October Extreme Gaming PC Buyer's Guide - Page 2

Intel CPU: Pentium 4-3.2 GHz Retail

Current Cost: $394
Months on List: New
Price Change: N/A

With the Pentium 4 EE (Extreme Edition) still nowhere to be seen, and prices expected to be high upon we release, we better get used to Intel's next fastest consumer chip, the Pentium 4 3.2GHz. Intel processors have seen considerable price cuts over the past few weeks, and at $394, Intel's current flagship seems like a bargain. Sporting an 800MHz FSB, Hyper-Threading technology, and 512K of on die cache, this processor is arguably the fastest 32-bit only chip on the market right now and can still take a run at the Athlon 64 3200+.

AMD CPU: Athlon 64 3200+ Retail

Current Cost: $425
Months on List: New
Price Change: N/A

AMD's Athlon 64 processors have finally arrived, and thankfully, the end result was well worth the wait. We had a choice to make, and even with $4K to blow, the high-priced Athlon 64 FX-51, its more expensive motherboard, and the registered DDR requirement really pushed the budget numbers off the scale. We decided to take our chances with a more standard platform configuration, and nabbed the Athlon 64 3200+ instead. This selection not only allows high-end system performance and a super platform, but let's us match it up with similarly top-notch components.

Based off of the exceptional Opteron core, the Athlon 64 3200+ runs at 2.0GHz, has a very large 1MB L2 cache, and features a 64-bit, on-die memory controller. However, the most important and certainly most talked about feature of this chip is its support for both 32-bit and 64-bit instructions. Full 64-bit support may not seem all that important right now, but there are a number of 64-bit programs on the horizon (64-bit Windows XP, Unreal Tournament 2004) in which the Athlon 64 will be able to really strut its stuff. In the meantime, the Athlon 64's 32-bit support is exceptional surpassing that of the Pentium 4 in the majority of tests.

Intel Heatsink-Fan: Retail

Current Cost: $0
Months on list: New
Price Change: N/A

We never thought we'd see the day when an Intel retail cooler is being recommended to the Extreme of hardcore enthusiasts. However, with Intel actually including very nice heatsinks with their retail chips, we're finally here. The heatsink included with the higher-end Pentium 4 retail models includes a copper core, and is more than adequate at dissipating the heat that the 3.2GHz Pentium 4 can dish out. We've tested out some of these upgraded HSF models, and even at overclocked speeds, it can more than hold its own. And best of all, we save a few bucks, which is a consideration whether you're spending one or four thousand bucks.

AMD Heatsink-Fan: Retail

Current Cost: $0
Months on List: New
Price Change: N/A

Because the Athlon 64 has a whole new pin configuration and mounting system compared to past AMD chips, the choices we have for CPU cooling become very slim. There has not been sufficient time since the Athlon 64's introduction for many 3rd-party manufacturers to create their own units, and as a result, we chose to go with AMD's retail heatsink. This model has performed well in our testing, and will more than foot the bill until we can get a handle on the upcoming, enthusiast-based coolers.