Which Cpu for low res gaming?

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Rvenger

Elite Member <br> Super Moderator <br> Video Cards
Apr 6, 2004
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crisium said:
You doing that just for fun? You have capable rig with your 6790.
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Yes, just for fun. :) I posted some numbers on another thread here, completely forgot about this one. I need to run some actual tests because the numbers I was basing upon were rough numbers. But the 6570 and A6-3650 so far seems to be a good combo!!
 
MegaWorks

MegaWorks

Diamond Member
Jan 26, 2004
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People really exaggerate Sandy bridge performance in gaming, here's a Battlefield 3 beta CPU test by http://www.techspot.com/review/448-battlefield-3-beta-performance/page7.html


CPU_02.png
 
Arkaign

Arkaign

Lifer
Oct 27, 2006
20,736
1,379
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MegaWorks said:
People really exaggerate Sandy bridge performance in gaming, here's a Battlefield 3 beta CPU test by http://www.techspot.com/review/448-battlefield-3-beta-performance/page7.html


CPU_02.png
Click to expand...

Hah, something broken in that list. i3-2120 same speed as i5-2500k, oooooookay.

Beta software + beta drivers = meaningless. Go look up various games on the shelves today that are popular to get real numbers. Many of them do just great on PhII / etc, but some don't. SC2 comes to mind.
 
R

Rvenger

Elite Member <br> Super Moderator <br> Video Cards
Apr 6, 2004
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Despoiler

Despoiler

Golden Member
Nov 10, 2007
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SLK said:
I ran my 6790 on my Llano, there is no way that it performs as good as my 2500k did. I was getting mega stutters in highly clustered areas where my 2500k did not. As much as I would like AMD to outperform in gaming.. it just doesn't.
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Correct me if I am wrong, but doesn't that slide show that BF3 is NOT CPU dependent given that everything is within 10fps?
 
R

Rvenger

Elite Member <br> Super Moderator <br> Video Cards
Apr 6, 2004
6,283
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Despoiler said:
Correct me if I am wrong, but doesn't that slide show that BF3 is NOT CPU dependent given that everything is within 10fps?
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There could be so many variables to that as well. Im sure the CPU is not at fault but it could be memory, motherboard controllers, drivers etc. I do notice slight hiccups on my Llano but that is expected for a budget CPU running at 2.6ghz.

If you overclock a 2500k and 2600k it will bump the performance results to 53fps and it goes absolutely no higher. There is a bottleneck somewhere else obviously and I am betting its memory related.. I think AMD has a little more memory bandwidth to work with and I bet they are only using the memory at 1333mhz on the Intel setups. ;)
 
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toyota

toyota

Lifer
Apr 15, 2001
12,957
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Techspot always has the most screwed up cpu results. they are the only site that will show Sandy Bridge getting beat by a freaking Phenom 2.
 
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nyker96

Diamond Member
Apr 19, 2005
5,630
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BF3 seems to love quads, so if u eventually want to play bf3, i'd get a i5 2500k. but if not a small i3-xxx will be enough for most games.
 
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Bman123

Diamond Member
Nov 16, 2008
3,221
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I'm thinking of just getting a phenom 2 x4 be from microcenter with a free mobo. It's only $119 with a mobo and that's pretty darn cheap. I'm seriously lost now on the video card, its only 1280x720 res, I don't need max AA but I'm sure at this res most video cards will do it.

What do you suggest for a cheap gpu to go with a x4 be chip at this res?

Looking at microcenter I can get a CPU,mobo,RAM and hard drive for about $200. Case,psu,dvd will be another $100 just leaves me my video card and OS left
 
crisium

crisium

Platinum Member
Aug 19, 2001
2,643
615
136
1280x720 with no AA? Radeon 5770/6770 is probably a good match, or pony up for the 6790 or 6850 for a bit more power - but certainly don't go any higher than a 6850.
 
C

Crap Daddy

Senior member
May 6, 2011
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Most of the time you get what you pay for regarding performance. So a chip that will cost you 120$ mobo included will perform poor. What Phenom is that? Anyway, I played the BF3 beta on my second machine with a C2D E8400, stock 3GHz and a GTS450 on an LCD TV, native resolution 1368 x 768 and it played well on a combination of low and medium so I'd say a 5770 is a minimum but for 40-50$ more you can get a 6850 which is great for that res.
 
crisium

crisium

Platinum Member
Aug 19, 2001
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I'm assuming it's a 955 (3.2GHz, unlocked) which will certainly not perform poor. Doesn't Microcenter give the mobo for free? $119 is the asking price for a 955 these days.
 
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Bman123

Diamond Member
Nov 16, 2008
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Yeah you get the mobo for free. I figure for $119 that's a steal for the CPU and mobo. Sure the mobo is cheap but the CPU is unlocked so it should just be changing voltage and the multiplier to overclock it.

What about NVIDIA cards? Like a gtx 460? I remember seeing those for around $100 not long ago. At this res I shouldn't need a ton of graphic horsepower since im mainly playing cross platform games right?

