Athlon vs. Pentium 4!!! FIGHT!

[Mr. Anderson]

What are the pros/cons to these two processors? I'm trying to decide if there is a real difference in PC gaming between these two.

[TomCloud9]

Get the Athlon. I would never go back to a intel. I love amd the multi tasking it is awsome.

[Scrubking]

A vs. Thread on a pc forum?

[SneakyPenguin]

athlons are so damn cheap for an xp. theyre nearly as fast, and cost less than half as much. and if you can splurge, go with the athlon 64, the fastest processor on th market. sucker costs A LOT though. i personally have a athlon xp 3000, and i almost never get slowdown (once or twice)

[jalu6]

i have built a stack of game computers, and I've only ever used AMD processors, mainly to keep the cost down.

im not sure of the pros or cons of the pentiums, but I have used those Athalon 64s and they absolutly tear.

[guyver2077]

im going athlon 64 very soon!!!!!!!!! right now i have a 2600 and its great

[Rich]

If you want price, take the Athlon. Quality? Pentium. Hyperthreading owns.

[Scrubking]

Don't get an amd 64 or intel hyper threading processor.

Wait till pc express comes out cause those processors basically do the same thing, but are probably way more expensive.

[Rich]

Lies. Hyperthreading makes the Athlons its bitch!

*kicks 2400*

[guyver2077]

heard of hyper transporting???? amd's answer to intel and it owns lol

[zzl365]

Don't get an amd 64 or intel hyper threading processor.

Wait till pc express comes out cause those processors basically do the same thing, but are probably way more expensive.

Do you mean PCI Express? If so, that actually is going to be more of a replacement of AGP/PCI slots in motherboards, and will have faster transfer rates than even 8xAGP slots, thus faster cards...really doesn't have much to do with processors though.

[mombbsmj]

I've had Intel and AMD and like both. The only thing with the AMD is that it runs VERY hot compared to the Intel. Right now I personally would go with the Intel and hyper-threading and then the AMD 64 when more things come out to support it.

[Mr. Anderson]

Oh well. My mom is making me get an Intel anyway. I just hope it's not THAT big of a difference.

[msdmoney]

I've had Intel and AMD and like both. The only thing with the AMD is that it runs VERY hot compared to the Intel. Right now I personally would go with the Intel and hyper-threading and then the AMD 64 when more things come out to support it.

This was true of the old Athlons compared to the P4 Northwood core. But now with the Athlon 64 the opposite is true. The new P4 core Prescott has been dubbed "Presshot" by most of the press because of the ridiculous heat problems. Currently I would go for an Athlon 64 number 1, and the a P4 Northwood second. You can tell between a Northwood and Prescott because they have a different letter after the processor, ie. 2.8E=prescott whereas 2.8c=Northwood. Make sure you get a Northwood.
Both processors are good, and both have their strong and weak points. Hyperthreading doesn't automatically make the P4 a better chip, just as 64 bits doesn't necessarily make the Athlon 64 a better chip. The Athlon is typically better with gaming, but you might want to check out some review sites like anandtech.com to check some benchmarks that compare the chips.

Your mom is making you get Intel, may I ask why? Is it just because she sees more intel marketing?

[SneakyPenguin]

only difference is cost. the speed is roughly the same.

[Mr. Anderson]

I've had Intel and AMD and like both. The only thing with the AMD is that it runs VERY hot compared to the Intel. Right now I personally would go with the Intel and hyper-threading and then the AMD 64 when more things come out to support it.

This was true of the old Athlons compared to the P4 Northwood core. But now with the Athlon 64 the opposite is true. The new P4 core Prescott has been dubbed "Presshot" by most of the press because of the ridiculous heat problems. Currently I would go for an Athlon 64 number 1, and the a P4 Northwood second. You can tell between a Northwood and Prescott because they have a different letter after the processor, ie. 2.8E=prescott whereas 2.8c=Northwood. Make sure you get a Northwood.
Both processors are good, and both have their strong and weak points. Hyperthreading doesn't automatically make the P4 a better chip, just as 64 bits doesn't necessarily make the Athlon 64 a better chip. The Athlon is typically better with gaming, but you might want to check out some review sites like anandtech.com to check some benchmarks that compare the chips.

Your mom is making you get Intel, may I ask why? Is it just because she sees more intel marketing?

Ok, heres the story. My grandpa gave me 600 dollars to buy a PC. We looked, and I found a SCREAMIN' deal on an Athlon 3000+, but then all of a sudden her client (shes a hair stylist) who owns a refurb Dell store says he can give me the same computer for waaay less. Well, Dells only use Pentiums. And I said, "Well, grandpa gave me this money for me to use, and I found a good deal on what I want, so why can't I get it?". Response: "Because I get to keep the leftover money." So basicly I'm fucked because my mom is a greedy bitch. Lovely.

[msdmoney]

I've had Intel and AMD and like both. The only thing with the AMD is that it runs VERY hot compared to the Intel. Right now I personally would go with the Intel and hyper-threading and then the AMD 64 when more things come out to support it.

This was true of the old Athlons compared to the P4 Northwood core. But now with the Athlon 64 the opposite is true. The new P4 core Prescott has been dubbed "Presshot" by most of the press because of the ridiculous heat problems. Currently I would go for an Athlon 64 number 1, and the a P4 Northwood second. You can tell between a Northwood and Prescott because they have a different letter after the processor, ie. 2.8E=prescott whereas 2.8c=Northwood. Make sure you get a Northwood.
Both processors are good, and both have their strong and weak points. Hyperthreading doesn't automatically make the P4 a better chip, just as 64 bits doesn't necessarily make the Athlon 64 a better chip. The Athlon is typically better with gaming, but you might want to check out some review sites like anandtech.com to check some benchmarks that compare the chips.

