In the market for a new AMD cpu

[Nintendoator]

Hello, I currently have an AMD FX 4300 and would like to upgrade to a AMD FX 8370. I have a gigabyte ga-78lmt-usb3 motherboard and a EVGA 500w psu was wondering if this would be a good idea? If you can find any problems with my plan or can offer up any advice please do not hesitate to ask, Thanks.

 

[Redneck5439]

I don't see any real problems with your plan, the FX 8370 is an amazing processor. Depending on what GPU your running you may want to look into a more powerful power supply. 500w is on the low side for an FX 8 core processor and high end (AMD) GPU. Your motherboard will limit your overclocks somewhat, but with good cooling you should be able to hit 4.5Ghz or better overclocking, again though as you overclock you may need more than 500w psu. I upgraded from Phenom II 965BE to FX 8350 to FX 8370 and have been very happy with the FX 8370. It has slightly better performance than the FX 8350 and overclocks with less Vcore producing less heat.

 

[Nintendoator]

I don't see any real problems with your plan, the FX 8370 is an amazing processor. Depending on what GPU your running you may want to look into a more powerful power supply. 500w is on the low side for an FX 8 core processor and high end (AMD) GPU. Your motherboard will limit your overclocks somewhat, but with good cooling you should be able to hit 4.5Ghz or better overclocking, again though as you overclock you may need more than 500w psu. I upgraded from Phenom II 965BE to FX 8350 to FX 8370 and have been very happy with the FX 8370. It has slightly better performance than the FX 8350 and overclocks with less Vcore producing less heat.

My graphics card is an XFX AMD R7 360 if that changes anything

 

[geofelt]

This article does not recommend a FX-8 on your motherboard.
http://www.tomshardware.com/forum/id-2384030/motherboard-tier-list-am3-chipsets.html

Few games can use more than 2-3 cores, so the 6 cores of the FX-6300 should not be a big plus for gaming.
But, the single tread passmark rating of the FX-6300 is the same as the FX-4300 and perhaps 10% less than the FX-8370. so you may not be gaining anything.
You might try overclocking your FX-4300 first if cpu speed is your limiting factor.

 

[Nintendoator]

This article does not recommend a FX-8 on your motherboard.
http://www.tomshardware.com/forum/id-2384030/motherboard-tier-list-am3-chipsets.html

Few games can use more than 2-3 cores, so the 6 cores of the FX-6300 should not be a negative for gaming.

Oh, wow this is a great list, thank you much for the info.

 

[barto]

Well, your motherboard technically supports the 8730 which is a 120w CPU. However the 760G motherboards weren't really designed to handle the 8 core 125w CPUs. It only has a 4+1 power phase design which is average. It will work but I wouldn't overclock on the motherboard. It will definitely take a quite a bit of voltage to OC an octo core.

 

[Nintendoator]

Well, your motherboard technically supports the 8730 which is a 120w CPU. However the 760G motherboards weren't really designed to handle the 8 core 125w CPUs. It only has a 4+1 power phase design which is average. It will work but I wouldn't overclock on the motherboard. It will definitely take a quite a bit of voltage to OC an octo core.

Awesome, great reply. I'll try thinking smaller

 

[Redneck5439]

Well, your motherboard technically supports the 8730 which is a 120w CPU. However the 760G motherboards weren't really designed to handle the 8 core 125w CPUs. It only has a 4+1 power phase design which is average. It will work but I wouldn't overclock on the motherboard. It will definitely take a quite a bit of voltage to OC an octo core.

I've never used that board before, but have overclocked FX 8370s on 4+1 power phase design before. Its tricky, but doable with with FX 8370, better with the FX 8370E. The FX 8370(E) has the very best binning that AMD has available, that means it takes less Vcore to overclock it. Usually you can get 4.5Ghz with about 1.24 - 1.26V, less if you only overclock to 4.2 - 4.3Ghz. The overclocks aren't huge but usually you can get a nice boost.

