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Upgrade NOW from a AMD 64x2/nforce 8800?

A

Artista

Senior member
Current System:
MSI kn8-SLI motherboard
AMD Athlon 64 x 2 @ 2.2Ghz CPU
EVGA 8800GT 512 videocard
Two HITACHI Deskstar (bought in 2005) 160GB SATA II 7200RPM hard drives (for crazy money)
3Gb DDR memory
Antec Smartpower 430watts
Logitech 5.1 Surround sound
Windows XP 64 (Have 32bit OEM Xp SP3 DVD just sitting here-never used-I assume once a OEM Windows OS is activated using a certain MB its mated to it for life?)

It runs older games like: F.E.A.R. original plus FEAR II and II games and add ons, DOOM III (Latest one), Quake 4, etc. No problems at all.

I am thinking of upgrading, dont do Intel so that leaves AMD. Bulldozer is coming but from the looks of things it is 2011 Fourth Quater at best. SO..

Should I upgrade now? Thinking of...

$119 Biostar TA890FXE Motherboard - AMD 890FX, Socket AM3, ATX, DDR3, RAID, SATA 6.0GB/s, USB 2.0 at Comp***

$89 (Alternate-ASRock 870 EXTREME3 AM3 AMD 870 SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 ATX AMD Motherboard ) NewE** or comp***

The rest from NewE**

$145 AMD Phenom II x4 955 BE @ 3.2Ghz
$88 (Alternate Athlon II x 3@ 3.3Ghz)
$109 G.Skill 8Gb DDR3-1600 memory
$169 SAPPHIRE Radeon HD 6850 1GB
$54 Rosewill CHALLENGER Black Gaming ATX Mid Tower Computer Case
$54 HITACHI Deskstar 7K1000.C HDS721010CLA332 (0F10383) 1TB 7200 RPM 32MB Cache SATA 3.0Gb/s 3.5" Internal Hard Drive -BareDrive
$125 Microsoft Windows 7 Professional 64-bit 1-Pack for System Builders-
OEM
$50 Antec Earthwatts 650W 80Plus certified-SLI certified-Already bought

I have a $100 Compusa gift card. (Christmas gift)

I mainly surf web and play games, also do not upgrade that much and feel the above build will run games and other duties for a longtime. (3-4 years)

The only forseeable upgrade down the road, in my humble opinion, will be a SATA III SSD drive in late 2011 when prices come way down and Gb go up. (Maybe Black Friday NewE** 2011 sale!) Maybe a new Radeon HD 7900 or 8900 or 9900 or whatever it is in two or three years.

*None of this considers the moral implications of why I upgrade and waste money since the system seems to play games and does everything else I want. This when I myself got a pay cut, people in third world countries are starving and others have no jobs. Except I want to play newer more demanding games and escape reality.*

Thoughts?
 
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If you can't spend any more than what you have specced out, then that looks fine to me. I'd definitely look into saving up another $100 and getting a 2500K and P67 mobo.
 
Artista said:
dont do Intel
Click to expand...

AHAHAHAHA!

Intel is besting AMD by 100% within' 2 days.

May I ask what your reasoning is? If it is price that point is rather mute since the difference between a Phenom II X4 and i5 2500K is 95% in gaming performance and a mere $50-$75 in total platform costs. (around 25% of a midrange platform).
 
go intel, amd doesnt have a socket now that isnt a dead end. If purchasing in the next 2 months your only real option is 1155.
 
Well money is the main reason not to go Intel. I mean $300-$500 for a CPU alone? I am about to poop my pants spending the kind of money I have listed anyway...lol.😵

I almost just went for a Athlon II x 3@ 3.1, over clock it and get a $44 board and toss in a Nvidia 460 SE or something close like a ATI 5770.

Then there is the Chevy or Ford thing...Import or Domestic...

SB looks nice but then again I am not worried about the best on a synthetic program with fast numbers or 200 FPS in a game. Hell I think its after 25FPS the human eye dont know the difference anyway. (Could be wrong)

I read all the reviews and system tests at anandtech and others. The top hardware is running games at like 100 plus FPS or more the bottum end running games at around 30-50 FPS. Future proofing is one thing, spending money recklessly is another.

I want real world usability. Yeah a new Porsch will do 200mph on the freeway but that would get you a few years behind bars. A Mustang GT would be good enough. I want a Mustang GT not the Porsch...in CPU system wise.
 
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Artista said:
Well money is the main reason not to go Intel. I mean $300-$500 for a CPU alone? I am about to poop my pants spending the kind of money I have listed anyway...lol.😵

I almost just went for a Athlon II x 3@ 3.1, over clock it and get a $44 board and toss in a Nvidia 460 SE or something close like a ATI 5770.

