What CPU(s) did you use for your friend's or family members gaming rig?

cbn · Oct 7, 2016

What CPU(s) did you use for your friend's or family members gaming rig?

(Keep responses limited to PCs you have built in the last 3 years. If the PC you were involved with was a Pre-built that counts too.)

Also, if you want please feel free to leave the details of the build or Pre-built in the thread.

jimbob200521 · Oct 8, 2016

I actually just built a co-worker a system with a Core 2 Quad Q6600 and 4gb of RAM with a random mid range AMD GPU I had laying around. This person just wants to check email, work on Excel and Word from home and her husband wants something he can play Half Life on. Figured I had the parts sitting around and got it going for a cheap price for them. I don't think this counts as a modern gaming rig but it will be play Half Life!

Edit: Now that I think about it, if they wanted to, they could throw in a more modern video card and maybe some more RAM and be able to at least play modern titles. Graphics obviously couldn't be cranked up but the ol' Quad Core should be able to chug through it.

railven · Oct 8, 2016

Family - hand me downs. I upgrade my rig and GF's rig so often, I give them my old gear often free or so discounted the price doesn't cover me having to build/install it for them.

For example, my nephews got an i7 2600K, while my GF got my old 4790K and I moved on to a 6800K. Chances are next year I'll be keeping the X99 platform but upgrading the GF to Kaby while moving the Haswell to my mother or nephews.

Friends, often based on their budget, but I aim for an minimum i3. Few times I've covered the difference to make sure they got at least an i3. But with Microcenter so close by, it's never been an issue.

EXCellR8 · Oct 8, 2016

^similar, albeit not quite as organized... and most are not used for gaming

built most of my family mini ITX Atom-based computers since they don't really need a lot of power. I gave a friend my Q6600 years ago and then recently updated him with my old FX 6350. Tried to sell my 1st gen i7 to a coworker but he flaked.

I have a box of core 2 duos and a few multi-core amd processors that haven't been used in years. Once in a while I will use one for test purposes but that's about it.

twizzlebizzle22 · Oct 9, 2016

Obviously depends on budget but someone comfortable with over clocking could build their own.

For people who want a gaming PC I go with the non K i5

Sweepr · Oct 9, 2016

i3-6100 is my budget choice for friend's builds nowadays.

ctk1981 · Oct 9, 2016

Last few requests for builds have been for high performance machines with a 2K budget. Went with i7 in both builds, i5 in the most recent due to budget constraints. My dad is currently rocking an old e8400 C2D, but he doesn't do anything other than web browsing and simple online games. Waiting to see what ZEN brings to the table before I make a decision on what to upgrade him to.

WhoBeDaPlaya · Oct 9, 2016

All of my spare/folks'/LANparty systems are 2500Ks @ 4.6GHz or 3570K @ 4.5GHz.
I had several 3770Ks but could not justify using them since they still fetch a handsome sum (I have 2x dual-X5675 setups for serious crunching)

superstition · Oct 9, 2016

8320E at 4.3 or 4.4 (static) and UD3P 2.0 board with a 290–390x or 980. Budget gaming system. Since I have access to Micro Center I haven't found something that beats that CPU/board combo for value. I haven't evaluated the latest 14nm budget GPUs much lately. If the 480 could actually be found at $200 it seems to be the best value.

I don't believe in buying low-grade hardware for gaming like APUs or the GTX 950, including for "eSports". Even those will require more GPU eventually. The only exception is that if someone was only going to play specifically minimally-threaded things like emulators, Starcraft II, Skyrim, and MMOs. For those I'd put together an overclocked Anniversary Pentium build. I also boycott the 970 on principle.

Arachnotronic · Oct 9, 2016

I recommend Skylake CPUs to people today based on budget. AMD has nothing of interest for gaming or low power general purpose PCs at the moment, and HEDT is too niche.

VirtualLarry · Oct 9, 2016

Arachnotronic said:
I recommend Skylake CPUs to people today based on budget. AMD has nothing of interest for gaming or low power general purpose PCs at the moment, and HEDT is too niche.

