Question Best AM3 socket CPU

Jun 17, 2019
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I am currently running an AMD Phenom II x6 1035T processor. Would I get a significant performance boost if I replaced that with the Phenom II x6 1100T Black Edition? Or is there another AM3 socket processor that would be better? I know this is a very dated question but I am just trying to improve the performance of an older PC that I have. I have 16 GB of Ram and a Geforce GT 730 2GB GPU.
 

DeadnightWarrior

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I guess the absolute best would be the FX9590 but it's a furnace and needs very specific motherboards.

It depends on the compatibility list of your motherboard, maybe you can install an FX8350.

An Athlon X4 860K / 880K would be nice as well but I'm not entirely sure it would be better than the Phenom II X6...

At the end of the day, you might consider swapping everything for a more modern platform...
 
I guess the absolute best would be the FX9590 but it's a furnace and needs very specific motherboards.

It depends on the compatibility list of your motherboard, maybe you can install an FX8350.

An Athlon X4 860K / 880K would be nice as well but I'm not entirely sure it would be better than the Phenom II X6...

At the end of the day, you might consider swapping everything for a more modern platform...
FX CPUs need AM3+ socket and those Athlon CPUs are not as Good as phenoms.
 
Jun 17, 2019
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Thanks for all the replies. Here is some more clarification: I am using a motherboard with an AM3 socket so I cannot use a FX processor. I mainly use my computer for photo editing in Adobe Lightroom and I noticed that as I edit photos my CPU usage regularly jumps up to 99% as I shift from image to image. While I am exporting photos my CPU stays nearly maxed out the whole time. My memory usage usually doesn't exceed 60% and my GPU is generally less then 20%(GPU acceleration in Lightroom is turned on). I am sure upgrading the GPU would improve my gaming performance but it doesn't look like it would change my Lightroom performance. Also I am currently using a Crucial 1TB SSD.
 

Rogue Leader

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Thanks for all the replies. Here is some more clarification: I am using a motherboard with an AM3 socket so I cannot use a FX processor. I mainly use my computer for photo editing in Adobe Lightroom and I noticed that as I edit photos my CPU usage regularly jumps up to 99% as I shift from image to image. While I am exporting photos my CPU stays nearly maxed out the whole time. My memory usage usually doesn't exceed 60% and my GPU is generally less then 20%(GPU acceleration in Lightroom is turned on). I am sure upgrading the GPU would improve my gaming performance but it doesn't look like it would change my Lightroom performance. Also I am currently using a Crucial 1TB SSD.


Then an 1100T isn't going to do much for you. I'd say follow the advice above to overclock a little, if thats not enough then its time to save up for an upgrade.
 
Jun 17, 2019
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Why not overclock the CPU that you already have? 1035T is likely good for 3.8-4.2GHz if you have a good board and cooling.
Thanks for the suggestion, I will definitely look into that. I have never actually looked into overclocking so this will give me an opportunity to learn about it.
 
Thanks for the suggestion, I will definitely look into that. I have never actually looked into overclocking so this will give me an opportunity to learn about it.
Some things to consider first when overclocking
VRM on the motherboard, need strong VRM with at least passive cooling.
PSU, although OC will not put much more load on PSU, it's important to be of good quality and steady voltages.
Last but not least, CPU cooler. OC demands higher core voltage which in turn causes higher temperatures which produces higher resistance, which produces more heat and demands higher voltage.... ... see where I'm getting to ? It can escalate very fast, "Cool first , OC later" I always say.
Also don't expect miracles, best OC produces 10 -15% gains.
 

Sipan9000

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Aug 10, 2015
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While overclocking or updating to a slightly better am3 cpu or even upgrading to a better graphics card might help, you just aren't going to get much out of those. A graphics card upgrade is a better choice because it will increase the performance the most when it comes to price/performance gains.

However, your best choice would be to completely upgrade the computer, these days you would be surprised what kind of great computers you can build for under $500, you can build something with an i5 9600k for about $450 without a graphics card, and the intel graphics processor in the cpu will blow away your current gpu.

If you're trying to get something even cheaper you can even build a ryzen 5 2400g setup which is slightly less powerful than an i5 9600k but still a beast of a processor for the price, you'll easily be able to have a whole setup for about $330 and it will still blow away your current pc. And when you need more power in the future with either of these build you can at any time buy a graphics card and stick it in there to boost your performance by a lot.

If you cant afford either of these or would rather not spend that much money your next best bet is to upgrade your graphics card, AMD RX 570 is a great choice for about $140 and if you can spend a little more I would recommend the RX 580 for about $180. (MAKE SURE YOU PAY THE EXTRA $10 FOR THE 8 GB VERSIONS)

In conclusion, upgrading from a 1035t to 1100t or overclocking will gift you minimal performance and is more or less a waste of money, new hardware is cheap and infinitely more effective than the older hardware, in my opinion if you see yourself using computers for a while you should just bite the bullet and build a new computer, I could make a list for you too if you want that option.