AMD

Intro

So we slacked off for a few weeks. Let’s just say we were waiting for something substantial to happen. Without our knowing, quite a few big things have been rammed down our throats. The first being the demise of www.resellerratings.com. We went there to verify some companies, and then found out that they just up and disappeared without so much as a whimper. Until we find a better way to find non-sketchy companies we’re going to go with whatever old ones we have, and then just pick the lowest price from the lot on Pricewatch. This does poke a hole or two into our guides, but there isn’t much we can do to remedy that at the moment.

Since our last update, prices have taken quite a big turn. To the benefit of consumers everywhere, they’ve gone down like feathers in a vacuum. To add to that goodness, there are quite a few more processors available. Intel unveiled most of its Northwood CPUs in the last month. The bad part being Pricewatch has yet to make a differentiation. The good thing is that from the prices we managed to rustle up, they are pretty much identical. So when you find one, hold on to it! We’ve been hearing reports that the new Northwoods are to overclockers what Preparation H is to a fiery tush. People have achieved nearly 600MHz overclocks when combined with the 845DDR motherboards. I think the CPU scene just a got a bit more exciting people.

AMD

AMD CPUs
CPU	Current	12/20/01	Change	Shop	Rating
Athlon XP 2000+/1.67 GHz	$245	N/A	-	TCWO	6.0/7
Athlon XP 1900+/1.60 GHz	$186	$248	-62	TCWO	6.0/7
Athlon XP 1800+/1.53 GHz	$134	$184	-50	TCWO	6.0/7
Athlon XP 1700+/1.47 GHz	$112	$142	-30	TCWO	6.0/7
Athlon XP 1600+/1.40 GHz	$105	$126	-21	TCWO	6.0/7
Athlon XP 1500+/1.33 GHz	$99	$107	-8	TCWO	6.0/7
Athlon MP 1900+/1.60 GHz	$261	$337	-76	NewEgg	6.5/7
Athlon MP 1800+/1.53 GHz	$199	$268	-94	NewEgg	6.5/7
Athlon MP 1600+/1.40 GHz	$167	$180	-13	NewEgg	6.5/7
Athlon MP 1500+/1.33 GHz	$174	$170	+4	Monarch	5.6/7
Athlon 1.2 GHz MP	$169	$165	+4	Monarch	5.6/7
Athlon 1.4 GHz 266 FSB	$95	$99	+4	TCWO	6.0/7
Athlon 1.33GHz 266 FSB	$84	$95	-11	TCWO	6.0/7
Athlon 1.2 GHz 266 FSB	$94	$86	+8	NewEgg	6.5/7
Athlon 1.0 GHz 266 FSB	$80	$73	+7	NewEgg	6.5/7
Duron 1.3 GHz	$85	N/A		NewEgg	6.5/7
Duron 1.2 GHz	$68	$89	-21	TCWO	6.0/7
Duron 1.1 GHz	$59	$72	-13	TCWO	6.0/7
Duron 1GHz	$45	$56	-11	TCWO	6.0/7
Duron 950 MHz	$39	$47	-8	TCWO	6.0/7
Duron 900 MHz	$38	$46	-8	TCWO	6.0/7
Duron 850 MHz	$38	$43	-5	NewEgg	6.5/7
Duron 800 MHz	$35	$36	-1	NewEgg	6.5/7

Notes

Since our month long hiatus, prices for the XP series have taken quite a tumble. Our recommendation lands on the relatively cost effective XP 1700+ or 1800+. With such a low price and performance only hair away from the 1900+ and 2000+, you might as well try your hand at a rather modest overclock of 100-200MHz. You’re almost guaranteed 100MHz, which puts you squarely in 1900+ territory, when using a 1700+.

On the MP scene, prices have really gone south. We’re going to guess that the flawed release of the 760MPX chipset might have something to do with that. We have the distinct feeling that many people were scared off when they saw a server level chipset released with non-functioning USB ports. This has been remedied now; but it doesn’t help the position of a company trying to enter the high-end sector to come out with a broken product, especially when the segment you are shooting for is about as anal as can get about stability.

The regular Thunderbird Athlon has barely budged in the past few months. Until they completely disappear, we expect them to sit around this price range. At this point in time, there should be absolutely no reason to buy one of these, as the XP is only handful of dollars more.