PS
the new p4 3Ghz also has the 800 Mhz frontside bus where as the Xeon's don't yet (533). It always take the Xeon's longer to validate stuff like that usually, hence server and workstation stuff needs to be more reliable. So with that in mind I think again the p4 has advantages in cost and performance.

p4 with 800 fsb & fast DDR IMO...

I think you will get better performance out of the P4 3.00GHz with 800Mhz FSB. Be sure to get PC3200-400Mhz DDR ram. Also the chipset on the motherboard may make a difference. There is Intel 875PE (Cantorwood) and the 865PE (Springfield). From what I have read the 865PE compares favorably with the supposedly faster 875PE. The 865PE does not have Performance Acceleration Technology built in. But the reviews I have read, at least for the ASUS P4P800Deluxe MB, show that the speed with the 865PE chipset is almost or is equal to that of MB with 875PE chipset. But you can save some $$ by going with 865PE chipset.

Anyway, bottomline IMHO you can't go wrong with the P4 3.0. Just be sure to get matching, quality components.

Galen

Here's a more technical tip to squeeze the most out of you system. DON'T SKIMP ON MEMORY. Not how much, rather its rating. More specifically its CAS latency values. Not all memory is created equal. For example just buying PC3200 400Mhz DDR don't assume every brand or even versions within types are the same. They are not. Recently all the major players offer one or more versions of "premium" memory. Don't expect to find it at your local BestBuy or CompuUSA. Such memory is mainly aimed at the extreme gamer crowd, that are never happy regardless how fast their PC is runnings. Has benefits for us into video stuff as well. Because heat is an enemy to all electronics, the fast memory, the higher the frequency it runs at and that generates more heat. This newer "premium" memory sticks frequently has heat heat expanders built on top of the stick, sometimes copper which is real good at throwing off heat. That and more closely matching and testing the chips on the stick help squeeze out extra performance. Again if or not you think its worth the extra price (anyware from 25% to 100% more, is up to you) My view, with RAM now as cheap as its been in a long time, a good investment.

Generally you want the lowest CAS values your system can support. The catch 22 is not all motherboards can handle the fastest memory. If they can't you suffer frequenty crashes, and in extreme cases you won't even be able to boot.

BUT... if you can adjust from BIOS (most better motherboards you can) you can probalby get another 10% or more out of your throughput and still be stable. Also a minor boast in the RAM voltage (also adjustment from BIOS) can help make more stable. Go too far and you can fry the memory. So be forwarned.

Another freebie application where you can check how some of your computer parts are working is CPU-Z which reports the type/speed and CAS your memory is currently set to along with more basic stuff like your CPU clock speed.

Again the usual warnings before you tinker. BE CAREFUL!

Also there are several smaller companies making premium memory besides Samsung, Crucial and Corsair which really mass produce. Check out Mushkin, OCZ Technology and Geil. Each have carved out a small notch in the RAM biz and generally get rave reviews from overclockers and game nuts. <wink>

For DV, for upto 5 or 6 interwoven FX layers, go for the i875 or E7205 depending on the FSB rating. PIV FSB800 gives maybe 10% improvement over FSB533 (huh!?) in most video operations.

Where you do a lot of JPG, PNG, TIFF or uncompressed AVI work. The Xeon with a >150MByte/sec SCSI array (possibly 10k Raptor SATA if you think it really is cheaper etc) will yield greater fluidity through having triple PCI bus incarnations (non contentional to the chipset) in addition to the AGP8x interface. The 2.8 533 Xeon is a premium and needs a mobo with socket604, such as SuperMicro X5DA8 or X5DAL-TG2. The latter needing only regular dual channel build of DDR266 (not buffered/registered), a normal ATX case and a normal PIV PSU (with enough juice for the NT striped RAID 0).

Generally speaking the PIV would be best for typical Vegas clients, IMO. If only the PIV supported a triple bus PCI64/PCI-X architecture. Vegas wouldn't be the best candidate for dual Xeon, but if you multitask you could yield 30% over the same speed PIV. Even considering the dual channel DDR400 capability of the new PIVs. Xeon pushes the features (and cache sizes shortly), whereas PIV pushes the brute force.

Don't see much changing until Opteron is running with a PCI Express bus, or maybe Intel on PCI Express.

an update:

http://tinyurl.com/emgv

From the above I conclude that 800MHz FSB on a PIV is ideal for any form of Vegas work. If you need faster I/O than your current mobo + interface controller can muster together. Then at this point in time, you can probably upgrade the mobo to 'Canterwood-ES' with whatever southbridge is the going-on thing at that time.

No motherboard for PIV supports PCI-X yet, but when these come through, the current Xeon will only have the edge for multiple card PCI-X applications (storage and networking) and applications where SMP (dual Xeon) is truly worth the extra.

What marvellous news. If it results in kit within weeks and not months!