AMD Llano A8-3870 Build tips

[Kristijonas]

No no I don't have the signature PC anymore. I'm replacing it with a Llano PC.

 

[Soulkeeper]

I just went down to fry's
they had "a8 3870 $139" on their billboard, but the guy said they won't actually have them untill jan 5th

 

[Vesku]

No no I don't have the signature PC anymore. I'm replacing it with a Llano PC.

Well I can see the urge to tinker with the unlocked Llano's but from a gaming perspective I'd suggest an unlocked Phenom II and a discrete card. Should be able to hit the same budget and have higher settings in games. Doesn't seem the FM1 motherboard will be compatible with Trinity so no downside to an AM3 board.

Nothing wrong with getting the A8 if you have your mind set on it though. Can always throw in a discrete later if it bugs you.

As for tips, DDR3 1866 seems to be the sweet spot for Llano. Not sure about your market but I'm starting to see some great 1866 (2x4GB) deals in the US.

 

[Kristijonas]

Yes you are correct, I do have my mind set to this. I think I will love a PC with only a CPU in it that is able to run anything that is thrown at it (with certain settings). And I will also be getting a good offer for all the parts and will be able to sell this PC for almost the same price if I want to perhaps when Trinity BE or Ivy Bridge processors are out.

 

[know of fence]

The fact that Llano is tested with modern games everywhere, is some kind of cruel joke at the expense of both AMD and the readers. DX11 or not, the platform was probably aimed at less intensive, casual or indie games like The Sims or strategy games as well as your long running MMORPGs and PS2 era games (like Half Life 2/GTA San Andreas). It is barely able to run Elder Scrolls: Oblivion, an early 360 game.
http://www.anandtech.com/show/4476/amd-a83850-review/7
Llano is about 5 years behind when it comes to graphics, and even though consoles haven't changed since display resolutions on desktops have doubled.

 

[Kristijonas]

Barely run Oblivion? Look at the charts again And minimum fps of 80 in half-life2 is good too. Also 3870 GPU will be able to be overclocked to 980mhz, compared to the 600mhz of 3850. Plus I'll be using very fast RAM memory, so another +20% graphical performance increase. Everything is thought of.

 

[brybir]

The fact that Llano is tested with modern games everywhere, is some kind of cruel joke at the expense of both AMD and the readers. DX11 or not, the platform was probably aimed at less intensive, casual or indie games like The Sims or strategy games as well as your long running MMORPGs and PS2 era games (like Half Life 2/GTA San Andreas). It is barely able to run Elder Scrolls: Oblivion, an early 360 game.
http://www.anandtech.com/show/4476/amd-a83850-review/7
Llano is about 5 years behind when it comes to graphics, and even though consoles haven't changed since display resolutions on desktops have doubled.

The chart you linked to states: The A8-3850 gives you no such tradeoff. Even at 1920 x 1200 the A8 manages to deliver over 40 fps using Oblivion's High Quality defaults.

That article also states: As we mentioned in our preview, the integrated Radeon HD 6550D generally performs between a Radeon HD 6450 and 5570 depending on memory speed.

So, I think whether it can "barely run" things is somewhat dependent on what you want it to do. At 1650x resolution and below, it can run most games at respectable speeds and detail levels, which is what the OP was talking about.

 

[monkeydelmagico]

Barely run Oblivion? Look at the charts again And minimum fps of 80 in half-life2 is good too. Also 3870 GPU will be able to be overclocked to 980mhz, compared to the 600mhz of 3850. Plus I'll be using very fast RAM memory, so another +20% graphical performance increase. Everything is thought of.

Man with a plan! Good for you, and I think it will make a really fun build.

With overclocked 3870 I expect at least 30 avg fps in Skyrim with 1650x1080 at high settings.

I doubt it. > 30 fps average with that rig is going to be medium settings and cross your fingers. I think K o F hit the nail on the head. This is a lite gaming rig.

 

[Gikaseixas]

The chart you linked to states: The A8-3850 gives you no such tradeoff. Even at 1920 x 1200 the A8 manages to deliver over 40 fps using Oblivion's High Quality defaults.

That article also states: As we mentioned in our preview, the integrated Radeon HD 6550D generally performs between a Radeon HD 6450 and 5570 depending on memory speed.

