HT won't give the P4 a boost, but SSE3 will make a difference.

"SSE3 instructions — Intel has endowed the Prescott core with 13 new instructions now known as SSE3. Like previous SSE revisions, these extended instructions are intended to accelerate certain types of computational tasks. Five new instructions for complex arithmetic allow for better handling of tasks like Fast Fourier Transforms; these instructions should enhance the Pentium 4's potential in scientific and distributed computing scenarios."

kcptech said...

"I would have to say that in your case of deciding on a P4 3.2 (C or E) or the Athlon 64 3200. Well the A3200 is the underdog here. The P4 3.2 will blow it out of the water for mathematical crunching. "

Underdog?

I would have to disagree here; it has always been the domain of the Athlon for Mathematical computing even more so with the 64bit versions as they have an integrated memory controller that is almost twice as efficient as any memory controller based in the Northbridge of the average P4 platform. There are many benchmarks out there that will prove this. Just take a look at the average CPU time on seti's page and you will see my point. In fact the only applications where there is any distinct advantage for the P4 are Audio and Video encoding apps but that is also due to the heavy optimization that those apps receive for the P4 and not necessarily due to the superior floating point performance of the P4. I for one have never been a fan of the P4 even though I have owned a few simply because of the extreme heat it generates and the power it sucks up. A comparable Athlon based system not only requires less energy but also generates a lot less heat.

I haven't been able to compare my system to another with this application since none of the work units are the same size and as such don't require the same cpu time but with seti my system was on average equal to a P4 running at 3.6ghz. and that is not bad at all for a cpu that only runs at 2.2ghz and requires a mere 40 to 60 watts of energy while the P4 consumes almost twice that much energy just to keep up.

And that comes from the owner of an A64 3500+...

Here's some prices you'd be looking at for either platform :


Printable Quotation
The following quotation was submitted on Sun Nov 21, 2004 @ 5:58 pm EST
through kingstoncomputerplanet.com. The prices below are based on retail
prices of this date. Please bring your quote to KCP or contact us via
email or fax to complete your quotation

Customer Info
Name:None Entered
Quote Performed:Sun Nov 21, 2004 @ 5:58 pm EST

Prices are in Canadian with US beside.

AMD Athlon 64 3200 (Socket 754):

QuantityProduct Unit Price Price

1 - AMD Athlon 64 3200+ 2.2GHz 640KB L2 Cache $249.00 $249.00
1 - 512mb PC3200 184pin DDR400 SDRAM $110.00 $110.00
1 - Asus K8V-X VIA K8T800 SATA + USB 2.0 $116.00 $116.00
1 - Aopen QF50A MidTower ATX 300W BLACK w/USB $65.00 $65.00
1 - Sapphire Radeon 9200SE 128mb Lite Retail $57.00 $57.00
1 - Liteon 16x DVD-ROM Tray Load OEM Black $33.00 $33.00
1 - Panasonic 1.44MB Floppy Drive Black $16.00 $16.00
2 - Sunon 80x80x25mm KDE1208PTV3 4pin VAPO fan $14.00 $28.00

Subtotal:$674.00 CAN or $565 U.S.


AMD Athlon 64 3200 (Socket 939) :

Quantity Product Unit Price Price

1 - AMD Athlon 64 s939 3200+ 2.0GHz 640KB Cache $259.00$259.00
2 - 256mb PC3200 184pin DDR400 SDRAM $56.00 $112.00
1 - Asus A8V Deluxe VIA K8T800Pro Dual Channel DDR $179.00$179.00
1 - Aopen QF50A MidTower ATX 300W BLACK w/USB $65.00 $65.00
1 - Sapphire Radeon 9200SE 128mb Lite Retail $57.00 $57.00
1 - WesternDigital 80GB 8mb Cache 7200RPM $81.00 $81.00
1 - Liteon 16x DVD-ROM Tray Load OEM Black $33.00 $33.00
1 - Panasonic 1.44MB Floppy Drive Black $16.00 $16.00
2 - Sunon 80x80x25mm KD1208PTBX-6A 3pin Cooling Fan $14.00 $28.00

Subtotal:$830.00 CAN or $700 U.S.


INTEL P4 3.2E (Socket 478) :


Quantity Product Unit Price Price

1 - Intel Pentium 4 3.2E GHz s478 1MB L2 800FSB $299.00 $299.00
2 - 256mb PC3200 184pin DDR400 SDRAM $56.00 $112.00
1 - Asus P4P800-VM Intel 865G 800FSB V/S/L $125.00 $125.00
1 - Aopen QF50A MidTower ATX 300W BLACK w/USB $65.00 $65.00
1 - WesternDigital 80GB 8mb Cache 7200RPM $81.00 $81.00
1 - Liteon 16x DVD-ROM Tray Load OEM Black $33.00 $33.00
1 - Panasonic 1.44MB Floppy Drive Black $16.00 $16.00
2 - Sunon 80x80x25mm KDE1208PTV3 4pin VAPO fan $14.00 $28.00

Total:$759.00 CAN or $640 US

One note on NewEgg; check their warranty out. Recently, they're only holding a 30 day warranty on their products. The remainder will be from the manufacturer. ie 2-5 years. However, the manufacturer will not provide a warranty for OEM Products, as that warranty is purchased and delt with through the OEMer is this case.

And while we are on the subject here is a mainboard well suited for this purpose as it has both onboard LAN and video...

http://www.newegg.com/app/ViewProductDesc.asp?description=13-186-019&depa=1

It may not be a top performer but when it comes to this type of task the system chipset plays a relatively small part and the price is pretty damn good...