where to find a intel processor

[stjustorm83]

wanting to build own computer but don't know where a good place is to buy a cpu. right now im kinda leaning towards an intel cpu. at least 1.5ghz. does anyone know a good place to find processors? want to get one at a good deal if possible.

[sho.gun]

www.newegg.com
and also check www.compgeeks.com by clicking on their banner here at G|A. Out of curiosity, why are you getting an intel?

[stjustorm83]

getting intel because haven't really been convinced to get another processor. if anyone could convince me on another processor than i could check that out.

[nhbilly]

here is a good reason

http://gotapex.com/forums/showthread.php?threadid=33895

[xsiled2]

:stupid:

[sho.gun]

Get AMD athlon XP.



Was that convincing? anyway, read up on some stuff

http://www.gotapex.com/reviews.php?rev=pal/index.html

http://www.gotapex.com/reviews.php?rev=p4/index.html

[stjustorm83]

yeah but ive heard of amd processors to be a lot less stable than intel. they are more prone to overheating. want a system where it won't be easy to crash and have to buy new parts. never built a computer before. thanks for help.

[SpeedEng]

tigerdirect.com is kinda cheap for procs and MBs

[sho.gun]

There is absolutely no proof that AMD procs are less stable than Intel's. Your friends were wrong. As for the heating issue, yes Athlon chips run very hot, but the new XP's have stepped down a bit on the heating side. Besides, as long as you dont use a bottle cap for a heatsink it shouldn't be an issue. Just make sure you get the heatsink/fan rated for the processor and it'll be just spiggly. hey i like that word, spiggly, sorry spigs.

[stjustorm83]

so if i get one of these athlon XP will there be a heatsink fan that comes with the processor, or do i have to buy it separatly? Also which athlon xp would you recommend? thanks.

[joe52985]

if you buy it retail yes it will come with an amd heatsink and fan that work great (if you dont oc) if you buy the chip oem it doesnt come with a heat sink and fan, decent HSFs cost around 20 dollars last time i looked. The athlon XP 1800+ is great from what ive read and seen, its 1.53 ghz, 266 mhz fsb. As for where you can find intel, check your neighbors garbage...i shouldnt talk because im writing this on my 1.7 ghz p4, which by the way is awesomely fast and pretty stable, as stable as any other intel chip and or amd chip

[sho.gun]

It depends on whether or not you buy the processor as OEM or not. Usually the OEM's only come with the processor and you'll have to buy a different heatsink/fan. What's your budget? And how fast do you want to go?

Here's a setup I would recommend:

1. Athlon XP 1800
2. Epox -8kha+ motherboard. Note the "+"
3. Thermalright SK6 heatsink
4. Arctic Silver

If you're buying the retail version of the processor, then it'll come with AMD's own heatsink/fan. But I really recommend you buy an OEM version and pairing it up with a better heatsink. www.newegg.com should have all the stuff you need at very good prices. Their Thermalright SK6 also comes with one hell of a fan, the delta. Be warned though, it's very loud. But you can always switch a different fan, such as the thermaltake 60mm.

Remember, if you're going to use an Athlon proc, you'll also need DDR Ram (cheaper than Rambus), and an athlon supported motherboard. So you can't use your Intel motherboard for an athlon processor. Well, enough of me, if you have more questions just post away. :D Good luck.

[stjustorm83]

what about the athlon xp 1900? wouldn't this be better? Right now i just want a processor that is around 1.5ghz to 2.0ghz. I want something that won't be outdated in a year or two. so what exactly is the reason u guys would pick an athlon xp over intel? just curious.

[sho.gun]

Yes, the XP1900 will work :drool:

geez sounds like you're making a top of the line system here, anyway I like AMD because they are:

1. faster
2. faster
3. faster
4. cheaper
5. cheaper

go to www.xppcentral.com and find out about the "speed trap" that Intel uses to market their procs.

[stjustorm83]

i take it those athlon xp 1900 are pretty damn expensive huh? i might just go with an 1800 if that is the case. are these amd processors easy to instal? basically i want to know if it is easy to screw up putting computers together. the last thing i want to do is make a crappy computer. i was on another forum and i started a big debate over intel vs. amd. in my opinion its really hard to tell which one is better.