Then there is the Chevy or Ford thing...Import or Domestic...

SB looks nice but then again I am not worried about the best on a synthetic program with fast numbers or 200 FPS in a game. Hell I think its after 25FPS the human eye dont know the difference anyway. (Could be wrong)

I want real world usability. Yeah a new Porsch will do 200mph on the freeway but that would get you a few years behind bars. A Mustang GT would be good enough. I want a Mustang not the Porsch...in CPU system wise.
Click to expand...

60 FPS is the golden spot (your monitor IS 60hz after all) also the new SB cpu's are 220 for the i5-2500k the i7-2600k (the most powerful atm) is just over $320 retail. so "300-500" is almost 200 OVER the highest sandy bridge cpu. go for a sandy bridge i5-2400 or i5-2500 (you dont need a "K" series for the unlocked multiplier) it will last much longer has an actual upgrade path, where as with AMD all current AMD cpu's will be left in the dust when Bulldozer comes out later this year (hopefully before Q4) socket 1155 (sandy bridge) will get at LEAST another CPU series (ivy bridge). Not going intel right now is sheer folly.
 
Where did you get $300- $500 for a CPU alone?! That's an insane overestimation... The Sandy Bridge i5s are starting at ~$200 retail... only $30 more than a 4 Core AMD (that is half the performance) or the same price as the 6 core AMD with like no use for the other two cores... so it will have roughly the same performance as a quad.
 
I was looking at so much lately I may have picked the price of Intel server CPU's vs desktop. Not sure. I did see the top of the line (as of this posting date/time) Intel desktop CPU, i7-975 cost $1049 on Newe**. that is where I was getting some of my price guessing. Figured if the top of line was 1k then new top of line would be expense also.

Yet I want a full functioning CPU...was gonna buy a combo deal with a Intel i5 get a cheap motherboard free at Comp*** but then I read the Intel i5 is "throttled back" doesnt do everything (not just speed) like the i7. Where as a low end Phenom II will do every thing a high end Phenom II will do just less speed and/or less cores.

Again we are talking real world performance and buying with a little future proofing built into the system, not buying to have fastest graph and chart number producer in the world. The Radeon 6850 is a good price point (In my humble opinion and wallet) for a GPU. (Though I prefer Nvidia)
 
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so you are basing your decision on the fact that you are too lazy to actually look at all of your options and not just look at price points instead of performance figures?
 
mnewsham said:
so you are basing your decision on the fact that you are too lazy to actually look at all of your options and not just look at price points instead of performance figures?
Click to expand...

I kinda am insulted by that and personally would teach you a little respect through physical methods but since violence and name calling are for the weak minded I wont stoop to your level.

I looked at performace. I looked at every darn performace chart on all the top review sites on the internet. I read every review and though there are better than what I picked it is the absolute most I can afford BUT I would be glad to buy the most top performing, bleeding edge hardware to your exact specifications if you would kindly send me the damn money!:twisted:
 
You picked 8gb of memory for a budget build. Seriously man, you need our help.

Telling us your MAX budget would be helpful.
 
Artista said:
I kinda am insulted by that and personally would teach you a little respect through physical methods but since violence and name calling are for the weak minded I wont stoop to your level.

I looked at performace. I looked at every darn performace chart on all the top review sites on the internet. I read every review and though there are better than what I picked it is the absolute most I can afford BUT I would be glad to buy the most top performing, bleeding edge hardware to your exact specifications if you would kindly send me the damn money!:twisted:
Click to expand...

First off you are spending $800 you can get a cheap SB computer for $800 going AMD is a waste of time and YOUR money, i am trying to save YOU money in the long run here. If you didnt notice everyone else is pretty much telling you to go sandy bridge, look at prices compare it with your current build, you CAN afford sandy bridge if you wanted to.
 
2500K ($216)
GA-P67A-UD3P ($187)
8GB DDR3 ($85)

Total ($488)

That'll trash ANY a 6-core AM3, much less the 945BE.
AMD makes netbook CPUs these days.

P.S. - Don't fall for NewEgg's cheap prices on Hitachi Deathstars... Buy a Samsung.
 
mnewsham said:
First off you are spending $800 you can get a cheap SB computer for $800 going AMD is a waste of time and YOUR money, i am trying to save YOU money in the long run here. If you didnt notice everyone else is pretty much telling you to go sandy bridge, look at prices compare it with your current build, you CAN afford sandy bridge if you wanted to.
Click to expand...

Well as far as spending...I dont have all the cash yet and may have to buy the pieces one every two weeks until I have it all together or float it on a preffered account with zero interest.

