AMD Athlon X2 4600+

[334th_Frenchie]

Hi

I was looking at getting a computer with the AMD 4600 X2 Dual Core 2.4ghz Processor. Has anyone had any problems with this type of processor before?

I tried some google hits with nothing.

Thanks for your opinions!

[sswilson]

Is that S939 or AM2? (I don't remember if they made 939 chips that high).

Welcome to the forums BTW!!!

You should find out if it's AM2 or S939 before you buy it. S939 is a dead platform and won't be getting any updates in the future, whereas AM2 will be able to accept new CPUs later on.

Let us know the whole specs and how much you're paying and maybe we can let you know if you're getting a good deal.

The 4600+ is a very good chip though. Intel's latest offerings are better, but most people aren't that fussy.


edit: response to post at the same time as me.

The original X2 chips were the 4200+, 4400+, 4600+ and 4800+. The 4600+ was a launch speed for them.

[334th_Frenchie]

Thx for the welcome SSWilson!

The Computer I'm looking at is an AM2. Here's the spec of the system. I can get a sweet deal on it for less than $1500.00 .

Hp Pavilion A1730N
AMD Athlon 64 X2 Dual-Core 4600+ 2.4 ghz
2 GB DDR2 SDRam
AM2 Socket
Bus Speed 2000mhz
BFG 6600 OC 512mb Vid Card
c/w HP 22 in LCD 5MS Response Time Monitor
Logitech X-540 Speaker System

I just want something for my son. Are the AMD computers ok for gaming....lets say IL2 1946 or Silent Hunter 4. The processor & video card is listed as ok on the box but I have never dealt with AMD processors before.

Is this type of system worth the $1500?

Cheers!

[sswilson]

Is this a new system?

The graphics are a bit dated (I'm hoping you left off the "GT" from the video card) especially for such a large monitor.

[334th_Frenchie]

Yes fairly new. A friend of my son has it for sale. I guess he got into some financial trouble and is selling it off.

I can update the graphics l8r if need be but I'm just curious about AMD processors tis all.

[sswilson]

AMD's aren't a bad proc, they're just not the current king of the hill. The 4600+ would be fine. (Wish I could have found a 939 version, I might have stuck with AMD instead of switching over to the dark side).

What concerns me most is the fact that it's a HP.

You will have virtually no control over the bios settings of the hardware, and the hardware will be stuck at default settings which are pre-set at the factory on less than ideal stock settings.

You will also not be getting a normal "OEM" operating system... you'll get a set of disks which will restore the system to factory shipped settings, and the OS will only work with that particular motherboard & hardware configuration.

I did a quick price check on a new build which was virtually identical including better graphics (ATI 1650 pro), probably better memory (DDR2 800), possibly a larger hard drive (250 gig), and a real OEM (transferable) copy of XP home.

The only thing not included was a set of speakers.

The price came out to $1650 including 14% HST.

IMO that's a much better deal considering it's all new hardware & it's not a crippled big box build.

I only recommend the big box builds (HP, Compaq, E-Machines, etc....) to folks buying the sub $1000 machines who aren't going to be doing much gaming with them, and who in all likelyhood would get rid of it and buy a new one rather than try to upgrade it.

[cdn_Madrach]

What Wilson said. If you are willing to spend 1500 on a second hand prebiult then you would be way better off getting 1500 or thereabouts worth of harware and builing your own. You can usually get a more complete system with less chance of severe bottlenecks in performance. IMO the 2 biggest advantages are that like Wilson said New hardware and more configurability in the performance settings. It might not seem that important but some prebuilds really limit the perfomance of their systems and leave you no options to change them. Oh and having your OS preinstalled with recovery disks can be a big PITA. Again this is just my 2 cents.

PS: If you don't want to be bothered about picking out hardware and building your own you can probably get a better deal on a new prebuilt that is only limited by one component (video card) and install it yourself.

[Babrbarossa]

Here's a link for sub-1000CAD builds

http://www.hardwarecanucks.com/amd/4...challenge.html

The systems there are cheaper and very customizable and overclcokable.

[334th_Frenchie]

Thx for the opinions guys!

I'll keep looking for an alternate.

Cheers!