Which Cpu to choose?

[pdizzle]

Hello My name is preston and I hve all parts for my computer but looking for a good AM3 Socket processor. Looking at the AMD Phenom II X4 960T and AMD Phenom II X4 955 but also looking at the Amd Phenom II x2 555 3.2ghz. It is a dual core but... Which CPU should I get of those 3.

Prices matter

I want the best performance I can

MY Motherboard only accepts 95-125w CPUS

Can it handle Starcraft 2 and Skyrim

Budget is 80$

SO please which one should I get I researched each one extensively.

 

[pdizzle]

I forgot to mention I might not or I will overclock But I bought a Cooler Master Hyper 212+ One of the best CPU coolers. Just letting you know

 

[CaedenV]

for the games you listed you need a quad core CPU, and then OC it to the moon. Obviously your GPU is likely to be a bigger bottleneck, but I assume you already have one.

 

[pdizzle]

I have an Nvidia Geforce 8800 GTx plan to upgrade soon though.

 

[wr6133]

960T or 955

I would take the 960T but either will do you well

 

[amuffin]

955.

 

[pdizzle]

i can get the 555 for 20$ used and it unlocks to 4 coresso basically a Amd phenom II x4 970 almost. I cna ge thte 960T for 80$ new and the 955 for 75$ new which one???

I mean their all great CPU's but which ONE???

 

[jomoreb]

well since (am assuming you already bought your motherboard ) i would go with AMD Phenom II X4 955 but if not , consider AMD A6-3650... its inexpensive and a quad core processor...thats my 2 cents

 

[pdizzle]

i bought the ECS Elitegroup IC780M-A2 (V1.0A) it's an ok board check it out see if it's good

 

[Rockdpm]

Just buy the 955. I don't recommend that motherboard. But sounds like you don't have a lot of money to spend. But if you can afford a better board cheaping out on us...Your making a mistake. We can find a better board for you for the price range you have. ECS is kinda a cheapo board and not for gaming... I just upgraded from a 955 before, but i am actually going back to Phenom II as the performance for AMD's new FX isn't all that hyped up it was advertised. I got a 980 off newegg. the Phenom II 980 is 149$ (Free Shipping) on newegg. Its OEM, but the CPU is all that matters. and if your gonna overclock, you won't be using the stock cooler. You will buy a after market cooler. If you don't you will regret it. Also before overclocking (If you do) please read up and talk to us before over clocking.

 

[pdizzle]

I already bought the mobo yes it is very budget.. But it is all that I require at this time. can you look at all the specs of the mobo and determine if it OK for 35$? because that's what I got it for. I already bought Coolermaster hYper 212+ for a CPU cooler. just in case I want to overclock. But for price/performance ratio this board isn't too bad and I already bought it it will be here in 1 day soo yeah. Well if you can find A better board pelase do so price range is 35-40$ Has to be Am3 or Am3+ Socket and have DDR3 1333mhz RAm supported. Thank you if you find me a better board

 

[cmi86]

I already bought the mobo yes it is very budget.. But it is all that I require at this time. can you look at all the specs of the mobo and determine if it OK for 35$? because that's what I got it for. I already bought Coolermaster hYper 212+ for a CPU cooler. just in case I want to overclock. But for price/performance ratio this board isn't too bad and I already bought it it will be here in 1 day soo yeah. Well if you can find A better board pelase do so price range is 35-40$ Has to be Am3 or Am3+ Socket and have DDR3 1333mhz RAm supported. Thank you if you find me a better board

It essentially boils down to get a 955 Get a higher clock.

Get a 960T get a lower clock (that you can just slide your multi and clock it the same as 955 without even raising voltage)
Get a 2000Mhz memory controller vs. 955's 1333Mhz contoller
Get roughly 80% chance of unlocking to stable 6X Phenom II 1600/1605, essentially a 1075T (your starcraft will love you for this)
Get a 95w TDP vs. 955's 125w TDP resulting in lower temps from the 960T
Get a 960T and save money to put towards a decent board because to be completely honest there are no AM3+ boards under $90.00 worth buying (trust me I tried the $50 asus, bio-star and MSI's... Don't waste your time, 6 boards 5 RMA's, many head aches. Lesson Learned.)

 

[truegenius]

what? 2000mhz memory controller? Link?

 

[cmi86]

http://www.pcstats.com/articleview.cfm?articleID=2550

Have a read my friend.

 

[pdizzle]

I have decided to get the 960T since it can unlock to 6 cores if I'm lucky. Thank you all for your help.

 

[Uther39]

I have decided to get the 960T since it can unlock to 6 cores if I'm lucky. Thank you all for your help.

Apart from the fact that it will not unlock to 6 cores on the mobo that you bought.

 

[pdizzle]

What do you suggest for abetter motherboard?

 

[Uther39]

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813131733R

 

[pdizzle]

That thing is 89$ I don't have that kind of money...

 

[mildgamer001]

also, do not get a dual core phenom in hopes of unlocking a quad core, if it was refurbished/returned, there is even more of a possibility that someone returned it because it didnt unlock. and even with new ones, there is really only a 50/50 chance that it will unlock. its a nice bonus when you get it, but dont ever bank on unlocking amd cores. and look into cheap am3 boards on newegg, i had found one a while ago that could unlock and had am3+ for like 60-70$, it went out of stock a few days ago. asrock is in somewhat high demends i suppose. but there is plenty of usable boards ot there, i wouldnt go with ecs though unless you are building servers, i dont see many good reviews with desktop PCs with them, also they make teh ugliest colored boards ever. so if you have a side panel window it is just more reason not to buy from them..

 

[pdizzle]

Yes I decided on the 960T already and I will keep searching for abetter mobo thanx.

 

[cmi86]

Yes I decided on the 960T already and I will keep searching for abetter mobo thanx.

Asrock and ASUS both have 970, USB 3.0, SATA 6 GB/PS, Dual PCI-E X-16 slots full ATX boards for about 90 bucks, trust me it is worth it just save a couple more dollars and get a good board.

 

[Uther39]

Asrock and ASUS both have 970, USB 3.0, SATA 6 GB/PS, Dual PCI-E X-16 slots full ATX boards for about 90 bucks, trust me it is worth it just save a couple more dollars and get a good board.

+1

 

[pdizzle]

HOw about this board I can get it for 67$ manufacturer refurbished

ASUS M4A87TD EVO AMD 870

 

[Uther39]

yep that's better.