 

[ZachyBeat]

What games do you play? Ones that are not only using 1-2 threads but also CPU intensive are going to effect your performance. My first computer was an FX 4300 and GTX 660. Upgraded later to an FX 8320 and GTX 770. In games like WoW I saw a small performance gain, where friends of mine with the same GTX 770 and an i5 2500k and 4460 were getting 10-15 FPS higher than myself. So depending on your expectations, budget, and future expansion, I would recommend you either get an i5 and new mobo (which means a new windows key) before upgrading further into the FX line.

 

[Redneck5439]

Just to be on safe side I would stay away from the 125W FX 8 core cpus. However I think that a very good processor would be the FX 8320E or FX 8370E and unless you really know what you are doing not to try to overclock. The FX 8320E and FX 8370E are only 95W (the same as your FX 4300). Of course if you can afford to upgrade both the motherboard and processor I would recommend switching to Intel. If your just looking for a processor upgrade the "E" series FX would be your best bet and would be a very nice upgrade.

 

[Nintendoator]

What games do you play? Ones that are not only using 1-2 threads but also CPU intensive are going to effect your performance. My first computer was an FX 4300 and GTX 660. Upgraded later to an FX 8320 and GTX 770. In games like WoW I saw a small performance gain, where friends of mine with the same GTX 770 and an i5 2500k and 4460 were getting 10-15 FPS higher than myself. So depending on your expectations, budget, and future expansion, I would recommend you either get an i5 and new mobo (which means a new windows key) before upgrading further into the FX line.

Currently the game I play the most is Planetside 2, and it generally runs fine, it's just fights with hundreds of people really bogs down my cpu

 

[Redneck5439]

What games do you play? Ones that are not only using 1-2 threads but also CPU intensive are going to effect your performance. My first computer was an FX 4300 and GTX 660. Upgraded later to an FX 8320 and GTX 770. In games like WoW I saw a small performance gain, where friends of mine with the same GTX 770 and an i5 2500k and 4460 were getting 10-15 FPS higher than myself. So depending on your expectations, budget, and future expansion, I would recommend you either get an i5 and new mobo (which means a new windows key) before upgrading further into the FX line.

Currently the game I play the most is Planetside 2, and it generally runs fine, it's just fights with hundreds of people really bogs down my cpu

For an upgrade of just the processor your best bet if the FX 8370E. It will give you about 10% increase single core, 28% increase in memory intensive tasks and a whopping 82% increase in multi-threaded applications. Planetside 2 can apparently take advantage of multiple cores and will run better with the 8 core FX 8370E, however it is a game that requires a good GPU.

 

[Nintendoator]

What games do you play? Ones that are not only using 1-2 threads but also CPU intensive are going to effect your performance. My first computer was an FX 4300 and GTX 660. Upgraded later to an FX 8320 and GTX 770. In games like WoW I saw a small performance gain, where friends of mine with the same GTX 770 and an i5 2500k and 4460 were getting 10-15 FPS higher than myself. So depending on your expectations, budget, and future expansion, I would recommend you either get an i5 and new mobo (which means a new windows key) before upgrading further into the FX line.

Currently the game I play the most is Planetside 2, and it generally runs fine, it's just fights with hundreds of people really bogs down my cpu

For an upgrade of just the processor your best bet if the FX 8370E. It will give you about 10% increase single core, 28% increase in memory intensive tasks and a whopping 82% increase in multi-threaded applications. Planetside 2 can apparently take advantage of multiple cores and will run better with the 8 core FX 8370E, however it is a game that requires a powerful GPU.

Alright, great that sounds good, but will this run well with my current motherboard?

