Question: Upgrading from Phenom II 955

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Tismo

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Jan 8, 2013
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I am planning on upgrading my CPU pretty soon and I can't decide between the I5 3570k or the FX 8350. I know that the 3570k is better at gaming, but I want to know if the extra performance is worth the extra money.

My current specs are:

AMD Phenom II 955 @4.0
MSI NF750-g55 AM3 socket
8 gigs ram @1600
XFX 850 watt psu
Sapphire HD 7950

I'm assuming that the ASRock Z77 Extreme4 mobo would be an okay choice for either the I5 or the FX.

Prices without 8% tax and shipping charges.

I5 3570k + ASrock Z77 Extreme4 LGA 1155 = $365

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819116504
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813157293


FX 8350 + ASrock Z77 Extreme4 am3+ = $290

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819113284
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813157262


Is the extra performance worth the extra $75~?
Also, which CPU/MOBO combo would be better for futureproofing?

I'm sorry if this threading is beating a dead horse, but I couldn't find a thread that quite answered my question.
Thank you for the help.

EDIT: Forgot to mention my PC is used mostly for gaming.
 
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Tismo

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Jan 8, 2013
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You make a good point. I've kind of changed my mind again lol. I think I'm going to get a 3570k.

Since the 1155 socket wont be used after this generation I'm thinking I could maybe buy a mobo thats a bit on the cheaper side.

Could you guys recommend a mobo that I could crossfire 7950s and do a little CPU overclocking? I want to try and save as much money as possble without getting complete garbage.

I don't really plan on overclocking anything other that my CPU and GPU if that makes a difference.
 
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ocmusicjunkie

ocmusicjunkie

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Jun 6, 2012
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1000000% agree on this having tried 6850's to save on upgrding to a newer card a while back. In theory and on paper it should have been equal to at least a 7850. In practice it was a headache and worked slower in many areas than a single card.
 
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Z1NONLY

Z1NONLY

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That motherboard is not good for crossfire/SLI.

Most GPU's that can be x-fire/SLI take up two "slots". On the board you linked to, it will have the top GPU right up against the bottom GPU and it will get very little air.

 
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patricksmash

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AMD and Intel jargons are not totally interchangeable. Intel does not employ Modules. AMD does. Sarinaide has been pointing this out in several threads. For the most general level comparison lets just say that comparing an i5 and 6300, intel's cpu package has 4 cores while AMD has 6 cores arranged in 3 modules. The six cores share certain front end features in a module. Fetch, Decoder and fpu.
Click to expand...

This is a very good overview of how it works. Unfortunately gaming developers are not using the AMD architecture correctly/efficienty so there will always be a performance gap and at the moment it is quite vast. That is not to say that it is not a design that works, just that it does not work as well as Intel with standard applications. This is mainly down to the fact that code compilers for games use Intel compilers or those that favour that architecture. In HPC applications AMD is much more widely used due to the fact that all code is heavily structured/optimised for the task. We will never get this in PCs since there is such a large variation.

This actually explains why we can still get games to work on Xbox and PS3 when some low end PC's (that on paper are miles better) can't play at anything like the detail. I hope that we get a parity in new gen consoles where PC hardware is actually pushed.
 
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sarinaide

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Jul 14, 2011
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Tismo, you don't strike me as the kind of person that needs to pay a cent above minimal.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813128519 - Mobo $115
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819113286 - CPU $140
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820148519 - RAM $55

Total $300

I have worked with enough motherboards to tell you truthfully, if a Intel motherboard costs bellow $200 its generally a problem board. I have RMA'd many Asrock Pro 3's and 4's, ASUS LE's, Gigabyte UD3's. Intel motherboards bellow $200 give you skint nothing and full of potential haphazards.

 
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swifty_morgan

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first thing........ that Crucial Ballistix Tactical Tracer memory listed......... any ballistix memory I ever purchased, every one, there was always a stick that went bad. doesn't matter what it was....

OP.......... If I were you I would forget about cross firing. get one card and run it into the ground. it's bigger than any card I use for gaming and I have no problems yet..... other than cpu depravity.... and that would be taken care of if i lowered my settings some.

having said that, the mobo has a 4x slot. i have seen benchmarks run somewhere cross firing with a 4x slot and there wasn't much penalty in the games they ran. you can change the board to an 8x-8x if you look hard enough.

by the time the single 7950 runs dry, new cards that will be out by then will be twice or more as fast..... a single card.

 
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stantheman123

stantheman123

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Hey I'm back I see you've changed your mind for the i5 3570k. That's fine a cpu . If you do choose to go amd get the 6 core since you plan to get steam roller no point buying the flag ship. Either way I'm certain you will be happy with either.amd CPUs are less money offer great bang for buck. However intel is intel there single thread peforemance, pcie 3.0 , lower power is very nice as well. IMO I would get the am3+ get 6300/4300 and steam roler later. That's just me though.
 
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Tismo

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Jan 8, 2013
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Well, I changed my mind yet again. I've pretty much made my mind on the FX6300. I just need to know which of these boards would be better for overclocking.

http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/SearchTools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=3184372&sku=A455-8426

or

http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/SearchTools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=667675&sku=G452-1042

Assuming Steamroller is AM3+ do you guys think that there is a good chance those boards would get a bios update to support SR?

Again guys thank you for all the help.
 
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Z1NONLY

Z1NONLY

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I just sold a my rig with the UD3 MB. It overclocked my 1045t nicely. I also used that same model in a build for one of my son's friends, and we overclocked his 4100 up to 4.4Ghz IIRC.

It's a good board.

I now have an Asus P8Z77 V-pro (Intel) and it's nicer than the UD3 was, but it's also a high-end (expensive) Asus where the UD3 was more of a mid-level offering from Gigabyte. (Not really apples to apples.)

If I were to choose between those two, I would go with the Gigabyte, just because it has a perfect 2 for 2 record with me. The Asus is probably fine also, but I have no direct experience with that particular board.
 
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stantheman123

stantheman123

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Both boards are great however. i choose the asus If your doing crossfire/sli its great for that supports x16sli/crossfire most motherboards dont
 
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lazyboy947

lazyboy947

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Open boxed asus sabertooth 990fx R1 or R2, $130-135 on Newegg. I got one and put in my bro in laws pc with a 8150, no problem got all the accessories, and have gotten at least sata cables, driver cd, and I/O shield with every open boxed item i got, and they all worked fine and are still going, the sabertooth is a great board and something to look at. Open boxes they are only guarenteed to get u the motherboard and thats its, so there is a risk of not getting the I/O shield, or drivers etc, or even for it to fully work, but when its about $50 off from new its not a bad deal

They even have the asus 990fx board for $112 the non sabertooth or crosshair V lol
 
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Tismo

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Jan 8, 2013
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I ended up buying the Asus board and an FX 6300. Still waiting for them to be shipped.

Thanks again for the help guys.
 
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