Budget processors for gaming(i3,Phenom 2 965,FX series,A8,A10)Help!!

[carnagegaming]

I need help deciding on a processor for my new budget build ~$550 and I am using a separate dedicated graphics card GTX 550ti, and I've read plenty of reviews and most of them base what's best on integrated graphics and all that but I'm using my own graphics card so that doesn't matter!! Or will it?? 🙁
I am just using this for gaming like WoW and Diablo etc..

The ones I have seen that I am looking at are AMD processors, the i5 is too much but the i3 seems to compare to these? I guess I really just don't know what makes a processor better for games not including integrated graphics once again because I am going with a GTX 550ti.

i3-3220 Ivy Bridge(3.3ghz)
Phenom II x4 965(3.4ghz)
A8-5600k Quad(3.6ghz)
FX-4100 Quad(3.6ghz)
FX-4170 Quad(4.2ghz)
FX-4300 Quad(3.8ghz)
A10-5800k Quad(3.8ghz)

Are there any processors I should be going with that I have not mentioned, and I will be overclocking if going with any AMD, so making me think I should go that route, but I've heard nothing but great things about the 4rd gen i3 so I'm really just confused and need some knowledge from you experts!! Please and thank you.

 

[jerry6]

fx 4300 , 6300 , why bother with integrated if you're using the 550

 

[skitz9417]

i would go with the i3 over the phemons

 

[jrayx]

You have the 550ti, so the A8 or a10 APU is not a good option. The phenom is a good CPU for the price, its unlocked and the performance is not bad. I haven't researched too much about the AMD FX CPU's, but I think they're better than a Phenom II and they're unlocked too. With a good air cooler you can overclock those pretty good.

The i3 is a great processor, it's on par to the FX-4170 or FX-4300 (http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/gaming-cpu-review-overclock,3106-3.html) If you want to overclock go with the AMD, as the i3 is not unlocked you won't be able to achieve a decent O.C. But in that article says that the FX uses as much 2 times more power than the i3, so that's something to keep in mind.

 

[carnagegaming]

You have the 550ti, so the A8 or a10 APU is not a good option. The phenom is a good CPU for the price, its unlocked and the performance is not bad. I haven't researched too much about the AMD FX CPU's, but I think they're better than a Phenom II and they're unlocked too. With a good air cooler you can overclock those pretty good.

The i3 is a great processor, it's on par to the FX-4170 or FX-4300 (http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/gaming-cpu-review-overclock,3106-3.html) If you want to overclock go with the AMD, as the i3 is not unlocked you won't be able to achieve a decent O.C. But in that article says that the FX uses as much 2 times more power than the i3, so that's something to keep in mind.

I've never OC'd before, but I plan on doing it with a good corsair cooling unit probably the h80. So with that, I think I'll go either the 965 or the 4170, and overclocking definately. Just one is cheaper so i'm not sure which one to go with but i've heard they're about neck and neck in gaming.

Also, is a Corsair GS 700W overkill? Thinking about taking it back and getting the 600 instead if so.

 

[jrayx]

I've never OC'd before, but I plan on doing it with a good corsair cooling unit probably the h80. So with that, I think I'll go either the 965 or the 4170, and overclocking definately. Just one is cheaper so i'm not sure which one to go with but i've heard they're about neck and neck in gaming.

Also, is a Corsair GS 700W overkill? Thinking about taking it back and getting the 600 instead if so.

I think the Phenom II 965 is better somehow, i was looking at some threads here and most of the people recommended the Phenom II, and you could O.C it.

Yeah 700 watts is way too much for a single 550 Ti unless you're planning to do SLI.
If you're going to have a single GPU even a 500 watts quality PSU can handle that (With the +12 volt rail with 24 Amps or more)

 

[Rich_]

for 550 $ I would go for the following.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814161396
HD 6870 (much better than 550ti, hell, it's a tiny bit better than a 560ti.)
170$
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819103727
90$ phenom quad core...

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813138329
45$ compatible motherboard, mini and no frills.

Capable power supply http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817153125
60$

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820313266
8GB Ram - 30$

Windows 7 100$

We now have 55 dollars left to spend on a case.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811235026
That is a 50$ case that is very capable and has excellent cable management.

