Athlon 5150 for Lego PC games

[nisryus]

Has anyone tried or has experience playing any of those Lego PC games (such as The Lego Movies, Lego Marvel Super Heroes, Lego Batman and Lego batman 2)?

I am planning to add another HTPC/Lego game PC for the kid to play his Lego PC games on, while streaming Netflix cartoons. My only concern is if the 5150, or 5350, would be able to handle those games. He has been complaining me taking his games away after i replaced the old HTPC with RaspBMC to only stream mkv movie files.

 

[Justinbaileyman]

Yep, I have a AMD 5350 and every game so far runs just fine including new games like BF4,NFS,Bioshock,and Crysis. now as far as lego games go I only have lego Starwars collection and I play it maxed out on all the settings with out a hickup.Not saying newer games will run on higher settings cause I have to set everything to low medium to low for anything newer then 2010. hope that helps.

 

[nisryus]

Thank you Justin! If Lego Starwars runs fine, then the others would have no problem. Kid will be excited to have a HTPC/game machine as his own. (Well, he better start on his homework on time, or wife will surly kick my rear..)

 

[Rickyyy369]

I imagine something like the A6-6400K would do those things better for around the same price as a 5150/5350. Unless you're specifically trying to go super low power.

 

[frozentundra123456]

http://www.guru3d.com/articles_pages/amd_athlon_5350_apu_and_am1_platform_review,9.html

Here are some benchmarks for the 5350, which is faster than the 5150. Gaming performance is actually quite weak even at 720p. A 5150 might handle Lego games, since they are not very demanding, but as the previous poster said, I think you would be better off with a big core Richland APU. I assume you are planning to game on the igp alone, correct?

 

[nisryus]

The 5350 looks to be a better suit and is only a few bucks more. Yeah, I am trying to go low power and 25 watt is hard to beat.

 

[Seba]

With Lego Marvel Super Heroes and Lego Movie I get occasional slow downs/stuttering on a PC with Core 2 Duo E8400 3 GHz + GTX 660 + 4GB DDR2-800. Less so with Lego LOTR. Resolution 1920x1080, all settings at maximum, V-Sync enabled, usually playing local co-op split screen. Maybe you can draw a conclusion from this.

 

[frozentundra123456]

The 5350 looks to be a better suit and is only a few bucks more. Yeah, I am trying to go low power and 25 watt is hard to beat.

Well, its your choice. Personally I would go for some extra horsepower rather than a 25 watt glorifeid net book processor. Did you look at the results I posted? Both the modern games they tested are less than 20 fps at 720p.

 

[Insert_Nickname]

Well, its your choice. Personally I would go for some extra horsepower rather than a 25 watt glorifeid net book processor. Did you look at the results I posted? Both the modern games they tested are less than 20 fps at 720p.

I imagine something like the A6-6400K would do those things better for around the same price as a 5150/5350. Unless you're specifically trying to go super low power.

That's my opinion too. You could check out the new A6-7400K too. Its a 1M/2T Kaveri with decent frequency, a 256SP IGP (twice the 5150/5350's, same architecture)) and a dual channel memory controller with official DDR3-1866MHz support. It looks like a solid budget option for casual gaming. Also, if you choose an FM2+ mainboard (works with both FM2 and FM2+ APUs) you have a decent upgrade option to the next generation Carrizo APU. Who knows what AM1 can be upgraded to...

Power consumption for the 6400K isn't as high as you might think, I've seen one draw ~40W full load, though of course YMMV depending on specific setup.

 

[nisryus]

The system is mainly a HTPC, and occasionally for Lego games when my kid plays them. No other games or applications will be installed on it except those games and XBMC, and Windows 7. He is only 7 so shouldn't be complaining too much on FPS, as long as the games run.

 

[Justinbaileyman]

The 5350 will be more then enough for your needs and then some. I just got my TitanFall game from AMD and installed it this morning and have been playing through it a bit on my 5350 and it works flawlessly. I am very very surprised how well it works. Given its being played at 720p up scaled to 1080p but I get a solid 30fps. Very cool game but anyways if it can play that I am sure it will play your lego games.Also you will have an upgrade path for when the new cpu's comes out early next year.You might wanna check out youtube for video's of games being played on the 5350 it'll give you a better idea of what this little beast can do.

 

[Madpacket]

The system is mainly a HTPC, and occasionally for Lego games when my kid plays them. No other games or applications will be installed on it except those games and XBMC, and Windows 7. He is only 7 so shouldn't be complaining too much on FPS, as long as the games run.

