate, Hitachi, Acer, Toshiba, Lenovo, IBM, Fujitsu, Team Group, CoolerMaster, Zalman, AC, Biostar, Foxconn, Hiper, Silverstone, FSP, Enermax, SeaSonic, Sparkle, Diamond, Galaxy, Palit, Albatron, Gainward, X-Micro, Abit, VooDoo, etc... - Fanboy.)
#1. As of "Netburst", MHz and GHz no longer pertain to a CPU's power, scaling of MHz/GHz at the this time period is/was a marketing ploy. Do not ever buy a CPU based soely on its MHz/GHz number.
While a bigger number might be more attractive, it may not do the job as well. Think of it in this way, a 3.4GHz Pentium D CPU is a sports car. Fast, but cant carry many people(2-4). An Athlon X2 is a sedan capable of getting up to highway speeds but can carry more people then a sports car(4-5). Now, think of the Core 2 Duo as a mini-van, slighlty slower then a sedan but can carry a few more people.(6-7).
Only durring VERY long trips will the Pentium D win, since it can travel fastest, however, durring the average use of a PC both other types will beat it out. With the Core based CPU's (Conroe) coming out on top 90% of the time.
This is also known as "Instruction-Per-Clock" or IPC. The higher the IPC, the better.
*Notes.*
1. A 2Ghz Core 2 Duo does not equal 4GHz, it is 2GHz, but it is two proccessor cores, allowing it to do more work at the same time then a single proccessor core. The same applies for Tri, Quad, Oct, etc... cored CPUs.
2. Cache size is also important, however the average user may or may not know the difference. *See 1.8GHz Pentium Dual-Core (1MB L2) vs. 1.8GHz Core 2 Duo (4MB L2 performance.*
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#2. Overclocking = more for less.
Overclocking, or the act of increseing the speed of the CPU through either jumpers on the motherboard, BIOS seetings(Tweaking) or GUI/CLI based apps within the OS shell.
Overclocking is one of the primary methods of incresing overall system performance, this entails incresing the GHz/MHz of a CPU above its normal operating frequency. Current K8 CPUs (Athlon64 and Athlon X2, Opteron and dual-core Opterons) are capable of running up to around 400-1GHz over their stock speeds. (Exluding the 6000+, 6200+ and 6400+ which are near the limit of the K8 architecture.).
Current Conore CPUs (Celeron L, Pentium Dual-Core, Core 2 Duo (Allendale/Conroe), Core 2 Quad and Core 2 Extreme are capable of 500-1500MHz increcements.
Current NetBurst CPUs (Pentium 4, Pentium D, Celeron L) are capable of hitting 5GHz from their ~3-3.6GHz stock, but still arent as powerfull as the K8 or Conroe cores.
When overclocking it is important to select a good motherboard and RAM as well as a good after-market CPU cooler (Zalman, ZeroTherm, Thermalright, etc...) additinal cooling for the RAM DIMMs (sticks) and the NB/SB chips might be needed as well or by user preference.
Remember, overclocking is not garenteed. Expecialy on Quad/Tri core CPUs.
"Extreme" and "Black" edition CPUs are CPUs with an Unlocked Multiplier. The Multiplier x FSB/HT = CPU MHz/GHz. These CPUs are easyer to overclock then non Extreme/Black versions but are more expensive becous of it.
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#3. Four cores are better then two!
Wrong, While Four cores might be better in some tasks, most tasks still appreciate higher-clocked dual-core CPU's over quad-cores. Very few applications or games can use all four cores, or even two cores and the cores not assigned anywork sit and waste power. Quad cores also generate much more heat and use alot more power then dual-cores and most people that use them in a home enviroment to even have the need for them. Do not let the "More is better" adage get into your head.
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#4. Budget, Mainstreme, Performance, Ultimate.(K8 and Conroe): (Socket AM2 (AMD) and Socket LGA775 and Socket LGA771 (Intel)
Budget: $0-120 (Sempron, Athlon64, Athlon X2, Celeron L, Pentium Dual-Core, Core 2 Duo (Allendale)
Mainstreme: 121-250 (Athlon X2, Opteron,Core 2 Duo, Core 2 Quad, Xeon(775/771)
Performance: 251-500 (Athlon X2, Opteron,Core 2 Duo, Core 2 Quad, Xeon(775/771)
Ultimate: 500+ (Core 2 Quad, Core 2 Extreme)
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#5. Athlon X2 = Opteron, Core 2 Duo = Xeon
Opteron and Xeon CPUs are normal Athlons and Core 2 CPUs that have been tested for stability in a high-stress enviroment (sever rooms, large work loads, etc...) Thes CPUs are commonly belived to be better performers or overclockers; this is untrue, the performance is the same, however the overclockability may actualy be less then the chips not tested and named Athlon/Core 2 respectivly.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
#6. Intel and AMD dont have it all and may be to much.
For the average internet browser, grandma or person looking for a cheap file server, the prospect of paying for the energy used by expensive CPU's can be a huge turnoff. Several other companies also make CPUs for computers, the biggest and most well known besides AMD and Intel is VIA.
People looking for low-power sollutions should consider using a VIA C7 CPU (Single core, 900-2000MHz) but have very low power requriements. Not all CPUs should be electron eating monstrosities.
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#+ more to come. to bored to continue atm.
(I am a VIA, Muskin, Intel, DFI, ZeroTherm, WD, AMD, PC&C, nVidia, ATI, Wintec, Lite-On, Seagate, Hitachi, Acer, Toshiba, Lenovo, IBM, Fujitsu, Team Group, CoolerMaster, Zalman, AC, Biostar, Foxconn, Hiper, Silverstone, FSP, Enermax, SeaSonic, Sparkle, Diamond, Galaxy, Palit, Albatron, Gainward, X-Micro, Abit, VooDoo, etc... - Fanboy.)