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I am a programmer who spends most of the time writing serial python programs. The programs I write often take quite long to run so I would like to upgrade my cpu to the AMD chip with the fastest single core performance. (my mobo supports AM3, and I need to have at least two cores not that that is saying much)

I was initially intending on getting the Phenom II X6 1100T, but I have seen some suggestions through google that the X4 980 may be more suited to my needs.

Does anyone know whether this is true and/or how big the difference is. I would like to have the extra cores but I think I need to prioritize single core speed.

Thank you for your help

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closed as too localized by RedGrittyBrick, Nifle, techie007, Gareth, Simon Sheehan Nov 9 '11 at 1:06

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A google of the clockspeeds show:

The X6 1100T at 3.3 GHz with 3MB L2 Cache with a 3.7 GHz 'Turbo'

and

The X4 980 BE at 3.7 GHz with 2MB L2 Cache with no 'Turbo' option.

So it really boils down to your programming (or more directly your useage of the additional cores), i'm inclined to say the X4 would be better as it has the higher standard clockspeed without the 'Turbo Core' feature kicking in...

"Turbo Core kicks in when 3 or more cores (on a 6-core part) are idle. When this happens, the frequency of those three cores is reduced to 800MHz, the voltage to the entire chip is increased, and the remaining three cores are turboed up by as much as 500MHz. It doesn’t get any more granular than this. If you have 3 or more cores idle, then the remaining turbo up. In any other situation the CPU runs at its normal clocks." (Source)[http://www.anandtech.com/show/3641/amd-divulges-phenom-ii-x6-secrets-turbo-core-enabled]

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I d know the clock speeds but that isn't an accurate representation of the speed of the processor as it depends on the architecture etc. – Anake Nov 14 '11 at 11:53
Surely if you where worried about the difference between 2 very high powered processors then you would be using equally powerful motherboards and ram. There would be no need putting a ferrari engine in an old mini! – HaydnWVN Nov 14 '11 at 13:30
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