Computer Caught Fire: AMD vs P4

[ag3]

Hi Everyone!

Yesterday, my computer went up in flames. I have no idea why. All I know is that it started from my HDD.

Anywayz, now I have to buy a new pc. My last one was a Pentium 4 @ 1.8 Ghz - 533 FSB.

I am looking into buying one of the following:

AMD ATHLON64 3000+ BOX $339.00

or

AMD ATHLON64 3200+ BOX $439.00

I understand that the two chips above are only like 2.2 Ghz. My question is, will there be a BIG difference between my old 1.8 and the above? And which of the two would be the better buy for the price, and what is the difference between the 3000 and 3200?

I have a Radeon 9800 PRO, so with this chip, will I be able to play any new game with the HIGHEST detail, with very high fps? Like Half-life 2?

Any replies or advice will be much appreciated. Thx in advance!

P.S.: Keep in mind that I plan on buying 1 Gb of Corsair DDR Ram (400Mhz)

 

[ekÆsine]

i would get the 3000+ system. there is a huge difference in speed, it will be about twice the speed of your old intel system. if you only use the computer for internet or write up essays with Word than the difference will not be much noticable. yes with that 9800 pro all of your games will run very nicely, all of the new games should work with it well. you only need 512MB ram, 1GB of ram is a waste of money. so when your PC caught on fire how big were the flames? were they shooting out of it?

 

[ag3]

lol... The flames were pretty big. Mostly minor explosions with sparks, and LOTS of thick smoke, which really smelled bad.

I am using my computer for HARDCORE gaming. I want the best performance and graphics.

What is the difference between the 3000+ and 3200+? Why is the 3200 a hundred dollars more?

Also, why is the AMD so much faster (almost double the speed), if it is only a few more mhz? (1.8Ghz to 2.2Ghz).

 

[AndrewtheGreat]

AMD is better for overclocking but I prefer intel prescotts because of the larger L2 cache and fsb. Also the better core design. The 9800 pro will definately get the job done.

 

[aj2003]

im gonna say the opposite of andrew the prescotts have that same L2 cahce as most of the 64s. and the amds have a better core design with the shorter pipeline therefore they dont need the high fsb. AMD>>>>>>>intel. (plus the same speed p4 would be about 200 dollars more lol waste of money in any1s books)

 

[winblowz]

i'll always say go for AMD. I've built several comps and toruble shooted several others... AMD's are just better at multytasking. Every INTEL comp i've used (including a 2.8) has sucked at doing more than 1 task.

good luck, man

 

[ag3]

Thx

Thx a lot everyone, I have decided to go with the AMD64 3200+. I found out it is 1600 FSB!... Which sounds pretty damn good on top of the 2.2 Ghz and 64bit processing. Thx again for taking the time to reply. Really appreciate it.