Computer Processor / CPU

The CPU, or Central Processing Unit, is the 'brains' of the computer, and aside from the motherboard itself is the single most important piece of equipment in any computer.

Although there are various types and manufacturers of CPUs, one easy thing about choosing one is that the most important property of the CPU, its processing speed, is generally a part of the name of the CPU. When deciding how much processing power you need, consider what tasks you want to perform. If you plan on doing any 3D CAD work or play 3D games, obviously you want something top of the line. If all you do is surf the net, send email and use your word processor, there's no need to shell out the big bucks for the latest thing.

There are various types of CPU available I've organized them here according to their socket size; whatever your choice, make sure your motherboard supports that type of socket.

Socket 370

This is the older type of socket used by the Pentium III and Celeron CPUs. These are generally very reliable, but slow for many of today's tasks. If you are the type of user mentioned above who will only use the computer for surfing, word processing or playing non CPU intensive games, this is an excellent choice and probably has more power than you will need. If you are a serious computer user however and are building a new system, I recommend something more powerful.

Socket 478

This is the type of socket used by the Intel Pentium IV processor, which comes at speeds of up to 3.2 GHz (as of this writing) and is one of the best processors currently available. It is also one of the most expensive and tends to increase incongruously in price as it goes up in speed, so try not to get the absolute top of the line unless you really can't help yourself.

Socket A

The AMD Athlon and Duron processors use a Socket A connection to the motherboard. These processors don't have Intel's reputation, but although they have faced some bad press in the past, years of problem-free usage in computers around the world have proven that they are a worthy competitor for Intel. The AMD Athlon XP, for example, is a good high-end processor with an excellent reputation that comes at a better price than its Intel counterpart.

Socket 754 and Socket 940

AMD's new 64-bit processors are blisteringly fast; the Athlon 64 FX-51 is the fastest processor available today, so this is the one to get if you want to be able to tell all your friends your computer is faster than theirs for a few months. However, not only is the price exorbitant but it has a Socket 940 interface meaning you'll have to shell out for a new motherboard as well. If you want almost the same power at a much lower cost you might also consider the AMD Athlon 64 3200+, which uses a Socket 754 connection.

Now that you understand some more about the various CPUs available for your custom-built computer system, let's move on to another important system component: RAM.