cpu specs?

[N0toriou5]

what aspects of a cpu are important? what should i look at when purchasing a cpu? AMD or Intel? this computer will be used for gaming.

thanks in advance

 

[talldude123]

for gaming, AMD is better, at least that's what i've been told.

I would recommend Athlon 3300 at least, and don't buy a sempron.
They're just like a Celeron, under a different name.

 

[Nitestick]

I would recommend Athlon 3300 at least, and don't buy a sempron.
They're just like a Celeron, under a different name.

almost on the money but your celeron worship is clouding your vision my padawan

the athlon 3300+ is a non existent model, however a 3200+ would be a good place to start. and a sempron is different to a celeron when it comes to gaming. look up benchmarks and you will see "equivelant" semprons rip celerons to shreds in gaming. that is beside the point though, you should look at an athlon like talldude said, get back to us on your budget and requirements and we can help you out a bit more with your choice.

 

[Tordenskjold]

AMD dude...

 

[LU4sTrooper]

When buying a CPU,first decide what you're gonna be using it for, if you want to game, go for a Dual Core, if-not just go for a single core.

Check for the amount of L2 Cache as well, you generally want 1mb+

Never compare clock-speeds between different processor families or manufacturers, as different chips employ different technologies. Example: an AMD running at 2.8Ghz is significantly faster than a Pentium 4 running at 2.8ghz.

Also, decide whether you want to Overclock the processor or not, generally you'll only really want to do this if you're gaming, but if you do want to i'd go for the AMD opteron series, these processors can be overclocked to attain performance equal to processors in price ranges waaaayyy above it's own.

 

[N0toriou5]

my budget is $400 or less. OR $550 or less with a mobo, also, i dont know if i am going to oc it, for one reason: i don't know how!

--- a few questions about ocing ---

how is it done?
is it challenging?
does it involve alot of computer knowledge
can it harm the system?
how long does it take?
how much of an improvement will i see?

 

[john3]

When buying a CPU,first decide what you're gonna be using it for, if you want to game, go for a Dual Core, if-not just go for a single core.

yeah dude u have it mixed up. if u want gaming go single core, if you want video rendering and 3d sh1t go with dual core. BUT in a few months games are said to start using dual core, so get dual core either way.

Overclocking is ez

and yes generally the number on AMD models is equivalent to the clock speed of a Intel. e.g. AMD 64 3000+ is equal to Intel 3.0Ghz.

 

[ulater6000]

Currently AMD is better, but intels next gen. cpus the Core 2 duos will be better than any AMD currently out.