Carnage Posted November 16, 2014 Share Posted November 16, 2014 So, I decide to just replace my old hardware instead of trying to improve it, since it's 6+ years old. And I would appreciate advice for what to buy/look for. I need a CPU and Motherboard (and Ram?), for mid tier gaming. Bumped the budget up to $300. I would be buying in mid to late December. Current Specs: CPU: AMD Phenom 9500 Agena Quad-Core 2.2GHz Socket AM2+ Motherboard: ASUS M3N78 Pro Memory: 8 GB DDR2 (4 sticks) Case: Gladiator ATX Mid Tower Case Video: EVGA GeForce GTX 750 Superclocked 1GB GDDR5 (New) Power Supply: 650 Watt. Windows 7 Home Premium 64 bit. I was recommended a X4 860k or Pentium G3258/i3/i5, but I have increased the budget since then. Tangent question: Could my CPU be bottle necking my GPU? I've haven't noticed any improvement since I upgraded from the GeForce 9400 GT. Thanks. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tanner the Original Scout™ Posted November 16, 2014 Share Posted November 16, 2014 Yes, your CPU is bottlenecking your GPU. I'd recommend getting an AMD FX-6300 and someone will take the motherboard choice from there. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AwesomeMcCoolName Posted November 16, 2014 Share Posted November 16, 2014 Yes, your CPU is bottlenecking your GPU. I'd recommend getting an AMD FX-6300 and someone will take the motherboard choice from there. no. PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant CPU: Intel Core i5-4460 3.2GHz Quad-Core Processor ($179.99 @ SuperBiiz) Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-H81M-H Micro ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($41.34 @ Newegg) Memory: Crucial 8GB (1 x 8GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($66.99 @ Amazon) Total: $288.32 Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available Generated by PCPartPicker 2014-11-16 17:24 EST-0500 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tanner the Original Scout™ Posted November 16, 2014 Share Posted November 16, 2014 no. PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant CPU: Intel Core i5-4460 3.2GHz Quad-Core Processor ($179.99 @ SuperBiiz) Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-H81M-H Micro ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($41.34 @ Newegg) Memory: Crucial 8GB (1 x 8GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($66.99 @ Amazon) Total: $288.32 Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available Generated by PCPartPicker 2014-11-16 17:24 EST-0500 Meh. I see where you're going with the i5, but a single 8GB may not be too beneficial. Then again, since this isn't an APU build... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AwesomeMcCoolName Posted November 16, 2014 Share Posted November 16, 2014 Meh. I see where you're going with the i5, but a single 8GB may not be too beneficial. Then again, since this isn't an APU build... Dual channel vs. single makes very little noticeable difference, plus this way he can upgrade to 16gb should he need more in the future (which, if he holds out another 6 years he will). And yes, an i5 will decimate an FX6300. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tanner the Original Scout™ Posted November 16, 2014 Share Posted November 16, 2014 Dual channel vs. single makes very little noticeable difference, plus this way he can upgrade to 16gb should he need more in the future (which, if he holds out another 6 years he will). And yes, an i5 will decimiate an FX6300. I didn't exactly know his budget, and I know and i5 will decimate an FX-6300. I just chose that off of instinct not knowing his budget. because I can't read. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AwesomeMcCoolName Posted November 16, 2014 Share Posted November 16, 2014 I didn't exactly know his budget, and I know and i5 will decimate an FX-6300. I just chose that off of instinct not knowing his budget. because I can't read. Even with a lower budget, an i3 will outpace an FX6300 in most games anyway (and cost less once you consider that an FX6300 needs a higher end board + aftermarket cooler). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Carnage Posted November 16, 2014 Author Share Posted November 16, 2014 no. No to the bottlenecking as well? PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant CPU: Intel Core i5-4460 3.2GHz Quad-Core Processor ($179.99 @ SuperBiiz) Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-H81M-H Micro ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($41.34 @ Newegg) Memory: Crucial 8GB (1 x 8GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($66.99 @ Amazon) Total: $288.32 Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available Generated by PCPartPicker 2014-11-16 17:24 EST-0500 Just a few questions to make sure I'm on the same page. 1. This is compatible with my case? I see now that Micro ATX will work. 2. If I want to overclock will I need to buy an after market cooler? I'd guess yes, but asking just to be safe. 3. Why i5 over the Fx6300? 4. Since I have 2 slots for ram will I be able to use one of my old DDR2 sticks with the new DDR3 one? 5. Would it be worth it spend an extra $20-$30 for the same i5 with a bit higher clock speed? Say 3.5? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AwesomeMcCoolName Posted November 16, 2014 Share Posted November 16, 2014 No to the bottlenecking as well? Just a few questions to make sure I'm on the same page. 1. This is compatible with my case? I see now that Micro ATX will work. 2. If I want to overclock will I need to buy an after market cooler? I'd guess yes, but asking just to be safe. 3. Why i5 over the Fx6300? 4. Since I have 2 slots for ram will I be able to use one of my old DDR2 sticks with the new DDR3 one? 5. Would it be worth it spend an extra $20-$30 for the same i5 with a bit higher clock speed? Say 3.5? Whether your current cpu will bottleneck a 750 or not depends on the games being played, but in most, it would. 2. The only Intel Cpus that can be overclocked are the Pentium G3258, i5-4690k, i7-4790k (as well as the X99s). And you most definitely would need an aftermarket cooler to oc any AMD chip (stock coolers are good for stock speeds, and AMD has pretty poor stock coolers anyway). 3. An i5 is a faster cpu, simple as that. Intel has signifantly stronger cores than FX chips, plus FX cores aren't true cores. The FX series cpus contain modules consisting of two units. So, an FX8350 is 4 modules while a 6300 is 3 modules. (FX module = Intel core) But in gaming uses, an i5 will beat an 8350, and an i3 will even beat an 8350 in many games. Rendering on the other hand can leverage the power of an 8350 better making an 8350 slightly better than an i5 for rendering, although an i7 would be even better. 4. no, DDR2 and DDR3 are physically incompatible. 5. not really. The next step up, I'd make would be to a 4690k and a hyper 212 (or a better cooler). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Carnage Posted November 17, 2014 Author Share Posted November 17, 2014 Whether your current cpu will bottleneck a 750 or not depends on the games being played, but in most, it would. 2. The only Intel Cpus that can be overclocked are the Pentium G3258, i5-4690k, i7-4790k (as well as the X99s). And you most definitely would need an aftermarket cooler to oc any AMD chip (stock coolers are good for stock speeds, and AMD has pretty poor stock coolers anyway). 3. An i5 is a faster cpu, simple as that. Intel has signifantly stronger cores than FX chips, plus FX cores aren't true cores. The FX series cpus contain modules consisting of two units. So, an FX8350 is 4 modules while a 6300 is 3 modules. (FX module = Intel core) But in gaming uses, an i5 will beat an 8350, and an i3 will even beat an 8350 in many games. Rendering on the other hand can leverage the power of an 8350 better making an 8350 slightly better than an i5 for rendering, although an i7 would be even better. 4. no, DDR2 and DDR3 are physically incompatible. 5. not really. The next step up, I'd make would be to a 4690k and a hyper 212 (or a better cooler). I've had to use the lowest settings possible for my graphics in TF2 and it will still drop to 5-10 fps when the action starts, but still could be the CPU I suppose. My laptop with just the integrated graphics does better, 2.5 GHz Intel Duo i5 though. 5. Hmm, might be worth it in the long run. Looks like it would fit the board as well. I'll have to see how well the holidays go. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AwesomeMcCoolName Posted November 17, 2014 Share Posted November 17, 2014 I've had to use the lowest settings possible for my graphics in TF2 and it will still drop to 5-10 fps when the action starts, but still could be the CPU I suppose. My laptop with just the integrated graphics does better, 2.5 GHz Intel Duo i5 though. 5. Hmm, might be worth it in the long run. Looks like it would fit the board as well. I'll have to see how well the holidays go. It'll definitely bottleneck you in TF2 (TF2 is cpu based, not gpu) like it will in the majority of games. Well, if you go for a 4690k, then you'd also need to go for a Z97 board (which will be around $80-$120 depending on whether or not you want Crossfire or SLI support or neither). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Carnage Posted November 17, 2014 Author Share Posted November 17, 2014 Well, if you go for a 4690k, then you'd also need to go for a Z97 board (which will be around $80-$120 depending on whether or not you want Crossfire or SLI support or neither). Well I won't have dual GPUs or monitors anytime soon, so i'm not worried about either of those, but why this board instead? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AwesomeMcCoolName Posted November 17, 2014 Share Posted November 17, 2014 Well I won't have dual GPUs or monitors anytime soon, so i'm not worried about either of those, but why this board instead? Because you need a Z series chipset to properly overclock an i5/i7. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Carnage Posted November 17, 2014 Author Share Posted November 17, 2014 Because you need a Z series chipset to properly overclock an i5/i7. And I'd have to add the cooler too... Well, as long as I can get TF2 going smoothly as well as BL2, BioShock, HL2, etc I will be content. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AwesomeMcCoolName Posted November 17, 2014 Share Posted November 17, 2014 And I'd have to add the cooler too... Well, as long as I can get TF2 going smoothly as well as BL2, BioShock, HL2, etc I will be content. You can run TF2 on any decent dual core cpu. And the rest are all more gpu based. