First Build AMD or Intel

Hi guys just a question about brands. I'm gonna build a pc for the first time (gaming obviously) and i've heard different opinions between AMD and Intel processors. I was told gamers prefer AMD but then told Intel are now better but AMD are better with graphics cards. So what do you guys think. Cheers.

Hi guys just a question about brands. I'm gonna build a pc for the first time (gaming obviously) and i've heard different opinions between AMD and Intel processors. I was told gamers prefer AMD but then told Intel are now better but AMD are better with graphics cards. So what do you guys think. Cheers.

cornish1

Intel, currently, out performs AMD hands down. So there's an upside and downside.

• Intel is faster, tends to run hotter, but costs more
• AMD is slower, tends to run cooler, costs less

If you have the cash to spend, get a good Intel (I suggest a Duo-Core E8400 or the Quad-Core Q6600) and a good motherboard.

If you're kinda strapped for cash, go for AMD Dual-Core and decent motherboard.

Ideally, Intel would be the way to go, it just all depends on how much cash you afford to spend.

i would probably say intel....

then again, i used to have an AMD CPU and it never broke, not once the the PC was very stable

so i suppose Intel is better for performance but for stability AMD is not bad at all

either way, both have good CPUs... if your willing to dish out the money for them....

Personal Opinion I would get an AMD, I have a laptop and 2 comps (specs of all in sig) all running AMD cpu's and I cant fault any of them at all.

Not personally tried the Intel Core2Duo series although I have heard a lot of good things about them but there are also a lot of fanboys around that will try to persuade you to go with there side.

I did consider an E8400 for my new build but as I have had some bad luck with Intels in the past (namely P3, P4, PD & Dual Core, some been mine some been my dads) I was rather wary and then found the AMD Phenom X4 9950 Black Edition for a very similar price, hence im running it now and trust me it is an awesome cpu for gaming (use mine every day for multiple hours).

Best way would be to look round on net for benchmarks etc and make your decision that way.

A good place to start might be here

that clearly shows the 9950 Phenom is a good match for the E8400 and it starts with a lower clock speed 2.6ghz - 3.0ghz.

Good luck whatever you decide.

Have fun

Hi guys just a question about brands. I'm gonna build a pc for the first time (gaming obviously) and i've heard different opinions between AMD and Intel processors. I was told gamers prefer AMD but then told Intel are now better but AMD are better with graphics cards. So what do you guys think. Cheers.

cornish1

That was true until Conroe (original Core 2 Duo).

Personal Opinion I would get an AMD, I have a laptop and 2 comps (specs of all in sig) all running AMD cpu's and I cant fault any of them at all.

Not personally tried the Intel Core2Duo series although I have heard a lot of good things about them but there are also a lot of fanboys around that will try to persuade you to go with there side.

I did consider an E8400 for my new build but as I have had some bad luck with Intels in the past (namely P3, P4, PD & Dual Core, some been mine some been my dads) I was rather wary and then found the AMD Phenom X4 9950 Black Edition for a very similar price, hence im running it now and trust me it is an awesome cpu for gaming (use mine every day for multiple hours).

Best way would be to look round on net for benchmarks etc and make your decision that way.

A good place to start might be here

that clearly shows the 9950 Phenom is a good match for the E8400 and it starts with a lower clock speed 2.6ghz - 3.0ghz.

Good luck whatever you decide.

Have fun

KurganUK23

Are you really comparing a quad core to a dual core in multitasking programs?

If you're a gamer, intel would be the only road. Just look at the unreal tournament benchmark, it say's it all.And that's without even OCing your CPU...

CPU: If you compare a similar AMD and Intel cpu, Intel for the most part outperforms AMD chips. And once you OC the intel, its not even a contest. Value, Performance -----> Intel

GPU: Bang for the buck -----> ATI. The HD 4870 performs similarly to Nvidias GTX 260 sometimes surpassing it and was about $100 less when i bought it, havent checked prices recently

a 9950 be is the only cpu of amd to even can match E8400 stock speed. but only overlcocekd :D to 3.0ghz which is easly done on good motherboard & after market cooler

the fact intel and amd are not similary in game beside 9950 BE but you know that shangai is about to go out
and making sometinb then 9950 BE like i heard Quad core at Base speed of 3.2Ghz so you oc it i guess to 3.6Ghz and ud get similiary perofmrnaces as E8400 4.0ghz oc like the good oldtime amd is trying to revive that hope but it took them time they are suffering trough intel crush amd was in the top with fX-62 And Before E6600 Overclcoked
like 4600x2 as soon they released the 50% drop off was to counter the E6600 Foward but intel did same
50% off cost in summer 06 two Year and half ago

so if you want a good pc E8400 = 165$-175$ + P45 = 120-150$ motherboard
+ HD4850 150$ / 260GTX maxcore 280$ in sales then you need os / hard drive / psu / case / DDr2 / After market cooler if overclocking and want to lower thermal temperature in fact my cpu E8600 stock is at 30 degree celcius with my cooler
at full load it reach 35C if il overclock it will reach +15-20 DEgree once i did done the ortrhos thing to overclock to a good frequancy till i get BSOD Crash and see it won't get further

CPU: If you compare a similar AMD and Intel cpu, Intel for the most part outperforms AMD chips. And once you OC the intel, its not even a contest. Value, Performance -----> Intel

GPU: Bang for the buck -----> ATI. The HD 4870 performs similarly to Nvidias GTX 260 sometimes surpassing it and was about $100 less when i bought it, havent checked prices recently

spektor_21000

Well that all depends what GPU version you're talking about... since there is 2 version of 260GTX and 2 version of HD4870.

