3a parte
Other innovations are related with the south bridge, and they are quite obvious: ATA133 was yet in the VT8233A south bridge; the current VT8235 also supports the USB 2.0.
The attention of experts can also be drawn by the "Future Pin Compatible Upgrades with Serial-ATA and 802.11b", i.e. future south bridges supporting these functions will be entirely pin compatible with the current VT8235 (and the whole line starting from the VT8233), which must cut expenses for redesigning of the boards.
I must admit that the chipset is quite modern; it's the best choice for today for Socket A based computers.
It should also be noted that the hypothesis of the 166 (333) MHz FSB supported in the KT400 is not proven yet. Like in case of the DDR400 SDRAM, probably the FSB333 IS supported in this chipset. But we will make it clear only when such processors become available.
Test conditions
Testbed:
* Processors:
o AMD Athlon XP 2100+ (1733 MHz, 13x133 MHz), Socket 462(Socket A)
o AMD Athlon XP 2600+ (2133 MHz, 16x133 MHz), Socket 462(Socket A)
o Intel Pentium 4 2.53 GHz (19x133 MHz), Socket 478
o Intel Pentium 4 2.8 GHz (21x133 MHz), Socket 478
* Mainboards:
o ASUS A7V8X (BIOS 1004) on VIA KT400
o ASUS P4T533-C (BIOS 1007 beta 002) on i850E
* Memory:
o 2x256 MB PC3200(DDR400) DDR SDRAM DIMM Winbond, parameters by SPD
o 2x256 MB PC1066 RDRAM RIMM Kingston
* Video card: Palit Daytona GeForce4 Ti4600
* Hard drive: IBM IC35L040AVER07-0, 7200 rpm
Software:
* Windows XP Professional
* DirectX 8.1a
* VIA 4-in-1 4.42v(a)p2
* Intel Inf 4.00.1013
* Intel Application Accelerator 2.2.2
* NVIDIA Detonator XP 29.42 (VSync=Off)
* Cachemem 2.4MMX
* Wstream
* CPU RightMark 1.01
* Discreet 3ds max 4.26
* RazorLame 1.1.5.1342 + Lame codec 3.92
* VirtualDub 1.4.10 + DivX codec 5.02 Pro
* WinAce 2.2
* WinRAR 3.0
* BAPCo & MadOnion SYSmark 2002 Internet Content Creation
* BAPCo & MadOnion SYSmark 2002 Office Productivity
* SPECviewperf 7.0
* MadOnion 3DMark 2001 SE build 330
* Gray Matter Studios & Nerve Software Return To Castle Wolfenstein v1.1
* Croteam/GodGames Serious Sam: The Second Encounter v1.07
Test results
Cachemem and Wstream
We already mentioned that comparison of Pentium 4 and Athlon XP based systems with low-level tests of the memory bandwidth is a sadistic occupation for the fans of Pentium 4 and a masochistic one for the fans of the Athlon XP

. The fastest processor bus in the x86 architecture and the fastest memory accompany the Pentium 4, while the Athlon XP lacks for them. The test results directly depend on the specs of processors, chipsets and memory, and the diagrams can be drawn with a pencil. But it doesn't mean that the benefit of the Pentium 4 disappears. It is real, obvious and expected! The low-level memory tests prove that.
CPU RightMark 1.01
The classic FPU of the Athlon XP is noticeably more powerful than that of the Pentium 4, and the results given in the diagrams (MMX/FPU) prove that clearly. But with the SSE (SSE/FPU) the rendering brings new results: the Pentium 4 2.53 GHz goes on a par with the lower Athlon XP.
The SSE2 support makes the Pentium 4 jump forward. As we said a lot of times, the Pentium 4 provides a higher performance only in those programs which are able to derive benefit from the architecture of this processor, in particular, from its extended instructions. I must admit, the number of such programs is growing up.
3ds max 4.26 (Pentium 4 Optimized Version)
According to the diagram, the performance of the Athlon XP 2100+ is lower than that of the Pentium 4 2.53 GHz; besides, the Athlon XP 2600+ and Pentium 4 2.8 GHz are on the same level. Taking into account that the frequency gap between the 2100+ and P4 2.53 GHz is much greater than between 2600+ and P4 2.8 GHz, the Athlon XP shows better scores in the 3ds max, and in all other cases one must account for a core's speed of a certain model.
It turned out that 2800 MHz from Intel is approximately equal to 2133 MHz from AMD. It's known that the AMD's processors have often problems not with the "specific" performance but with the "absolute" one, exactly because the company is not able to handle the frequency race properly. But at present the parity is again achieved: the flagships of both companies score the same results.
WAV -> MP3 (Lame codec 3.92, RazorLame Front-end)
The situation is identical to the 3ds max 4.26 test. I don't see a considerable difference in the efficiency between these tests.
VideoCD -> MPEG4 (VirtualDub 1.4.10 + DivX codec v. 5.02 Pro)
The situation is close to the two previous tests, but the advantage of the Pentium 4 is much brighter. Apart from the shining performance of this processor (with the SSE2 instructions used) the memory throughput has a decent effect on the final results, and the P4+PC1066 tandem becomes unconquerable.
WinAce 2.2 archiving
This is one more sample of the MPEG4-like behavior. There are no severe changes in the layout, only the results are more dependent on the CPU's speed.
WinRAR 3.0 archiving
This is one more archiver of relatively slow compression and with a large library. The Pentium 4 thrives, but the difference between the respective pairs of the Intel's and AMD's solutions is petty and makes me think that in both cases the performance is limited by the memory subsystem. The WinRAR is able to enable entirely the fastest PC1066 RDRAM and the 533 MHz FSB. Well, it seems to be a very good test for estimating the RAM's performance.
SYSmark 2002
The results of the Internet Content Creation show why AMD tears the SYSmark 2002 to pieces