It seems like Intel folks are jumping on me, no offense meant.

Its just about money mainly. If there is a big sale on SB and its just a little more than AMD plus way better performance, sure I would buy it not a problem. Its price/performance and bottum line money. Realistically I have extreme performance taste on budget build money.

In regards to what someone said about 8Gb RAM. See that is a future proofing point right there. It is worth it to spend the little extra as I have seen down through the years of building systems, particulary in RAM. Programs always hog more and more of it. (Now we are 64 bit systems it is going to use more and more) Some things you can get away with going cheap, some you cant. (Like on a power supply that is reported to catch fire!)

In the end its my money (unless someone wants to donate) and my decision but I take wise advice into account.😎 That is why I read anandtech website. I am happy to have wise and genuine advice and even counter points.

I will possibly wait and see price difference and performance on Sandy Bridge stuff. May go ahead and buy the DDR3 memory and other stuff? (Harddrives, etc...since they are on sale!)
 
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you are looking at spending about $100 extra on a sandy bridge build at the moment with a 50% gain on performance. i think that is worth the $100 and extra week or two of saving.
 
mnewsham said:
you are looking at spending about $100 extra on a sandy bridge build at the moment with a 50% gain on performance. i think that is worth the $100 and extra week or two of saving.
Click to expand...

I will wait and take a hard look at it. They do use DDR3, right? I am so tired I forget...lol Some of the parts are on sale at a nice discount. CPU, MB are not. So I can wait.

Oh my max build aka money is the one I list above. Thanks.
 
CPU and MB dont come out until sunday, if you live near microcenter they have a one day sale (sunday) where the i5-2500k is only 179.99 (regularly 220) yes dual channel DDR3, everything is the same as your last build (essentially) except MB and cpu
 
mnewsham said:
CPU and MB dont come out until sunday, if you live near microcenter they have a one day sale (sunday) where the i5-2500k is only 179.99 (regularly 220) yes dual channel DDR3, everything is the same as your last build (essentially) except MB and cpu
Click to expand...

I will look at it for sure.

Its like anything else, you do what you can afford or you dont do it. Like scuba diving, its expense and if you can afford it you do it. Yet if you want to save money you dont do it on the BC (Thing that gives you air...aka lifeline/die without it!) but you dont have to have a brand name wetsuit or fins or weight belt, etc. You spend where it counts!😎

More wise thoughts and genuine helpful advice is welcome.
 
well, 1.5V RAM is good (and has been recommended), Samsung F3 1TB is $60 on amazon, I'm certainly not an Intel person, but with a budget or $800 you can get sandy bridge and be top of the charts right off the bat. If you only had $500-600 Realistically I'd recommend AMD with an Athlon series chip. The Phenoms are kind of forced out of the market right now, because Intel has the i5 760 (current platform) for about $50 extra platform cost and it kicks the crap out of the X4s and is barely better than the X6s. Then the Athlons give about 10% less performance but are around $60 cheaper. Then with Sandy Bridge coming at a few dollars more than the current i5 760 you can get top of the line performance for basically pennies (In the tech world). The i5 2500K is benching like that $1k processor you found, it's no little improvement lol.
 
$119 P67 mobo (will vary, just an estimate until the 9th)
$216 2500K (Can vary, but probably accurate. Or you could easily get the 2300/2400 for $177/$184 since your GPU will gimp you way before even a 2300 will in games)
$53 G.Skill 4Gb (2x2gb) Ripjaws X DDR3-1600 C9 (you can get 8gb if you have cash left, but for your tasks it's really a waste and will be for at least another 2 years, probably more)
$169 SAPPHIRE Radeon HD 6850 1GB
$54 Rosewill CHALLENGER mid-tower case
$61 Samsung F3 HD103SJ 1TB (or $52 if you using 15% off at superbiiz)
$85 Microsoft Windows 7 Home 64-bit 1-Pack for - OEM (price is with 15% off at superbiiz, unless you NEED Professional for some reason)
$50 Antec Earthwatts 650W 80Plus certified-SLI certified-Already bought (serious overkill, but good PSU nonetheless and great price if that's what you paid)

$807 - $100 CompUSA card = $707. $8 less than your listed parts.

Neat, huh?
 