I think that a Skylake Pentium or even Celeron makes a GREAT "Mom box", or Facebook box, or whatever.

I might try to get a Bristol Ridge rig, once they hit the DIY channels. Even better if I can get a mid-range mobo with decent features that will carry over to Zen.

b-mac · Oct 9, 2016

Wife gets the hand me downs so she has an i5-2500k.

nenforcer · Oct 9, 2016

Within the past 2 years I built 2 ECS GF8200A 4GB DDR2 based computers for my nieces (aged 10 and 12) with a Phenom ][ X4 840T 2.9GHz 6MB L3 Cache. My parents just upgrade to Haswell based systems last year so in a couple of years I will upgrade my nieces computers with some Gigabyte Z97 DDR3 based boards I have and put in my parents current CPU (Core i7 4770 and Xeon E3-1270 V3) while upgrading my parents to the Broadwell based Core i7 5775 and Core i5 5675.

Killrose · Oct 10, 2016

I've built couple of gaming rigs for myself and my grand kids using Dell small form factor Optiplexes, 390,790 and 990 series. I got them for about $26 apiece. The 390 has a i5-2400 quad and the 790 and 990 have i7-2600 quad core's. I did have a nice FX8320e AMD system running @4.5ghz, but when I benched it against the 990 i7-2600 using the same R9 290 and saw how it beat out the FX8320e in the game benches I use, I was pretty surprised. Never really felt like the AMD system was holding me back, benches proved otherwise. I'm kinda an AMD fan/hopefull and may replace the Dell 990 I built for myself with a Zen CPU if they show some parity with intel. The grand kids were movedinto Mini ATX cases so I could put bigger pwr supplies and HD 7850 full size video cards in. Dell are a pain to work with because they do not use std hook-ups for on/off, reset, and such, but with a little mod work and compromise, they will work.

jihe · Oct 10, 2016

Killrose said:
I've built couple of gaming rigs for myself and my grand kids using Dell small form factor Optiplexes, 390,790 and 990 series. I got them for about $26 apiece. The 390 has a i5-2400 quad and the 790 and 990 have i7-2600 quad core's. I did have a nice FX8320e AMD system running @4.5ghz, but when I benched it against the 990 i7-2600 using the same R9 290 and saw how it beat out the FX8320e in the game benches I use, I was pretty surprised. Never really felt like the AMD system was holding me back, benches proved otherwise. I'm kinda an AMD fan/hopefull and may replace the Dell 990 I built for myself with a Zen CPU if they show some parity with intel. The grand kids were movedinto Mini ATX cases so I could put bigger pwr supplies and HD 7850 full size video cards in. Dell are a pain to work with because they do not use std hook-ups for on/off, reset, and such, but with a little mod work and compromise, they will work.

Where do you get them for $26? I'll get a dozen please.

Erenhardt · Oct 10, 2016

FX6300 is so cheap yet at 4.4Ghz+ is quite a potent CPU.

Killrose · Oct 10, 2016

jihe said:
Where do you get them for $26? I'll get a dozen please.

Whish I could get them for that much on a regular basis, because the i7-2600 CPU's go like hotcakes on ebay for $140each.

DAPUNISHER · Oct 10, 2016

Erenhardt said:
FX6300 is so cheap yet at 4.4Ghz+ is quite a potent CPU.

I am pleasantly surprised how well the 6 and 8 thread FX series are performing now. Finally punching at or above their weight class/price class in some of the new AAA titles.

I used i5 for everyone else's gamer, but I am using FX for now. I keep trying to find this "AMD has nothing for gaming" experience and cannot find it.. And combined with a $150 Samsung curved 1080p freesync monitor, it is the smoothest and tearing free experience, I have ever had.

superstition · Oct 12, 2016

DAPUNISHER said:
I am pleasantly surprised how well the 6 and 8 thread FX series are performing now. Finally punching at or above their weight class/price class in some of the new AAA titles.

