What is best low power CPU? - Overclock.net

PeaceMaker · 10-07-09

Looking at these CPUs:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...ue&Order=PRICE

I want to know which one is best for HTPC usage with some gaming (weekends, maybe some evenings, Grid or Crysis)

I plan on pairing it with a 4550 passively cooled.

Thanks.

T D · 10-07-09

If you can find an Athlon X2 4850e, it beats all of them in power consumption I think.

DuckieHo · 10-07-09

Any 2GHz+ dual-core is good enough for a HTPC....

PeaceMaker · 10-07-09

Do motherboards affect the amount of power the system draws?

Enigma8750 · 10-07-09

That Reger running at 2.9 at 65 watts would be a good choice. I also have a 4550 and an old 6400x2 3.2 Ghz in my HTPC and a blue ray and a lian li Card reader with 4 gbs of ram. Some people will tell you any dual core will do. That is dead wrong. You try watching a movie and the computer decides to download an update or do something else in the background and watch the skipping begin. In Fact I would go as far as saying to use a low wattage quad core in the HTPC. But the Sapphire 4550 is a great card and HDMI out.

Enigma8750 · 10-07-09

http://extreme.outervision.com/psucalculatorlite.jsp

run this calculator to get a good idea on your power usage.

But if your going Dual core I would go with this one.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16819103694

SgtHop · 10-07-09

To a certain degree, yes, the chipsets will affect the power draw, but most will be fairly uniform. Chances are is you're going to get something with a P45 if you go the Intel route, I think they draw somewhere around 75W (correct me if I'm wrong) at idle, depending on your processor, so it's really not that big of a deal. I would personally go with the E3200, but either of the Regors would work rather well too.

Reflux · 10-07-09

Quote:

Originally Posted by PeaceMaker

Do motherboards affect the amount of power the system draws?

Would there be a point in the 20/24 pin connector if it didn't?

Seems logical thinking to me!

PeaceMaker · 10-07-09

Quote:

Originally Posted by Enigma8750

That Reger running at 2.9 at 65 watts would be a good choice. I also have a 4550 and an old 6400x2 3.2 Ghz in my HTPC and a blue ray and a lian li Card reader with 4 gbs of ram. Some people will tell you any dual core will do. That is dead wrong. You try watching a movie and the computer decides to download an update or do something else in the background and watch the skipping begin. In Fact I would go as far as saying to use a low wattage quad core in the HTPC. But the Sapphire 4550 is a great card and HDMI out.

Does your HTPC skip then?

Quote:

Originally Posted by SgtHop

To a certain degree, yes, the chipsets will affect the power draw, but most will be fairly uniform. Chances are is you're going to get something with a P45 if you go the Intel route, I think they draw somewhere around 75W (correct me if I'm wrong) at idle, depending on your processor, so it's really not that big of a deal. I would personally go with the E3200, but either of the Regors would work rather well too.

Does the extra 1MB of L2 Cache matter w/ the E5200? If not, I would get the E3200, and OC if I need to.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Reflux

Would there be a point in the 20/24 pin connector if it didn't?

Seems logical thinking to me!

Clearly it draws power, thanks. I was wondering if it varied significantly from mobo to mobo.

DuckieHo · 10-07-09

Quote:

Originally Posted by PeaceMaker

Do motherboards affect the amount of power the system draws?

AMD 7-series + SB = <14w
Intel P45 + SB = 26w

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What is best low power CPU?

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