Having just recently bought Lego Game the Movie and the newest Lego Marvel game to play together with my daughter I will test this out on my 5350 sometime over the next few days and then let you know how they run.

I did do a bunch of game testing on my 5350 with and without a discrete video card several months ago. It's a messy thread but some good info if you dig through it. The general consensus is the APU is pretty weak but depending on the game it can actually play many games pretty well if you don't have high expectations. I would advise getting the 5350 over the 5150 and maybe perhaps pair it with an Asus board to give you the flexibility to overclock a few hundred Mhz more if desired.

Older thread:

http://forums.anandtech.com/showthread.php?t=2378369

 

[Insert_Nickname]

The system is mainly a HTPC, and occasionally for Lego games when my kid plays them. No other games or applications will be installed on it except those games and XBMC, and Windows 7. He is only 7 so shouldn't be complaining too much on FPS, as long as the games run.

I did do a bunch of game testing on my 5350 with and without a discrete video card several months ago. It's a messy thread but some good info if you dig through it. The general consensus is the APU is pretty weak but depending on the game it can actually play many games pretty well if you don't have high expectations. I would advise getting the 5350 over the 5150 and maybe perhaps pair it with an Asus board to give you the flexibility to overclock a few hundred Mhz more if desired.

For my part, its not a question if a 5150/5350 can run the game, it should do that fine. I just feel you get a lot more value with one of the big core Trinity/Richland/Kaveri APUs for desktop and HTPC use.

Here (Denmark) the 6400K and 5350 is priced identically. AM1 boards cost a bit less then their FM2+ counterparts, but its nothing that really matters.

 

[MiddleOfTheRoad]

For my part, its not a question if a 5150/5350 can run the game, it should do that fine. I just feel you get a lot more value with one of the big core Trinity/Richland/Kaveri APUs for desktop and HTPC use.

Here (Denmark) the 6400K and 5350 is priced identically. AM1 boards cost a bit less then their FM2+ counterparts, but its nothing that really matters.

You do make a good point. The GPU of the A6 is much stronger and a better choice for gaming. It also depends on his case size.... FM2 boards for itx are usually overpriced -- if he is building an HTPC he might be using a tiny case. AM1 boards are dirt cheap for the ITX form factor... That might be the reason why he was leaning toward socket AM1. If he is building a Micro ATX setup, I probably recommend that he go with FM2 as well.

 

[Madpacket]

For my part, its not a question if a 5150/5350 can run the game, it should do that fine. I just feel you get a lot more value with one of the big core Trinity/Richland/Kaveri APUs for desktop and HTPC use.

Here (Denmark) the 6400K and 5350 is priced identically. AM1 boards cost a bit less then their FM2+ counterparts, but its nothing that really matters.

You do make a good point. The GPU of the A6 is much stronger and a better choice for gaming. It also depends on his case size.... FM2 boards for itx are usually overpriced -- if he is building an HTPC he might be using a tiny case. AM1 boards are dirt cheap for the ITX form factor... That might be the reason why he was leaning toward socket AM1. If he is building a Micro ATX setup, I probably recommend that he go with FM2 as well.

Yes if the OP really needs the speed increase and if size, noise, and power savings is of little concern it may make sense to spend a little more for the FM2 option.

I own and have built for others' several dual/quad FM2 and AM1 type computers for various purposes. My observation is that provided you pair an SSD with either platform, you won't notice large differences under light loads such as XMBC, streaming, surfing, office tasks etc. In gaming there will be a large advantage with the FM2 over AM1 but both the 5350 and 6400K are still very entry level and should only be used to play with low to medium graphic settings at 720P or lower in modern demanding games.

The AM1 platform does have its merits over the FM2 platform and I have listed below some of the reasons why.

Although a bit more expensive, if you go with the AsRock AM1H-ITX you can power it with a $10-15 dollar 60-90W laptop power brick where it would cost at least double that for a decent standard ATX power supply. With the external power brick setup you have even more flexibility in the type of enclosure you home it in.

The AsRock A1MH also comes with a mPCIe slot which in my case I outfitted with a cheap Intel 5GHz A/C WiFi adapter. These types of ports don't normally come on cheaper motherboards and I don't think you'll find a cheap FM2 board that has one. This saved me from wasting a USB port for an external WiFi adapter which in my experience generally do not perform as well as the internal PCI/PCIe cards.

The memory configuration is more flexible on AM1 due to it being single channel only. With FM2 to get the most out of the APU you will need to use at least two sticks of memory. This may cost you a few bucks more (and uses a little more power) than just needing 1 stick for the AM1 platform.