This is no longer an entry level system, it will run all the games out today, and you wont need to turn the settings to low.
\

edit: I forgot the hard drive. You can save 10 on the power supply (still get a good one), 15 o n the ram (for 4gb), and if you really cannot scrounge the money for a hard drive up, keep your current case and save that 55$, or get a cheaper case (wouldnt waste money on a cheap case personally)

 

[maxalge]

The i3 3220 is the best choice among those cpu's.


http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/gaming-fx-pentium-apu-benchmark,3120-10.html


The second best would be the 965 @ 4ghz, but you would need an aftermarket cpu cooler which means wasted money you could have spent on the mobo or gpu.

 

[Rich_]

The i3 3220 is the best choice among those cpu's.


http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/gaming-fx-pentium-apu-benchmark,3120-10.html


The second best would be the 965 @ 4ghz, but you would need an aftermarket cpu cooler which means wasted money you could have spent on the mobo or gpu.

It's the worst choice if he plans on doing BF3 in multiplayer, or Crysis, or other games / modes that utilize all cores.

 

[maxalge]

It's the worst choice if he plans on doing BF3 in multiplayer, or Crysis, or other games / modes that utilize all cores.

Only limitation would be in multiplayer online bf3 yes, crysis 2 has no problem running on the i3.

 

[jrayx]

The i3 3220 is the best choice among those cpu's.


http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/gaming-fx-pentium-apu-benchmark,3120-10.html


The second best would be the 965 @ 4ghz, but you would need an aftermarket CPU cooler which means wasted money you could have spent on the mobo or gpu.

He already has the GTX 550ti isn't he? So he'll get slightly better performance with the Phenom II 965 with Overclock and a CPU cooler. The i3 is not unlocked but its a little bit better in some cases than a Phenom II.

 

[carnagegaming]

Okay, been at work but all that's been said has been great things. I've decided on the phenom 965, doing some OC, and switching to a little bit more powerful GPU. Probably a XFX Radeon HD7770 I can get for around $110 dollars. Or is there another GPU at that price for better performance?

Also, I am going to mostly playing WoW and LoL and Diablo 3, things in that nature.

 

[jrayx]

Okay, been at work but all that's been said has been great things. I've decided on the phenom 965, doing some OC, and switching to a little bit more powerful GPU. Probably a XFX Radeon HD7770 I can get for around $110 dollars. Or is there another GPU at that price for better performance?

Also, I am going to mostly playing WoW and LoL and Diablo 3, things in that nature.

The HD 7770 is better than the GTX 550ti, with the Phenom II and the 7770 you can play almost all the games at good resolution and quality. (I'll recommend you the Sapphire 7770 if you can stretch your budget a little bit)

For that price the 7770 is great.

 

[carnagegaming]

Best answer selected by carnagegaming.

 

[nekulturny]

With the performance capabilities of the 550 TI, there is no need for anything more powerful than the Phenom II. I had/have a 550 TI, I'm well aware of its performance capabilities in many games. Considering its currently the cheapest out of all of those CPUs, and is an overclockable quad core, that is the direction I would go if the budget is tight.

Yes the 7770 is better than the 550 TI. I run a 7870 which is a mid-high end graphics card, the rig in my signature can max out any game with respectable frame rates at 1920x1080.. yes even BF3 in multiplayer (the self-promoted "granddaddy of all video games).

If the most system demanding games you're primarily playing is MMORPGS like Diablo 3, WoW and LoL, theres no reason to spend more than a $100 on a CPU honestly. You could get away with a Pentium G820 or something even. Although, my personal favor is still going to fall on a true quad core.

As far as a cooling solution for a CPU, my advice is to forget about watercooling, its too expensive, and not really necessary to get a decent overclock. Consider a CoolerMaster 212+ or 212 Evo. I recommend them even for system builds where the poster has a $2000 budget, its that good for the money. As far as Phenom IIs specifically, they tend to top out at 4.2-4.4GHZ, which is not really high enough to necessitate a water cooling solution anyway.

As far as your motherboard choice, that is an extremely low quality, antiquated chipset board. Not only that, its not a great board to overclock on. The concept of "you get what you pay for" is at work here. I would suggest you save up more money if need be so you can buy something of decent quality, especially if you have overclocking aspirations.

Bare minimum, I would accept nothing less:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813131872

 

[carnagegaming]

With the performance capabilities of the 550 TI, there is no need for anything more powerful than the Phenom II. I had/have a 550 TI, I'm well aware of its performance capabilities in many games. Considering its currently the cheapest out of all of those CPUs, and is an overclockable quad core, that is the direction I would go if the budget is tight.

