New CPU:Video/Audio Encoding and DVD Authoring

[Maikeru-sama]

Hi forum, I will be getting a new computer fairly soon and I had a couple of questions before I make my purchase.

The new CPU will be dedicated to Video editing/encoding, Audio encoding and DVD Authoring.

Here are my questions:

1) 32-bit and 64-bit
When using the terminology 32-bit and 64-bit, does this refer to the processor or does it refer to the Operating System? I want to avoid 64-bit OS/Hardware, so I need to know if this is an OS or Hardware question.

2) Intel Pentium Dual Core and Intel Core 2 Duo
a) If you get either of the above, does this mean that the motherboard comes with 2 processors?
b) Are there any known issues with having 2 processors on a motherboard? Would software such as CCE, TmpGenc, FFMPeg etc etc work just fine?

Thanks

[redwudz]

1. Most all newer processors are 64bit, so that usually refers to the OS. 64bit applications are limited, so at this time, I would recommend a 32bit OS. JMO.

2A. There are two or more cores or processors on the CPU chip itself.

2B. Depends on the programs. Some can use two or more threads. Shouldn't be any compatibility problems either way. Multiple cores or threads can speed up some processes like encoding considerably if the program can use all cores. The Divx codec is one example. Some programs or encoders have a place to select how many processing threads they use. You can check in 'Task Manager>Performance' to see the usage.

[Maikeru-sama]

1. Most all newer processors are 64bit, so that usually refers to the OS. 64bit applications are limited, so at this time, I would recommend a 32bit OS. JMO.

2A. There are two or more cores or processors on the CPU chip itself.

2B. Depends on the programs. Some can use two or more threads. Shouldn't be any compatibility problems either way. Multiple cores or threads can speed up some processes like encoding considerably if the program can use all cores. The Divx codec is one example. Some programs or encoders have a place to select how many processing threads they use. You can check in 'Task Manager>Performance' to see the usage.

Thanks for responding.

One other question:
Is there a significant difference between a Pentium D 2.80 GHZ and an Intel Core2 Duo E4500 (2.20 GHZ/800 Mhz/2MB L2) processor?

Is there a significant difference between a:
Intel

[jagabo]

The Pentium D series is outdated and runs very hot. Forget about it. Get a Core 2 Duo or Core 2 Quad. The Q6600 runs about $220 now.

CCE and TMPGEnc Plus are both multithreaded and encode much faster with two or more cores.

Many different programs benchmarked on many different CPUs:

http://www.tomshardware.com/charts/cpu-charts-2007/divx-6-6-1,376.html

[Maikeru-sama]

The Pentium D series is outdated and runs very hot. Forget about it. Get a Core 2 Duo or Core 2 Quad. The Q6600 runs about $220 now.

CCE and TMPGEnc Plus are both multithreaded and encode much faster with two or more cores.

Many different programs benchmarked on many different CPUs:

http://www.tomshardware.com/charts/cpu-charts-2007/divx-6-6-1,376.html

Jagabo, thanks for the information.

[Maikeru-sama]

Another question,

If I use software that does not support "multithreaded" and thus can only use 1 of the cores, what type of speed decrease would I expect for a processor such as a "Intel Core2 Duo E4500 (2.20 GHZ/800 Mhz/2MB L2)"?

I was thinking maybe it could be better to just get 1 core that is 3 Ghz or is this thinking flawed?

[jagabo]

Your computer details lists your CPU simply as 1.2 GHz. I would guess it's an old Athlon or P3. A 2.2 GHz Core 2 Duo will run most single core CPU intensive programs 2 to 3 times faster.

Single threaded applications won't get much benefit from multiple cores -- unless you run more than one at a time. And yes, it's possible that a high clocked single core CPU can beat a lower clocked dual or quad core when running single threaded applications. But most CPU bound programs where you spend a lot of waiting for the program to finish (video encoding for example) have been coverted to use at least two cores.

Toms Hardware used to have older CPU charts but they seem to have disappeared with the recent site changes.