Are AMD Sempron a naff processor?

sare_2

Need to buy a new PC a.s.a.p and can't seem to find anything with enough power for Hubby's gaming, that will come under my £400 max budget.
Could make do with just a new base unit, so asked local computer shop for a quote.
For £450 inc vat, they can do:
AMD 2500 SEMPRON PROCESSOR
MSI KT4 SOCKETA MOTHERBOARD
6X USB PORTS INCLUDING 2 ON FRONT OF CASE
512MB DDR 333 MEMORY
120GB 7,200 HDD
256MB GEFORCE FX 550 VIDEO CARD
AC 97 32BIT SOUNDCARD
MODEM: N/A
10/100 NETWORK
SONY FLOPPY DRIVE
ATX TOWER 400W CASE
DVD WRITER -/+ DUAL LAYER

Is that a good machine for the price, or am I right in thinking that Sempron processors aren't that great?
Also where it says Modem N/A does that mean one is built in or will I have to add one?
And finally, ( sorry for all the questions) as I have a Windows OEM disc from this pc, would I be able to install it on a new pc and save myself £70?
Thanks!

rogerramjet

Umm..had a mate ask me about a new system recently (3 days ago) which was a very similar spec (vertually identical but with onboard graphics) and the price he had quoted (saw the print out) was £249.00 Now if the graphic card costs £200 (which I think it wouldn't) it is a bargin.

With regard to sempton processors, they are not as fast as a full blown Athlon (or whatever they are called these days) as they have half the onboard memory on the processor, but they are not that bad if they are coupled to the right set up

Moden would mean "not Applicable" basically most people have broadband these days so system builders tend not to put them in unless asked

Windows OEM disc....depends if it is actually the windows disc or a repair disk which accesses a partition to reinstall the software...you will still need a windows activation key (unless you use one you already have).


Just done a quick check on the net, graphic card is around £75.00 and this was a quick check so probably with a bit of searching it maybe found a lot cheaper

Malestrom

Thats not a very good price to be honest. JAL's Jenny PC is a better deal if you customise it to your requirements.

1. Remove the monitor
2. Add the GeForce FX5500 256MB card
3. Add the dual layer DVD RW drive
Total £379

That comes with a Sempron 2800 processor as well! Or upgrade the processor to an Athlon 3200 for an extra £46 giving a total of £425. These prices all include Windows Xp Home Edition, delivery to UK mainland and 2 Years Parts & Labour on-site warranty.

A friend bought one recently and while delivery was late he's over the moon with the actual computer.

A Sempron isn't as good as an Athlon of the same speed, for gaming needs you should go with the Athlon really.

Joe_Bloggs

The Sempron range of processors is an umbrella title for an ever evolving range of budget AMD processors. The previous AMD budget name was 'XP' this brand name has been taken. AMD Semprons come in socket A and socket 754. The latest E core versions are a few weeks old.
J_B.

blinky

Socket A is rather dead, I wouldn't consider getting a Socket A system. The 754 Semprons, while 32 bit only are showing some good performance results (particuarly if you want to overclock.

I have a feeling the Socket A Semprons are the same as the Althon XP Thoroughbred rev. B cores.

The amount of L2 processor cache doesn't have a major impact on the performance of the Athlon XP / Athlon64 / Sempron it's usually only a few %. (Unlike the P4 based processors where the cache size is more significant).

alexj2002

As for the OEM version of Windows if it's from your current PC then it would be illegal to use it on another PC - the licence to use it lives and dies with the PC it was first installed on.

It may be possible to use it if it's a full disc and not a repair/recovery disc, but this would be against the law and as such I can't recommend it.

digp

the last post is simply tosh

drlight_2

You are getting a system tailord for gaming,
fast graphics card is better than any onboard (built in) graphics available it, it will run playstation 2 games for PC but not most today new PS2 games ect,
He's offering plent of Dram memory so as not to worry about that, and disk space for games ect, best quality sound been around for years and won't fluctuate.

The sempron is a budget processor but that is not to worry, It is infact their best processor (outshines Intels latest processor) but with half the cache enabled.
In other words you getting a top AMD processor for a cheaper price. The cache isn't a significant factor anymore because of very high speed dram memory, wich you are getting plenty of.

I would go with the system he has quoted because it is spot on, but I would buy it from https://www.ebuyer.com at a much cheaper price, or I will will build it for £450 with a 17"tft monitor.
sorry struggling computers tradsmen.

Modem n/a - No modem included, I guess he is looking at the big price drops in brodband internet. (now same price as dial-up (modem) 24-7) and heading for 10.99 a month for end of year) why splash out for a modem when you won't need one. tell im you'll pay a extra tener for a modem if you want one.

rugglez

digp wrote:

the last post is simply tosh

digp is totally correct.

As long as the software is only being used on 1 computer, it is irrelevant which computer it physically is - e.g if the original computer is broken you can install it on a new one. This is part of the licence agreement and is totally legitimate, which is why you see so many available on eBay.

As long as you have the original sticker, you can use Windows XP 'Legally' on 1 of your computers.

rugglez

To quote bigp, this post is also 'tosh'

blinky wrote:

Socket A is rather dead, I wouldn't consider getting a Socket A system. The 754 Semprons, while 32 bit only are showing some good performance results (particuarly if you want to overclock.

I have a feeling the Socket A Semprons are the same as the Althon XP Thoroughbred rev. B cores.

The amount of L2 processor cache doesn't have a major impact on the performance of the Athlon XP / Athlon64 / Sempron it's usually only a few %. (Unlike the P4 based processors where the cache size is more significant).

Semperons - by AMDs own admissions - are a cut down version of the Athlon XP's - the t'bred 'b' core athlon will significantly out perform the semperons, which is why their second hand value is still higher than the retail value of a similarly rated Semperon.

Joe_Bloggs wrote:

The Sempron range of processors is an umbrella title for an ever evolving range of budget AMD processors. The previous AMD budget name was 'XP' this brand name has been taken. AMD Semprons come in socket A and socket 754. The latest E core versions are a few weeks old.
J_B.

Also to correct an earlier post, Athlon XP was NEVER AMD's budget range! Athlon XP for a couple of years was their flagship, so when they released the Opteron's they had to cease selling the previous flagship model.


I know these posts are off topic, but if people don't know the facts, they shouldn't just post any old crap that comes into their heads.

bbb_uk

rugglez wrote:

....Also to correct an earlier post, Athlon XP was NEVER AMD's budget range! Athlon XP for a couple of years was their flagship, so when they released the Opteron's they had to cease selling the previous flagship model...

I also agree it was never a budget range.

rugglez wrote:

Semperons - by AMDs own admissions - are a cut down version of the Athlon XP's - the t'bred 'b' core athlon will significantly out perform the semperons, which is why their second hand value is still higher than the retail value of a similarly rated Semperon.

Also true. Depending on a persons use then getting an Athlon XP CPU as opposed to a Sempron CPU you may not (significantly) notice the difference. For example, a pc that is used for internet and using word, then getting a Sempron, in my opinion would be fine. I don't believe you would notice the difference to that of the same spec except it has a Athlon XP if its primarily used for internet and typing.

For anything more than just casual surfing or using word (like for games) then I wouldn't get a Sempron.

So to answer the question posed by this post then the answer is yes (in my opinion) as the machine would be used for games.