So, I think whether it can "barely run" things is somewhat dependent on what you want it to do. At 1650x resolution and below, it can run most games at respectable speeds and detail levels, which is what the OP was talking about.

This. My Llano pc surprised me a lot in a positive way. The thing is that you really need to have fast DDR3 memory, push both the cpu and gpu a bit and voila.

 

[GoStumpy]

But.. Can it run BF3? ()

 

[micrometers]

THe last time I totaled up what a llano machine would cost actually resulted in it not really being cost-competitive. The best way probably is simply to buy a dual core system from tiger direct or dell and slap in a gaming video card. llano motherboards are typically like $50 more than AM3 motherboards and of course the cost of the chip itself is more. When you add in Windows 7 yeah it makes more sense to just pick up a Dell and throw in a gaming card.

 

[Soulkeeper]

yeah, I could have easily built an i5 or thuban system for the same price I spent on my llano

 

[Rvenger]

Llano A6-3650 I am lucky to see 14fps @ 1600x900 high settings on skyrim. With the dual graphics, there was no change in the FPS. On average I see a 10-15fps jump with the dual graphics enabled.

 

[micrometers]

also dual graphics apparently has a weird stutter due to the dual card method.

 

[Rvenger]

also dual graphics apparently has a weird stutter due to the dual card method.

Oh yeah, forgot to mention that too. It is highly recommended to take some Tylenol or Ibprofen before gaming.

 

[cebalrai]

Llano A6-3650 I am lucky to see 14fps @ 1600x900 high settings on skyrim. With the dual graphics, there was no change in the FPS. On average I see a 10-15fps jump with the dual graphics enabled.

Dual graphics doesn't work with Direct X 9 games such as Skyrim.

14 FPS with your A6 sounds low. But then again you're not saying where you're at when you get that frame rate. Since FPS varies wildly depending on location in that game your 14 fps doesnt mean much.

My A8-3500M laptop with DDR3-1333 ram never gets that low on medium/high settings. In most towns I get 25 fps and indoors I get 35-40.

I suggest turning shadows down to medium and AA own to 2X (or off and use FXAA instead). Default high settings you're using have AA at like 8X which is way over your computer's head.

 

[cebalrai]

THe last time I totaled up what a llano machine would cost actually resulted in it not really being cost-competitive. The best way probably is simply to buy a dual core system from tiger direct or dell and slap in a gaming video card. llano motherboards are typically like $50 more than AM3 motherboards and of course the cost of the chip itself is more. When you add in Windows 7 yeah it makes more sense to just pick up a Dell and throw in a gaming card.

A dual core? You realize Llanos are quads, right?

And you're badly off base on your comment about FM1 boards being more expensive than AM3 ones. They're selling for as low as $58.99 on newegg: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16813157277

also dual graphics apparently has a weird stutter due to the dual card method.

Depends on the game and driver maturity. All Crossfire and SLI-able games are subject to microstutter though. I've seen WoW and BF3 on an A8-3850 + HD 6770 on a 1080p TV and they were smooth as silk.

 

[micrometers]

point taken. but take a look at this

http://www.tigerdirect.com/applicati...190&CatId=2628

quad core. terabyte hd. 6gb ram. $370.

I went to newegg to see what a llano A8 rig would cost. With just case + MB + processor I was already up to $220, and that's without windows 7 (additional $100) and the cost of HD and RAM and cd drive and kb/mouse.

 

[Kristijonas]

Well, for me personaly, cost is not an issue (I'm just a poor student, but as monkeydelmagico said, I just want a PC to be fun for me to use, not just most cost/performance machine with no love given to it )

karmypolitics, but that PC is with 250W power supply, so no discrete graphics are probably possible. It's not a bad price for such a PC, but it's nothing special either, you could get the same cheaper if bought parts separately.

 

[monkeydelmagico]

Well, for me personaly, cost is not an issue (I'm just a poor student, but as monkeydelmagico said, I just want a PC to be fun for me to use, not just most cost/performance machine with no love given to it )

karmypolitics, but that PC is with 250W power supply, so no discrete graphics are probably possible. It's not a bad price for such a PC, but it's nothing special either, you could get the same cheaper if bought parts separately.

There are alot of upside to this build if you don't have MAX gaming performance for the least $$$ as the TOP priority.

Kristi's build will almost certainly be smaller, more efficient, better looking, and more fun than a Dell outlet refurb.

