ZipZoomfly has the AMD Phenom 9950 at $179.99, add in 5% from CashBack and $7.28 for shipping. Final price comes out to $177.33. Next lowest is Newegg at $235.

Seems like a decent deal considering Intels cheapest quad core costs more then this.

http://www.ZipZoomfly.com/jsp/ProductDetail.jsp?ProductCode=10008899

Anyone recommend a reliable board for this at less than $150?

armageddon415 said:I would recommend one of the new SB750 boards like the Gigabyte GA-MA790GP-DS4H. Should be around 150.

I would also recommend any board using the SB750. The BIOSTAR TA790GX is only $86 at ZipZoomFly. It should easily handle processors with a 140W TDP.

Anyway, this is great deal. The 9950 also uses significantly less power than the 9850, due to an improved manufacturing process.

smeagle said:I'd recommend an Intel Core Duo, sadly : /. I love AMD, just wish I could get the speed of an intel CPU again.

I don't agree. And I own both a C2D and Phenom. I believe the Phenom Q9950 paired with the 790GX or 780G is easily the better current value for 98% of computer users. I have built three such Phenom rigs for family members, and personally haven't never experienced an easier more solid build. Everyone has been more than pleased.

Anyway, the Q9950 is easily comparable to the Q6600 or Q9350. The 790GX also offers a far cheaper and more superior platform over anything currently offered by Intel. Even Intel's latest G45's platform's on-board graphics is slow as molasses compared to the 780G's HD3800 Radeon IGP.

More importantly, the Phenom is a much smoother multitasker. This is likely due to its on-die memory controller and Hypertransport interconnect. The C2D archetecture is great at single-threaded apps, but its antiquated FSB starts to choke under heavy multi-tasking, especially with more than a few applications opened. The Phenom also has a far superior architecture for virtualization, and is the currently VMware's preferred CPU. The Phenom parts simply scale better.

Eventually you'll be able to get Phenom-like performance with Intel's upcoming Nehalem, but expect to pay a premium for the entire setup.

croushore said:Even Intel's latest G45's platform's on-board graphics is slow as molasses compared to the 780G's HD3800 Radeon IGP.
3200
croushore said:More importantly, the Phenom is a much smoother multitasker. This is likely due to its on-die memory controller and Hypertransport interconnect. The C2D archetecture is great at single-threaded apps, but its antiquated FSB starts to choke under heavy multi-tasking, especially with more than a few applications opened. The Phenom also has a far superior architecture for virtualization, and is the currently VMware's preferred CPU. The Phenom parts simply scale better.
Perhaps in server and/or multi-socket applications. On the desktop, Intel's chips are still faster, FSB architecture and all.

croushore said:Eventually you'll be able to get Phenom-like performance with Intel's upcoming Nehalem, but expect to pay a premium for the entire setup.
Phenom-like performance with Nehalem? Since when is Nehalem slower than Conroe or Penryn?