Legit Reviews

I want to build my first computer around an AMD Anthlon 64 X2 5200 or may be even an FX-62 processor. The machine wil be used predominately for gaming, and i intend to go either with SLI or Crossfire. From what i understand Nvdia/SLI and Intel never got along and i dont know if crossfire will work well on 975x chipsets. I think that either set up will work better with an AMD mobo/processor combo, am i wrong about this? Also, what about gaming in general who's better intel or AMD? It is obvious that i like the latter better, i've had 2 AMD machines and was very happy with them.

Intel has the better chips right now, and better price for performance, but amd will still suite you fine, though I'd reccomend a good e6400 or something for $220 ish, and getting a good motherboard and overclock it. If you really want amd might not hurt to try the new 6000+ x2 that was reviewed though I'm not sure on that price right now. I think over $500. So the performance is better with intel for sure. Though if you wait a bit that may not be the case when the newer amd chips come to market but thats not that soon.

Right now, Intel is the king as far as performance goes on gaming and most everything else. It looks like it might be that way for a bit.

Yea, the new AMD 6000+ is $560, too expensive for a proceesor. Thats why i'm considering the 5200+ ($239) and FX-62 ($410), they are more reasonably priced. Also AMD motherboards are cheaper, in comparison to quality Intel mobos (680i,975x).

How much of a performace gain does Intel have over AMD? Lets compare E6400 and 5200+ both are about the same price, have the same cache, but AMD is much faster at 2.6GHz vs. Intels 2.13GHz?How could intel be better, i just dont understand.

Also i'm curious to know what do you folks think about what i said in my original post, about SLI and crossfire, whick system would be better for each? I would think that crossfire, for example, will work well if not bettr on ATI/AMD chipsets/processors than intel's

There is a review on this very site (http://www.legitreviews.com/article/463/1/) that compares the AMD 6000+ chip against some Pentiums and it can't keep up and I'm not an Intel fanboy by any stretch.

I was actually looking at a diffent comparison chart at tomshardware where you can compare various CPUs against each other. There is no 5200+ in there but FX-62 and 5600+ performed pretty well. Core 2 Dou does beat them but not by very much. Though i havent seen all the benchmarks yet. Take a look for yourself:

http://www23.tomshardware.com/cpu.html? ... &chart=171

Out of 5 computers in my house 1 is an intel, but thats just the case with a stock 2.13 beating a 2.6 and beating my 2.8ghz fx-60, the architecture is just a much better design and thus it out performs the AMD procs hands down at the moment.

yeah AMD used to be the king. now its INTEL. long live the king

Blindly voting for AMD couse i'm an AMD user

I'm for AMD, the new X2 3600+ Brisbane core 65nm processor is a best buy
http://www.amdzone.com/modules.php?op=m ... 282&page=1

dgood wrote:Out of 5 computers in my house 1 is an intel, but thats just the case with a stock 2.13 beating a 2.6 and beating my 2.8ghz fx-60, the architecture is just a much better design and thus it out performs the AMD procs hands down at the moment.

Well, if you say that E6400 will beat that 5200+ because of better atrchitecture design then there is no pioint to get AMD, is there? I might as well buy a E6600 for $300 and be happy with it. The only problem, with intel, is a poor choice of motherboards, 680i is just not mature enough and has issues, p965 doesnt properly support dual GPU, that only leaves me with 975x, oh well.

To those of you who say to get AMD, can you give me a couple of good reasons to actually get it (besides the fact that low end AMD is cheaper), i havent yet decided to go with intel and still trying to make up my mind.

barfly wrote:

dgood wrote:Out of 5 computers in my house 1 is an intel, but thats just the case with a stock 2.13 beating a 2.6 and beating my 2.8ghz fx-60, the architecture is just a much better design and thus it out performs the AMD procs hands down at the moment.

Well, if you say that E6400 will beat that 5200+ because of better atrchitecture design then there is no pioint to get AMD, is there? I might as well buy a E6600 for $300 and be happy with it. The only problem, with intel, is a poor choice of motherboards, 680i is just not mature enough and has issues, p965 doesnt properly support dual GPU, that only leaves me with 975x, oh well.

To those of you who say to get AMD, can you give me a couple of good reasons to actually get it (besides the fact that low end AMD is cheaper), i havent yet decided to go with intel and still trying to make up my mind.

Nothing wrong with the 975 chipset! It's fast, stable and overclocks well when using a E6600 or higher.

