[SOLVED] Is it worth upgrading my Phenom II X4 970 to Athlon 200ge?

[Atyop]

Basically I'm Happy with my phenom in terms of multitasking , I was thinking about upgrading to Athlon 200ge for the igpu and AM4 Mobo that will let me upgrade to a ryzen cpu eventually , will I loose multitasking performance ( 4 real cores vs 2 cores 4 threads)?

 

[WildCard999]

You'll gain a little bit in performance as far as multitasking and for gaming you should see a few more FPS.
https://cpu.userbenchmark.com/Compare/AMD-Phenom-II-X4-970-vs-AMD-Athlon-200GE/m2231vsm592714

If it's going to be a placeholder until the 3rd gen comes out then it's a good choice.

 

[mdd1963]

If I were going to upgrade CPUs and RAM for an AM4 rig, I would not then be inserting but a $60 CPU (and the slowest model made for desktop use for AM4) into the new rig...

Get the R5-2600 like everyone else...!

(JK, but If you need a placeholder, try for a 2400G, as at least it has marginal graphics capabilities integrated into the CPU)

 

[ohiou_grad_2006]

I say if you are using it until ryzen 3000 then go for it. That option at least gets you off of a 10 year old platform and onto an updated platform worth upgrade options.

 

[WildCard999]

If I were going to upgrade CPUs and RAM for an AM4 rig, I would not then be inserting but a $60 CPU (and the slowest model made for desktop use for AM4) into the new rig...

Get the R5-2600 like everyone else...!

(JK, but If you need a placeholder, try for a 2400G, as at least it has marginal graphics capabilities integrated into the CPU)

But....if the OP gets a board that allows overclocking the 200GE then it's well worth it for a $60 CPU @4ghz.

 

[ohiou_grad_2006]

Point taken. Then run that until you can get 8 cores 16 threads or better at close to 5ghz.

 

[NightHawkRMX]

If you can streatch to a 2200g you wont need to upgrade soon since it offers much more powerfull igpu delivering 1080p performance rather than the low settings 720 with the 200ge. The 2200g also has 4 cores rather than the 2 of the 200ge

 

[justin.m.beauvais]

If I were going to upgrade CPUs and RAM for an AM4 rig, I would not then be inserting but a $60 CPU (and the slowest model made for desktop use for AM4) into the new rig...

Get the R5-2600 like everyone else...!

(JK, but If you need a placeholder, try for a 2400G, as at least it has marginal graphics capabilities integrated into the CPU)

Why on Earth would you use a 2400G as a place holder and not just get a Ryzen 5 2600. They are $10 apart in most places. The better placeholder would be a 2200G.

That said, the 200GE is a great idea for getting on the platform. It is nice and cheap but not really an upgrade from where you are, only 14% faster. Though it would be best if you have a competent graphics card to stick with it. The Vega 3 graphics are ok... but not terribly powerful. The CPU itself is quite capable though. If you have the extra $40 or so to spend you can get the 2200G which is a sizable upgrade from the Phenom at a 63% performance uplift. Also the Vega 8 graphics are pretty ok for most games at 720p. In lightly threaded workloads and with a capable graphics card it would be a better option than the 200GE or the 2400G. If you need the threads, skip the 2400G and go straight for the 2600 though.

 

[Karadjgne]

Cpu depends on gpu. If op has no gpu to speak of, then a Ryzen will be pointless and the Vega graphics on a 2200G/2400G will be a huge step up over those on the phenom.

 

[justin.m.beauvais]

The Phenoms have no iGPU. So he has to have a GPU of some kind. Is it a modern GPU? Well, I have no earthly idea, but if it is an old GPU then Vega 8 would be a great upgrade.

So, in my opinion the 2200G is the perfect upgrade. It provides a great boost in performance on the CPU side, and provides GPU of reasonable performance. If the GPU is the original one from his system it is going to have DX10.1 at best. My Phenom II had an HD 4890 in it, and it was a great card, but I had to replace it because I needed a DX 11 card to keep playing games. So chances are that the Vega 8 graphics would be a great upgrade as well. Making the 2200G a good stepping stone, or even a good light gaming machine to keep for a while.

 

[NightHawkRMX]

Ever heard of on board graphics?

 

[quaackl0l]

Speaking of processing performance jump, it won't be that much from X4 esp with 2 less cores. Besides that'll benefit you consuming much less power & gaining much more recent architecture along with bunch of improvements.

On the platform side, it sure is will open the door to the latest technology. AM4 also may have few years until it gets 'euthanized'.

Like some repliers said here, go for it & upgrade to the real deal later.

 

[Karadjgne]

That's taking 2 nodes with shared Lcache between each nodes 2x cores and moving upto 2 solid cores with a new infinity engine hyperthreading that's got close to a 60% IPC increase and larger Lcache. A 200GE is seriously faster and more capable than any Phenom, no matter what the per core loading happens to be.

 

[maziech]

Hey, wake up, it's 2019.... "upgrading" to 200ge is a joke itself
Why would You do that, if You can buy R5 2600 or Ryzen 1600x for almost the same money....?

 

[Karadjgne]

I'm guessing from the pc's age and usage and budget that Op doesn't have a gpu worth much at all, probably along the lines of a nvidia gt520, so a move to Ryzen x600 or better will be pointless. Right now, Op needs something that's usable Right Now, and can be upgraded later when funds allow for such.

 

[maziech]

Yep, but still... if it's not for gaming purposes, You can buy a used 5-10$ external graphics and get much better performance on CPU.

I mean... if it was only CPU... But buying entire setup like motherboard, ram, cpu, cooling and saving 60$ on CPU loosing like 60% performance at the same time?... makes no sense for me.

 

[gggplaya]

I think the 200GE is fine lateral move. Keep in mind that he's going from 4 cores (40% slower IPC) to 2 core/ 4 threads with 40% faster IPC. Hyperthreading usually results in about 30% slower performance compared to using the actual core. But since the phenom has 40% slower IPC in comparison, the 200GE's hyperthreads are probably still 10% faster than a Phenom Core. So depending on clock speed, the 200GE will probably be a faster chip since it's main 2 cores will be 40% faster and it's 2 extra threads will be on par with the Phenom. I would eventually upgrade to a Ryzen 3rd gen Zen 2 when they come out.

 

[maziech]

Waiting for 3rd gen is fine, but why to buy 200ge for a few months and waste money instead ? It's like replacing one low performance with low performance+

 

[Karadjgne]

Those used $5 - $10 gpus are gt710-730 ish, and the graphics on that 200Ge are quite superior to those, somewhat around the level of a gtx750, enough to average @135fps in cs:go with decent settings.

 

[maziech]

Still not enough.... However if that's the case (like a really budget-oriented solution), then it's best to buy a R3 2200g or R5 2400g - it's way better.... 2 core systems are dead.