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Patrick Wolf said:
$119 P67 mobo (will vary, just an estimate until the 9th)
$216 2500K (Can vary, but probably accurate. Or you could easily get the 2300/2400 for $177/$184 since your GPU will gimp you way before even a 2300 will in games)
$53 G.Skill 4Gb (2x2gb) Ripjaws X DDR3-1600 C9 (you can get 8gb if you have cash left, but for your tasks it's really a waste and will be for at least another 2 years, probably more)
$169 SAPPHIRE Radeon HD 6850 1GB
$54 Rosewill CHALLENGER mid-tower case
$61 Samsung F3 HD103SJ 1TB (or $52 if you using 15% off at superbiiz)
$85 Microsoft Windows 7 Home 64-bit 1-Pack for - OEM (price is with 15% off at superbiiz, unless you NEED Professional for some reason)
$50 Antec Earthwatts 650W 80Plus certified-SLI certified-Already bought (serious overkill, but good PSU nonetheless and great price if that's what you paid)

$807 - $100 CompUSA card = $707. $8 less than your listed parts.

Neat, huh?
Click to expand...

agreed, i might change the case (depending on my aesthetic tastes) and i would go for the i5-2400 in your predicament. You wont really be overclocking so you can go with an H67 board (cheaper) so maybe 120-150 on the MB and then a single gpu of your choice with whatever is left (amd or nvidia depending on your preference)
 
Patrick Wolf said:
$119 P67 mobo (will vary, just an estimate until the 9th)
$216 2500K (Can vary, but probably accurate. Or you could easily get the 2300/2400 for $177/$184 since your GPU will gimp you way before even a 2300 will in games)
$53 G.Skill 4Gb (2x2gb) Ripjaws X DDR3-1600 C9 (you can get 8gb if you have cash left, but for your tasks it's really a waste and will be for at least another 2 years, probably more)
$169 SAPPHIRE Radeon HD 6850 1GB
$54 Rosewill CHALLENGER mid-tower case
$61 Samsung F3 HD103SJ 1TB (or $52 if you using 15% off at superbiiz)
$85 Microsoft Windows 7 Home 64-bit 1-Pack for - OEM (price is with 15% off at superbiiz, unless you NEED Professional for some reason)
$50 Antec Earthwatts 650W 80Plus certified-SLI certified-Already bought (serious overkill, but good PSU nonetheless and great price if that's what you paid)

$807 - $100 CompUSA card = $707. $8 less than your listed parts.

Neat, huh?
Click to expand...

Nice list😛

Why the Samsung harddrive over the (now on sale for $49) HITACHI Deskstar 7K1000.C HDS721010CLA332? I have run the Hitachi SATA II harddrives I currently have almost 24/7 for five years and no problems.

I just like professional level as I have always used that level, like in Xp. Will look at home OS. In regards to the power supply I got it because after rebate it was $49.99, basically $50 bucks on a good promo code sale. Later on I may want to go SLI or crossfireX once the GPU becomes a bottle neck in future games. (assuming the price of the card drops reasonably compared to the price/feature set of newer cards then. DirectX 14 capable? lol) That is why I got it.

I wonder if there are any tests showing memory usable numbers on applications including games? I wonder now that it is 64 bit what future programs will do with that in regards as to how much RAM the programs will use.

In regards to overclocking...normally I dont but if a chip over clocks so easy and the new mother boards do it at a punch of a button, why not? I dont have the patience to sit and bump up the voltage, then find it locks up, then chip over heats, get a bigger cooler, then memory locks up, etc.
 
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Artista said:
Why the Samsung harddrive over the (now on sale for $49) HITACHI Deskstar 7K1000.C HDS721010CLA332? I have run the Hitachi SATA II harddrives I currently have almost 24/7 for five years and no problems.
Click to expand...

It's more something from the past. Their older drives had a 90% fail rate or something.

Still, today, the Hitachi Deskstars are some of the worst performing drives on the market, although a bit more reliable.

Artista said:
I just like professional level as I have always used that level, like in Xp. Will look at home OS. In regards to the power supply I got it because after rebate it was $49.99, basically $50 bucks on a good promo code sale. Later on I may want to go SLI or crossfireX once the GPU becomes a bottle neck in future games. (assuming the price of the card drops reasonably compared to the price/feature set of newer cards then. DirectX 14 capable? lol) That is why I got it.
Click to expand...

It won't, either save money on Mobo, and PSU now, or go up to a $1200 budget and get a second card. By the time you are ready to crossfire you will be seeing better single cards for $20-$30 more that will double or triple performance of the single card you're going to buy. "Future" SLI/ CFX is not an economically sound proposition I'm afraid.

Artista said:
In regards to overclocking...normally I dont but if a chip over clocks so easy and the new mother boards do it at a punch of a button, why not? I dont have the patience to sit and bump up the voltage, then find it locks up, then chip over heats, get a bigger cooler, then memory locks up, etc.
Click to expand...

yeah, I'm thinking about doing it with my first 1356 or 2011 build 😀.
 
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