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Carnage Posted November 17, 2014 Author Share Posted November 17, 2014 You can run TF2 on any decent dual core cpu. And the rest are all more gpu based. TF2 runs okay for the most part at 20-30 fps, but I do a lot of MvM and once the waves start I get 5-15 fps. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AwesomeMcCoolName Posted November 17, 2014 Share Posted November 17, 2014 TF2 runs okay for the most part at 20-30 fps, but I do a lot of MvM and once the waves start I get 5-15 fps. Yes, it's a 6+ year old piece of crap, which is by no means a decent dual (quad) core. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Carnage Posted November 17, 2014 Author Share Posted November 17, 2014 I'll probably just stick with the first list of parts you gave me since it seems reasonable and fits the budget well. Thanks again,I appreciate the help! I'll post here if I have any more questions. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Carnage Posted November 26, 2014 Author Share Posted November 26, 2014 I would also like to add a wifi to this. I'm using ethernet while i'm at school, but at home that won't be possilbe. I'm not sure what to look for, but I was looknig at this: http://pcpartpicker.com/part/edimax-wireless-network-card-ew7811un ($6.99) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AwesomeMcCoolName Posted November 26, 2014 Share Posted November 26, 2014 I would also like to add a wifi to this. I'm using ethernet while i'm at school, but at home that won't be possilbe. I'm not sure what to look for, but I was looknig at this: http://pcpartpicker.com/part/edimax-wireless-network-card-ew7811un ($6.99) I really don't know much about wifi cards/adapters; and which ones are best....but I'd be hesitant with something of that form factor due to the limited antenna it will have. From past experiences, I can say that I've had better luck with PCI/PCIE adapters, but if you have a motherboard that supports SLI/XFIRE, and would potentially go SLI/XFIRE down the road, then I would possibly avoid this option as it could affect the number of lanes available or (more likely) simply get in the way of a second gpu. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Carnage Posted November 26, 2014 Author Share Posted November 26, 2014 My MB will only have 1 slot for a GPU so I can go with the PCIE adapter then. I'll get one of these http://pcpartpicker.com/part/asus-wireless-network-card-pcen10 http://pcpartpicker.com/part/tp-link-wireless-network-card-tlwn781nd Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Carnage Posted November 28, 2014 Author Share Posted November 28, 2014 Probably going to buy today. Changed to a cheaper ram since it looks to be the exact same in the specs. PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant CPU: Intel Core i5-4460 3.2GHz Quad-Core Processor ($169.98 @ NCIX US) Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-H81M-H Micro ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($35.00 @ Newegg) Memory: Team Elite 8GB (1 x 8GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($51.99 @ Newegg) Wireless Network Adapter: TP-Link TL-WN781ND 802.11b/g/n PCI-Express x1 Wi-Fi Adapter ($13.60 @ SuperBiiz) Total: $270.57 Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available Generated by PCPartPicker 2014-11-28 12:45 EST-0500 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Carnage Posted November 30, 2014 Author Share Posted November 30, 2014 After browsing tutorials and tips for installing new CPUs and MBs I had a thought. How am I going to get my Windows 7 working on my new hardware? From what I've searched, a big hardware change can mean a system simply won't boot and would need a new install of Windows 7. I have my Windows 7 disc and activation code still. Is there any way I can still use it? The only thing I could find was this which had few options: http://www.sevenforums.com/installation-setup/306408-changing-motherboard-without-reinstalling-wndows-7-pro.html Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AwesomeMcCoolName Posted November 30, 2014 Share Posted November 30, 2014 After browsing tutorials and tips for installing new CPUs and MBs I had a thought. How am I going to get my Windows 7 working on my new hardware? From what I've searched, a big hardware change can mean a system simply won't boot and would need a new install of Windows 7. I have my Windows 7 disc and activation code still. Is there any way I can still use it? The only thing I could find was this which had few options: http://www.sevenforums.com/installation-setup/306408-changing-motherboard-without-reinstalling-wndows-7-pro.html You can just reuse your current cd and code. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Carnage Posted November 30, 2014 Author Share Posted November 30, 2014 You can just reuse your current cd and code. It's really as simple as that? I read, in multiple places, that the code was bound to your motherboard. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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