I won't be playing Bf3 at all, I can't get into battlefield at all. The games would be like these
Fallout 3 and new Vegas, call of duty, and whatever I can snag dirt cheap on steam LOL
 
frozentundra123456

frozentundra123456

Lifer
Aug 11, 2008
10,451
642
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Stuka87 said:
Hyper Threading cannot be compared to real cores. Yes it gives 10-20% boost (On an i7, not sure how much on the i3), but it can't come close to doubling the performance in well threaded applications/games.

But I second the Phenom II route. I got mine for $130 with free shipping. And it may be slower than an i5-2500, but it cost me a whole lot less. I doubt you will be disappointed with it.
Click to expand...

Maybe you are right about hypertherading not being as effective as a real core, but just makes AMD look even worse, since 2 hyperthreaded SB cores beat six AMD cores.

The only way the Phenom II is competitive is if you overclock it compared to the i3 2100 or a lower end SB quad that will not overclock much.

Personally, I would go with a Sandy Bridge quad. You can get a 2300 for well less than 200.00.
 
Stuka87

Stuka87

Diamond Member
Dec 10, 2010
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Bman123 said:
Yeah you get the mobo for free. I figure for $119 that's a steal for the CPU and mobo. Sure the mobo is cheap but the CPU is unlocked so it should just be changing voltage and the multiplier to overclock it.

What about NVIDIA cards? Like a gtx 460? I remember seeing those for around $100 not long ago. At this res I shouldn't need a ton of graphic horsepower since im mainly playing cross platform games right?

I won't be playing Bf3 at all, I can't get into battlefield at all. The games would be like these
Fallout 3 and new Vegas, call of duty, and whatever I can snag dirt cheap on steam LOL
Click to expand...

I am going to be selling my HD5750 soon as I upgrade to something for BF3. It runs every game I have tried at 720P perfectly. I played through the beta of BF3 decently as well, just had most settings at low at 1080P. Not sure what I am going to ask for it. If you are interested, make an offer. Just not 100&#37; sure when I am going to upgrade, really want a 7K series card, but I may settle for a 6950.

EDIT: Oh yeah, its been clocked at 825/1350 with zero issues for some time.

But if you want new, I would think a 6770 would be great for you.
 
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Bman123

Diamond Member
Nov 16, 2008
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frozentundra123456 said:
Maybe you are right about hypertherading not being as effective as a real core, but just makes AMD look even worse, since 2 hyperthreaded SB cores beat six AMD cores.

The only way the Phenom II is competitive is if you overclock it compared to the i3 2100 or a lower end SB quad that will not overclock much.

Personally, I would go with a Sandy Bridge quad. You can get a 2300 for well less than 200.00.
Click to expand...

I can't afford to drop $179 on just a CPU, i have to build a whole tower, OS and all. That's the only reason I'm thinking phenom 2 right now. I could always get a sb Pentium 620 for $60 then when i have the extra cash a few months later grab a 2500k
 
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bononos

Diamond Member
Aug 21, 2011
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frozentundra123456

frozentundra123456

Lifer
Aug 11, 2008
10,451
642
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Bman123 said:
I can't afford to drop $179 on just a CPU, i have to build a whole tower, OS and all. That's the only reason I'm thinking phenom 2 right now. I could always get a sb Pentium 620 for $60 then when i have the extra cash a few months later grab a 2500k
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I can understand that, although a SB quad seems more future proof than an AMD quad, both from a performance standpoint and future upgrade path.

My earlier response was directed to the implication that an i3 2100 is not a good gaming cpu because an AMD phenom II has "moar coars", as every AMD fan brings up.
I was just pointing out that despite being only a dual core, the i3 2100 is very competitive in almost every game and sometimes beats the phenom II x4. The only game that seems to favor the phenom II x4 is Battlefield 3, and we wont really know the performance in that game until the final game comes out.
 
Stuka87

Stuka87

Diamond Member
Dec 10, 2010
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An i3 2100 is a great CPU for things that don't use more than 2 cores. However, most all new games these days make full use of 4 and even 6 cores (BF3, Witcher 2, Crysis 2, etc). The other thing the Phenom II has going for it is over clocking. They are unlocked and easily hit 4GHz (well, current chips do).

However, with an i3 box, you can always upgrade later to a quad like the 2500k/2600k and then blow the doors off a Phenom II. Same goes for the low end Pentium. Get it now, upgrade it later.
 
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Bman123

Diamond Member
Nov 16, 2008
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Well that link I posted shows a Pentium g620 vs a x4 965 be and at stock clocks the Pentium is hanging nicely. I know its only a dual core but it will be a way for me to get the build done cheap and be on the 1155 platform now. At least on 1155 I've got upgrade options. I don't like building and spending money on pc stuff, ill admit that. I know once I go quad (2500k) I won't upgrade the CPU, mobo, RAM for a couple (3-5) years LOL.
 
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