AMD A10-5800K or Intel i3/i5 ??

[ttechf]

Hey, I saw the release of AMD's new Quad Core A10-5800k. Some say it's not a true quad core or whatnot. Well, I'm not sure what processor to go with for a new computer build. All I want, is no lag, lol. I'm tired of lag. I plan to put in a SSD and a healthy amount of memory in, and all that. I plan to use this at my HTPC but also as my main PC since I'm not made of money and can't have two separate ones. lol.


But here is what I would mainly use my computer for :

- Having 20 Google Chrome tabs open at the same time - NOT all youtube videos.
- Stock Trading software program / charting program
- Occassional use of Photoshop or Lightroom
- FLAC to MP3 converting [music]
- AVI to MP4 converting [video]
- Microsoft Office
- VLC media player - movies/music playing
- Skype
- Light to moderate gaming
- iTunes
- XBMC



I'm not sure if the A10-5800K would be best here, or if I grab a i3 or i5 and pair it up with a cheap graphic card. I know going the intel route would be more costly but is it worth it? Would I notice the speed in what I do? Or is AMD fine? All questions that hopefully someone here can help me out with, lol.

Thank you for your time! : ]

 

[jhu]

here you go

 

[MisterMac]

Most modern processors will do all of your above in lower end versions.

Everything is subjective - hence you need to figure out what "light gaming is".

Personally, for gaming i'd rather grab an i3 + hd 7750/7770 depending on your budget.
Since for desktop size resolutions (1680x1050 and above) - imho 5800k still lacks a punch.


The 5800k probably will fit your bill very well however - if you don't wanna up off the 100 usd extra cost for dGPU with a intel system.
Again subjective, maybe HD4000 is enough for your "gaming".
post your old specs, so people know what you consider slow.


But from an overall "speed" perspective the LARGEST upgrade will be an SSD for your apps\OS.
That will feel like an upgrade from heaven - with your usage id wager you won't feel much diff from a 5800k to i3/i5 ivy with a dGPU.
(except when gaming of course).

 

[ttechf]

Most modern processors will do all of your above in lower end versions.

Everything is subjective - hence you need to figure out what "light gaming is".

Personally, for gaming i'd rather grab an i3 + hd 7750/7770 depending on your budget.
Since for desktop size resolutions (1680x1050 and above) - imho 5800k still lacks a punch.


The 5800k probably will fit your bill very well however - if you don't wanna up off the 100 usd extra cost for dGPU with a intel system.
Again subjective, maybe HD4000 is enough for your "gaming".
post your old specs, so people know what you consider slow.


But from an overall "speed" perspective the LARGEST upgrade will be an SSD for your apps\OS.
That will feel like an upgrade from heaven - with your usage id wager you won't feel much diff from a 5800k to i3/i5 ivy with a dGPU.
(except when gaming of course).

Thanks a lot! Also, I'm currently using a laptop with a Phenom II AMD 1.6Ghz quad core chip in it. This thing, I cannot stand. It's SLOOOOOOW. TONS of lag. I hate it.

 

[Yuriman]

Your current system would probably be enough for you with a RAM upgrade and an SSD, but I'd personally continue with the new build. As MisterMac said, those parts are going to make more difference than anything.

 

[ttechf]

Your current system would probably be enough for you with a RAM upgrade and an SSD, but I'd personally continue with the new build. As MisterMac said, those parts are going to make more difference than anything.

Well I want a new laptop too but I am going to wait for Haswell, for that. I'll get an i5 in my laptop.

 

[Madpacket]

The 5800K would be perfect for your use case. If you find the gaming performance lacking you can always add a better card later if need be but you're probably better off saving the money or putting it towards something else.

Just make sure you go with at least DDR3 1866 RAM speeds (8GB is plenty) andd a solid SSD. I recommend Intel SSD's, the 520 series are very fast and reliable.

 

[ttechf]

The 5800K would be perfect for your use case. If you find the gaming performance lacking you can always add a better card later if need be but you're probably better off saving the money or putting it towards something else.

Just make sure you go with at least DDR3 1866 RAM speeds (8GB is plenty) andd a solid SSD. I recommend Intel SSD's, the 520 series are very fast and reliable.

Thanks but I rarely game. I mean, of my usage like 10% would be gaming, lol. Just want snappiness and quickness while having many things open like I said in my first post. : ]

Also, you say Intel SSD, I say Crucial SSD Sata III.

PS - you say it would be perfect. By that do you mean just enough or WAY more than I need? I'd rather have more than I need or "overkill" if you will so it lasts me for quite some time. Thanks again. : ]

 

[Madpacket]

Thanks but I rarely game. I mean, of my usage like 10% would be gaming, lol. Just want snappiness and quickness while having many things open like I said in my first post. : ]

Also, you say Intel SSD, I say Crucial SSD Sata III.

PS - you say it would be perfect. By that do you mean just enough or WAY more than I need? I'd rather have more than I need or "overkill" if you will so it lasts me for quite some time. Thanks again. : ]

Crucial SSD's are a good choice as well.

I mean perfect in a sense that AMD created this 5800K CPU for folks with essentially your requirements. The gaming performance should be enough for most games at low-medium settings and you'll likely be able to play older games with most of the details cranked (think Source engine games). For newer and more demanding games like BF3 etc you'll need to lower the resolution or details but this GPU is more than adequate for most games.

You have to keep in mind that until the new gaming consoles come (maybe by the end of next year or sometime in 2014) the development focus will still be on PS3/XBOX style graphics which this AMD APU should be able to handle without too many issues therefore I think you'll be fine with it as long as your expectations are inline with how it performs.

Good luck!

 

[Arkaign]

Thanks but I rarely game. I mean, of my usage like 10% would be gaming, lol. Just want snappiness and quickness while having many things open like I said in my first post. : ]

Also, you say Intel SSD, I say Crucial SSD Sata III.

PS - you say it would be perfect. By that do you mean just enough or WAY more than I need? I'd rather have more than I need or "overkill" if you will so it lasts me for quite some time. Thanks again. : ]

Hmm. No gaming? I think you may be better off with an i3 honestly. I prefer the SATA/USB on new Intel boards to AMD-based boards.

Really either will be fine, but with the Intel you can use regular 1333 or 1600 DDR3 and still get better performance.

We don't really know how far AMD will take FM2 compatibility. As it is, if you build a 1155 system with an i3, you could always drop in a 3770K or 2700K a few years down the line on the cheap to keep it cranking. I suppose it's possible AMD could release something as fast as a 2700K/3770K on FM2, but I wouldn't bet on it by any stretch.

About the only reason to go A10 is if you want to game and don't want to buy a discrete GPU at all. An i3 w/7750 (under $100 for that GPU) will flat murder an A10 in gaming. But as you said, rarely game?

 

[Enigmoid]

Depends on resolution too, at 1080p the a10 will suck, better than hd 4000 but still suck. If you are at 1080p and you want to game you should probably invest in a dgpu (7770).