Hows this. I was just thinking yesterday that i should go and get myself a surge protector cuz the stormy season has just started here. Then last night i hear thunder and as i bend down to unplug my power cable all the lights go out. The lightning could have waited just a few more seconds but instead it fries my pc. Anyway its now time for a new pc and im definatly going for pci-e 6600 AMD 64 setup. Im not sure how high end its gonna be. This will be determined on what the insureance company says. Well if they pay well then this could have actually been a good thing but if not then.. Anyway what is the story with dual core CPU's (pc is for mainly gaming and listening to music) and is it worth it at this time. Also what is the bare minimun on the thermaltake PSU line for this system. Thanx
You don't get unluckier than that! At the moment, dual core CPUs give a good advantage in some uses, such as programs designed to take advantage of multiple cores (which are becoming more common commerically). Although gaming you won't see any increase in speed (not with most games anyway) if you have other software running in the background dual core could be for you. If you're a casual user then a single core would be better for the money. On a good quality PSU brand, 400W should do well for your system, but it does depend on what hardware you buy.
Thanx addis. Its just that my father seems to think that the cores can work together on the same app. So i needed some clarity. I hope to be getting a 4000+ wich will be realy nice if it hapens
Only if the app is programmed to take advantage of dual-cores. Not all apps can, and even if they are, they may not necessarily use the second core unless the first core is loaded For under $1000, I don't know, and I think you'd be hard pressed, depending on what all you'd be upgrading, to do a dual-core box. I run an A64 3000+ with a GeForce 6600GT and 512MB of RAM, and while I can't game at 1600x1200 with all the eye candy and AA/AF cranked up, I'm able to do 1024x768 or 1100x800 (I don't remember the exact pixels) with some eye candy turned on. Granted, going up to 1GB might be a nice jump, but so far, it handles FarCry, Doom 3 and Quake 4 rather well.