. It would be wrong to omit this fact, but it's wrong twice to speak about an internal structure of the SYSmark subtests without complete information on the test (or better, its source). AMD doesn't like the new scripts of this version of the benchmark - it thinks that the functions and filters used are oriented to those which work better with the Pentium 4. Frankly speaking, we do not have an answer.
On the other hand, we must discuss not whether the scripts of the SYSmark 2002 are correct regarding certain processors, but whether they are correct from a standpoint of operation of an average user. If they repeat the most frequently used instructions, the "optimization for processor" turns into the "optimization for real usage of software", and in this case the results become more objective.
That is why from a standpoint of the programmers from SYSmark, the Pentium 4 is really much better than the Athlon XP in programs processing multimedia contents. Time will show whether this assumption is objective.
SPECviewperf 7.0
Well, if one processor wins from the other by a small margin in several subtests but loses to it considerably in one test, which one should be acknowledged a leader? I think the first prize should be awarded to the programmers developing the IBM Data Explorer code the DX-07 is based on

. It's clear that one can make a program which will work too slowly on one processor and quite promptly on another; and it's possible to make such a program not purposely. But if it takes place, and it started a long time ago, we should clarify why the IBM Data Explorer doesn't like the Pentium 4 so much.
Nevertheless, at present we have no choice but to establish the fact that there are applications which do not like the Intel's processor. Moreover, they don't like exactly the Northwood core with its L2 512KB cache. That is why the second prize is given to the AMD Athlon XP for the best compatibility with one of the SPECviewperf's components.
3DMark 2001
The gaming applications will remain in the grip of Intel, to all appearances (at least, if the Hammer makes no revolution).
The first thought that crosses my mind when looking at the diagrams is a clear victory of the Pentium 4. Even the 2.53 GHz, which ceased to be on the top with the release of the 2.8 GHz model, outscores the latest Athlon XP 2600+. So, with the equal growth rate of frequencies (which are even lower in case of AMD), the Athlon XP seems to be a hopeless loser.
Return to Castle Wolfenstein è Serious Sam: The Second Encounter
The conclusion will be drawn from the most revealing test conditions - as the graphic quality level increases the situation doesn't change - it just becomes more and more "blurry" as the resolution gets higher.
Well, there is nothing more to say after the 3DMark 2001 test. Even the fastest Athlon XP is not able to catch up with the aging Pentium 4 2.53 GHz, not to mention 2.8 GHz. It proves again the assumption that in games the palm belongs to the Pentium 4.
The Serious Sam: The Second Encounter changes the situation a little

. Almost identical performance of the junior and senior processors from Intel and AMD doesn't allow saying that the Pentium 4 has a sure benefit in all games, just in the most of popular game engines. Therefore, the Pentium 4 provides a higher performance only in those games which derive benefits from its architecture, in particular, from its extended instructions. Unfortunately for the AMD's fans, the number of such games grows very rapidly...
Conclusion
Before the release of the Athlon XP 2600+ we could state that AMD lost the performance race. At present, when we have Pentium 4 2.8 GHz and Athlon XP 2600+ the situation is more complicated, but taking into account the overall scores AMD still loses. If the Athlon XP 2600+ had coexisted with the Pentium 4 2.53 GHz for a decent period of time the parity could have been noticed. But at present, from the standpoint of a pure performance, i.e. without considering frequency and price differences, Intel with its Pentium 4 2.8 GHz takes the lead.
But it's too early to bury the Athlon XP: given the slashing results of Pentium 4 2.53 GHz vs. Athlon XP 2000+/2100+ and the today's scores we can see that AMD managed to make a strong jump ahead narrowing the gap. Well, new changes can be expected only with new, faster models from both companies.