[QUOTE="KurganUK23"]

Personal Opinion I would get an AMD, I have a laptop and 2 comps (specs of all in sig) all running AMD cpu's and I cant fault any of them at all.

Not personally tried the Intel Core2Duo series although I have heard a lot of good things about them but there are also a lot of fanboys around that will try to persuade you to go with there side.

I did consider an E8400 for my new build but as I have had some bad luck with Intels in the past (namely P3, P4, PD & Dual Core, some been mine some been my dads) I was rather wary and then found the AMD Phenom X4 9950 Black Edition for a very similar price, hence im running it now and trust me it is an awesome cpu for gaming (use mine every day for multiple hours).

Best way would be to look round on net for benchmarks etc and make your decision that way.

A good place to start might be here

that clearly shows the 9950 Phenom is a good match for the E8400 and it starts with a lower clock speed 2.6ghz - 3.0ghz.

Good luck whatever you decide.

Have fun

Bebi_vegeta

Are you really comparing a quad core to a dual core in multitasking programs?

If you're a gamer, intel would be the only road. Just look at the unreal tournament benchmark, it say's it all.And that's without even OCing your CPU...

I was referring more to gaming aspect, for multi tasking the quad takes it everytime.

As for Unreal tournament benchie, its 20fps difference and the Phenom starts on a lower clock to begin with, OC it to 3.0ghz you will probably get similar performance to the E8400.

All the scores do show a slight lead for E8400 but thats cos of higher clock to begin with, but on the flip side if you look at benchmarks ie gaming versions the Phenom is ahead to begin with, gaming benchies dont always give an accurate chart anyway as some games are optimised for Intel same as some are optimised for ATI or NVIDIA on the GPU side of things, that just tends to boil down to who gonna give out the most cash to have the game work better on there products.

Its still personal choice at the end of the day, myself and a few others in these forums can verify the 9950BE is an awesome cpu for gaming and multi tasking.

Go with whatever you feel will be better for you and what is within your budget, although if you can wait and budget permits id wait for new Intel and AMD chips to be released then buy a new comp.

Ok guys thanks for the info, this is what i'm gonna go for:

640GB Western Digital Caviar Blue

Gigabyte GA-EP43-DS3 motherboard

580W Hiper HPU-4M580

Coolermaster Centurion 534 Black

Vista home premium 64bit

Samsung 22x Speedplus Sata DVD-writer

Corsair 4096MB Memory Kit

512MB HIS ATI Radeon HD4870

Core 2 Duo E8400

BTW this all comes to £684.93

[QUOTE="Bebi_vegeta"][QUOTE="KurganUK23"]

Personal Opinion I would get an AMD, I have a laptop and 2 comps (specs of all in sig) all running AMD cpu's and I cant fault any of them at all.

Not personally tried the Intel Core2Duo series although I have heard a lot of good things about them but there are also a lot of fanboys around that will try to persuade you to go with there side.

I did consider an E8400 for my new build but as I have had some bad luck with Intels in the past (namely P3, P4, PD & Dual Core, some been mine some been my dads) I was rather wary and then found the AMD Phenom X4 9950 Black Edition for a very similar price, hence im running it now and trust me it is an awesome cpu for gaming (use mine every day for multiple hours).

Best way would be to look round on net for benchmarks etc and make your decision that way.

A good place to start might be here

that clearly shows the 9950 Phenom is a good match for the E8400 and it starts with a lower clock speed 2.6ghz - 3.0ghz.

Good luck whatever you decide.

Have fun

KurganUK23

Are you really comparing a quad core to a dual core in multitasking programs?

If you're a gamer, intel would be the only road. Just look at the unreal tournament benchmark, it say's it all.And that's without even OCing your CPU...

I was referring more to gaming aspect, for multi tasking the quad takes it everytime.

As for Unreal tournament benchie, its 20fps difference and the Phenom starts on a lower clock to begin with, OC it to 3.0ghz you will probably get similar performance to the E8400.

All the scores do show a slight lead for E8400 but thats cos of higher clock to begin with, but on the flip side if you look at benchmarks ie gaming versions the Phenom is ahead to begin with, gaming benchies dont always give an accurate chart anyway as some games are optimised for Intel same as some are optimised for ATI or NVIDIA on the GPU side of things, that just tends to boil down to who gonna give out the most cash to have the game work better on there products.

Its still personal choice at the end of the day, myself and a few others in these forums can verify the 9950BE is an awesome cpu for gaming and multi tasking.