Yes the 7770 is better than the 550 TI. I run a 7870 which is a mid-high end graphics card, the rig in my signature can max out any game with respectable frame rates at 1920x1080.. yes even BF3 in multiplayer (the self-promoted "granddaddy of all video games).

If the most system demanding games you're primarily playing is MMORPGS like Diablo 3, WoW and LoL, theres no reason to spend more than a $100 on a CPU honestly. You could get away with a Pentium G820 or something even. Although, my personal favor is still going to fall on a true quad core.

As far as a cooling solution for a CPU, my advice is to forget about watercooling, its too expensive, and not really necessary to get a decent overclock. Consider a CoolerMaster 212+ or 212 Evo. I recommend them even for system builds where the poster has a $2000 budget, its that good for the money. As far as Phenom IIs specifically, they tend to top out at 4.2-4.4GHZ, which is not really high enough to necessitate a water cooling solution anyway.

As far as your motherboard choice, that is an extremely low quality, antiquated chipset board. Not only that, its not a great board to overclock on. The concept of "you get what you pay for" is at work here. I would suggest you save up more money if need be so you can buy something of decent quality, especially if you have overclocking aspirations.

Bare minimum, I would accept nothing less:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813131872

I haven't said what motherboard I am going with yet on this thread so which mobo are you talking about?
I'm going with ASRock FM2A75 Pro4

And also, I've had that same motherboard exactly on my previous first build. I never have OC'd but it worked fine. I just like the features on the ASrock mobo I linked. It looks like a better overclocker too. But I don't know much about mobo's yet so I can't really say.

 

[nekulturny]

I haven't said what motherboard I am going with yet on this thread so which mobo are you talking about?
I'm going with ASRock FM2A75 Pro4

My apologies.. someone else suggested the BIOSTAR.

That board you just linked to is not compatible with Phenom II processors, it is an FM2 socket. While Bulldozers/PileDrivers/Phenom IIs physically fit into the socket, the system will not post. You need an AM3+ socket board. FM2 is for the Trinity APUs (A-8s and A-10s).

 

[carnagegaming]

My apologies.. someone else suggested the BIOSTAR.

That board you just linked to is not compatible with Phenom II processors, it is an FM2 socket. While Bulldozers/PileDrivers/Phenom IIs physically fit into the socket, the system will not post. You need an AM3+ socket board. FM2 is for the Trinity APUs (A-8s and A-10s).

***. 🙁

That board is so cool and I LOVE the features is comes with like the 55 fast thing and easy OC ability and other things that will make gaming really great. And it looks cool as ***. Lol.

What do you recommend that will be close to as good and has features similar as the one I linked?

I don't even know if those features mean anything or does what it says, I'm not too experienced yet.

 

[nekulturny]

The one I linked is a good board, Asus has the same features. If anything, its better than the Asrock.

Asus BIOS, clicking the "extreme" button, overclocks the CPU.. One click.. Although, I would strongly advise against doing so with the stock CPU cooler.

 

[carnagegaming]

The one I linked is a good board, Asus has the same features. If anything, its better than the Asrock.

Would you say best way to go for gaming and OC in that ~$80-$90 range?

 

[nekulturny]

Would you say best way to go for gaming and OC in that ~$80-$90 range?

Yes, I would. I stand by Asus quality.

 

[carnagegaming]

Yes, I would. I stand by Asus quality.

Okay good sir I thank you. You have helped me make my choice in a new mobo. It's so weird I'm almost building the same pc I had about 2 years ago same cpu, about the same gpu(5770 now 7770) and the same mobo and psu. I guess I never really realized how good of a comp I had back then. Of course it was all $1200 to build then and now ~$550 for the same parts. xD

EDIT: What do you thing about ASRock 970 EXTREME3 AM3+ Compare to your mobo?

 

[nekulturny]

You're welcome, the Asrock 970 Extreme 3 has all the same basic features of the Asus M5A97, there is one main difference and that is in the power phases. the Asus is a 4+2 power phase design, and the Asrock is a 4 +1. In theory, the Asus board might be able to net you a more stable (higher) overclock on the RAM, but not necessarily. If you'd prefer the Asrock, go ahead, but, be aware that Asrock board only has a 1 year warranty, vs the 3 year on the Asus.