Depending on what your power costs are you will save you approx $5 - $15 bucks a year if left running constantly (likely scenario given its HTPC duties). Although not much, every bit helps. Typical idle power on an FM2 platform is between 25 - 40 Watts (compared to 10-20 on an AM1) and load power is roughly double these figures (more if you go with Quad instead of Dual CPU FM2). Also the stock AM1 fans are very quiet, basically inaudible from more than a few feet away. This is not true for stock FM2 fans, they can get pretty annoying under load.

So in a nutshell, if you feel the AM1 platform is fast enough for your 7 year old (and will be for a few years anyway) I would recommend you go with it instead of an FM2 system.

 

[Abwx]

Although a bit more expensive, if you go with the AsRock AM1H-ITX you can power it with a $10-15 dollar 60-90W laptop power brick where it..


The AsRock A1MH also comes with a mPCIe slot which in my case I outfitted with a cheap Intel 5GHz A/C WiFi adapter. These types of ports don't normally come on cheaper motherboards and I don't think you'll find a cheap FM2 board that has one. This saved me from wasting a USB port for an external WiFi adapter which in my experience generally do not perform as well as the internal PCI/PCIe cards.

Several low cost AM1 have it but that s about all, for an ATX supply what is cheaper than the AM1H is the (Asrock also) AM1B ITX wich has the same i/o features (4 usb3 + 4 sata 3) set apart the DC input, one video output less and 5.1 audio instead of 7.1, this tell that the AM1H is somewhat overpriced by let s say 10$, (still that s the one i bought for an AM1 build), overall and unless i missed a product theses are the two best AM1 MBs features wise.

 

[cbn]

The memory configuration is more flexible on AM1 due to it being single channel only. With FM2 to get the most out of the APU you will need to use at least two sticks of memory. This may cost you a few bucks more (and uses a little more power) than just needing 1 stick for the AM1 platform.

Depending on what your power costs are you will save you approx $5 - $15 bucks a year if left running constantly (likely scenario given its HTPC duties). Although not much, every bit helps. Typical idle power on an FM2 platform is between 25 - 40 Watts (compared to 10-20 on an AM1) and load power is roughly double these figures (more if you go with Quad instead of Dual CPU FM2). Also the stock AM1 fans are very quiet, basically inaudible from more than a few feet away. This is not true for stock FM2 fans, they can get pretty annoying under load.

Too bad we didn't have a comparison of A4-7300 and the Athlon 5350 to see how much the gap closes.

Also, regarding the HSF on the A4-7300, it is a lot bigger than the 5350's.....and I doubt the A4-7300 really uses 65 watts.

 

[Madpacket]

Several low cost AM1 have it but that s about all, for an ATX supply what is cheaper than the AM1H is the (Asrock also) AM1B ITX wich has the same i/o features (4 usb3 + 4 sata 3) set apart the DC input, one video output less and 5.1 audio instead of 7.1, this tell that the AM1H is somewhat overpriced by let s say 10$, (still that s the one i bought for an AM1 build), overall and unless i missed a product theses are the two best AM1 MBs features wise.

That's good to know thanks. I agree the AsRock boards offer the best features for the price, the only problem is the lack of voltage and overclocking controls which would be nice to have.

Too bad we didn't have a comparison of A4-7300 and the Athlon 5350 to see how much the gap closes.

Also, regarding the HSF on the A4-7300, it is a lot bigger than the 5350's.....and I doubt the A4-7300 really uses 65 watts.

Based off the rumoured specs I don't imagine it'll use much less energy than the low end Richland FM2 APU's, and if they pack in the same cooler it'll still perform poorly under load.

Could be an awesome alternative for the price though!

Rumours also say new AM1 processors coming soon. The Athlon X4 550 and Athlon X4 530 but I'm unsure of the specs for these, just looks like AMD's adding turbo functionality. Could be interesting as well.

 

[cbn]

Based off the rumoured specs I don't imagine it'll use much less energy than the low end Richland FM2 APU's, and if they pack in the same cooler it'll still perform poorly under load.

1.) Well according to CPU World the A4-7300 also has a 45 watt TDP mode--> http://www.cpu-world.com/CPUs/Bulldozer/AMD-A4-Series A4-7300 - AD7300OKA23HL - AD7300OKHLBOX.html

Notes on AMD A4-7300

The processor can be configured to run at 45 Watt TDP.

(I wonder how much this mode really uses? Is it really 45 watts? Or just some amount lower than what the "65 watt mode" uses?)



2.) I did see some complaints about the A4-6300 (predecessor of A4-7300) HSF noise on Newegg, but then also saw noise complaints about the Athlon 5350 as well:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16819113364

Richard R. on 7/5/2014:

the 50MM HS/Fan is a little noisy. I mean if I were using this full time it would be in a case on my desk and about 18" from my ears. See other thoughts for a HS idea.

