AMD Upgrade Help

[Josh]

AMD Athlon 64 3500+ Venice 90nm (Socket 939) £140 ish

OR

AMD Athlon 64 X2 Dual Core 4200+ (Socket 939) £258 ish


Both overclock really well as a lot of reviews say so, but what should i go for?
Yes the x2 is amazin for apps, but what about games?

should i spend more and get the x2, or save money with the 3500?

I really dont know whats is better, some tests shows the 3500 better in games which i dont understand!

Any help will be good thanx all

/ Josh

 

[Griff]

X2

If you can afford £260 then I really can't see any point in going for the single core Athlon.

 

[Josh]

why do some reviews say the 3500 is better for games?

 

[Griff]

What they probably say in reality is that the 3500+ got 1.3fps more in a couple of games.

What some random review says and reality are two very different things. Much better asking people with experience on various forum what they suggest.

I'm sure Wozzaa will add his tupence when he see's this and you could always ask over on OCUK forums.

 

[Josh]

ok will ask arround some more.

thanx

 

[Evil Ally]

IMO the X2 is suited if you have a specific need for dual processors, but otherwise you would be better spending the difference on more memory or better graphics card. Also 939 is dead, you probably don't want to spend lots of money on a platform that you can't upgrade in a year.

You could also go for an Opteron 939, which has 1MB cache and overclocks very well.

 

[wozzaa]

I have a 4400+ and theres no way i could go back to using a single core cpu now.

I play a lot of games and this thing is quite happy with whatever i throw at it. And paired with a decent motherboard they overclock fairly well. Mines hitting 2.7ghz on air or was until recently added some new components and now cant get it stable at all. So trying to fix that.

But i would say X2 everytime. If you have the money a 4400+ is the best of the bunch at the moment. Good overclocker plus has 2mb of cache rather than the 1mb of the 4200+

But the 3500+ may run slightly faster in a couple games what it doesnt say is you can sit there playing a game while your downloading got virus scanner going and you will still be able to play the game perfectly. Try that on even an FX57 and watch the FPS drop to nothing.

939 isnt dead yes M2 is coming out but its not gonna make much difference ddr2 isnt really needed on the A64 platform and its pointless buying first generation of components there always crap. And most of the M2 cpu's are gonna be multicored. Dual core is the obvious upgrade choice if AMD's flagship gaming cpu is a dual core as well now much say something. Games are now starting to become multithreaded at that point that 4200+ will easily outperform an overclocked FX57.

 

[Evil Ally]

I have a 4400+ and theres no way i could go back to using a single core cpu now.

I play a lot of games and this thing is quite happy with whatever i throw at it. And paired with a decent motherboard they overclock fairly well. Mines hitting 2.7ghz on air or was until recently added some new components and now cant get it stable at all. So trying to fix that.

But i would say X2 everytime. If you have the money a 4400+ is the best of the bunch at the moment. Good overclocker plus has 2mb of cache rather than the 1mb of the 4200+

But the 3500+ may run slightly faster in a couple games what it doesnt say is you can sit there playing a game while your downloading got virus scanner going and you will still be able to play the game perfectly. Try that on even an FX57 and watch the FPS drop to nothing.

I'm still not convinced of the economics of the X2 for general purpose and gaming use. You have to look at what applications you use and decide if it's realistically worth the heafty premium. The processor you mention is around £350. I suspect the average Joe will have the second core doing nothing 99% of the time.

939 isnt dead yes M2 is coming out but its not gonna make much difference ddr2 isnt really needed on the A64 platform and its pointless buying first generation of components there always crap. And most of the M2 cpu's are gonna be multicored. Dual core is the obvious upgrade choice if AMD's flagship gaming cpu is a dual core as well now much say something. Games are now starting to become multithreaded at that point that 4200+ will easily outperform an overclocked FX57.

What I mean by "939 is dead" is that it aren't going to be any new processors for it (well none of any consequence). I agree multithreaded apps are the way forward and there are certain games today that benefit a lot. The majority won't benefit much from the extra ~£200 investment. Again, you have to look at what applications you use.

 

[wozzaa]

True but at the same time its more futureproof well about as futureproof as you can get in a PC.

i couldnt go back to using a single core just general usage it is noticeable. great comparison my mate has a 3500+ apart from that almost identical specs to mine but mine or similar capabilities he has 2 6800ultras in his i have a 7800GTX 512. Only other difference between them.

But he was using mine the other day and just browsing the net and opening apps etc he said he could notice the extra core working just in general use.

People will say no to dual cores because there too expensive but after you have used one you will want one. Just makes things so much quicker and easier to do.

I couldnt go back to a single core but as you say the vast majority of people wont put the 2nd core to use. But as more and more things become multithreaded it will make a difference.

 

[Josh]

so if i spend £800 on a system and it lasts 3-4 years i will be happy

 

[Griff]

An £800 system lasting 4 years time???

Physically the metal case might still be intact but in technology terms it will be a fosil.

 

[ViolentJ]

^ depends what it's used for.

It's only really gaming that makes components obsolete so quickly.

Think mine is 3 years old this year, all i have done upgrade wise since i built it is add more memory and swap the graphics card. Not having an issue playing even the latest games. That's running an Athlon XP 3200+

 

[Griff]

The OP stated at the begining he wanted to use it for gaming.

 

[Josh]

well the system i have now cost £400-500 and lasted over 2 yrs, can still paly all games 2day, just not on top spec. So i think a new system with a 64 X2 will last 3 or 4 yrs.

£800 system lasting 4yrs means its cost about £16 a month
£800 system lasting 3yrs means its cost about £22 a month

Looks ok to me, puls the new cpu's ect. wont be out till the end of the year or later, 2yrs after that i can upgrade again. meaning it lasted 3yrs!

 

[ViolentJ]

sorry missed that. But like i say, the processor will probably last but the gfx card will be outdated way before 4 years

 

[wozzaa]

id say get the X2 and a decent graphics card and you wont be dissapointed a nice X1800XT would be a good card to get and there quite cheap now considering there near top of the range.