 

[Redneck5439]

Your FX 4300 is 95W, the same as the FX 8370E. AMD used the very best silicon to make the "E" series of chips that require much less power than other FX 8 core processors. The only real limiting factor with your motherboad is the power phase, but the FX 8370E is 95 W, the same as the processor your currently running so the power phase isn't a problem with the 8370E.

http://www.microcenter.com/product/437623/FX_8370E_33GHz_AM3_Black_Edition_Boxed_Processor

 

[ZachyBeat]

For an upgrade of just the processor your best bet if the FX 8370E. It will give you about 10% increase single core, 28% increase in memory intensive tasks and a whopping 82% increase in multi-threaded applications. Planetside 2 can apparently take advantage of multiple cores and will run better with the 8 core FX 8370E, however it is a game that requires a powerful GPU.[/quotemsg]

Can I ask where you're getting those numbers from? Without overclocking, the FX CPUs have very similar single core performance. You will find that evident with many benchmarks comparing the 4300, 6300, and 8350. The 8370E is no different. Yes you will get twice as many cores, but without an application they won't benefit you. I cannot say how CPU or GPU bound Planetside2 is, but I would not recommend investing in the FX line. Until AMD comes out with something new, my next upgrade and recommendations would be an Intel processor for your needs.

EX: Pentium G3258 $100* > Athlon X4 860K $105, except in instances where it requires more than 2 cores
I5 4460 $270 > FX 8350 $260, for a midrange budget
I7 or Xeon (depending on application) > Anything AMD can offer at the price range.
*The prices shown are in CAD as I am from Canada.

This is not biased advice. This is advice from someone who has built a computer with an FX 4300 and FX 8320 and would not recommend upgrading down that path any further. Future AMD CPUs will more than likely have a new socket which means a new mobo and OS anyways.

 

[Nintendoator]

Your FX 4300 is 95W, the same as the FX 8370E. AMD used the very best silicon to make the "E" series of chips that require much less power than other FX 8 core processors. The only real limiting factor with your motherboad is the power phase, but the FX 8370E is 95 W, the same as the processor your currently running so the power phase isn't a problem with the 8370E.

Great, this all seems to be coming together, so for installation I just pop off the fan remove the old cpu, wipe the thermal glue on and insert the new cpu? Am I missing any steps in my very rushed list?

 

[ZachyBeat]

You'll want to make sure you clean the contact on the cooler and quickly wipe down the CPU as well. Would recommend paper towel with a little isopropyl alcohol. When putting new paste on, put it on the cpu and not the cooler. Just a small dab in the middle will do.

 

[Redneck5439]

For an upgrade of just the processor your best bet if the FX 8370E. It will give you about 10% increase single core, 28% increase in memory intensive tasks and a whopping 82% increase in multi-threaded applications. Planetside 2 can apparently take advantage of multiple cores and will run better with the 8 core FX 8370E, however it is a game that requires a powerful GPU.

Can I ask where you're getting those numbers from? Without overclocking, the FX CPUs have very similar single core performance. You will find that evident with many benchmarks comparing the 4300, 6300, and 8350. The 8370E is no different. Yes you will get twice as many cores, but without an application they won't benefit you. I cannot say how CPU or GPU bound Planetside2 is, but I would not recommend investing in the FX line. Until AMD comes out with something new, my next upgrade and recommendations would be an Intel processor for your needs.

EX: Pentium G3258 $100* > Athlon X4 860K $105, except in instances where it requires more than 2 cores
I5 4460 $270 > FX 8350 $260, for a midrange budget
I7 or Xeon (depending on application) > Anything AMD can offer at the price range.
*The prices shown are in CAD as I am from Canada.

This is not biased advice. This is advice from someone who has built a computer with an FX 4300 and FX 8320 and would not recommend upgrading down that path any further. Future AMD CPUs will more than likely have a new socket which means a new mobo and OS anyways.[/quotemsg]

The FX 8370 was AMDs last refresh. The FX 8370 has the best binning (and tweaks) producing 7% performance increase over the older FX 8350 (and thus 6300, ect). The FX 8350 has roughly 6% single core performance increase over the FX 4300. Single core is hard with the FX series in general, but the FX 8370 should boast about 10% better single core performance (at stock clocks - OP really can't overclock on his motherboard). It will be a nice upgrade (especially with any multi-threaded task) over the FX 4300 without the need to upgrade both motherboard and processor which is going to be much more expensive.