Other Thoughts: I noticed the 70mm fan on the FM2 HS has about the same hole spacing as the MB mounting holes on the AM1 HS/Fan. So I mounted a FM2 HS/Fan to the AM1 socket using two screws and nylon washers through the MB and into the fan mounting holes on the FM2 HS/Fan. The 70 MM fan is a little quieter than the 50mm fan. But really need way to mount 80mm fan runing 800 to 1200 rpm to be really quiet.

Robert T. on 5/4/2014:

Fan has annoying noise. Not very audible, I don't notice it from my couch, but if this was on a desk next to me, it would bug me.

Jonathan S on 4/25/2014:

Cons: Not completely silent operation. Might be looking for alternate cooling options in the future to achieve silence..

Anonymous on 4/22/2014:

Cons: The main reason I didn't give it 5-eggs is because the stock fan is really noisy at full speed. Not just loud, but high pitched and annoying. For most people it won't be running that fast very often, and maybe not at at all, but it's something they should have fixed.

Tevin M. on 4/17/2014:

Cons: -small CPU fan is a little loud (laptop fan loud) if you have your motherboard SMART fan disable

 

[cbn]

Could be an awesome alternative for the price though!

$39 according to Xbit labs:

http://www.xbitlabs.com/news/cpu/di..._A_Series_APUs_for_Back_to_School_Season.html

Rumours also say new AM1 processors coming soon. The Athlon X4 550 and Athlon X4 530 but I'm unsure of the specs for these, just looks like AMD's adding turbo functionality. Could be interesting as well.

I think these two SKUs lack the iGPU.

 

[frozentundra123456]

I dunno, this seems like another of those threads where the OP had his mind made up even before posting. I still think FM2 would be a much better platform for light gaming, but no point in continuing to argue about it.

 

[nisryus]

So much Info!

Well, I am looking at Pentium 3220 and the AMD 5350. My choice is leaning toward the 5350 because the heat sink is nearly noiseless, less power, and it is a APU which is supposed to handle better than the Pentium. Also my wife picked the Elite 130 case due to its look, so the motherboard has to be mini-itx. The other AMD APUs might cost more, which wife will not approve as the budget is $110, that was why I jsut want to confirm if the Lego PC games will run with the 5350 for sure, since a few reviews stated a few supposedly low power games do stutter.

 

[Madpacket]

Has anyone tried or has experience playing any of those Lego PC games (such as The Lego Movies, Lego Marvel Super Heroes, Lego Batman and Lego batman 2)?

Okay I played both LEGO MARVEL Super Heroes and The LEGO Movie - Videogame tonight to get a feel on the 5350. They both play fine at 1280x800 however the LEGO game plays smoother at higher settings, I think the Super Heroes game is more demanding so reducing the settings helped somewhat (although not much).

Anyway these games should be no problem for your 7 year old to play. I made two crappy videos so you can take a look yourself.

LEGO MARVEL Super Heroes - http://youtu.be/hguQZnH-xKM
The LEGO Movie - Videogame - http://youtu.be/6EQHgI6GJL8

--

***Edit***

Adding a new video for the naysayers showing LEGO MARVEL Super Heroes running with max details @ 1024x768. You can see here it runs quite a bit faster regardless of the details being cranked.

http://youtu.be/e1M9QXHpXX8

---

If you drop the resolution further the frame rates go up but I feel at 720P they should run fine at medium settings (high for The Lego Movie).

 

[monstercameron]

Okay I played both LEGO MARVEL Super Heroes and The LEGO Movie - Videogame tonight to get a feel on the 5350. They both play fine at 1280x800 however the LEGO game plays smoother at higher settings, I think the Super Heroes game is more demanding so reducing the settings helped somewhat (although not much).

Anyway these games should be no problem for your 7 year old to play. I made two crappy videos so you can take a look yourself.

LEGO MARVEL Super Heroes - http://youtu.be/hguQZnH-xKM
The LEGO Movie - Videogame - http://youtu.be/6EQHgI6GJL8

If you drop the resolution further the frame rates go up but I feel at 720P they should run fine at medium settings (high for The Lego Movie).

not bad...

 

[Abwx]

That's good to know thanks. I agree the AsRock boards offer the best features for the price, the only problem is the lack of voltage and overclocking controls which would be nice to have.

The DC input converter would not stand overclockings so they prefered to not allow such practices with the AM1H ITX but the ATX supplied only AM1B ITX has such capabilities implemented.