Conclusions

This content was originally featured on Amdmb.com and has been converted to PC Perspective’s website. Some color changes and flaws may appear.

3200+ Processor Conclusion

Keeping in mind that the comparison benchmarks between the Athlon XP 3200+ and the Athlon XP 3000+ is as close to a direct comparison of 333/400 MHz asynchronous architecture to the 400/400 MHz synchronous architecture, AMD has proven the value of the addition bandwidth of the 400 MHz front-side bus. The 3200+ out performs the 3000+ in every test, and quite often by a very noticeable margin.

Now that we have seen AMD is willing to make quick and drastic steps (introducing a new front side bus speed is not easy logistically) to counter Intel’s pushes, what can we expect in the future? I don’t think the Athlon XP line will be seeing anything major change in the rest of its life cycle. Fully decked out with 512 KB of L2 cache and now the 400 MHz FSB we have all been anticipating is about as far as AMD can take it, with the exception of increased frequencies. The 3200+ is still not their fastest frequency (remember the first 2800+ ran at 2.25 GHz where the new 3200+ part runs at 2.2 GHz), and I think we have seen some overclocks go easily into the 2.5 GHz range, so AMD has some extra room left to maneuver.

I think the Athlon XP 3200+ should be considered a success, and depending on how the latest Intel processor launch goes, might put it back at as the king of the performance hill.

nForce2 Ultra 400 vs. KT600 Conclusion

This debate seems to be a much more interesting one. 🙂 Both chipsets are performing very well here with the new 3200+ processor. The performance on both of them is very close, but if I were forced to pick who had the advantage, I’d say it was NVIDIA, though not by much.

Where the real difference lies is in support and acceptance. As we have already mentioned, the NVIDIA nForce2 Ultra 400 chipset is already in mass production, and has been sneakily put into circulation as well where as the KT600 chipset from VIA is still a ways off. Even since the launch of the KT400A chipset, I’ve only had two motherboards based on it enter our labs here, though some more are on the way. I’ve now had three nForce2 Ultra 400 chipsets go through here (though at first I didn’t KNOW they were). Many manufacturers have been putting a lot of faith in the NVIDIA platforms and now even Gigabyte has announced a board based on the nForce2 chipset.

If we bring this issue down to features then the nForce2 chipset is still ahead. I haven’t seen a board yet that has the new VIA 8237 south bridge with the added extras we need, and the reference board we have for the KT600 doesn’t have it either. Hopefully, we will soon be seeing this badly needed south bridge in action.

Again, only time will tell what chipset manufacturer has the upper hand, but from where I stand, it’s hard to not see NVIDIA coming out ahead.

Final Thoughts

This brings to close another major upgrade in AMD’s product line. The introduction of the 400 MHz FSB will be a success with enthusiasts – that is a given. If AMD can get some 400 MHz FSB parts down to a low enough price, these will sell very quickly. Our readers have been waiting for synchronous memory and processor busses for quite some time, and they have finally been appeased.

AMD definitely needs all the pushing they can get from their engineers to stay alive in the desktop market until they can finally release an Athlon 64. If all stays on schedule, we are only four months away from the launch of the Athlon 64, and the new Athlon XP will have to hold its own until then. I think with some increased frequencies, the Athlon XP should be able to stem any developments the Intel engineers might be ready to release.

As the Athlon XP 3200+ has been for sale on the Amdmb.Pricegrabber.com service for some time, be sure to check to see the updated prices for them. As of this publishing, the Athlon XP 3200+ is going for $498.

Be sure to visit the AMDForums.com webiste for discussions and more information!

« PreviousNext »