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Pentium 2.4c/2.6c vs. 2500 mobile.

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jman999

Member
Joined
Jul 14, 2002
I know that the mobile is $70 chepaer and is much easier to oc, because you don't need expensive RAM/mobo, but won't the 2.4c be heck of a lot faster. I'm about to build a computer and I need it to last a while without too many upgrades. So what do you think?

Thanks, Jonathan.

EDIT: I guess by a heck of a lot faster I mean, will there be a very noticeable boost in gaming. Would a Thermaltake SILENT BOOST Highest Performance Cooler for AMD AthlonXP up to 3400+ -RETAIL allow for major oc'ing? How much does a good HSF cost, that will allow the Pentium 4 to be seriously oc'ed?
 
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You will get a lot of rabid biased opinions with a question like that. First, the mobile 2500+ will need better than average cooling, so factor that into the equation, so now the price difference is much less.

Second, a properly built and overclocked P-4 system will be faster, but not "a heck of a lot faster" whatever that means. It really depends on what apps you run. Memory intensive programs and video rendering is a no brainer for choosing Intel.

You don't need expensive RAM/mobo combo with the P-4 either. Although, I would not pick a 2.6C, rather move up to a 2.8C or stay with the 2.4C.

Bottom line, you can build a respectable system with both choices.
 
You can overclock intel up between 200 - 400Mhz extra without changing the stock heatsink. If you push it higher, like 2.4C to 3.4 Ghz, you will still need to buy an expensive cooling system for your intel CPU.

As for AMD, once you start overclocking, you will pretty much need a good cooling system, other than the stock heatsink that comes with the CPU.

If you are concern with speed in gaming, you should asking this question instead:

How fast is the Mobile Barton overclocked to 2.6Ghz compare to the Intel overclocked to 3.5Ghz? I think intel cpu is still able to achieve that speed thru air cooling. As for which one is faster, I don't know.

Can anyone who owns and overclocks both type of CPUs please answer the question?
 
One more thing, if you do intend to O/C the pentium you definitely need good memory. I won't go anything less than a PC4000. Pentiums are all locked and the only way to o/c is to increase the FSB. As for AMD, you can get away with PC3500 ram, or even PC3200. Look at my sig, I am only using PC3200 ram.

Penitum is definitely going to be more expensive if you intend to do extreme overclocking. It still falls back to the basic question. Which o/c system is faster???
 
you don't NEED expensive ram for the p4. look at MY sig, i'm running pc3000. at 226mhz on the 5/4 devider, 2-2-2-5.

also, a 2.4c should be able to do 3.2ghz on stock air fairly easily (mine does MORE on stock, but i spent $20 on a sk800u for funsies). its all about luck, and cherry picking a good chip.

*edit* btw, i'm sure we could settle the "which is faster" question...i got 3.45ghz to put up to your 2.6ghz...

pretty sure it will be a close race. but 2.6 is not typical, as far as i knew, even for mobiles? (not to say that most mobiles aren't CAPABLE of 2.6, i just don't see many people actually running them that fast. leads me to believe that intel boards are more oc friendly)
 
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Sounds like a fun challenge. My sig is running prime95 as we speak at 2.65Ghz (221 * 12) on air. I'm crossing my fingers that it runs stable. I never benchmark CPU before. So, what kind of program do I use?
 
Remember, the overclockability of a CPU is not guarunteed. Just because Joe Blow's P4 2.4C overclocks to 3.25 GHz on air doesn't mean yours will. My old P4 2.4C wouldn't do 3.0 GHz stable at any voltage level even with SP-94 & Tornado cooling. There are bum chips out there.

Factoring in your cooling situation, your Intel CPU's multiplier and how far you are willing to overclock will help to choose the best memory for the system. Intel's love memory bandwidth at the expense of utilization efficiency. At an FSB of 263 right now, I'm grabbing 8400 MB/sec memory bandwidth, but at the expense of 3-4-4-7 timings.

The best way to purchase the best RAM for your P4 system is to go and purchase some cheap-assed 256 MB of PC3200, put the system together, set the memory divisor to 3/2 and begin to overclock your system. Once you find the ceiling of your CPU's FSB, you'll know exactly what RAM to purchase for optimal 1:1 system operation. If you've got a bum chip, you'll have to decide between purchasing high-quality low-timing memory (A LA CH-5, CH-6, BH-5, BH-6) or replacing your CPU and trying to overclock again. :)

Most Intel motherboards like to run at a 1:1 memory ratio, as setting them to 5:4, 3:2 or 3:4 has caused problems for some.

As for what's faster? The AXP 2500+ or P4 2400, it's tough to answer. Encoding & SSE2 applications really are optimized for use on the P4, while FPU-intensive applications are more suited to the AXP.

Will there be a noticable boost in gaming? IMHO unless you can clock the P4 nice and high, the overclocked AXP will offer better performance in gaming.
 
Mr.Guvernment said:
^^^ that is if you can actually find a game that would use %100 CPU power :D

Indeed..........

Invest more money on your video card.




POWER TO THE VID CARD............
 
i've got both (look at my sig :p )

mobile barton would probably give you a slight advantage with games where cpu power is more important; pIV will somewhat pull ahead where bandwith or memory is of a concern. read up on the games you are planning to play and you'll see what exactly you'd want.
 
mcoleg said:
i've got both (look at my sig :p )

mobile barton would probably give you a slight advantage with games where cpu power is more important; pIV will somewhat pull ahead where bandwith or memory is of a concern. read up on the games you are planning to play and you'll see what exactly you'd want.

hmmmmm, interesting, very interesting indeed.........