[sho.gun]

lol, it seems like every tech related forum out there has had one thread debating the ever present question "AMD or Intel?" Anyway, processors are pretty easy to install, AMD or Intel, they're the same thing. Just make sure you read the instructions and all will be well. Make sure you buy an antistatic wrist wrap thing, or touch the unpainted surface of your case (ground yourself) so you won't short anything out. Other than that it should be a snap. Remember though, they're not legos, so do be careful.

I've been thinking of getting the xp1600 for myself because of its really good price. And it's easily overclockable to 1.5 or so. Anyway, I doubt you'll notice much of a difference between the 1800 and the 1900, I'm even going to go as far as the 1700. Fast is fast. :D

[stjustorm83]

so how fast is like an athlon xp 1800? would it be 1.8ghz.

[sho.gun]

1800 - 1.53 ghz but it'll kick a p4 2.0 ghz's ass :D

Mhz isn't everything you know...

[stjustorm83]

so if its .5ghz slower than a intel 2ghz how does it kick its ass?

[xsiled2]

mhz is not everything

proformance + price= amd

lowered ipc + ripoff= intel

if you wanna waste your money go ahead but if you wanna save money and make a superior syatem get amd

[stjustorm83]

ok. thanks for help.

[sho.gun]

Ok 2 things determines how good a processor performs: Mhz and IPC. There's a lot more such as pipeline architecture, cache, etc., but in the end the Mhz and IPC is pretty much what you should look for.

Mhz is how many clock cycles the processor can handle
IPC is the instructions per clock cycle

so think of it this way, a large gear has more teeth than a smaller one. The smaller one (intel) rotates faster than the larger one because it is smaller, but the larger one (amd) has more gears thus doing more work.

Intel knows that most customers out there goes for the Mhz when buying a processor, that's why they lower their IPC and raise their Mhz. A p4 can go up to 10ghz now if the IPC is low enough and good cooling is provided, but then it's probably the same a the p4 1.7 now performance wise.

Hope this helps.

[stjustorm83]

do you have an amd athlon in your computer? lots of interesting points made about intel and amd. guess its just a matter of opinion. what are the chances of a new dude like me to have overheating problems with an amd? everyone says you run a lot bigger risk using an amd. i don't want a big enough risk, because im totally new to building. i am though leaning towards amd processor because prices do seem lower and by what you said they seem better. how exactly is there a bigger risk overheating with an amd? if i put the fan on shoudn't i be alright? hopefully you know what your talkin about. no offense, its just so many people have different opinions. to me, it's like who's right here?

[sho.gun]

Nope, I'm running on a p3 800, in the process of making an Athlon XP 1600 system. As I stated previously, athlons run very hot, but it should not be a problem if you have a heatsink and fan on it. I've made a couple of athlon systems for friends and have had no problems whatsoever. The bigger risk thing stemmed from the fact that p4's on die thermal sensor is better than AMD's. A p4 can sense itself heating up and eventually shuts itself off. The AMD's sensor is not as good, resulting in overheating. But here's the big "but":

This only happens if you take off your heatsink while the CPU is working. The temperatures would skyrocket and result in a fried CPU. If you even have a heatsink on your AMD and your fan dies, the tempereature rises slowly because the heatsink is still on and it dissipates the heat, the AMD proc would eventually sense the heat rise and takes proper action.

Overheating should not be a very big issue, just make sure you have proper cooling. Case ventilation is also nice to have, the cooler your CPU runs the better.

[stjustorm83]

what exactly is the difference between a heatsink and a fan? are directions clearly stated as how to put them on so i run no risk of overheating? last thing i want is a fried cpu. don't have money to throw away.

[xsiled2]

bottom of heatsink should touch the core of the processor but make sure you dont chip it.

