Advice on an AMD upgrade to my socket 939 eMachines desktop CPU - x64

[JoeUser127]

What's the best general purpose socket 939 CPU for my eMachines t6216 home office desktop? While dusting I foolishly misplaced the stock AMD 3800+ CPU, and think it made it into the garbage on accident. Maybe not, but regardless I wanted to upgrade the processor only so with my K8NGM2 (MSI MS-7207) mobo what are my best options?

-My findings-
CPU Compatability list: http://

This website tells me I can upgrade to these processor families:
Athlon 64 X2,
Athlon 64,
Athlon 64 FX

Mobo Details link: http://reviews.cnet.com/motherboards/msi-k8ngm2-l-motherboard/4507-3049_7-31674845.html

I think the FX family is overpriced from what I read, but maybe not now in Dec. 2013.

After some decent research I am leaning towards a single or dual core AMD 64 bit, but what family, Opteron (175/180) or 64 X2 (4600/4800+)?

Should I consider the FX if the price is right? I don't plan to overclock, but can depending on if it's suggested. I've never overclocked before.

The primary use is for a home office, and there will be no gaming. Just simple web browsing, DVD burning, music playing and document processing. I would like to get the best performance I can out of this upgrade!

Thank you for sharing your time!

 

[DeathAndPain]

There is no such thing as a socket 939 processor that could possibly pass for a good upgrade today. Even by AMD's standards the socket 939 has been dead for several years! I do not even remember when I put my 939 chip out of service.

Either be content with what you have, or go all the way and buy a new mainboard so you can employ a current CPU. This also gives you the chance to switch over to an Intel CPU. Back in socket 939 times AMD CPUs were impressive competition to Intel, but since then Intel has outresearched AMD hands down. There is still a big AMD fan block here in this forum, consisting of people that swear that AMD CPUs are still good and all, but when you give them a closer look they are not. Nowadays, AMD needs twice the number of cores as Intel to achieve a similar computing power (and not even then do AMD processors achieve that goal). Also, Intel CPUs are much better miniaturized, meaning that they consume way less power and emit way less heat.

But even if for some reason you decide to upgrade to AMD anyway, socket 939 is definitely a no-go because it is ancient and mega-dead. (You will be hard pressed even obtaining any 939 CPU today unless you buy used, and you will hardly feel a difference to what you have now.)

 

[JoeUser127]

^Hi thanks for the reply. As you can probably tell from my first post, I don't have the processor any more. I lost it, actually. As a result, I am looking for a suitable replacement for the 3200+ and if I am going to spend $50 on another stock 3200+ should I spend the $50 on a 3300+, or something? I mistakenly wrote in my first post that it came with a 3800+ but that is not true. It came with a 3200+ and I lost it in my house somewhere. Don't want to wait to find it..I can spend the $40-50 on eBay for a used one and that's just fine for me. But which one is the best bang for the buck, given my situation?

 

[DeathAndPain]

You LOST the CPU, like in "it fell out of its socket"?

If I were you I would still not spend $50 on an ancient CPU when you can simply buy a cheap mainboard and are then free to install any current CPU of your choice, the very cheapest and crappiest of which will still outclass any 939 hands down. Ok, you will also need new RAM in that case (DDR3 instead of 939's DDR2), but your old 939 can hardly contain much RAM, not by today's standards, so you can obtain an equal or greater amount at low cost.

Then again, replacing your old CPU is a very cheap matter, seeing that no one has use for these obsolete processors today. The secret is buying used in this case, seeing that there will be hardly any factory-new ones still on the markets (and those that are are for a reason, usually being heavily overpriced). Assuming you live in the US, why don't you simply buy this for a fraction of your budget? There are plentiful alternatives on Ebay if for some reason you do not want or get that particular one.

If you are interesting in milking out a maximum of performance, socket 939 processors exist up to "4800+" (but be careful: there are also "4800+" for AM2 socket). For a list of CPUs that you could obtain, see here. Buying the very maximum that the socket 939 can support will usually lead to overpriced CPUs though, so you may look out on Ebay for the best compromise between speed and price, depending on your preferences. Also remember that the faster socket 939 CPUs draw more power, and not all mainboards have voltage regulators that can support those reliably.

Also remember to obtain a suitable CPU cooler, or your new CPU will be destroyed within the first seconds of operation - unless you still have your old cooler. There is no need to spend a lot of money on those; a rather cheap cooler will usually do.