Your mom is making you get Intel, may I ask why? Is it just because she sees more intel marketing?

Ok, heres the story. My grandpa gave me 600 dollars to buy a PC. We looked, and I found a SCREAMIN' deal on an Athlon 3000+, but then all of a sudden her client (shes a hair stylist) who owns a refurb Dell store says he can give me the same computer for waaay less. Well, Dells only use Pentiums. And I said, "Well, grandpa gave me this money for me to use, and I found a good deal on what I want, so why can't I get it?". Response: "Because I get to keep the leftover money." So basicly I'm shaq-fu because my mom is a greedy bitch. Lovely.

Thats just not right, she shouldn't take any extra money you are going to save, I would spend every last penny of the 600 dollars if that was the case. Also be careful, its a REFURB dell store, not sure how reliable those are. If I was getting a comp I would build my own, second choice would be to buy direct from dell, but they give pretty good deals without needing to go the refurb route.

[Mr. Anderson]

I don't want a Dell, and I don't want a refurb. I'm getting pretty screwed over. I don't even want a fucking Intel processor. Gah!

[karmapolice]

Hahaha silly PC users...I have dual 2 ghz G5 i can blow any of your silly PC bullshit out of the water!

[punqsux]

heh mac

[Mr. Anderson]

Yep, I hear those Macs have a giant selection of games.

[spidey]

Yep, I hear those Macs have a giant selection of games.

Yeah, there's Quake III and... and... Diablo II... and...

Ah hell, I give up.

By the way...
http://www.penny-arcade.com/view.php3?date=2002-07-12&res=l

Cheers :lol:

[SneakyPenguin]

http://www.redvsblue.com/appleswitch.shtml

funnier, and so true

[karmapolice]

Actually most games are avialable for mac...and theres virtual pc so I can run any game you can...And if the only reason you have a computer is for gaming you just wasted your money...Windows has virus's,a shitty interface,not easy to use,needs a sound card? what is that about?,your dual 3.8 ghz pc cant compete with a dual 2 ghz mac? you have 7.6 ghz total...I have 4... something wrong with that picture? I believe so

[SneakyPenguin]

mac users are the irrationalist of fanboys

[karmapolice]

Oh and do you forget that video gaming on Home Computers started with macs...MYST anyone? Castle Wolfenstein? Kings Quest? Your about to say "Those were on PC!" No they were ported to PC after they came out on Mac...Mac has better support, better quality,Hell they look cooler,user friendly,dont get virus's...does anyone know why they dont get virus's? CUZ THE PEOPLE THAT MAKE THEM MAKE THEM USING A MAC!

[karmapolice]

Tell me one thing PC has that MAC doesnt?

[Mr. Anderson]

Last time I looked at CompUSA, I saw an iMac swivel screen for 2000 bucks......BARE. The lowest possible model of it. You could get a high end PC for that much. And I don't hear many people custom building Macs.

[karmapolice]

well they do and that Imac is probably faster and more reliable than the pc you would buy

[SneakyPenguin]

dude dont argue with him, mac users dont listen to reason. you have to buy a floppy drive SEPERATE for chrissakes! add to that one mouse button. how do you play an fps like that?

[spidey]

You complain about Windows and then follow up by saying that you can run any PC game by using Virtual PC? Lets think that over for a minute. So you hate Windows but will run it on a Mac? You're in denial buddy.

Benchmarks don't lie. Unless you can pull solid evidence from a non-biased source that your Mac is faster, it's all he said she said.

Personally, I like Macs but you sir fall into the fanboy category.

[SneakyPenguin]

mac addict actually did an article on the g5 vs. athlon 64 and were nonest enough to post that the g5 was creamed. it was on alienwares site. they did benchmarks in games and photodhop and a bunch of other things. but hes definately in denial

[Mr. Anderson]

We're not saying Macs are bad, just bad gaming machines. They beat the crap outta PC's for video editing, for one.

[karmapolice]

I said I could run virtual pc...not that I do..and I dont...I do have Reason...an awesome music program if I do say so...Look its your preference and my preference but Macs do run faster than most PC and Alienware looks cool and has some bombass stats but that doesnt make up for the non userfriendlyness. And its called buying another mouse...If you really do Game you dont use the standard mouse...I personally use a MX700

[guyver2077]

We're not saying Macs are bad, just bad gaming machines. They beat the crap outta PC's for video editing, for one.

agreed..but for gaming down the toilet they go

[msdmoney]

but Macs do run faster than most PC

Uhmm okay, show us the reputable sites with benchmarks to justify your claim. I am sorry you feel the need to justify your purchase but if you must argue macs are faster show us with some facts. Userfriendliness is subjective, I haven't had any problems with windows. The truth is there are more games and apps available on the pc, and if you run them on the mac using virtual pc you take a big performance hit. Also, I am not sure about your sound card claim, if you want improved sound you must add a sound card, otherwise decent sound is available on the motherboard. If you prefer the mac OS thats fine, just don't go around saying how it blows the pc out of the water. Here is a link of a Athlon 64 vs. Dual G5 vs. P4 comparison.

http://www.pcworld.com/news/article/0,aid,112749,pg,8,00.asp

Also it doesn't really matter if people buy their pc for games, they still payed much less than they would for an equally performing mac.

[Firebrand]

Macs are for professionals, affluent old lusers, geeks, and schools. Definitely not for gamers.