Should I replace my CPU?

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FauxFox

FauxFox

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Jul 17, 2013
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Hi guys! I'm currently "remodeling" my PC, and I'm replacing a...

4gb ddr3 ram
integrated radeon 4200 graphics
and an Athlon II X4 clocked at 3.00ghz

I'm replacing those parts with...
4GB Upgrade of ram giving me 8GB DDR3 RAM

Adding Radeon 6670 for graphics

and adding a AMD Phenom II X4 3.4ghz

I know my RAM is bottlenecking my system (no doubt about that!)
I have a strong feeling my graphics need an upgrade too!

But my processor seems to never go above 65%-75% use? (per windows CPU/RAM desktop widget monitor).

So...Anyone have a program I can use to monitor CPU/Graphics card usage during a gaming session? I want to play a little PlanetSide 2, and cannot right now. If I want to, should I just upgrade to a Phenom anyways?


Thanks guys!
 
Solution
Sn1992-1361850
The best u can get


PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: AMD FX-6300 3.5GHz 6-Core Processor ($109.99 @ Amazon)
Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-78LMT-USB3 Micro ATX AM3+ Motherboard ($49.99 @ Microcenter)
Memory: Crucial Ballistix Sport 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1333 Memory ($44.99 @ Newegg)
Video Card: XFX Radeon HD 7770 1GB Video Card ($89.99 @ NCIX US)
Total: $294.96
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2013-07-25 16:11 EDT-0400)
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goonbar79

goonbar79

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Dec 31, 2008
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Athlon II X4 propus chip @3ghz is about 15% slower than Phenom II X4 @3.4ghz. So unless you can get the phonom for cheap price somewhere, OR you plan to overclock the heck out of it, an upgrade is not recommended. Even if you decided to go for it, check your mobo to see if it takes the higher TDP phenom, as many low end boards do not.

As for the RAM, 4GB is actually a good "sweet spot" for similar spec systems. For typical home use, 4GB is enough. I personally wouldn't upgrade to 8GB unless you do tasks requires lots of memory use (gaming is NOT one of this). getting any ssd would probably get you more performance increase than extra 4GB of RAM, although you would have to spend more.

If you want to increase gaming performance 6670 is decent, but I would prefer 7770 or may be even 7790, at which point your bottleneck will be lot more cpu performance than gpu (depending on graphics setting and game played).

But you should think about the life of your current system, and which component could be transferred and which can't. Once you get a phenom for $90, that is it. But good ssd or graphics card can be used for longer even if you get another PC.
 
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FauxFox

FauxFox

Honorable
Jul 17, 2013
42
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Well... about $295... But I would obviously prefer as cheap as possible.

If we assume I get a better card, and ditch the Phenom, do you think that it will give me the same performance as Phenom with a worse(er) card? :p

I'm getting a 4gb upgrade for RAM (just some Crucial Ballistix)

and I was reading the 6670 is fine for light(er) gaming...

The 6670 is the ONLY AMD card that offers VGA output, and I my monitor only offers VGA...

BUT!

If I get an HDMI to VGA cord, will this solve that issue?
Every single review of that cord is bad. They are all like, "VGA to HDMI won't work! VGA is analog and HDMI is digital!"
I know this, but will HDMI to VGA work?
That's the only reason I don't want a 7770...

Otherwise I would get a 7770. So actually, please answer the following questions...

1) If I get a cord and plug HDMI end into card and VGA end into monitor, will it work? http://www.amazon.com/Video-Cable-Black-Support-Necessary/dp/B002TUC64W/ref=sr_1_5?ie=UTF8&qid=1374780681&sr=8-5&keywords=hdmi+to+vga

2) If it does, and I get the RAM upgrade plus a 7770, will it be better than the RAM upgrade, Phenom, and a 6670?

THANK YOU SO MUCH!
 
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Sn1992-1361850

Sn1992-1361850

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Jul 13, 2013
4,360
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Get this built which b a great upgrade from athlon and phenom is a way back from this 6 core cpu
PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: AMD FX-6300 3.5GHz 6-Core Processor ($109.99 @ Amazon)
Motherboard: ASRock 970 Extreme3 ATX AM3+ Motherboard ($89.98 @ Amazon)
Video Card: XFX Radeon HD 7770 1GB Video Card ($89.99 @ NCIX US)
Total: $289.96
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2013-07-25 15:38 EDT-0400)


Later u can add a cpu cooler hyper 212 evo which wud let u o.c. To plus 4.0ghz
 
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FauxFox

FauxFox

Honorable
Jul 17, 2013
42
0
10,530


WOW! I never thought about upgrading the motherboard!

Very interesting though. I will TOTALLY think on that.

Thank you!

Still doesn't solve my RAM issue (need more) if I get the 4gb upgrade, it goes out of my budget, but I'll look at mobos. thnx!

Also, this is a quick upgrade to hold me over till my new Mac! :)
(don't worry, I'm gettin' parallels so I will be gaming [and I'm making sure it has the specs to do so! :p])


 
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FauxFox

FauxFox

Honorable
Jul 17, 2013
42
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10,530


The only prob is I'm not an overclocker (and don't plan to).

I'm not closing this since I still don't have a real solution (however I am looking into your options).


 
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Sn1992-1361850

Sn1992-1361850

Dignified
Jul 13, 2013
4,360
0
16,960
The best u can get


PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: AMD FX-6300 3.5GHz 6-Core Processor ($109.99 @ Amazon)
Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-78LMT-USB3 Micro ATX AM3+ Motherboard ($49.99 @ Microcenter)
Memory: Crucial Ballistix Sport 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1333 Memory ($44.99 @ Newegg)
Video Card: XFX Radeon HD 7770 1GB Video Card ($89.99 @ NCIX US)
Total: $294.96
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2013-07-25 16:11 EDT-0400)
 
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