Worth upgrading my s939 CPU?

[kcirbmab]

Currently Running:
- A64 3200
- 1.5gb DDR400
- x800

I'd like to upgrade my video card (maybe a 4850) but the CPU would be an obvious bottleneck. Would it be worth upgrading to an x2 3800 ($60) or x2 4400 ($100)?

I'd really like to get another two or three years out of my current machine until I can afford a completely new computer, but I'm not sure if this upgrade would make much of a difference in modern games.

Running XP, my resolution is 1280x1024 and I find ~30fps comfortable.

 

[pepperman]

What is the model of your mobo? Also, what kind of games do you play (RTS, FPS, etc.)?

 

[dkapke]

I can tell you without hesitation that NO 939 processor will ever push an HD4850. In fact, they won't even come close to pushing an HD4670. That said, the 4850's are getting pretty cheap...you should be able to find one for around $100 (512Mb) to $115 (1Gb)...maybe less on eBay. The only advantage to doing that (and spending the $25-$40 more than an HD4670) is that you can bring that card over to any new build you do in the future. Of course, if you're going to do that, the HD5750 is as fast as the 4850 but you get DX11 and EyeFinity for only $15 more than a 4850.

Bottom line is...what you have now won't even push an HD4670 and no CPU you can put in there will matter as even an FX62 on an AM2 board won't push it. The HD4670 is FAR faster than than the X800 you have and will work quite nicely, but a 4850 would be overkill unless you want to bring it over to a new PC down the road.

 

[justaguywithagun]

dkapke is correct, any S939 will probably bottleneck a 4850, but it would be a worthwhile investment for your next build. however, upgrading to a x2 3800 for 60 bucks isnt bad, especially if your mobo supports overclocking. i hit almost 3ghz on my old s939 x2 3800 and it provided a nice speed bump

 

[unknown_13]

no,no,no

even if you upgrade it to an s939 athlon x2, it wont be much of an upgrade if you wanna put in something like 4850

better of getting a non-expensive amd cpu/mb like phenom 2 x2 550 and 785g

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819103680
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813128397 or some other mobo

throw an hd4850 in that & 3-4gb ddr3 ram and you will have a very good gaming pc that will last (suggesting you're not a hardcore gamer😉 )

 

[kyzar]

My old laptop has a mobile version of the x800 and it still plays Source games, EVE, FarCry and other stuff perfectly acceptably at 1680x1050.

I would suggest a CPU upgrade first - it depends on what you play as to how much of a difference you see. CnC Tib Wars / Kanes Wrath for example is a single-threaded PoS coding effort that starts to crawl on very busy maps (leaving 3 cores at idle), even on my Phenom II 955. At least with a dual core you can offload the O/S overhead elsewhere. A good newish multi-core CPU should help everything though over an old S939 cpu, not just gaming.

 

[justaguywithagun]

No it's pointless.

But you could get a E5200/E3200 and a mobo for less than a hundred bucks and that would be 3 times as fast. Not to mention both are potent overclockers, were talking 3.5-4ghz with aftermarket cooling.

this is true, but then he'd be left with another dead end machine, and saying that a EXXXX+mobo would be less than 100 bucks is misleading, as he'd need ram as well. so its all moot unless he wants to pony up the cash for an AM3/1156/1366 rig..which he apparently doesnt. the cheapest upgrade would be to an X2 3800 which would suffice for mild/moderate gaming for the next year or two while not breaking the bank, while also being quite overclockable and a noticable upgrade from his single core a64 3200

 

[Pro Llama]

If you are looking to get a few more years out of your pc getting a 4850 would not be worth it. If you were going to upgrade the full system in about a month or so it would be worth it. By the time you can actually use the power of the 4850 it will be the bottleneck of your system. If you can stand playing games at the fps your currently at then hold off on buying anything.

If you want something now, for the price of the x2 4400 you could buy a PII 555 or a PII 720. You would need a new AM3 board which would cost about $60 for a good cheap board and then you could get 2gb of ddr3 ram for about $50. That is $110 over what you were looking to spend but it gives you much more performance gain and makes your system able to be upgraded later.

 

[unknown_13]

If you are looking to get a few more years out of your pc getting a 4850 would not be worth it. If you were going to upgrade the full system in about a month or so it would be worth it. By the time you can actually use the power of the 4850 it will be the bottleneck of your system. If you can stand playing games at the fps your currently at then hold off on buying anything.

If you want something now, for the price of the x2 4400 you could buy a PII 555 or a PII 720. You would need a new AM3 board which would cost about $60 for a good cheap board and then you could get 2gb of ddr3 ram for about $50. That is $110 over what you were looking to spend but it gives you much more performance gain and makes your system able to be upgraded later.

+1 to that

 

[kcirbmab]

Thanks for the advice, guys. I've decided to hold off until I can get a fully new computer.

 

[kcirbmab]

Best answer selected by kcirbmab.