I would also like to know where your getting your prices from as the FX 8370E is $149 and the FX 8350 is even cheaper.

 

[ZachyBeat]

My prices are in Canadian on Newegg.ca. With a dollar 30 cents behind the USD prices will vary greatly. The 82% increase you listed for multicore performance will only be relevant if the user was to use all 8 cores, which will not be the case. It's similar to the GTX 970 having 3.5GB of Vram. You're going to reach the limitations of the chips before reaching the limitations of Vram in a video game, for the 970, and before you reach 8 cores used for the 8370e. Also, the reason I didn't list a price for the 8370e was because it wasn't available on Newegg so I took the 8350 for relative comparison.

 

[ZachyBeat]

Having struggled with poor gaming performance with my 8320 I just can't recommend a user to spend the money on something in the same class as it. At the end of the day you'd be digging yourself a bigger hole and more of a reason not to buy an Intel after spending $400+ on FX cpus and an AM3+ mobo.

To avoid any confusion; I went from a 4300 to 8320. I listed a price for an 8350. And an 8370e is just barely above that.

My main concern is that while yes an 8370e is better than a 4300, you will not see huge single core performance gain like you would by going with an i5 4460 or similar. The fps/$ just doesn't make sense when comparing them.

 

[Redneck5439]

My prices are in Canadian on Newegg.ca. With a dollar 30 cents behind the USD prices will vary greatly. The 82% increase you listed for multicore performance will only be relevant if the user was to use all 8 cores, which will not be the case. It's similar to the GTX 970 having 3.5GB of Vram. You're going to reach the limitations of the chips before reaching the limitations of Vram in a video game, for the 970, and before you reach 8 cores used for the 8370e. Also, the reason I didn't list a price for the 8370e was because it wasn't available on Newegg so I took the 8350 for relative comparison.

Believe it or not, there are more vendors online than just Newegg, its not the only place to shop:lol:

I agree for the best upgrade possible it would be best to switch to Intel i5 6600K or i7 6700K. Of course if the OP doesn't have the budget for getting a new motherboard, processor, RAM (for Skylake), Windows OS... and just wants to upgrade his processor and only his processor the very best upgrade, the very best bang for your buck is the FX 8370E. Anything else is going to require a new motherboard, processor, and Windows OS. If you upgrade your motherboard will also have to buy a new Windows OS, as OEM Windows won't carry over to a new computer and replacing the motherboard (especially to Intel) makes it a different computer.

Upgrading to Intel is going to be expensive, you will need new motherboard, new processor, and new Windows OS at bare minimum, if you go Skylake you need new RAM (DDR 4). I was suggesting the FX 8370E as it would give a good upgrade in performance and only cost the OP $149 as opposed to $500 - $700 for i5.

 

[Nintendoator]

I am not currently trying to overhaul my whole system (the hole in my wallet is still burning from my current pc) however I will really keep in mind Intel as the path to go, a couple years down the line, given at that point I'll have more money.

 

[Redneck5439]

I am not currently trying to overhaul my whole system (the hole in my wallet is still burning from my current pc) however I will really keep in mind Intel as the path to go, a couple years down the line, given at that point I'll have more money.

Then the very best upgrade and bang for you buck that you can get is the FX 8370E. I personally own a FX 8370 as my gaming rig, and I build Intel and AMD rigs for customers all the time. The FX 8370(E) is really a good processor, you will love your upgrade

 

[Red_Sun]

I see the 8350 and 8370 single thread rating are almost identical on passmark.com. Also noting the FX8350 scored 8940, with the FX8370 coming somewhat lower at 8912. Any idea why this would be?