Would a PhII X3 help me?

[z1ggy]

Would buying an X3 with a mobo that uses ddr2 be an inc. over my current system? That way I only have to replace the mobo and cpu..Keep the RAM, CPU, HD, case ,PSU and optical drive. I game at 19x12 playing COD, TF2 and SC. In the future I plan to play : Sims 3, COD WAW 2, SC 2 and still TF2.

Oh also I do minor video/audio encoding and some light multi-tasking.

 

[Stoneburner]

http://www.anandtech.com/bench/default.aspx?p=60&p2=83

That does not even account for the possibility of unlocking the 4th core.

 

[z1ggy]

Seems to be the X3 is taking many of the benchmarks, but in many cases..not by much. The ultimate question for me is will I see a noticable difference in gaming, encoding and overall computer performance that will be worth the $250 bucks or so I will have to spend for it. Not to mention the hour or so itll take me to take apart my computer and install the parts.

 

[Rifter]

It would help out alot for video/audio encoding as long as the program can make use of more than 2 cores, even more so if you get a good OC out of it. For gaming i dont really think it would help much unless you get a really good one and can OC to 3.8 - 4Ghz. Honestly if i was you i would go all the way to a quad and get a 940BE if you really want to make a solid upgrade.

 

[veri745]

Well, it looks like it's good for about a 10% increase in perf. in games, depending on how mulithreaded they are.

I think a much better performance bump could be had by getting a better video card for $100-150

 

[z1ggy]

Well I planned on getting a 4890 at some point but since the games I play now are pretyt much fine on my 8800gt I feel like I dont really NEED it at this moment ( I coudl wait until 5xxx came out if I had the patience). Its a tough call..If I buy the video card, i Prob woudlnt end up upgrading my cpu/mobo at all until next year when I most likely would buy an i7 or whatever the newer 32nm chips are.

 

[Gikaseixas]

you would see some improvements. Is there any chances of getting a 940BE??? That would be another few bucks but would make a lot more sense IMO.

 

[z1ggy]

That is true. how much are they going for on newegg now? like 229? I really can't spend a ton here you know..I figured the X3 would be good, plus there is a chance I coudl unluck the 4th core with a good mobo. Also what woudl be a good mobo choice? I saw a nice gigabyte on newegg for 109, but the other 2 high rated boards were asus and msi and were both 179. Kind of pricey.

 

[Idontcare]

I know you explicitly asked solely for feedback regarding the PhII X3, but I couldn't help but notice you've already got a D3SL mobo which is quite capable of being upgraded to a quad CPU in its own right (I happen to own a few DS3Ls). I'm sure you contemplated it already, but why not just do a simple CPU upgrade and keep everything else the same?

(edit: just to add a data-point, all my DS3L's supported 3.3Ghz clocks with Q6600 with very slight Vcore bumps. FWIW)

 

[z1ggy]

Originally posted by: Idontcare
I know you explicitly asked solely for feedback regarding the PhII X3, but I couldn't help but notice you've already got a D3SL mobo which is quite capable of being upgraded to a quad CPU in its own right (I happen to own a few DS3Ls). I'm sure you contemplated it already, but why not just do a simple CPU upgrade and keep everything else the same?

(edit: just to add a data-point, all my DS3L's supported 3.3Ghz clocks with Q6600 with very slight Vcore bumps. FWIW)

This is true..but its basically a cost/performance ratio that I want to maximize. I havent researched enough yet to figure out which woudl be a better option.

Basically its either:

Get the X3/X4 and new mobo for $100 to 150 more and upgrade gpu later and not have to upgrade for a while

upgrade to a 775 quad and upgrade gpu now but maybe have to upgrade platform sooner than later.

Woudl this be a correct assesment?

