Core 2 Duo and AM2

[Silt524]

Hey, Im new here. I am planning on building a computer this summer (it will be my first build) but I am waiting for the newer processors to come out. My problem is that I have not decided which one to get yet. Lots of people have told me to wait for the Core 2 Duo. They say it will be better than the AM2 but the truth is I havent really seens any specs on either one. Is there really enough info out there to already know which one will be better? I searched for info on each one in this forum and found very little. All the info I have found on google (which isnt much either) has been to complicated for me to really understand. My knowledge of computers is a little more than just the basics I would say but I still dont understand some of the more technical stuff. If someone actually knows the specifics of each of these processors and could briefly describe which one would be better that would be great and I would really appreciate it. I plan on doing alot of gaming so Im just trying to figure out if it will be worth it to wait until July for the Core 2 Duo instead of just going ahead and getting the AM2 when it comes out this month.

Thanks for any help guys. I appreciate it.

(I dont mean this to be a Intel Vs. AMD thread. I just want to know which one of them will be the best for gaming.)

[Alaron]

Welcome to PCMech.

Whats important to note here is that the AM2 is a new socket, not a chip from AMD. The Core 2 Duo from Intel is a new CPU.

The socket AM2 has 940 pins, compared to the 939 that AMD is currently using. So the chips made for AM2 will not be compatible with current motherboards, or vice versa. The chips that are coming out for AM2 are similar to the chips already on the market. These are the various speeds of the X2 dual core processors and the highend FX chips.

The Core 2 Duo from Intel is a CPU built on a new architecture. The chip is designed to be more efficient, instead of simply increasing the GHz speed. They are dual core, and use a new, smaller 65nm process. This means the chip can be smaller and run cooler. Core 2 Duo's will use the same socket 775 that Intel currently uses.

Both chips will be great for games, since games will start to use dual cores. Its up to you really, since the wait for AM2 is only a few days.

Hope that helps.

[Silt524]

Thanks for the explanation man. I just have one more question.

Do you think that the Core 2 Duos being more efficient would be better for games in the long run? I want to play games like Crysis, BIA: Hells Highway, and others coming out the end of this year/begining of next on as high of settings as possible. Do you know just how much more efficient they will be when it comes to games? If you arent sure then thats ok. Im just trying to plan everything out ahead of time.

Oh and also how much more is a AM2 4400 X2 chip going to cost than one of the current 4400 X2's? Any idea?

Thanks again for the help

[thefultonhow]

The Netburst architecture of the Pentium 4 and Pentium D is not as good with games as the Athlon 64, but is better with content creation and multimedia. The strengths of the Core 2 Duo should be more in line with the strengths of the Athlon 64. We're seeing right now that a highly-overclocked mobile Core Duo (Yonah) or Pentium-M (Dothan) performs roughly on par across the board with the Athlon 64 FX lineup -- the top-of-the-line Core 2 Duo (Conroe) should debut at slightly above the levels that people have managed to overclock Yonah to.

[Mesaeus]

There are only a few games right now (Quake 4 & Doom 3) that use more than one core. Over the last few years the importance of the cpu for games has been diminishing, it's the graphics card that is usually the bottleneck these days. So I'd spend some more time looking at gfx cards instead of worrying about the cpu...

[Silt524]

I was planning on getting the GeForce 7900 GT ($300). Im hoping that will be good enough. I would like to get a Radeon X1900 but $400+ is way beyond my price range.

Anyway if the AM2 and Core 2 Duo wont be that much different when it comes to games I will probably go ahead and get the AM2. Im not into video editing and all that kind of stuff.

[kram 2.0]

AMD's AM2 is not much a architecture revamp as it is a revision. The current 939-754-940 chips have the standard DDR requirement in their integrated memory controllers. Meanwhile, Intel's LGA775 processors using the 925 chipset and above can utilize the DDR2 standard. Just like Intel's DDR to DDR2 didn't amount to much in terms of speed differences, I would not expect AMD's transition to DDR2 with the AM2 would amount to much, considering they are still using the Athlon 64 K8 architecture. Of course, the K8 architecture is pretty good as it is already so there's not much work to do.

With Intel, it may be appropriate to view the Core Duo Yonah as a transition between the NetBurst architecture and the newer Core architecture that will be found in the Core 2 Duos. That should provide a rough idea of where Intel will land after implementing the Core architecture with Conroe, and later the mobile Merom.

kram

[spartan015]

good call on graphic card, eVGA 7900 GT KO edition is suppose to run quieter... at newegg its 290

[BJDwrk]

When are these two technologies going to be released, I heard AM2, is going to be out this month?

[Silt524]

Originally Posted by BJDwrk When are these two technologies going to be released, I heard AM2, is going to be out this month?

AM2 is supposed to be coming out the 23rd. Next tuesday. The Core 2 Duo is sometime in July but Im not sure when.

[BJDwrk]

How soon after the release will the stuff be for sale online? A vast selection?

Also-is AMD planning anyother major changes in the next year to year and a half?