Oh, i didnt say there was anything wrong with 975x, its just that the mobo choices for intel are limited. The only problem i see with it is that there is no SLI support, because given the choice i'd much rather SLI than crossfire, and since 680i is so buggy i wont be getting that if i go with intel. Basically, i need a stable mobo above all else, and judging by the EVGA forums 680i is anything but, just too many issues, and thats understandeble cause it so new. On the other hand the AM2 590 mobos are as table as they can be. I dont know, its just a tough decision to make, if i get intel i'll have to get 975x so i'm wondering has anyone tried crossfire on 975x, how well does it work?

My opinion...You can build a really nice gaming rig with an AMD X2 processor for far less money than you can build an Intel system for. You have a much larger selection of excellent, stable and proven motherboards to choose from and from my limited experience NVIDIA does play nice with AMD systems. If I had a large amount of funds to play with then I might build an Intel system, because they are cutting edge right now, however because my money tree failed to produce this year I would go with AMD. Regardless which processor you do choose today it will be substandard in comparison to what will be available in 6 months. Go with what you can afford now and make sure that you invest in quality components to compliment your processor and motherboard.[/b]

Well, i'm sorry to hear that your financial situation is not that good, mine is better only because i was saving for this computer for a while now and i have about $2000 to play around with, i have to get everything new, cause eveything i have is hopeleessly old and i mean everything even keyboard, mouse and monitor.

You are certainly right that AM2 mobos have been around and have proved themselves, i've been thinking the same thing. The thing is i can afford both Intel and AMD, so thats why its such a tough choice. I would like this computer to last me a few years, may be upgrade in 2 years for a better processor/mobo/vid card. Usually when i buy parts i like to buy quality, if not the best. So lets say i buy e6600 for $320 + 975x mobo(bad ax2 or asus P5W DH) for $230, thats $550. With AMD FX-62 is $410 + $150-$180 for mobo comes to around $550-$580, or i can save money and get 5200+ for $230. Either way i'll be spending about the same amount of cash on each system.

What i would like to know is will socket AM2 be around for a while? Lets say i want to upgrade to Am2+ or AM3 or whatever they are going to call it, will my AM2 mobo work work with those new processors?

Well, i decided to give intel a try, may be it will work well for me, we'll see.

i want 1 now. the 65nm amds!

Congrats on pulling the trigger on purchase. =)

Post your system once you get it all slapped together. I love these posts and wish I had a decent tax refund coming, heh. Were there any trade-offs on your parts selection when you chose to buy two video cards vs a single beefy one? Considering the 2k price range and getting a monitor too, I was wondering what your complete list of items would be.

Thanks

road wrote:Congrats on pulling the trigger on purchase. =)

Post your system once you get it all slapped together. I love these posts and wish I had a decent tax refund coming, heh. Were there any trade-offs on your parts selection when you chose to buy two video cards vs a single beefy one? Considering the 2k price range and getting a monitor too, I was wondering what your complete list of items would be.

Thanks

Well, i think that 2k figure is a bit low for evrrything. The thing is i dont plan to buy a monitor right away, may be in a couple of moths. Well let me give my proposed parts list: Asus P5w Dh or bad axe 2 -$230, e6600 or e6700 - $320 to $520, 2 GB dual module kit DDr2-800 (not sure which brand) $250 to $350, WD Raptor150 GB OEM- $200. Seagate barracuda 320 GB - $100 (both SATA), 1 ATI X1950pro -$200 (placeholder until R600 comes out), Liteon SATA DVD burner -$40, Any OEM DVD ROM -$30, Mitsumi floppy drive with card reader -$20. Havent selected mouse and keyboard yet. Ilready own X-FI sound card and creative inspire speakers. So far it comes to $1690, if i use the most expensive components. However, i need a 24" widescreen LCD which supports 1920x1200 thats $600-750. So total comes to around $2300


Also there may be a problem with R600 cards working in crossfire on 975x chipset because the chipset supports crossfire only at x8 and x8. We still dont know if r600 will require x16 and x16. If i were to get an AM2 mobo i wont have this problem. Does anyone know anything about this,
cause i heard it wont work?

p.s. I forgot to mention the PSU, i was thinking of getting OCZ 700w for $130 or corsair 620w for $160, however i still dont know what power requirements r600 will have, those abovemention are certified for 1950 series. that brings approximate total to $2430

Well guys, this is interesting...

What I recommend is a dualcore, but it doesn't matter which one you are going to take. I read a review somewhere today which compared a X2 5200+ with a C2D E6400. Well I can tell you it doesn't matter very much in gaming (C2D is a little tad better), you see the real difference in synthethic programs, like AutoCAD, WinRar and stuff...

I would say, pick a X2 3600+ @ 65nm and overclock it a bit, 2.9GHz guaranteed and VERY cheap