AMD Phenom x4 965 vs Intel???

[mother242]

I am looking for a budget gaming CPU, my plan at the moment is to use a AMD Phenom x4 965 and overclock it to bring it up the the same speeds as the 980(bump up the clock multiplier from x17 to x18.5 thus bringing the clock up from 3.4GHz to 3.7GHz.) I was just wondering if there is an intel processor that would provide better 'bang for the buck'?

Thanks for your help

 

[vSpooKy]

I dont belive intel has a CPU around a 965 price point of 135 that can be OC i would say just get the 965 for your computer

 

[k1114]

Just looking only at gaming performance, the i3 2100 performs better than a 980 on most games and costs less than a 965. http://www.anandtech.com/bench/Product/362?vs=289

 

[vSpooKy]

i3 is 2 cores 965BE is 4 cores i still would role a 965 just for OC it

 

[king smp]

for pure gaming the I3-2100 is better and you can upgrade to I5-2500k later
BUT for overall usage I would pick the 965
while the I3-2100 is a great performer I would rather have the 4 real cores instead of
2core/4thread
with a good cooler and good OC
it would be hard to stress out the 965

 

[mother242]

ima go with the 965 i think, i dont want to use the 2real/4thread over the 4real/4thread. thanks for all of the help

 

[mother242]

Best answer selected by mother242.

 

[king smp]

thank you for selecting me as Best Answer Mom

 

[k1114]

Number of cores is really irrelevant if 2 cores can beat 4 which in this case it does. Even in general computer usage 2 cores is all you need, the only place the x4 is better is video editing software or the like. The amd build will cost more since you have to buy a better heatsink to OC and a bit higher power consumption. You even have to OC the phenom and still have less performance than the intel. Don't get me wrong I'm not an intel fanboy, 2/3 of my last computers were amd but at this moment, intel has got amd beat in gaming price/performance at any worthwhile gaming rig.

But really either choice will game well at this somewhat low end price. Just make sure you get a am3+ board with that 965. I might even suggest a 955.

 

[king smp]

I am a crazy multitasker
and make my C2D 3ghz scream in pain

I am a mulitmedia guy so I am always encoding/transcoding/ripping
and to be able to play a game on one screen and have a HD movie playing on
my other screen while encoding an avi is my thing

I do agree that a fast dual core will handle mostly everything well
there are games that are taking advantage of 4 cores and that will just
get more common

in five years a C2Q will be minmal requirement for high end games