best AMD CPU for gaming??

[gixxer]

I was looking to upgrade my AMD 64 3200 Winchester to something with more speed since I found someone to buy my old chip.

So I was looking for some input on what people think is the best AMD CPU for gaming. I don?t want to spend more than 500 bucks. I initially was thinking of getting the Athlon 64 X2 4400, but would I really need a dual core for gaming? Could I save some money and just get something like a Athlon 64 3700, 3800, or 4000? Also, what is the best core to buy for an Athlon 64. (I was just reading that Winchesters has some issues with overclocking, which I can totally attest too. :| )

This CPU will be going into an ASUS A8N-SLI rig. (sorry.. one more question.. what would be the best Bios for this board for the recommended chip? I am currently using 1004)

Thanks,

Gixxer

 

[DAPUNISHER]

Well the 4000+ cost about the same as the X2 3800+, and the X2 will hit 2.5-2.6ghz on average, so having the extra core is just a bonus from that perspective. You might get another 100-200mhz on average from the 4000+ SD but I prefer having that extra core myself.

 

[forumposter32]

socket 939 4000+ but right now for the money, the socket 754 3700+ even beats the socket 939 3800+ single core And is pretty cheap at Compuvest and eWiz, around $175 US

 

[Markfw]

Originally posted by: forumposter32
socket 939 4000+ but right now for the money, the socket 754 3700+ even beats the socket 939 3800+ single core And is pretty cheap at Compuvest and eWiz, around $175 US

He already has a socket 939 motherboard, and a winchester 3200, which can OC to almost the same level as the 4000. Why are you trying to talk everybody out of an X2 ?

OP, get the 3800 and OC it. They OC to the about the same level.

 

[theMan]

go for the X2 3800+

 

[Acanthus]

even a 4000+ would not be a significant upgrade for gaming, graphics card upgrades make a much larger difference in almost every title.

Personally id sell the 6800GT ($180ish) and get a 7800GT, youll get better bang for your buck.

If you insist on a cpu upgrade though, the X2 is likely to have a lot more longetivity for gaming, as the future titles will be SMP aware and see large gains from dual core, its worth a small (completely un-noticable) clockspeed hit for dual core.

 

[DAPUNISHER]

Originally posted by: forumposter32
socket 939 4000+ but right now for the money, the socket 754 3700+ even beats the socket 939 3800+ single core And is pretty cheap at Compuvest and eWiz, around $175 US

I noticed you are on a crusade to inform everyone about the tremendous value the skt754 3700+ is, that's cool. What you have to remember though, is sometimes in the enthusiasm of "spreading your gosple" you can miss the forrest for the trees in your way

This thread is a case in point. There are factors involved in this situation that make your plug for the 3700+ seem irrational. He is a gamer, he is an overclocker, and he has a board capable of SLI, you'd have to be on crack to switch back to a skt754 setup given those factors. The 4000+ is a good pick if not overclocking, but since he overclocks he could grab a 3200+ Venice and likely get 2.6ghz+ on air. Given that it cost less than the 3700+ you keep promoting, and that he already has a 939 SLI board, you might want to rethink the logic of exulting the skt754 3700+ in such threads, that's all.

 

[DAPUNISHER]

Originally posted by: Acanthus


Personally id sell the 6800GT ($180ish) and get a 7800GT, youll get better bang for your buck.

Good point, this is your best gaming upgrade.

 

[SamzAthlon]

err what game are you playing that needs such power?

I play BF2 online a lot with my ****** 9800XT and I can pull a decent 60fps avg on high settings.....

 

[gixxer]

I guess I should add that I am already planning on upgrading my video card as well. I will either go for a 7800 GT or GTX. I still haven?t decided, but I figured that the CPU forum was not the place to ask that.

I normally would not do such an incremental upgrade like this, but since I have someone to but my old stuff I figured what the hell..

As a couple people pointed out, going to a 754 chip is not an option because I do not plan on changing my motherboard.

As for what games I play, primarily BF2 right now (I?m hooked), half life 2, doom3, etc. I pretty much play all the latest and greatest shooters.

So Markfw900 said ?get the 3800 and OC it. They OC to the about the same level.? Are you saying that that the X2 3800 will OC close to a 4000 or OC to close to what a 3200 would? (I had very little look with my Winchester OC. I only got around 2.4 while I read that many people got 2.6 ? 2.7)

I do plan on overclocking as much as possible. I have the XP-90 CPU cooler and 2 X 512 OCZ rev2 3200 RAM.

Thanks again for your feedback.

Gixxer

 

[Markfw]

As you can see by my sig, I have a 3800@2550. Many people get this or more on air, up to 2.7 high average. Also, you can use the dual-threaded nvidia drivers with a 7800GT. Another reason to go dual-core.

 

[Icepick]

Switching from a 3200+ Winchester to an X2 3800+ will get you zero performance boost in any game. Sure the X2 supports the SSE3 and some other minor optimizations but it is still 2GHz with 512Kb L2 cache, the same as the 3200+. Since all current games make use of only one core I don't see how the investment will pay off. Even if you find someone to give you full retail price for the Winchester (~150) you'll still be shelling out at least another $150 for the X2. I'd suggest holding on to the Winchester until the new socket comes out next year and then performing a full upgrade.

Edit: I'd say you'd be hard pressed to notice a difference in performance by upgrading to any of the current A64 processors from what you already have.

 

[Markfw]

Originally posted by: icepik
Switching from a 3200+ Winchester to an X2 3800+ will get you zero performance boost in any game. Sure the X2 supports the SSE3 and some other minor optimizations but it is still 2GHz with 512Kb L2 cache, the same as the 3200+. Since all current games make use of only one core I don't see how the investment will pay off. Even if you find someone to give you full retail price for the Winchester (~150) you'll still be shelling out at least another $150 for the X2. I'd suggest holding on to the Winchester until the new socket comes out next year and then performing a full upgrade.

Edit: I'd say you'd be hard pressed to notice a difference in performance by upgrading to any of the current A64 processors from what you already have.

Did you read the thread above yours ? (my last post)

1) You can probably get a better OC out of an X2 than the Winchester, at least it was that way for me.
2) The dual-threaded drivers
3) Everything in the system other than the game can run on the other core.

Three good reasons that would help him in games.

 

[IdaGno]

pick yer poison http://www.extremetech.com/article2/0,1697,1876770,00.asp

PC Gaming Price/Performance

The real sweet spot here looks to be the Athlon 64 3800+.

 

[Icepick]

Originally posted by: IdaGno
pick yer poison http://www.extremetech.com/article2/0,1697,1876770,00.asp

PC Gaming Price/Performance

The real sweet spot here looks to be the Athlon 64 3800+.

That is an excellent article. Thanks for the post!

 

[hurtstotalktoyou]

top AMD CPUs under $500:
$248 Athlon 64 3800+ (2.4 GHz, 512KB L2)
$318 Athlon 64 X2 3800+ (2.0 GHz/core, 512KB L2/core)
$330 Athlon 64 4000+ (2.4 GHz, 1MB L2)
$391 Athlon 64 X2 4200+ (2.2 GHz/core, 512KB L2/core)
$495 Athlon 64 X2 4400+ (2.2 GHz/core, 1MB L2/core)

The Athlon 64 4000+ can get to about 2.7-2.8 GHz on air. The X2 3800+ gets to about 2.6-2.7 GHz.

 

[Markbnj]

I applied the same metrics used in that article to even older generations of chips, and discovered that the absolute best CPU for gaming is a free 90 mhz. Pentium! omg!

 

[the splat in the hat]

gaming people hate it being said but go dual core l own fx55 and 4400+ dual if you play ONLINE go dual, period. l play in clan comps and all that crap, and if you have a core of 2 gigs or more your laughing, you will pull the frame rates depending on you vid card, you can set the cpu's to do what you want , ie, one core cpu TOTALLY dedicated to a game, no fxcpu can even dream of those conditions , with backround tasks and the like, no lm a real world user , whom will spend hard earnt cash on pc's and cards, and from my personal use l have found dual core MILES better , especially in online games, l dont even play on my fx55 anymore its become a server data base, yea yea what a waste l agree, but thats how good the dual cores are and games havent even come with dual core usability , omfg wait till they do !

DUAL CORE DUAL CORE DUAL CORE.....

 

[michal1980]

I have dual core affinty question.

if i get a dual core, can i set my mouse & sound card/usb ports to work off one core and the game off another. I know that mointor using task manager, my mouse on usb eats up like 3-5% (logitech mx1000 on rig in sig, new rig coming soon). and i know sound cards suck up juice to even my audigy 2 zs, probably gets like 3-5% on full eax.) so right there i'd get a free extra 10%? hmm so hard to chose, cheap 3200 or a x2 3800. grrr

 

[Markbnj]

You can set affinity for processes. The mouse and sound card are controlled by drivers that are loaded into system processes like SNDsvc.exe. I cannot set affinity for these processes on my system with an administrator account.

 

[gixxer]

Well it sounds like the 3800 X2 will give close to the same speed that I had with my old 3200 winchester. Plus it sounds like the 3800 X2 has a better chance of getting me a better overclock than I could get with my old chip and is a little more future proof.

Does anyone think it is worth the extra cash to go with the 4200 or the 4400 or just go with the 3800 and hope for a good overclock.

Thanks,

Gixxer

 

[the splat in the hat]

my 4400+ ROCKS.....but its your choise and cash is usually the final sell piont !
my 4400+ does have 2 gigs ram and a 7800gtx plugged into it aswell , its an incredible GAMES pc , and recording with FRAPS at 60 fps and 40 fps is awsome when you can play the game as smooth as when your not recording ! Dual core affinity fraps , media player and the rest one one core , game on the other..............

 

[DAPUNISHER]

Originally posted by: Markbnj
I applied the same metrics used in that article to even older generations of chips, and discovered that the absolute best CPU for gaming is a free 90 mhz. Pentium! omg!

:laugh:

The gaming price-performance analysis linked is completely irrelevant to overclockers. My kid's retail skt754 2800+ 256k Sempr0n@2.4ghz was $60, and unlike the old days you don't need to add the cost of good cooling.

 

[gixxer]

Well I decided to go with the 3800 X2. I will post how far I got with the overclocking later.

I also splurged and got the BFG 7800 GTX OC. :thumbsup:

I will be all set for winter now.

Thanks again for all the feedback.

Gixxer

 

[jdogg707]

Congrats man! I have the BFG card with my 4400+ and they are a great combo. Make sure you get 2 gigs of RAM too, not all games need it, but it gives you a cushion. I really like the OCZ EB sticks, I have a kit in my rig and they are rocking at 260MHZ @ 2.65V @ 2.3.3.8.