 

[Gikaseixas]

Originally posted by: z1ggy
That is true. how much are they going for on newegg now? like 229? I really can't spend a ton here you know..I figured the X3 would be good, plus there is a chance I coudl unluck the 4th core with a good mobo. Also what woudl be a good mobo choice? I saw a nice gigabyte on newegg for 109, but the other 2 high rated boards were asus and msi and were both 179. Kind of pricey.

nope, they're $189,99 and the 720BE costs $139. It's a $50 buck difference

Most 790GX or 790FX boards form ASUS, Gigabyte, MSI, etc will be a good buy

 

[Idontcare]

Originally posted by: z1ggy

Originally posted by: Idontcare
I know you explicitly asked solely for feedback regarding the PhII X3, but I couldn't help but notice you've already got a D3SL mobo which is quite capable of being upgraded to a quad CPU in its own right (I happen to own a few DS3Ls). I'm sure you contemplated it already, but why not just do a simple CPU upgrade and keep everything else the same?

(edit: just to add a data-point, all my DS3L's supported 3.3Ghz clocks with Q6600 with very slight Vcore bumps. FWIW)

This is true..but its basically a cost/performance ratio that I want to maximize. I havent researched enough yet to figure out which woudl be a better option.

Basically its either:

Get the X3/X4 and new mobo for $100 to 150 more and upgrade gpu later and not have to upgrade for a while

upgrade to a 775 quad and upgrade gpu now but maybe have to upgrade platform sooner than later.

Woudl this be a correct assesment?

I can appreciate the cross-roads you are at. It looks to me like you are really concerned with trying to maximize two things here - cost/performance at the time of the upgrade and keeping platform flexibility for potential future upgrades.

Benchmarks, etc, will help answer your price/performance question (and I would be really surprised if picking up a Q6600 and OC'ing it would not compete with the options that include buying a new mobo plus CPU) but no one can really tell you how to value open-ended possibility of future upgrades on either platform.

The DS3L can take any LGA775 quad up to the QX9770 (3.2GHz) but there won't be any faster CPU's released for it. But you could view the rig as still having a full upgrade yet above and beyond the Q6600 (or Q8300/8400) upgrade you'd be doing now.

Get the right AM3 mobo and you can be pretty confident in the future upgrade path of 32nm PhenomIII's (or whatever they end up calling them). I would not place too much confidence in AM2+ as having a 32nm upgrade path.

At any rate I really wasn't trying to derail this thread into a Intel/AMD upgrade ROI thread, I was just curious about your thoughts jsut because I happened to have the same mobo as you is all. You don't have to justify to my why you value an AMD platform for upgradability, I fully take you at your word that you know what you value and by how much :thumbsup:

 

[Stoneburner]

He gets a Am3 board, though, and he can't carry over memory.

You can do what appoppin is doing and gamble on a phenom x2 550. Assuming youc unlock 4 cores and assuming you get it 3.6 ghz, that's a pretty good investment for $102.

However, if you don't get it unlocked then it's not much better than what you have

You may need to squelch your upgrade itch for now.

 

[z1ggy]

Originally posted by: Stoneburner
He gets a Am3 board, though, and he can't carry over memory.

You can do what appoppin is doing and gamble on a phenom x2 550. Assuming youc unlock 4 cores and assuming you get it 3.6 ghz, that's a pretty good investment for $102.

However, if you don't get it unlocked then it's not much better than what you have

You may need to squelch your upgrade itch for now.

IF i use a gigabtye am3/am2+ board I can carry my ddr2 over cant i? I woudflnt bother with the x2 for 100 bucks if its a 50/50 shot. its like going to the casino or something,,,really not worth it to me. Honestly I would rather spend the extra bucks to get something that I know will be better and will last me another year. Thats why its tough for me to decide because I feel like both options I am considering will get the job done.

 

[Sylvanas]

Originally posted by: z1ggy

Originally posted by: Stoneburner
He gets a Am3 board, though, and he can't carry over memory.

