Quantispeed vs Netburst: AMD vs Intel

[Rugor]

Ok here's a question, AMD and Intel chose radically different strategies for implementing high performance x86 CPU's. Intel focused on super high clock speeds at the expense of everything else, where AMD focused on a lesser increase in clock rate with a better IPC.

Which do you think is a better strategy and why?

Here's to the hope we don't get too many flames.

[$1500-P4 gamer]

Thats a good question!I don't where I stand on that.Guess time will really tell.One thing I do like in Intels favour is the higher speed it seems the higher O'clock you get out of it.They keep going faster and still staying cool.Amd's pound for pound punch method is = as impresive though.Price issues asside,I really don't know.Will be interesting to see some peoples views though.To me its more about the final results though then how it gets there,know what I mean?:)

[Rugor]

Yep,

I personally prefer AMD's -- though Intel's done a good job of optimizing everything for clock speed I don't think that narrow focus has helped processor design. Intel's already running up against some of the physical issues that super high clock-speeds entail. They have a very large die size, so large that the pipeline needs two driver stages: stages which do nothing but give the signal time to physically move from one point to the next.

Those two stages were imposed just because of signal delay issues, because Intel is pushing the physics based limits of computing. And that raises another concern, there are physical limits to how fast transistors can cycle. We haven't reached them yet, but we will. Using Intel's approach we will get there sooner and with a less capable processor than following AMD's.

The other point I have is the reliance on SSE2. On its own I have no problem with the idea, and making an SSE2 call is faster and easier than doing the calculation so it does work towards Intel's super-high MHz goal. However it puts too great a reliance on optimized software, and that I don't like.

Still it will be very interesting to compare Thoroughbred and Northwood, because that should give the Athlon more headroom. I'm not surprised Intel got to .13 Micron first as their process technology is better.

[$1500-P4 gamer]

What would be really cool is if they could get duallys to run everything full support,games and all.Instant boost their,DROOL.