Intel V8 versus AMD 4X4 Platform :: Conclusion

First off let me say that both these systems are great and owning either one is a privilege as they exceed the normal standards of what most home users need to accomplish their daily tasks. IF you are looking for more than just an awesome gaming rig the Intel V8 platform is an excellent choice for the user who wants to be able to have excellent gaming, and the ability to maximize their efficiency in the workstation arena as well. The ability to add the latest SCSI drives is also a benefit to users who are doing a lot of video editing and need the fastest transfer rates available form their hard disc array. There are some drawbacks to the new V8 platform, there is no floppy support in any way on the motherboard, and the motherboard is very large making enclosure choices a limited affair. Also the Intel V8 was very slow to boot, albeit it was stable as a rock once in Windows mode. Intel's new V8 is really not geared for the gamer alone as its price exceeds any normal gaming rig, it's a server/workstation platform and in that environment it excels past the AMD 4X4.

AMD's 4X4 platform is a very nice platform for those who want fast gaming and the ability to run most 3D applications at a very good rate. This platform really did rock for gaming, but it was not as proficient for long time periods of use in the multitasking environment. Let me explain; if I turned on both system and ran the same exact programs repeatedly, the Intel system kept going without noticeable lag for a much longer time period. This type of efficiency comes in handy in the server environment where optimal performance periods and multi-application handling are required for long time usage. Most users will never even get to this point and the amount of time to slow down the AMD system is not enough to knock it for the desktop user. The AMD 4X4 has come down in price quite a bit, and that goes in their favor in this review, months ago this system was almost evenly priced with Intel's V8, which was a bit daunting to all users. AMD has a very nice platform with the 4X4 in the gaming arena and with an ATI 2900 XT or an NVIDIA 8800GTX, it's an excellent and fast gaming rig. It is too bad however that since AMD now owns ATI, this is an SLI platform only board.

So where does that leave the user who wants excellent performance and good pricing? Well for gaming and moderate workstation use the AMD 4X4 gets my vote as the better system platform for the following reasons; It boots very fast, its very stable, it works well with SLI and has a price tag that is way under the Intel V8. If you are someone in the media business, an at home artist or use heavy 3D laden programs like 3Ds MAX, AutoCAD and Softimage, the V8 is better at its multithreading process and provides better performance in those type of applications. Also if you want an excellent server platform the V8 is the better choice. The V8 platform also has no SLI or CrossFire support and can only use one VGA card, so for extreme gaming, it leaves a bit to be desired. Also the V8 costs almost $2000.00 more now than the 4X4. If I was to buy a gaming rig the 4X4 is one of the best I have ever seen and worthy of my money, and yours. Intel's V8 is a professional level system that would be a benefit to those who need that power and for a workstation class system. In many ways it is a tough act to follow as other machines that do the same thing costs thousands more than the V8 making it an excellent value as well for its market. I wish to than AMD and Intel for providing these systems, thanks for your patience, it was a lot of work, but a lot of fun too. Hats off to you both!

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