Upgrade from Phenom II X4 820

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Kevin523

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Aug 2, 2012
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Hello everyone,
I currently have an HP Pavilion with an AMD Phenom II X4 820 @ 2.8ghz.

I am looking to buy a new desktop.
I am looking at configurations with the following processors:
1. AMD FX-4300
2. Intel Core i3-4330
3. Intel Core i3-4350

Please note that I am not much of a gamer. If I do play any games, they are older games, or flash based games.

I'd like to know which processor would be better overall for movie watching (Netflix, Hulu Plus, etc) music listening, audio encoding, web surfing, office uise, etc).

One such example I am looking at is this on TigerDirect:
http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/searchtools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=8925380&pagenumber=1&RSort=1&csid=ITD&recordsPerPage=5&body=REVIEWS#CustomerReviewsBlock

Also this one with FX-4300:
http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/SearchTools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=2546170&CatId=1887

The 3rd option is a customized HP business PC with 8gb RAM, 1gb video card, windows 7 and an intel core i3-4350 processor for $498.

Please note that I'm trying to get a system with Windows 7 64 bit preinstalled.

Thanks!
 
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Danifilth


Im on the same boat with you trying to use less power since my electric bill is 280$ for aug and september when its hot in AZ. Now...
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Danifilth

Danifilth

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Apr 22, 2013
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An AMD A8 would be good enough if your doing casual games 720p playing old games like diablo 2 tropico fallout new vegas and watching netflix n such.

AMD FX 4300 if you plan on playing with a video card like gtx 650 like skyrim thief like newer ones and plenty of power for browsing.

I3 is good enough also so it varies on your needs. If your going to watch Netflix in Ultra HD then amd fx 4300 or i3 is good
 
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Kevin523

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Aug 2, 2012
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I forgot to mention that gaming is very rarely. I am more concerned with general usage and watching movies on youtube, netflix, hulu plus, etc. I also listen to a lot of music and do audio encoding.

I just want the best overall option, of course realizing that there are benefits and drawbacks to each one.

Then again, if these choices don't offer much or any perforamnce gains over a Phenom II X4 820 then I may not bother buying a desktop. :)
 
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bmacsys

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Jul 4, 2013
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In every day usage you may not notice a big difference. The Athlon II/Phenom II's had very good IPC. Maybe only the encoding would get a fairly good boost. What I would do is buy an SSD and if you only have 4 gigs of ram upgrade to 8 by buying two four gig ram sticks. Those two things would give your system a nice kick in the pants for cheap.
 
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Danifilth

Danifilth

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Apr 22, 2013
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Sounds like your processor is fine the only difference on the new ones it has better power states consuming less watts from everyday use.

Its like for example my old 9500 GT video card has DDR2 and idles at 44C with newer GTX 650 TI GDDR5 idles at 24C using barely any watts on idle or light browsing.

My 1055T has high usage for example at 1.260V idle 80W-90W and the FX 6300 idles at 0.875 almost low as a 50 watt light bulb depending on motherboard power calibration. Newer is less electricity and less heat output thats the only thing i see. And of course the new processor should support faster memory at least

 
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Kevin523

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Aug 2, 2012
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I realize I may not notice much of a difference - and I appreciate everyone's suggestions.
Part of the reason I want to upgrade is for less power consumption and to save some money on bills.

But still, with every day usage, plus some audio encoding, and occasionally some video encoding, and sometimes I play with an NES and SNES emulators, which one would be the best.

Are any of those that I posted in my original post a good deal?
I saw another CyberPower PC with an AMD FX-6300 on a site somewhere (still 8gb of memory, 1tb hd) and it was going for $770 or $780 but I wanted to spend less than that.
 
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Danifilth

Danifilth

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Apr 22, 2013
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Im on the same boat with you trying to use less power since my electric bill is 280$ for aug and september when its hot in AZ. Now its only 170$ since i replace my card motherboard and power supply all there is left to replace is the CPU for me but i only get paid if i fix someones computer in my area for 15$ or a pack of cigs.

I3 would be great if you want the lowest power consumption and heat output so it doesn't trigger the air conditioner if you use one like me. 4300 is 95W so your ranging around 80-115W light usage and i3 is 55W cpu uses around 60-70ish light usage.
 
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