Does my MB support this CPU

[XxQuanxX]

Hey everyone,

I've recently been looking to upgrade my current build, but am unsure if my MB will support the power needed by certain CPUs. Here is my current build:

• 
  MB Gigabyte GA-970A-UD3 AM3+ AMD 970 + SB950 6 x SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 ATX AMD Motherboard BIOS upgraded to fe8 Newegg
  CPU AMD Phenom II X4 965 Black Edition Deneb Quad-Core 3.4GHz Socket AM3 125W HDZ965FBGMBOX Processor Newegg
  PSU Corsair Enthusiast Series TX750 V2 750W ATX12V v2.31/ EPS12V v2.92 80 PLUS BRONZE Certified Active PFC High Newegg
  GPU Sapphire Radeon HD 6870 1GB 256-bit GDDR5 PCI Express 2.1 x16 Newegg
  Mem PNY XLR8 8GB (2 x 4GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Desktop Memory Model MD8192KD3-1600-X9 Newegg
  OS Microsoft Windows 10 Home 64-bit

I left out the obvious parts (case, mouse/kb, HDD/SSD). I am on a budget so am only looking to upgrade my CPU and GPU. Upgrading my MB is not an option atm. Here is what I want to upgrade to:

CPU AMD FX-9370 Vishera 4.4GHz Socket AM3+ 220W 8-Core Desktop Processor - Black Edition Newegg
GPU MSI GeForce GTX 960 GTX 960 GAMING 4G 4GB 128-Bit GDDR5 PCI Express 3.0 x16 HDCP Ready Newegg

My real concern is if my current MB can support the 220W power draw of the FX-9370, I cannot find anything specific in the documentation. If not, then I will go for the FX-8370. I appreciate any responses, but I would appreciate even more if you could cite where you found your information, so I may refer to it in the future. Thanks!

P.S. I see that the GTX 960 requires an PCIe 3.0, while my MB only supports PCIe 2.0, will there be any drawbacks to that? I haven't found much difference unless you're running games above 1080p, possibly.

P.P.S Is there any substantial difference between the 4GB card and the 2GB? I assumed that you only need the extra GB if you are running above 1080p, which I do not. So, I may switch to a 2GB card.

 

[JackNaylorPE]

According to what you listed, you have a AM3+ socket MoBo w/ a CPU that uses socket AM3+

The PCI-E slot will not be a problem.

As to 2Gb vs 4 GB, at 1080p, no

http://www.gamersnexus.net/guides/1888-evga-supersc-4gb-960-benchmark-vs-2gb/Page-2
https://www.pugetsystems.com/labs/articles/Video-Card-Performance-2GB-vs-4GB-Memory-154/
http://alienbabeltech.com/main/gtx-770-4gb-vs-2gb-tested/3/

 

[johnnyb105]

I highly doubt that board will handle a cpu that's rated 220 watts you need to go to gigabyte and look at supported cpus there...


This is what your board will accept

http://www.gigabyte.com/support-downloads/cpu-support-popup.aspx?pid=3907

 

[johnnyb105]

BTW 8370 is a waste of your money and time just install a 8320 and overclock it like I have ... 4.4 ghz

 

[XxQuanxX]

According to what you listed, you have a AM3+ socket MoBo w/ a CPU that uses socket AM3+

The PCI-E slot will not be a problem.

As to 2Gb vs 4 GB, at 1080p, no

http://www.gamersnexus.net/guides/1888-evga-supersc-4gb-960-benchmark-vs-2gb/Page-2
https://www.pugetsystems.com/labs/articles/Video-Card-Performance-2GB-vs-4GB-Memory-154/
http://alienbabeltech.com/main/gtx-770-4gb-vs-2gb-tested/3/

Thank you for your response to my latter questions, but I realize that I have the right socket type. My question is if my MB will support that wattage needed for a 220W CPU, which I am unsure of.

 

[XxQuanxX]

I highly doubt that board will handle a cpu that's rated 220 watts you need to go to gigabyte and look at supported cpus there...


This is what your board will accept

http://www.gigabyte.com/support-downloads/cpu-support-popup.aspx?pid=3907

Thank you for the response and related link! I knew that I had to upgrade my BIOS for the Vischera chipset, but was unsure of the power throughput my MB was capable of.

Also, thank you for the advice, I will definitely take it into consideration.

 

[johnnyb105]

No it will not look at the chart only a 8370 is the top of the cpu.s you can use..

 

[johnnyb105]

Your welcome good luck on your upgrade.

 

[JackNaylorPE]

We stopped doing AMD builds more than 3 years ago, so I'm long out of being "up" on what the deal is there.

Newegg says Supports FX / Phenom II / Athlon II / Sempron 100 Series w/o limitation.

Gigabyte says :
Support for AMD AM3+ FX processors
Support for AMD AM3 Phenom™ II processors / AMD Athlon™ II processors


To enable AM3+ AMD FX-Series CPU support, please update your motherboard with the most current BIOS found in your motherboard’s download section.

with no exceptions. So, it seems there's been a bit of laxness in putting out the information.

However... question's been asked and answered here on THG:

http://www.tomshardware.com/answers/id-2121031/970a-ds3p-970a-ds3p-compatible-amd-9370.html

This says it can but I'm more likely to go with SR-71's answer

http://www.pc-specs.com/cpu/AMD/FX/FX-9370/1876/Compatible_Motherboards

 

[johnnyb105]

This is Direct from gigabytes website http://www.gigabyte.com/support-downloads/cpu-support-popup.aspx?pid=3907

I IMHO belive the fx 9000 CPU.S is a waste of money and or resources... But some like to have the latest of the FX cpu,s but to me the only 2 chips you would want on the AMD side of the FX are the 8320 and 8350 which The 8320 will overclock as much if not more then the 8350... That's just my opinion...

 

[JackNaylorPE]

I haven't been able to make a case for an AMD build over $800 in the last decade and no one has walked in with less than $1200 budget in almost 4 years.