3.4 Ghz P4 HT or 1.8 Ghz E6300 Core Duo

[jeromebrill]

I'll be building a new PC in this summer but as for now I'm looking to take my current PC and build a Media Center for my home theater system. I was looking at upgrading the Mobo and CPU to a 1.8 Ghz E6300 Core Duo for a faster processor and to keep it cooler. I'm currently running a OC 3.4 Ghz P4 512cach in this system. Is the 1.8 going to be faster on the same set up?

Thanks

[flanzig1]

That system as it is would make for a very nice media center. Would turn off any OC. The OC could causes problems with play back and recording and would reduce heat .

[HarshWinter]

Yes the e6300 should run faster, ghz plus it can multi-task better and has 2mbs of L2cache vs 512kb. So i would say it would be a quite noticeable difference.

Correct me if I'm wrong.

[kram 2.0]

This largely depends on what you do. The Core 2 Duo line of processors are definately faster than any Pentium 4 process out there, but unless your uses are geared towards multitasking or processor intensive tasks (could be gaming), it would be a waste of money to upgrade. For the media center, I'd say no. It's not a cheap upgrade. You would need not only a new processor, but also a new motherboard AND new sticks of memory.

The Pentium 4 Northwood processors run very cool on stock speeds so if cool operation is your main concern, stay put with the Pentium 4.

kram

[jeromebrill]

This largely depends on what you do. The Core 2 Duo line of processors are definately faster than any Pentium 4 process out there, but unless your uses are geared towards multitasking or processor intensive tasks (could be gaming), it would be a waste of money to upgrade. For the media center, I'd say no. It's not a cheap upgrade. You would need not only a new processor, but also a new motherboard AND new sticks of memory.

The Pentium 4 Northwood processors run very cool on stock speeds so if cool operation is your main concern, stay put with the Pentium 4.

kram

I did find a Asus Mobo that would directly replace mine and I would still be able to use all my other components including memory. This system would mainly be used for video playback and music. I would also get a HD Tuner card with the built in PVR Recording. Currently my P4 even OC it runs pretty cool. At the highest it reaches 42c playing Oblivion. Then again I'll be using a different case then my current.

[eaglestrike7339]

The C2D is a champ at the most intensive tasks, whether it be video encoding, cpu-heavy gaming, or 3-d modeling. For simple video playback and recording, you really don't need to upgrade.

No doubt that the C2d would annihilate a p4, but those tasks would keep the c2 twiddling it's thumbs.

[The_YongGrand]

For a small HTPC you might not need a Core 2 Duo - save it up for your main rig. :D

You can either purchase a cheap Northwood P4, or a Sempron/Athlon AM2 with 35 watts power rating. These can complement a nice cool HTPC. :D

[Floppyman]

I'd downclock the P4 back to 3.0Ghz -- even that should be plenty enough for a mediacenter PC. I'd take the extra $$$ and invest in some nice harddrives instead. However, if money is no object, and you want the best of the best, you can't go wrong with a C2D. HTH

[piasabird]

Try Hardware encoding with a TV Card. Takes the strain off of the Processor.