[Omegas]

I am in the process of building a new PC, only parts that is left to buy are the cpu, motherboard, and video card. I have read the reviews on the core 2duo and have read the benchmarks comparing the core 2 duo with the AMD x2. The question that I have is can you feel the difference between a E6600 and a Athlon 5600+ or 6000+? To me benchmarks are somewhat usefull but I am more interested in day to day use and of course gaming. To everyone out there that has played Vanguard or any other game on an Athlon X2 cpu and a core 2 duo cpu please let me how your experience between the two CPU's were.

Thank You,

[Fozzik]

I'm sure the number of people who have played it on both is very small. Most people just have one computer. The answer to your specific question is no, you probably wouldn't notice a difference between an X2 6000+ and an E6600.

Considering AMD just dropped prices and the 6000+ is about $60 cheaper...it's hard to pass it up. I'd probably go that route right now (and yes, I know I need to update my recommendations...the price war is changing things really fast).

Either way you go would work great... the motherboard selection on both sides should also be a significant factor in what you pick... although I think things are pretty damn competitive there too right now.

AMD is losing pretty badly in the high end because they don't have an answer to Intel's architecture (at least for a few more months)...but they are getting super-aggressive with the price cuts and under $300 they are very close to even in terms of price/performance.

Buy what gives you the warm fuzzy...and whatever comes with the motherboard that most closely matches the features you think you'll need. Both will run Vanguard great.

[evilsofa]

On April 22, the price of the E6600 should drop from the current price of $308 to $235, which is $4 below that of the current price of the X2 6000+. So, if you are buying NOW, get the X2 6000+, but if you want to wait 2 weeks, get the E6600. Just don't buy the E6600 before the price drop!

I do not believe you would be able to tell the difference between the two chips at stock speeds; they are pretty much equal. The E6600 overclocks much better than the X2 6000+, but you probably don't want to get into that either way.

[Omegas]

Thank you both for your suggestions. I just needed some confirmation on "real-world' experience with the core 2 duo and the X2. I can wait two weeks to see the price drop on the core 2 duo's. I really wish AMD would hurry up and release there next gen cpu.