 

[cebalrai]

point taken. but take a look at this

http://www.tigerdirect.com/applicati...190&CatId=2628

quad core. terabyte hd. 6gb ram. $370.

I went to newegg to see what a llano A8 rig would cost. With just case + MB + processor I was already up to $220, and that's without windows 7 (additional $100) and the cost of HD and RAM and cd drive and kb/mouse.

Huh? First of all that's a refurb deal - you just "forgot" to mention that little fact. It makes your seem quite disingenuous when you bring out a price comparison and conceal facts like this.

Second of all, the title for that item says it's a phenom, however further down it says it's an Athlon and when you plug the model number into HP's website, it confirms that it's indeed just an Athlon.

Thirdly, that machine has terrible HD 4200 graphics.

Fourthly, that machine has only a 250W power supply, so any graphics card update will require an additional upgrade in this area.

Fifth, that PC doesn't support anything greater than DDR3-1333 ram.

Sixth, despite all these drawbacks plus the fact that it's refurbished, they're still asking $370 for it? I would never buy this thing.

 

[T_Yamamoto]

Huh? First of all that's a refurb deal - you just "forgot" to mention that little fact. It makes your seem quite disingenuous when you bring out a price comparison and conceal facts like this.

Second of all, the title for that item says it's a phenom, however further down it says it's an Athlon and when you plug the model number into HP's website, it confirms that it's indeed just an Athlon.

Thirdly, that machine has terrible HD 4200 graphics.

Fourthly, that machine has only a 250W power supply, so any graphics card update will require an additional upgrade in this area.

Fifth, that PC doesn't support anything greater than DDR3-1333 ram.

Sixth, despite all these drawbacks plus the fact that it's refurbished, they're still asking $370 for it? I would never buy this thing.

me either.

they had one heck of a deal yesterday on an i3 diy build

 

[know of fence]

If you're absolutely set on Llano, then the only sensible way to get a better performance out of it is to drop resolution. However this won't work on your 16:10 (1680x1050=1.764MP) monitor, because historically there are no low 16:10 resolutions aside from 1440x900 & 1280x800. I wonder if anyone can even set those in games, because I never could.

A different approach would be to just buy a "HD ready" (720p, 768p) TV and hook it up as a second monitor. I've tested this with a 22'' 768p TV and they can even be used as main-monitors provided you keep them at a full arms length (same for gaming). However this is only viable for young people, before presbyopia messes up one's vision and closer screen becomes more comfortable to read.

You get a significant performance bump from dropping resolution, at least twice as much as the best possible OC could accomplish. HD ready TVs are actually the sweet spot for all current entertainment: HDTV broadcasting, streaming bandwidth (3MBit/s) a.k.a internet video, game consoles.

 

[truth_benchmark]

Here are my OC settings for A8-3870K

CPU @ 3.3 GHz (1.375 Vcore, LLC @ 1/4)
IGP @ 757 MHz
NB @ 900 MHz

Stable in Linpack, video encoding, watching HD movies, and everyday gaming @ 720p


Here are some of my gameplay vids using the overclock settings above. Memory used is 4GBx2 DDR3 1866 CL9 1.5V

Mass Effect 3 (DX9)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x24CzW0mzt8

Lost Planet 2 (DX11)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QTofPjiZqV0

Resident Evil 5 (DX10)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2Ncc1pB2yWc

All of the games are run at 1280 x 720. Graphic settings are shown in the start of each video. Image quality looks better than the console versions which are also running at 1280 x 720

 

[T_Yamamoto]

Here are my OC settings for A8-3870K

CPU @ 3.3 GHz (1.375 Vcore, LLC @ 1/4)
IGP @ 757 MHz
NB @ 900 MHz

Stable in Linpack, video encoding, watching HD movies, and everyday gaming @ 720p


Here are some of my gameplay vids using the overclock settings above. Memory used is 4GBx2 DDR3 1866 CL9 1.5V

Mass Effect 3 (DX9)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x24CzW0mzt8

Lost Planet 2 (DX11)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QTofPjiZqV0

Resident Evil 5 (DX10)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2Ncc1pB2yWc

All of the games are run at 1280 x 720. Graphic settings are shown in the start of each video. Image quality looks better than the console versions which are also running at 1280 x 720

Way to bump an old thread.