You can do what appoppin is doing and gamble on a phenom x2 550. Assuming youc unlock 4 cores and assuming you get it 3.6 ghz, that's a pretty good investment for $102.

However, if you don't get it unlocked then it's not much better than what you have

You may need to squelch your upgrade itch for now.

IF i use a gigabtye am3/am2+ board I can carry my ddr2 over cant i? I woudflnt bother with the x2 for 100 bucks if its a 50/50 shot. its like going to the casino or something,,,really not worth it to me. Honestly I would rather spend the extra bucks to get something that I know will be better and will last me another year. Thats why its tough for me to decide because I feel like both options I am considering will get the job done.

He means an AM3 DDR3 board. Any AM2+ board (790GX, 790x, 790FX) will work happily with your current DDR2. IMO the X3 720 BE is a great performer and good deal- go for it.

 

[z1ggy]

Actually Guys/gals I am leaning towards getting the 4890 now, and then saving up some cash over the next few months, then upgrade to the X3. Or maybe I should do it the other way around? I guess I consider that option because I know the price of the 4890 may drop according to the latest news articles..but I doubt the x3 will drop..its already dirt cheap.

 

[TemjinGold]

If you lay it out longer term, you're really looking at a total of 2 cpu upgrades and 1 mobo upgrade as you'll either get a cpu now and a new mobo/cpu later OR get a mobo/cpu now and just a new cpu later. Looking at it that way, it really is in your benefit to only upgrade the cpu now and then get a new mobo/cpu later. Reasons:

1) The best intel cpus in your price range for your DS3L are fairly comparable in real world performance to whatever phenom + mobo you can get.

2) AMD promised future compatibility with AM3 but nothing in life is absolute. There's nothing stopping them from withdrawing that promise in the future if it suits them (I'm not against AMD here; Intel could do the same.) If you bought the new mobo now, there's a chance you could end up with the same problem when it's time to upgrade again. However, if you only bought the cpu now, you stand a far greater chance of "future-proofing" your platform by buying the mobo/cpu the next time you upgrade.

3) A cpu-only upgrade is cheaper.

I know you pulled into this reasoning that a mobo/cpu today means you won't have to get a mobo next time. The problem is, you are buying a new mobo in either scenario--the only difference is whether you do that now or later and I think later is to your benefit.

 

[z1ggy]

Yeah that is a preetty good point you made. Well if I had the choice between a Q9550 now and the 4890 in a few months, or vice versa, which would be better? I just dont want to waste anymoney if I could hold on longer on one or the other. The real problem is, I cant afford both of them at once.

 

[yh125d]

I'd definitely get the GPU first. Your 8800GT is bottlenecking you a lot more than that e6750

 

[Idontcare]

Originally posted by: yh125d
I'd definitely get the GPU first. Your 8800GT is bottlenecking you a lot more than that e6750

+1

This is my advice as well.

 

[richierich1212]

He says he does minor encoding and multi-tasking. You may as well see if you can upgrade to an intel quad for cheap.

 

[TemjinGold]

Originally posted by: richierich1212
He says he does minor encoding and multi-tasking. You may as well see if you can upgrade to an intel quad for cheap.

I agree with this one more because Evergreen is coming out in a few months whereas nothing new cpu-wise is coming out in the same timeframe for your S775 mobo. By going CPU first, you will have the better pair of upgrades when done.

 

[Munky]

Originally posted by: Idontcare

Originally posted by: yh125d
I'd definitely get the GPU first. Your 8800GT is bottlenecking you a lot more than that e6750

+1

This is my advice as well.

+2. It depends which is more important to you - encoding or gaming. For general multitasking your cpu is fast enough already, but at 1920x1200 a 4890 will give you a much bigger boost in gaming performance than any new cpu.

 

[z1ggy]

I will prob jsut grab the 4890 first since it will help me out the most right off the bat. I can always get the Q9xxx in a few months to complete the upgrade, I doubt intel will pull those chips anytime soon.