[LordOpie]

It was easy to keep up with processor hierarchies years ago, but now that I'm looking at buying again, I get a headache just wondering. Anywho, found this chart at avsforum and though it might help?

http://www.xbitlabs.com

 

[binary visions]

Processors are a lot more confusing now because it's not just a clock speed. There are a lot more variations in cache, die size, there's 32 bit and 64 bit, there's single core and dual core... It's a lot to keep on top of.

It used to be that the fastest processor was teh winnAr, barring some minor differences when benchmarked (which only translated to small differences in the real world). It's a whole new ball game now.

Cool chart . I usually hover around the $200 range when picking processors now, higher for more performance, lower for more budget, but that's the price point where you're hitting good bang-for-the-buck now.

 

[nycurse]

As earlier mentioned, an important second feature impacting processor chips is the speed of the processor’s internal clock. These clock speeds are measured in millions of cycles per second or megahertz (MHz). Megahertz usually range from 25 MHz to over 1 GHz, with faster chips being introduced everyday.

Clock speeds are very easy to understand. The higher the megahertz, the faster the computing speed. In computing, speed is not just an issue that equates to power; it also equates to time. A slow computer will make you wait while a screen redraws or while it computes data. This is usually only a matter of a few seconds of waiting time. However, if you use your computer for several hours each day, those few seconds of waiting time can become frustrating. One choice to speed up your computer is to upgrade the existing processor chip of your computer, but this is usually fairly complicated and expensive. A wiser option is to initially purchase the fastest CPU you can afford.

In simple terms, a bus is a channel or path that the computer uses to transfer data. It is the main avenue for all data to move in and out of the computer. Like a highway, the bigger the channel, the more quickly the traffic (or data) will flow.

A cache (pronounced like the word “cash”) is a small amount of computer memory that holds most recently used data. Having a cache allows the computer to access recently used data more quickly, so it speeds up access time and, therefore, speeds up computing time. There are several different kinds of cache, but in general, the larger the cache, the faster the data processing time.

You may not understand all the ins and outs of processor chips, but having this brief overview will give you a basic understanding what a chip is and what it does. If you would like to decide which chip you want in your next computer, don’t miss the How To – How To Choose a CPU.

 

[binary visions]

I don't know where you copied that from, but this is funny:

Megahertz usually range from 25 MHz to over 1 GHz

Wow, over 1 GHz! The author of that article would drop a load in his pants if you showed him this CPU. Must be an old article.

But again, with the advent of 64-bit CPUs, dual cores, many die sizes, and a huge variation in cache... Picking out the fastest CPU isn't quite as easy as pointing to the fastest clock speed and biggest cache anymore.

 

[nycurse]

i just copied and pasted.

ok so what type of work are you going to be doing. the pentium 4 is still good for everyday work. if you are doing gaming and stuff you may want to go with the athlon 64 between 3800 or 4600. trust me you wont notice the difference. There is no need for a athlon 64 FX or a intel extreme since thats for hardcore gamers and the money that someone would spend on that they could buy a family desktop.

 

[Pau11y]

Hum.. my Opteron isn't in this list... LO, Opteron 165. It's rated @ 1.8ghz, but w/ standard cooling and descent ram, you can reach 2.3 pretty easily. I think they're going for $300.00 retail, $200.00 oem.

Edit: wooo.. their $40.00 cheaper now from when I got mine.

 

[corey_freerider]

If you want a 64 bit processor you have to run XP 64 bit also. Otherwise you are not getting the full speed. The downside is you can not run alot of normal programs that you would usually be able to run on 32 bit.