Go with whatever you feel will be better for you and what is within your budget, although if you can wait and budget permits id wait for new Intel and AMD chips to be released then buy a new comp.

If you're going to add overclocking into account... might as well OC E8400 to 4Ghz on air.

Ok guys thanks for the info, this is what i'm gonna go for:

640GB Western Digital Caviar Blue

Gigabyte GA-EP43-DS3 motherboard

580W Hiper HPU-4M580

Coolermaster Centurion 534 Black

Vista home premium 64bit

Samsung 22x Speedplus Sata DVD-writer

Corsair 4096MB Memory Kit

512MB HIS ATI Radeon HD4870

Core 2 Duo E8400

BTW this all comes to £684.93

cornish1

seems ok, but try picking out an AMD motherboard and a high end AMD processor and see what the price come out. Where you buying this stuff from, OCUK, ebuyer, Dabs?

Intel has a higher level of performance, but you pay for that extra ooomph. Since I'm more of a budget gamer, I went AMD with my most recent build, especially since there are motherboards that support both dual-core and quad-core AMD processors. So I got a good dual-core to tide me over for a while, and when I'm ready to upgrade my CPU, I don't need a new motherboard to pair up with it.hellhund

Same thing for intel motherboard...

If you are a first time builder, I would recommend AMD first to bench costs and allow you to get a feel for custom building without having to go through difficulties, and rebuying parts in the event of a failure. Though you won't get much of an OC'd performance, it still will hold it's own in running modern games.quietguy

Intel is still faster clock for clock...

seems ok, but try picking out an AMD motherboard and a high end AMD processor and see what the price come out. Where you buying this stuff from, OCUK, ebuyer, Dabs?

I'm gonna get the stuff from cclonline

[QUOTE="KurganUK23"][QUOTE="Bebi_vegeta"][QUOTE="KurganUK23"]

Personal Opinion I would get an AMD, I have a laptop and 2 comps (specs of all in sig) all running AMD cpu's and I cant fault any of them at all.

Not personally tried the Intel Core2Duo series although I have heard a lot of good things about them but there are also a lot of fanboys around that will try to persuade you to go with there side.

I did consider an E8400 for my new build but as I have had some bad luck with Intels in the past (namely P3, P4, PD & Dual Core, some been mine some been my dads) I was rather wary and then found the AMD Phenom X4 9950 Black Edition for a very similar price, hence im running it now and trust me it is an awesome cpu for gaming (use mine every day for multiple hours).

Best way would be to look round on net for benchmarks etc and make your decision that way.

A good place to start might be here

that clearly shows the 9950 Phenom is a good match for the E8400 and it starts with a lower clock speed 2.6ghz - 3.0ghz.

Good luck whatever you decide.

Have fun

Bebi_vegeta

Are you really comparing a quad core to a dual core in multitasking programs?

If you're a gamer, intel would be the only road. Just look at the unreal tournament benchmark, it say's it all.And that's without even OCing your CPU...

I was referring more to gaming aspect, for multi tasking the quad takes it everytime.

As for Unreal tournament benchie, its 20fps difference and the Phenom starts on a lower clock to begin with, OC it to 3.0ghz you will probably get similar performance to the E8400.

All the scores do show a slight lead for E8400 but thats cos of higher clock to begin with, but on the flip side if you look at benchmarks ie gaming versions the Phenom is ahead to begin with, gaming benchies dont always give an accurate chart anyway as some games are optimised for Intel same as some are optimised for ATI or NVIDIA on the GPU side of things, that just tends to boil down to who gonna give out the most cash to have the game work better on there products.

Its still personal choice at the end of the day, myself and a few others in these forums can verify the 9950BE is an awesome cpu for gaming and multi tasking.

Go with whatever you feel will be better for you and what is within your budget, although if you can wait and budget permits id wait for new Intel and AMD chips to be released then buy a new comp.

If you're going to add overclocking into account... might as well OC E8400 to 4Ghz on air.

If you want to overclock that is, just used that as an example if you make the 9950BE match the clock of the E8400 it will run around the same but it runs less as it has lower clock to begin with, personally im against overclocking as it puts more strain on componants and shortens the life span and as my 9950BE runs everything perfectly I dont feel the need, if it aint broke dont fix it I say.

To TC, cclonline are good I use them a lot unfortunatly there price on Phenoms is frankly OTT and best they stock is 9850 non black and its expensive, I got my 9950BE cheaper elsewhere even after paying P&P.

I used Eclipsecomputers.com although price has gone up now (I payed £110 delivered if i remember right) but 9950BE delivered would be same as 9850 from ccl) although if you use that place, take my advice and phone them to make sure its in stock as they dont have real time update on there site and my order was delayed, luckily I ordered in advance so had everything arriving same day anyway.

Have fun

TC defo check out Eclipse Computers, there price on E8400 is nearly £20 less than ccl at mo, just looked on CCL and OMG the price of E8400 has shot up, it was only a few weeks ago I was looking at the E8400 and it was only £105 after vat now its like £135 after vat, think I ordered at right time.

Time to see if ram gone up as want another 2GB.

Have fun