Pentium 4 vs. Athlon

[skatman]

I'm looking to buy a single processor computer for multimedia stuff at home. I've done a lot of research and one of the questions which I still can not answer very well is which processor/ platform is better for DIVXing. I have much experience with Athlons (I DIVX once in a while on a Dual 1900+ and Dual 1600+ rig which scream but have experience with 1800+ single, Duron 1.0GHz single), but almost none with P4s (most of the P4s that I have access to are ****ty SDRAM or low end DDR 2100 based machines).
If I were to buy a P4 system today, it would be something like P4 2.4/533 with, either DDR 333/400 (845PE/ SIS648), or wait for Dual DDR.
If I were to go with Athlon, I would buy 2400+/266, unlock it to set the FSB to 333, and use NFORCE 2 Dual DDR 333.

Which do you think will give you more fps during DIVX encoding?

Thanks.

 

[Rave]

If DIVX is your flavor then ya want the cutting edge Athlon 2800+ with Dual DDR which takes out the P4 2.8 in these sort of benchmarks. However that nforce2 is gunna cost ya! Also that Athlon aint gunna be around till next year. So I would say without going into theoretics about who will beat who rar rar rar.. It is clear at the moment the P4 2.8 is the cpu / system king when combined with RD. However I am using DDR400 and am able to get 3gb/sec bandwidth thats a more inexpensive option for the p4 and able to perform vwery well. Also I saw the same Samsung RAM I am using running at 239 and belting the bejesus out of RD so if you can get some super quick DDR and your away.

You may be waiting around a while if you want an AMD 2800+ and by then Intel will have 3ghz + cpu's around too tromp the 2800+ go tha P4!

Check this link below for the comparative score in the DIVX field.

http://www6.tomshardware.com/cpu/02q4/021001/xp_2800-16.html

 

[jdmcnudgent]

steer clear of the sis chipset.

 

[Rave]

Why stay away from SIS? They have improved alot since the instability issues a while back. The SIS chipsets are much faster for the P4 than the intel 845, the only chipset that beats it is the 850

So infact I would steer towards SIS648 or SIS645DX rather than Intel rubish if you are looking for DDR if you want an exe RDRAM setup then you have to go for the 850 chipset. Whateva you do DO NOT go for VIA chipset under any circumstances for the P4.

 

[imgod2u]

The SiS chipsets are fine at default value, however, they can't overclock past 150ish MHz FSB without stability problems. Also, as far as rock-solid stability, you still can't match up to the Intel chipsets. Even if you do get a few percentage in performance when using a i845ge vs a SiS 648.

 

[markodude]

If you are going for a P4 you will need to go for at least 3ghz and Rambus or DDR400+ to beat an XP2400+ and Nforce2. I would go for the XP2400+ at the moment, only because I have both XP2400+ and a couple of P4's and the XP is faster overall....

 

[Rave]

The SiS chipsets are fine at default value, however, they can't overclock past 150ish MHz FSB without stability problems. Also, as far as rock-solid stability, you still can't match up to the Intel chipsets. Even if you do get a few percentage in performance when using a i845ge vs a SiS 648.

Thats simply not true. I have an SIS645DX board and I am able to go to 160 np at all super smooth no errors.

And the 645dx does beat the 845 by a few % across the board

 

[imgod2u]

I've built several systems around the 645dx and 648 so far. They've overclocked to around 150, 154 and sometimes even 162 FSB without noticable stability problems. However, that's nothing compared to the 177MHz I manage to get out of every single i845e and i845pe (Asus P4PE) based system I've built so far. I doubt my experience is an aboration, as I have built at least 10 systems out of each respective chipset.

 

[skatman]

Thanks a lot people.
I'm not planning on overclocking it (but I figure the oc crowd would know best about stability at stock speeds as well).
Say I go with P4 and 845PE... which mobo should I get? I know Intel boards are very good for stability and compatibility, but what would you people recommend?
Asolute fastest performance is NOT the top priority. Stability/ compatibility is.

Thanks again.

 

[Neo_peter]

you can't really go wrong with an Asus. Asus P4PE man.

 

[pacino]

you can't really go wrong with an Asus. Asus P4PE man.

I second that, get the golden version, giga lan, digital sound, and tons of firewire/usb2's onboard, amazing bios options.. awesome board... this is the one I'm using and no complains as of yet

 

[Lumberjack]

If you are thinking about going the P4 direction, I would consider waiting until the dual ddr mobos come out next month. The benefit of the extra memory bandwidth, at really only the cost of the more expensive motherboard (normal pc 2100 should be fine if you arn't overclocking), makes a big difference when you are doing video encoding....

 

[FIZZ3]

Thanks a lot people.
I'm not planning on overclocking it (but I figure the oc crowd would know best about stability at stock speeds as well).
Say I go with P4 and 845PE... which mobo should I get? I know Intel boards are very good for stability and compatibility, but what would you people recommend?
Asolute fastest performance is NOT the top priority. Stability/ compatibility is.

Thanks again.

Why not go for Rambus? It's substantially faster and it's available right now.

 

[micamica1217]

Why not go for Rambus? It's substantially faster and it's available right now.

I agree....

in a non OCed system, DDR just can't keep up.

you will have about 2.7gb/s bandwith with the p4pe, yet you will have 4.2gb/s with rdram.

if you can wait for DCDDR then this could be just for you, since you can get 4.2gb/s at non OCed speeds.

mica

 

[skatman]

Are you sure that memory bandwidth is important, or is this just the classic "P4 needs high memory bandwidth" thing?

I did some comparison on AMD systems and, from my experience, fps in DIVX seem to be dependent almost completely on CPU and almost independent of memory (within reasonable limits of course).

I've also explored the RAMBUS option, and from the looks of it, it seems that it's dead end as far as future (meaning within 1-2 year time span) upgrades/ compatibility, DDR is the way to go. Am I wrong?

 

[FIZZ3]

Are you sure that memory bandwidth is important, or is this just the classic "P4 needs high memory bandwidth" thing?

I did some comparison on AMD systems and, from my experience, fps in DIVX seem to be dependent almost completely on CPU and almost independent of memory (within reasonable limits of course).

I've also explored the RAMBUS option, and from the looks of it, it seems that it's dead end as far as future (meaning within 1-2 year time span) upgrades/ compatibility, DDR is the way to go. Am I wrong?

1) Yes.

2) AMD XP systems can't use extra ram bandwidth effectively if you don't run the FSB up to the same speed, like P4's do.

3) DDR as we know it is just as dead... it will be replaced by DDR-II. DC DDR has but 1 spot to shine- PC2700 DC, which is not expected to be available for quite some time, and after that DDR-II will be introduced very rapidly, rendering it obsolete within moments. Note that Rambus PC1066 stock speed matches/exceeds slightly DC PC2100.

 

[micamica1217]

1) Yes.

2) AMD XP systems can't use extra ram bandwidth effectively if you don't run the FSB up to the same speed, like P4's do.

3) DDR as we know it is just as dead... it will be replaced by DDR-II. DC DDR has but 1 spot to shine- PC2700 DC, which is not expected to be available for quite some time, and after that DDR-II will be introduced very rapidly, rendering it obsolete within moments. Note that Rambus PC1066 stock speed matches/exceeds slightly DC PC2100.

I agree....

you also mentioned that you were NOT going to overclock....rambus is the anser for you.

you may now pic up any cpu and run it with full bandwith using rdram....just a hint...samsung pc800 almost always runs at pc1066 speeds at this time. you can save some money.

mica