Computer Build of the Month, Jan 2012

I just recently completed a pc build that I through together from a bunch of good extra parts I had and I am thoroughly impressed with the results. It isn't the fastest machine I have ever built but it very nice and stable. Here is what is in my build:

• AMD Sempron 140, 2.7GHz AM3 CPU
• 2 GB of DDR2 800mhz
• MSI Motherboard #K9N6P6M2
• 120 GB Hard Drive
• Radeon 5450 HD Graphics Card, 512MB
• Linux Mint operating system
• Passmark CPU Rating: 764
• Blowfish CPU Test: 13.35 seconds

 This system is stable, fast and consumes a lot less power than your standard 65 - 95 watt cpu. The Sempron 140 is rated at 45 watts which is preferred for green energy applications. This CPU is also a great candidate for overclocking and unlocking one of its cores. My current MSI motherboard will not support core unlocking for this processor.

Pentium 4 HT - Hyper Threading CPU

I stand corrected on one of my previous posts about buying and using Pentium 4 processors. I so far have tested two different P4 HT computers and I was blown away by their performance. I have heard that when you review the processors on P4 HT machines that two cpu's show up and that is absolutely right. Those processors do more than just show up as two cpu's they perform like it too!

I install Linux Mint 11 on the computers I currently build and I use the system profiler to check system components and run the CPU Blowfish benchmark test. These cpu's perform like a dual core system. Here are some of my results:

• Intel Duo Core E2140 runs the Blowfish test at 10.75 seconds.
• Intel Pentium 4, HT 3.2GHz run the Blowfish test at 11.45 seconds.
• Intel Pentium 4, HT 3.0GHz run the Blowfish test at 11.66 seconds.

As you can see the P4 HT's perform almost as fast as the early Duo Core processors. So my recommendation is not to get rid of your HT's yet, they should provide lots of years of good service still.