AMD Athlon X2 BE-2400 AM2 - any advantages over...?

Mohan · Post by **Mohan** » Wed Nov 21, 2007 2:24 pm

Hi,

currently looking into building an energy efficient and easy to cool, yet powerful system. I saw the 45W X2 "Brisbane" BE-2400 and am wondering now, if maybe an undervolted Core2Duo or 65W versions may be a better choice or what else in the same price range would fit here?

Actually, while you're at it, I'm also a bit overwhelmed by the many boards availible for the AM2, I'd say DS3 or DS4 for Core2Duo but am a bit clueless about AM2... I recently saw that boards could also be ranked in regards of power consumption: Please point me to the right topic which I didn't find via board search yet if it existed, I'm not finished reading thru the sticky though.

Thanks for any advice!
Mohan

RedAE102 · Post by **RedAE102** » Wed Nov 21, 2007 4:53 pm

The power consumption numbers and undervolting capabilities people have posted on here of BE-2300/2350/2400 systems have yet to convince me of any significant advantage over the cheaper 65W 3600+/4000+/4400+ versions of each when undervolted. And as much as it pains me to say it, as I've been a die hard AMD supporter since my first K6-2, paired with the right motherboard, an undervolted C2D or Pentium Dual Core (since you won't find a C2D at the price point of the majority of Athlon X2) would likely outperform a similarly priced AMD system while maintaining the same or lower power consumption. Could you go into more detail as to what you're looking at for this system? Integrated or discrete graphics? What sort of work/play will you be using it for?

JoeWPgh · Post by **JoeWPgh** » Wed Nov 21, 2007 5:02 pm

I'm waiting on my Kill-A-Watt, so I can't give any measurements other than the subjective. I recently got a BE-2400 and a Biostar t690g (combo deal at Newegg) and I'm impressed with it's ease of set up and 'perkiness' It 'feels' faster and more predictable than my Gateway box with an Athlon 4600. As of now, I'm getting high temps from what I presume to be the NB, but it's in an old nMedia 188 which is a horrible horrible box.
I'm also waiting on a Silverstone HTPC case. There will be a Chinese firedrill of sorts once these arrive, with computer guts transferring and swapping of cases. Power draw at the wall will be a big factor in determining which computer is deployed where. My hunch is that the BE-2400 is going to become my main media PC - as opposed to being the bedroom TV. (I've become completely addicted to timeshifting live TV)
I don't know what your intended uses are, but the BE-2400/Biostar T690G combo deal is more than enough for my needs, and at a price I couldn't refuse.

dragmor · Post by **dragmor** » Wed Nov 21, 2007 6:36 pm

The BE-2400 is the new G2 stepping that is used in the Black Edition 5200+ CPU's. Lots of reports of 3.5ghz+ on air cooling for the BE.

Theres a good chance you can custom undervolt and still overclock it a fair bit.

Mohan · Post by **Mohan** » Wed Nov 21, 2007 7:21 pm

Wow, thanks for all your fast replies to this topic! Well, which would be the proper board to do both underclocking and overclocking with small steps? I'm currently leaning towards an Asus M2N as recommended in the sticky. Actually I'm not really that into all the OCing, but a tad can't be that bad Smile

Anyway, actually it is supposed more to be an allrounder somehow, which is sitting idle for most of the time like 80% with internet surfing and desktop work, 10% gaming and 10% heavy audio work which could take all CPU and RAM thrown at. I'm considering a significant step up from my current system (Barton 2500+, Radeon X700, getting a bit slow for gaming now) to a [CPU to be determined] with X1950Pro, which should be enough for all my gaming purposes. Silent components from the start are a major concern for me, because the system will run nearly 24/7 and I still need some sleep as well.

Anyway, I started the topic, because the C2D 6750 system would cost 100 Euro more than the X2 BE-2400 setup (X2 4800+ 65nm/65W being the same by the way). Given the BE-2400 would consume about the same power as the C2D and 4800+, I wanted to ask what else would I be missing for the buck? Is it like, if you don't want to touch anything or OC, then go Brisbane, else go Conroe?

Thanks for all your replies!
Mohan

jackylman · Post by **jackylman** » Wed Nov 21, 2007 10:20 pm

I have a 4800 Brizzy (G1 stepping). It used to be tough to ramp up the stock cooler past the lowest fan speed for it in the BIOS (12.5%, ~1300RPM for the stock fan). Even with this great performance, the stock cooler was still too loud for my liking, so I eventually bought a Thermalright Ultra120-eXtreme.

I now run my CPU passively, with only the nearby Yate Loon 120mm exhaust fan at 5V. When I first boot it up, it takes a while to get above room temp.

So my recommendation would be to go with the Brizzy and a good CPU cooler (the 120UEx is probably overkill, try the Ultima 90 with a 120mm fan) as long as you won't have it under extensive, continuous load while you try and sleep. The BE and the Brizzy get almost identical power draw at idle IIRC, and the difference becomes even less when undervolting them.

accord1999 · Post by **accord1999** » Wed Nov 21, 2007 10:51 pm

Mohan wrote: Anyway, I started the topic, because the C2D 6750 system would cost 100 Euro more than the X2 BE-2400 setup (X2 4800+ 65nm/65W being the same by the way). Given the BE-2400 would consume about the same power as the C2D and 4800+, I wanted to ask what else would I be missing for the buck? Is it like, if you don't want to touch anything or OC, then go Brisbane, else go Conroe?

Why are you comparing the E6750? It's much faster than the BE-2400. The natural competitor to the BE-2400 is the Pentium E2160.

Mohan · Post by **Mohan** » Thu Nov 22, 2007 10:08 am

Long story short: I was looking for a new computer and I often read that C2D rocks. The best bang for the back seemed to be the 6750 model to me. But then I also saw that there may be more energy efficient and better to cool CPUs which is why I looked at AMD 45W rated models. I calculated I might save a bit more on the long run with lower power consumption and lower electricity bill, as I pointed out earlier the computer will run mostly all day. So instead of undervolting the C2D I thought I might stick with AMD for lower power consumption models but as I think of it now, this is hardly a valid alternative if you're not a special fan of either brand at the moment. Or is the power consumption of the BE-2400 really significantly lower than the one of a C2D 6750, given both would sit 80% idle at least (maybe even more than that)?

Thanks,
Mohan

Mohan · Post by **Mohan** » Thu Nov 22, 2007 10:22 am

jackylman wrote:So my recommendation would be to go with the Brizzy and a good CPU cooler (the 120UEx is probably overkill, try the Ultima 90 with a 120mm fan) as long as you won't have it under extensive, continuous load while you try and sleep.

On a sidenote, I planned on a Scythe Ninja Rev.B for both C2D or X2, but that is not fitting the topic here well.