I used i5 for everyone else's gamer, but I am using FX for now. I keep trying to find this "AMD has nothing for gaming" experience and cannot find it.. And combined with a $150 Samsung curved 1080p freesync monitor, it is the smoothest and tearing free experience, I have ever had.

superstition · Oct 12, 2016

4K results are even more impressive:

Crysis 3 (4K)
http://techx1.thessdreview1.netdna-...x-8370-vs-5960x_gaming-crysis3_gtx970-sli.jpg

GTA V (4K)
http://techx1.thessdreview1.netdna-...8/fx-8370-vs-5960x_gaming-gtav_gtx970-sli.jpg

Witcher 3 (4K)
http://techx1.thessdreview1.netdna-...370-vs-5960x_gaming-witcher3_gtx970-sliv2.jpg

Tomb Raider (4K)
http://techx1.thessdreview1.netdna-...370-vs-5960x_gaming-tombraider_gtx970-sli.jpg

Project Cars (4K)
http://techx1.thessdreview1.netdna-.../fx-8370-vs-5960x_gaming-pcars_gtx970-sli.jpg

Grid: Autosport (4K)
http://oi64.tinypic.com/33f4vp4.jpg

Metro: Last Light (4K)
http://oi63.tinypic.com/2po1gkj.jpg

BioShock: Infinite (4K)
http://oi67.tinypic.com/15pix40.jpg

Dirt: Showdown (4K)
http://oi67.tinypic.com/2wp84lw.jpg

Batman: Arkham Origins (4K)
http://oi63.tinypic.com/dq5i6r.jpg

DAPUNISHER · Oct 12, 2016

superstition said:
A lot of games are doing pretty well on 8 core FX CPUs clocked above 4 GHz. The Micro Center rebate deal ($130 after tax for an 8320E and UD3P 2.0 board) has expired but the board price is down so the total is $125 plus tax and no bothering with a rebate. Paired with good cooling it's not a bad option for a lot of games. I made a compilation of results that show these chips in a favorable light. I didn't look through every game by any means but it's a pretty good list. In general, EA and certain developers seem to favor single-threaded performance so their games don't do as well on AMD. One can tell by seeing the 9370 and 9590 right next to each other in the results (only higher for the 9590 because of the boost in single-threaded performance) and/or an i3 doing really well.

The price-performance ratio for FX is an 8 core at 4.3 – 4.6 GHz.

Deserts of Kharak
http://pic.yupoo.com/ztwss/FiwDYvFo/medish.jpg

Assassins' Creed Syndicate
http://www.gamegpu.com/images/stories/Test_GPU/Action/Assassins_Creed_Syndicate/test/new/as_proz.jpg

The Division
http://pic.yupoo.com/ztwss/FiwDXyVu/medish.jpg

Metal Gear Solid V
http://www.gamegpu.com/images/stori...id_V_The_Phantom_Pain/test/new/mgs_v_proz.jpg

Far Cry Primal
http://gamegpu.com/images/stories/Test_GPU/Action/Far_Cry_Primal/test/FCPrimal_proz.jpg

Total War Warhammer
http://gamegpu.com/images/stories/Test_GPU/strategy/Total_War_Warhammer/test/tww_pr.jpg

Ashes of the Singularity (AMD card)
http://www.gamegpu.com/images/stori...s_of_the_Singularity/test/Ashes_proz_fury.jpg

Ashes of the Singularity (Nvidia card)
http://www.gamegpu.com/images/stori...es_of_the_Singularity/test/Ashes_proz_980.jpg

Fallout 4
http://www.gamegpu.com/images/stori...f_Duty_Black_Ops_III/test/new/new/f4_proz.jpg

Firewatch
http://gamegpu.com/images/stories/Test_GPU/Action/Firewatch/test/Firewatch_proz.jpg

Mafia III
http://gamegpu.com/images/stories/Test_GPU/Action/Mafia_III_/m3_proz.png

Mirrors Edge Catalyst
http://gamegpu.com/images/stories/T...e_Catalyst_/test/MirrorsEdgeCatalyst_proz.jpg

Homefront The Revolution
http://gamegpu.com/images/stories/Test_GPU/Action/Homefront_The_Revolution/test/new/h_proz.png

