April High-end Gaming PC Buyer's Guide - Page 2

Intel CPU: Pentium 4-3.06 GHz (533 MHz) OEM

Current Cost: $395
Months on list: New
Price Change: N/A

We rarely encourage our readers to buy the most expensive, top-of-the-line models of any product, but in this case we make an exception. Recent price cuts for both AMD and Intel flagship processors have dropped prices to incredibly low levels, and make flagship CPUs extremely viable purchases. Many of you may be aware of the problems that Intel has been having with their new 800 MHz FSB processors, and despite a recent announcement that the processors are now shipping, we still are waiting a bit before making a call.

The new price of Intel's highest performing Pentium 4-3/06 GHz CPU is so impressive, that we decided it would be a crime not to include it in the High End Guide. Running at 3.06 GHz on a 533 MHz FSB, this Pentium 4 performs on par with, or even a bit faster than, AMD's competing 2.16 GHz Barton-based Athlon XP 3000+. The 3.06 GHz model is strangely priced at only a little more than the 2.8 GHz Pentium 4 we included last month, so it's not the strain on our budget that you would think.

AMD CPU: Athlon XP 3000+ (2.167 GHz Barton) OEM

Current Cost: $325
Months on list: New
Price Change: N/A

The same logic we applied to our Intel processor upgrade stands true for AMD as well. Both Intel and AMD have undergone some drastic price cuts on their high end models, making this a perfect time to upgrade. AMD's new Barton core is able to achieve the same performance of higher clocked Athlon XP and Pentium 4 models through the doubling of on-die L2 cache (from 256KB to 512KB). So for about $70 less than the Intel Pentium 4-3.06 GHz, the Athlon XP 3000+ (333MHz FSB) is able to perform on par with the Pentium 4 in most cases.

Pentium 4 Heatsink-Fan: Alpha PAL8942, Panaflo fan

Current Cost: $33 + $5 = $38
Months on list: 6
Price Change: +$3

While nearly any Pentium 4-certified heatsink/fan combination should suffice for general cooling, we would recommend that you spend the extra money on a beefier heatsink/fan. For those of you who aren't satisfied with stock CPU speed we will continue to recommend the Alpha PAL8942, considering this heatsink has remained on our list for the past six months we must be thoroughly impressed by a product. Such is the case with Alpha. You can toss in a high CFM Delta (if you're not interested in saving your ears) though we recommend a much quieter (though less effective) Panaflo for lower case noise.

AMD Heatsink-Fan: Thermalright SLK-800, Panaflo fan

Current Cost: $38 + $5 = $43
Months on list: 3
Price Change: -$5

With the removal of the four heatsink mounting holes from AMD's motherboard specifications, the greater number of nForce2 boards come sans mounting holes (with the exception of the one included in this guide), which is unfortunate as many hardcore heatsinks require the extra mounts to properly hold them in place due to their larger surface area and weight. For the past three months we chose to include a standard cooler that did not require the mounting holes and the Thermalright SLK-800 certainly fits the bill. Its 3-prong mounting clip also supplies added stability for long-term use.

Offering a large copper surface area, and stepping fins capable of holding 60mm, 70mm or 80mm fans, there's not much more one can ask from a cooling setup. Paying close attention to the noise level of our system, we chose to include an 80mm Panaflo fan for cool and quiet operation, compared with the noisier, higher CFM output Delta fans.