[sho.gun]

http://www.newegg.com/app/Showimage.asp?image=35-109-001-01.JPG/35-109-001-02.JPG/35-109-001-03.JPG/35-109-001-04.JPG


You can probably figure out, the heatsink is placed on top of the CPU to dissipate the heat generated by it. The fan sits on top of the Heatsink to provide air circulation and keep the heatsink cool. It's best to have the fan blowing air towards the heatsink rather than away from it.

[clutchy]

I just built an athlon xp 1600 system, it's the third system i've built, all AMD systems, i only recommend AMD. It's the best for performance and price. All you need to do is look for an AMD approved heatsink for your processor, it doesn't matter what kindof temps your running as long as the system works. It also helps to have case fans in there to circulate the air.

tell me what you're looking to build, and i'll help you out with some advice, cause there's a bit more than just the cpu to a computer.

here's the system i built maybe it'll give you some ideas.

xp 1600+(1.4) I'm using a stock thermoengine heatsink/fan.
shuttle ak31a
crucial pc2100 ddr 256mb
geforce 2 gts

make sure you know how to put on thermal paste, and a heatsink, it's not that hard, you just have to know how to do it.

this is the fastest system i've ever seen, it's a really great rig, and it's extremely reliable, and it hasn't crashed yet.

do alot of research before you start to build, know what you're getting yourself into, there's a huge benefit to building, but you can get some serious headaches too. good luck have fun.

[stjustorm83]

doing it step by step right now so not totally sure what else i plan on getting. i know after the cpu i should decide on a good motherboard that supports an amd athlon 1800 or 1900. Want to get top of the line computer around $1000. i think i can accomplish this because all im getting is the tower. i already have the keyboard, monitor, speakers, etc. so if i get a amd athlon like the one you described are the directions clear enough so i know how to put on the heatsink and thermal stuff? i assume the thermal paste is included with the cpu. i plan on buying just retail. i don't plan on overclocking. what kind of motherboard should i look into? i want something that can be upgradable in the future. lots of usb ports, (hopefully a few in the front). any help appreciated. thanks.

[sho.gun]

I recommend the Epox -8kha+, if you're buying the CPU retail it will come with a heatsink and fan and most likely the heatsink will also have a thermal interface material on it. It's something they stick on there so you don't need to use a thermal paste. I do recommend that you get a better heatsink and fan though, then put some arctic silver on it. As for the front USB, that all depends on your computer case, if it has front ports, then you just have to hook up the extension cords to the back, which in effect brings the usb ports to the front. The epox board supports all amd athlons by the way and you will have no problem making that system go under $1000.

[clutchy]

the shuttle ak31A is great, i have that one, the epox 8kha+ is good too, the msi one k7t266 pro-2r or something like that is supposed to be alright too. all of these boards are based on the kt266a chipset, fasting chipset around right now.

have you checked out pricewatch.com yet? it's the best for cheap prices, and can give you a base to start from, but i'd check out the resellers at resellerratings.com before buying, some of the cheap companies are just that cheap.

If you're going all out go for the xp 1900

if you buy retail, they include everything, however when applying the thermal paste you only put it on the little square in the center, it's about 1cm by 1cm approximately, and you only put on a thin layer making sure to cover the whole little square. I use a credit card to smooth it out, and that works really well.

[xsiled2]

clutchy lives!!!!!!!!!!!!1!

[stjustorm83]

what is the difference between the boards? ive looked on ebay for them and they don't seem much different. what should i look for in a motherboard? I basically just want one that can be upgradable in the future(adding more ram, hard drive space, usb etc. ) if i get one of these athlon supported motherboards do they only take a certain kind of ram and other stuff that i might have to worry about? thanks for the help.

[clutchy]

hey x. :)

well all those boards i mentioned use ddr ram (double data rate)ram. So if you don't have that kind you'd have to get some. There really isn't any difference between those boards, they're just made by different companies. the shuttle is the cheapest at 81 bucks(newegg). the other two are over 100. They're all great boards you wouldn't go wrong with any of them. All of them are completely upgradeable.

go look at some reviews either on this site, hardocp.com tomshardware.com, and maybe anandtech.com

[sho.gun]

Originally posted by clutchy
...and maybe anandtech.com

:heh: :heh: