core 2 duo e8400 or phenom II for gen computer use?

[Thebobo]

So if anyone remembers my cat peed on my computer thread I am wondering about the CPU, if it survived. I took it out and looks like it never got "contaminated" but I don't know if it was shorted out or whatever. Its an intel core 2 duo e8400. Hard to buy a MB to find out it's bad and I don't have anyway else to check it. I also have a phenom II 3.O that needs a AM3+ MB.

So my question is assuming the intel chip is working as wondering what would be the better chip for general computer use.

 

[JackMDS]

A Nice Mobo for E8400 can be the be Gigabyte GA-G31M-ES2L ( http://www.ebay.com/itm/Gigabyte-Mo...-Rev-2-0-LGA-775-Socket-T-no-CPU/252936783692 )

That said the E8400 value these day is $5. I do not thing it make sense to build aronud such CPU.

You better off deciding on Bud jet and then go with the best thing for the price.

 

[VirtualLarry]

Both of them are both poor choices for a CPU for a modern rig. Both of them are nearly 10 years old. (Maybe?)

If you want something entry-level, pick yourself up a $64 G4560 CPU, and an inexpensive B250 motherboard with a 32Gb/sec PCI-E M.2 slot ("Turbo M.2", "Ultra M.2", etc.) for future expansion. (If you don't want to move to a PCI-E M.2 SSD right away, they can be very pricey right now for the larger capacities.)

 

[lakedude]

I'm assuming the OP either has another primary system or that budget is a very serious issue. Which Phenom? Dual core? Triple? Quad?

Generally starting with Core Intel made a huge jump in performance so Intel has been well ahead in any given generation since 2006 or so. If the Phenom is a lot newer it might be the better choice, especially if the MB has newer/better features (like faster USB or something). Can't say without more info provided.

See link for reasons why Intel made such a leap in performance (micro/macro ops fusion):
https://arstechnica.com/gadgets/2006/04/core/6/

 

[dave_the_nerd]

Buy a prebuilt i5 rig. Even a sandy bridge will run rings around an E8400 and you should be able to get a whole new PC for under $200.

 

[PliotronX]

Mobos are still cheap for AM3 so the phenom gets my vote out of those two. I landed a 1045T X6 out of a PC in the recycle bin and got a 760G board for 38 bucks. Thing runs circles around C2D particularly in virtualization.

 

[daveybrat]

What other parts do you have laying around? Ram? Video Card? And what kind of Phenom II?

These will help us determine if anything is worth reusing.

 

[Thebobo]

Couldn't find on the AMD site any number comparison to what's on the chip so here is a pic. I remember it was two cores but micro center folks said I could open the other two and it worked. Probably a cheap one, I wanted it for gen computer use I have a somewhat recently built intel gaming rig. Dang I just noticed the chip is 9 years old lol maybe I should upgrade.

 

[Thebobo]

What other parts do you have laying around? Ram? Video Card? And what kind of Phenom II?

These will help us determine if anything is worth reusing.

I have CD, HD, Case and PS, all I need is MB (built in graphics is fine) ram and CPU .

 

[VirtualLarry]

I have CD, HD, Case and PS, all I need is MB (built in graphics is fine) ram and CPU .

I should probably mention I do have a Haswell G3258 mobo/CPU/RAM combo in my FS/FT thread.

However, you would be better served, if you can pick up a Kaby Lake G4560 for cheap ($60-64 - availability can be spotty, Newegg raised their ebay price to $81 shipped), then get a decent but hopefully inexpensive B250 mobo, and 8GB or 16GB of DDR4-2400 or 3000 RAM, and you would be styling, at least for the next 3, maybe 4 years. Longer if not gaming with it.

Edit: Oh yeah, when you can afford it, pick up a smaller (240/256GB is a good entry-level size, at this point I would avoid the 120GB drives) SSD, and clone or re-install the OS to it. SSDs make GREAT OS drives, way better than a mechanical HDD. Keep the mech. drive in your PC for storage.

 

[daveybrat]

I have CD, HD, Case and PS, all I need is MB (built in graphics is fine) ram and CPU .

Yeah, just buy the Intel G4560 Pentium cpu like Larry said. The cost of the motherboard and ram will be the same, so all you'll save is about $65 on a very old out-dated cpu. Also the onboard graphics of a AMD 760G (Radeon HD3200) motherboard absolutely blow compared to the Intel's HD610 graphics.

Unfortunately i'd leave both of your 2 old cpu's in the closet.

 

[Iron Woode]

Couldn't find on the AMD site any number comparison to what's on the chip so here is a pic. I remember it was two cores but micro center folks said I could open the other two and it worked. Probably a cheap one, I wanted it for gen computer use I have a somewhat recently built intel gaming rig. Dang I just noticed the chip is 9 years old lol maybe I should upgrade.

I've got one of those. That's a PII x2 555 BE. I was only able to unlock one core.

I also have an Athlon II x3 455 that I have unlocked the 4th core on and it works great.

 

[XSoldier77X]

So if anyone remembers my cat peed on my computer thread I am wondering about the CPU, if it survived. I took it out and looks like it never got "contaminated" but I don't know if it was shorted out or whatever. Its an intel core 2 duo e8400. Hard to buy a MB to find out it's bad and I don't have anyway else to check it. I also have a phenom II 3.O that needs a AM3+ MB.

So my question is assuming the intel chip is working as wondering what would be the better chip for general computer use.

At least go phenom IV because II and III are like 7-10 years old and you might not even be able to run Windows and the most common apps like Office and Chrome properly on that thing. Also, be sure to have a minimum of 4-8 Gigs of RAM