Killer Instinct
http://gamegpu.com/images/stories/Test_GPU/Action/Killer_Instinct/test/ki_proz.jpg

Dying Light: The Following
http://gamegpu.com/images/stories/Test_GPU/Action/Dying_Light_The_Following_/test/dlf_proz.jpg

Witcher 2
http://www.gamegpu.com/images/stori...her_2_Assassins_of_Kings/test/new/w3_proZ.jpg

Hitman Beta (not SLI)
http://gamegpu.com/images/stories/Test_GPU/Action/Hitman_Beta/Hitman_в_DirectX_12_/test/hit_proz12.jpg

Hitman Beta (SLI)
http://gamegpu.com/images/stories/Test_GPU/Action/Hitman_Beta/Hitman_в_DirectX_12_/test/hit_proz11.jpg

Grand Theft Auto V
http://www.gamegpu.com/images/stori...and_Theft_Auto_V_/test/new/new/gta_v_proz.jpg

Dark Souls III
http://gamegpu.com/images/stories/Test_GPU/MMO/DARK_SOULS_III/test/ds3_proz.jpg

Thanks for compiling that list. It is a shame so few sites are including AMD CPUs now. I understand though, no upgrade path, old tech.

superstition · Oct 12, 2016

When one can get a CPU and a board for $125 before tax the lack of upgrade path may not be that important, especially if you plan to reuse your CPU cooler when you upgrade. For those without a Micro Center (or access to one via friends/family) it may not be quite as much of a bargain, though.

NTMBK · Oct 12, 2016

Voted before I saw the "last 3 years" clause, sorry... Sister's PC started life with a Llano APU using integrated graphics, then added a 750ti a couple of years later to deal with newer games.

frozentundra123456 · Oct 12, 2016

superstition said:
4K results are even more impressive:

Crysis 3 (4K)
http://techx1.thessdreview1.netdna-...x-8370-vs-5960x_gaming-crysis3_gtx970-sli.jpg

GTA V (4K)
http://techx1.thessdreview1.netdna-...8/fx-8370-vs-5960x_gaming-gtav_gtx970-sli.jpg

Witcher 3 (4K)
http://techx1.thessdreview1.netdna-...370-vs-5960x_gaming-witcher3_gtx970-sliv2.jpg

Tomb Raider (4K)
http://techx1.thessdreview1.netdna-...370-vs-5960x_gaming-tombraider_gtx970-sli.jpg

Project Cars (4K)
http://techx1.thessdreview1.netdna-.../fx-8370-vs-5960x_gaming-pcars_gtx970-sli.jpg

Grid: Autosport (4K)
http://oi64.tinypic.com/33f4vp4.jpg

Metro: Last Light (4K)
http://oi63.tinypic.com/2po1gkj.jpg

BioShock: Infinite (4K)
http://oi67.tinypic.com/15pix40.jpg

Dirt: Showdown (4K)
http://oi67.tinypic.com/2wp84lw.jpg

Batman: Arkham Origins (4K)
http://oi63.tinypic.com/dq5i6r.jpg

All those games are basically gpu limited. The selection of hardware is also very questionable. SLI 970 is a very strange choice for 4K. And seriously, a stock IB E?

superstition · Oct 13, 2016

frozentundra123456 said:
All those games are basically gpu limited.

Which shows that one doesn't need to overclock their Intel CPU, necessarily, to gain adequate performance in those games.

And also that one may not have to pay the premium price for an Intel part.

I saw some higher max framerates on the AMD CPU in some of those tests, though — and some minimums as well.

frozentundra123456 said:
The selection of hardware is also very questionable. SLI 970 is a very strange choice for 4K.

SLI 970 was a very popular choice with enthusiasts, particularly before Nvidia's RAM scheme was exposed.

What CPU(s) did you use for your friend's or family members gaming rig?

What CPU(s) did you use for your friend's or family members gaming rig?

Core i7

Core i5

Core i3

Pentium/Celeron

FX 8 core

FX 6 core

FX 4 core

A10 APU

A8 APU

Athlon x4

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