Technically speaking, we can't really say which one is faster, since it has to depend on the application of the game. I see.........
 
i've got a regular 2500+ as well, its only clocked at 2.2ghz though. pretty quick for a cheapo rig, can't really say how well it does in games, as i've only got a 8500 in it. maybe i'll slap my 9700pro in there and play around for a while.

mem bandwidth and HT are a concern to me though, as i've always got 5-10 apps open at the same time as i game. the games i play range from original UT to farcry.
 
well I am running a 1.8A at 2.5ghz and want to get dual mobiles and I am wondering if the mobiles clocked higher even if a single chip would be any faster.
 
jman999
barton is better in gaming
p4 better in video encoding
-barton is chepaer that p4 ,pc 3200 will do the job well,nforce mobo are also cheap and oc crazy
-p4 ,pc 4000 or higher (nice memory bendwith), chipset 865 or higher expensive than nforce mobo
the performance will be in theside of p4 if borth highly overclocked
so dont wast your tme and your money get A64 and overclock it
performance of an A 64 at 2.2 equal to 2.8 2.9 barton
there is no comaraison that can be made between them
 
makaka said:
jman999
barton is better in gaming

So... you are saying that all Bartons are better at gaming than all P-4s's? That's utter nonsense! First off, you need to have the mobile Barton overclocked to the max to match a typical modestly overclocked P-4. There are plenty of muscular P-4 systems that will beat a max O/Ced mobile 2500+ in gaming.

Look at the 2.4C system in my signature. I can run 3.5+ gig on air with KHX PC3200 RAM at the 5:4 memory ratio (dual channel DDR467 at 292 FSB), so you don't need expensive RAM (only paid $230 for 2X512). I'm using an Abit AI7 which is also a fairly cheap mobo.

Jman, I will be happy to match this system up against your Barton (no super cooling and no voltage mods). The only thing the Barton mobile will win is that it does cost a little less. Besides, the most important computer component if you want a hifi gaming rig is the video card... not whether you have Intel or AMD under the hood.
 
batboy said:


Besides, the most important computer component if you want a hifi gaming rig is the video card... not whether you have Intel or AMD under the hood.

True, true, true indeed.
 
batboy said:


So... you are saying that all Bartons are better at gaming than all P-4s's? That's utter nonsense! First off, you need to have the mobile Barton overclocked to the max to match a typical modestly overclocked P-4. There are plenty of muscular P-4 systems that will beat a max O/Ced mobile 2500+ in gaming.

Look at the 2.4C system in my signature. I can run 3.5+ gig on air with KHX PC3200 RAM at the 5:4 memory ratio (dual channel DDR467 at 292 FSB), so you don't need expensive RAM (only paid $230 for 2X512). I'm using an Abit AI7 which is also a fairly cheap mobo.

Jman, I will be happy to match this system up against your Barton (no super cooling and no voltage mods). The only thing the Barton mobile will win is that it does cost a little less. Besides, the most important computer component if you want a hifi gaming rig is the video card... not whether you have Intel or AMD under the hood.

sorry batboy but the average oc of 2.4c is about 3.0ghz
and 2.8c about 3.2~3.3ghz(not every one is luky
;) )
here is the deferance the mobile barton 2500+ have an averge of 2.5ghz an air without any extra volt modding or cooling
2.5ghz barton will beat the p4c at 3.2ghz in gaming
also it is cheaper the p4
but my suggestion still for A64 it will be better than the p4 or barton
 
If you can afford the P4, go for it. The OC'ed Barton will stand a chance against it, but not much more, but as has been said, the video card is much more important consideration.

I don't know where you got the idea that most 2.4C's max out at 3 GHz.

If the A64 is an option, it's a far better choice than the other two in gaming.
 
i dont say that all 2.4 c max out at 3ghz but this the average
like desktop 2500+ barton has an average of overclock at 3200+
not all cpu are made the same.
i have got 3 desktop barton one of them wan t do 11*200 with 2v
if you check some forum you will find the a lot off people having probleme when looking for high cloking their chip (3ghz-->2.4c ; 2.2ghz-->2500+)
here come all probleme(cpu,ram,mobo,psu,cooling..)
the same for p4 there is no garantie that u will overclock it at 3.5ghz like batboy
can u Gautam gratuate that every p4 2.4c will do 3.5 an air???
this why i said the average is 3ghz (600mhz higher than the stock this is also repectable overclock)
 
makaka said:

sorry batboy but the average oc of 2.4c is about 3.0ghz
and 2.8c about 3.2~3.3ghz(not every one is luky
;) )

I'd be interested in knowing where you got your O/C averages from. From personal experience having owned two 2.4C's and knowing scores of other people that have them, I'd say the average is more like 3.2 to 3.4 gig for the later ones. A quick check of the overclockers.com CPU database reveals the average 2.4C overclock as 3.37 gig. BTW, the database says the average O/C for a 2.8C is 3.49 gig

My 2.4C is a M0 stepping which tend to clock a little higher than the normal D1 steppings. I never claimed my O/C was "average" either. However, there are lots of guys in the Intel CPU section that have higher overclocks than me. I was responding to someone who claimed that Bartons were better and I was pointing out that this was not necessarily true. Besides, I'd recommend spending just a few bucks more and getting a 3.0C at this point. Lots of those are hitting 3.75 gig on low voltage.
 
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