3700+ or 3800+ x2?

[videogames101]

this has been posted before but i still can't decide. i'll be doing gaming on it, and i have an agp 9800 pro which i WILL use. I'm waitting for the ULI M1695 chipset motherboards, there will be NO overclocking for it. So Shall i get the San diego 3700+ or the Manchester 3800+ x2?

 

[Ricemarine]

If for pure gaming, and only pure gaming. 3700.

Otherwise if you can handle some problems the x2 3800+ has, its benefits will be rewarding in the end.

 

[videogames101]

well i always will have x-fire up and stuff, so not PURE PURE gaming, and of course typing profects for school and stuff......

 

[Ricemarine]

Then I'd say take advantage of dual core

 

[Some1ne]

X2!

Unless you are a gaming nut *and* also completely unwilling to overclock, then the other one. In all other circumstances, X2!

 

[imported_Kensai]

X2.

 

[videogames101]

ok.... but i've been reading about problems with BF2, i like that game, any advice?

 

[enwar3]

this question is asked so many times lol.. i say X2 all the way, unless u absolutely wont oc, and all u do is game game game.

 

[xTYBALTx]

X2

X2

X2

X2

 

[TankGuys]

I just looked at the poll results... too funny. I'd say the X2 is winning

Seriously though I'd agree. The X2 is likely your better bet. It overclocks pretty well, and the multi-tasking benefit you'll see is fantastic. For only gaming, the 3700+ would be a better performer, but if you ever do anything else, the X2 is the way to go.

 

[Unkno]

X2.

 

[Ike0069]

Why would you pair either one with a 9800 pro and call it a gaming PC?
A 3000+ will give you the exact same FPS in any new game. The 9800 will bottleneck the crap out of that CPU.

 

[Some1ne]

A valid point, although if you're going to complain about the graphics, why not also mention that at this point it's just stupid to stick with AGP, especially if you're going to be throwing a robust CPU like a 3700+ or any X2 into the mix.

I would have recommended a PCI-E mainboard, except for that the first post made it pretty clear that he wants his AGP card (although is the ULI thing the one that does both AGP and PCI-E on the same board? If so then it's less of an issue).

Anyways, all things being equal, the X2 is still the better option in most cases, even if the video card does need a bit of an upgrade to go along with it.

 

[w00t]

guys stop telling him X2 he's a gamer dual core has no benefit to him.

 

[mOeeOm]

Originally posted by: videogames101
well i always will have x-fire up and stuff, so not PURE PURE gaming, and of course typing profects for school and stuff......

then X2, all I do on my rig is play games so 3700+ SD is the obvious choice.

 

[Some1ne]

guys stop telling him X2 he's a gamer dual core has no benefit to him.

Never! The X2 is still a good choice, it future-proofs the system, will improve performance whenever he's not gaming, will perform quite well with the current generation of single-threaded games (and allow him to multitask while he games), and will eventually improve gaming performance once multithreaded games start hitting. All around the X2 is a very solid choice, even if the primary system use is gaming.

As I said, the single-core chip only makes sense in the context of a hardcore gamer who is completely unwilling to overclock. All other cases and the X2 wins.

 

[tdrez72]

I just wanted to add that realistically, single core processors will not be around for very much longer in my opinion. It appears that slowly, single core processors will be phased out and the dual core processors will rule the market, leaving very little use for a single core processor. Eventually (maybe way later, but still, eventually) programming standards are going to move into assuming dual core. I say X2 for the sake of keeping your system useful longer

 

[videogames101]

1 last part i need to know, does BF2 have issues with x2?

 

[EvilRage]

See this thread: http://forums.anandtech.com/messageview...atid=28&threadid=1677664&enterthread=y

I'd go with the 3700. Unless you're running some hardcore apps while you're playing games (ie, burning DVDs/CDs, doing a virus scan, encoding mp3s, ripping music from CDs using EAC, etc etc) you won't really get any benefit out of dual-core. Running X-fire while you're playing a game is NOT multitasking (not in the sense that you'll see a huge boost from a dual-core processor). Programs like that are designed to run in the background while you play games and not hog up processing time/memory, etc. Not to mention that an overwhelming majority of current games simply aren't written to take advantage of a second core. I've even heard of some dual-core users turning one core off to get things running right for one thing or another (wouldn't you say that defeats the purpose?).

 

[Icepick]

3700+ is 2.2GHz, 1MB L2 cache. 3800+ X2 is 2.0GHz, 512KB L2 cache. The extra cache gives a 2-3% performance boost in games at best. The extra 200MHz only makes the 3700+ around 10% faster. Therefore, the 3700+ will give you a 13% perf boost over the 3800+ in games.

 

[KoolDrew]

Originally posted by: Kensai
X2.

 

[Crism]

What about the 4400+ X2 for gaming vs. the 3700+? I'm assuming the 4400+ wins becasue it has the extra cache over the 3800+.

 

[Gamingphreek]

I dont get why people keep saying unless you are gaming. Look at the benchmarks. The X2's do more than keep up in gaming.

Not to mention why creaters recode the game to be multi-threaded, and other apps become multi-threaded you can see HUGE gains over single core.

Unless you are buying a 3200+ or lower there is absolutely no reason not to get a Dual Core.

-Kevin

 

[Waylay00]

3700+. I recently asked this question in my thread.
http://forums.anandtech.com/messageview.aspx?catid=27&threadid=1674862

The only two games that take advantage of dual-core that will be out in the near future are FEAR and City of Villains. They are having some trouble though. I'm going with the 3700+.

By the time that most games take advantage of dual-cores, the 3800+ will be obsolete anyways. If you go dual-core, get a 4400+ or greater, else there really isn't any point in bothering. It's like getting a Porsche Boxter. If you are going to get a Porsche, get a 911 or just don't get one at all.

And yes, while gaming with an X2 3800+, you will essentially be using a 3200+ in BF2.

Running Xfire while playing games is not multitasking. X2's are target at those who want to encode DVD's, etc, while playing a game.

Also, keep in mind that most people who vote X2 are just voting that because it's the hot new item. They aren't taking into consideration that you are a gamer.

 

[Pabster]

Originally posted by: Waylay00
And yes, while gaming with an X2 3800+, you will essentially be using a 3200+ in BF2.

Unless you clock it up to 2.4-2.5 territory, then you get a 3700+ for gaming and a 3700+ for encoding or whatever else you want to do.

Oh, yeah, my vote is for the X2