Help my choose a replacement cpu

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wicked_sticky

wicked_sticky

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I need to replace my wifes computer. (Phenom X4 940, mobo dead) Im torn on what to choose. I have a spare Z97 mobo (1 of the pcie 16x slots is dead but she has 1 old video card so doesnt matter).

A)I can buy a I7 4790K for me give my wife my current 4770k ($300)
B)I can buy an I5 4590 ($160)
C)I can get an I5 4690K AND not have a clue which one to keep for myself which to give to my wife ($200)
D)I can get an FX 8320 and new Mobo for $175 (this seems like a stupid option)

Any of those are more than enough power for the games she plays. It would be nice to get the fastest chip my CPU can handle, IDK if Ill actually see any performance increase though.

Opinions? Other ideas?
 
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Avro Arrow

Avro Arrow

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How about option E)
If her current setup plays the games she wants, you could just get another motherboard. You say that she uses an old video card so I'm guessing that her current CPU is more than adequate because the Phenom II is a pretty decent gaming CPU. Also keep in mind that the Phenom II X4 940 is an AM2+ CPU which means it uses DDR2 (I know it very well because I own one) and no matter what you upgrade to, you'll have to add the cost of DDR3 RAM. A brand-mew motherboard will only cost you $60 incl. shipping and you won't have to buy new RAM:
Brand-new Biostar N68S AM2+ Motherboard with 95W Support
s-l1600.jpg

If her CPU seems a bit slow, just overclock it. Remember that the Phenom II X4 940 once held the world overclocking record. They overclock to the moon if you do it right and that's just free performance. It doesn't sound like she does anything "phenomenally" difficult as far as gaming is concerned (see what I did there? heheheheh) so why throw money at it when you don't have to? If you want to upgrade for the sake of it, wait until February when Zen is released and watch the prices fall from the sky! Then even if you do upgrade, you'll still have a working system that will make a fine HTPC. If you don't buy a new motherboard, the remaining CPU and RAM become literally worthless.
 
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wicked_sticky

wicked_sticky

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I wanted to take this route, but Phenom 940 was the first phenom II its a 140watt chip (and to get 25-30 fps I've pushed it another 650mhz faster), I need a mobo that 140TDP minimum, which would cost more than upgrading to something faster than a Phenom II.


(also Im an upgrade junk so I have 12gb of slow DDR3 ram collectign dust)
 
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Avro Arrow

Avro Arrow

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You know, I should have thought of that but since I use my 940 in an HTPC, I never think about its TDP. Well, even without overclocking, it still does play the games she wants and it will tide you over until February when the prices fall. That will make your upgrade cheaper, better or both. And you will still have a working platform instead of parts that you won't ever be able to use again. :)
 
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theonerm2

theonerm2

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Have you overclocked your 4770K any? There's really little difference from a 4770K to a 4790K. Just higher clock speeds. You could just set your 4770K to 44, 44, 43, and 42 on the ratios. That would simulate a 4790K. If you really want a 4790K you can just overclock to the same settings and you basically have one. The only issue here is maybe you have one of those duds that can only get 4.3GHz or less. If so then you would have to upgrade to the 4790K in order to get those speeds.

I say this answer depends a lot on you. Do you love technology? Do you crave the best you can get? If so go for option A and get it. You will be happier if you do that. Especially get it if you love to overclock and you aren't getting the results you want out of your 4770K. I know I have a 4770K and I had trouble reaching 4.5GHz. I had to delid my CPU and get water cooling to get the temperatures I wanted. It was a real pain to deal with but I got the 4.5GHz speed that I wanted in the end with great temps. If you're happy with your 4770K then just go for option B. I know Avro Arrow is saying to just replace the motherboard and keep using that old Phenom but I think it's time to upgrade. It's really time to upgrade that CPU. It's very old now. People say if it still works don't replace it. I say replace every 3 to 5 years if you game. CPU's are fine to keep longer but if you're a gamer the CPU is a critical component and you have to keep it up to date as well as the graphics card or you won't have the best experience with your games. Every 5 years or 3 years if you're an upgrade junkie is the perfect amount of time to upgrade the CPU for a gamer. If all you do is basic things like browse the web, listen to music, and watch videos then every 10 years you should upgrade the CPU. I say even upgrade it if you only play the basic games because if you're a gamer now chances are you will want to try out other games and if you don't have the CPU power to give you a good experience in those games you're going to have to upgrade anyway or just be forced to either buy a console or not play what you want.
 
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wicked_sticky

wicked_sticky

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I like how you think. I just researched myself out of getting a 4790k (and a 4690k), a 4.6 or 4.7ghz overclock is typical,I was thinking Id easily get a 5ghz overclock.

I got my 4770K when it was brand new, .Its stable at 4.3Ghz with at 1.185V. gamings temps are between 62 and 67.
BUT in stress tests hottest core hits 93C, coolest doesnt go above 78C.
Tried Crorig H5 Ultiamite, Noctuna-D14, and Hyper 212. The 212 ran like 4C hotter, the other two had identical numbers.
Obvious my IHS has uneven TIM needs delidding, I'm not ready to try take a hammer or razor blade to it yet, if ever.

I was under the impression the 4790k went back to a soldered IHS, it doesnt


To arrow's point that the phenom X4 is going to waste, the spare Z97 mobo is worth more and also going to waste, something will be wasted. I have an Athlon 64 3500, and an Athlon X2 5600 also collecting dust. My old Athlon M350 laptop is used as our main HTPC, plenty if muscle for Netflix and 1080p video

NOW Im thinking maybe get wifey a G3258 OR 4590. G3258 is not great but $50 vs $160, may be enough to run things as smooth as before for one more year.

 
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Avro Arrow

Avro Arrow

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Well you see, what I was thinking was that you don't need it to last for another year, just until February. When the AMD Zen FX CPUs are in the retail pipeline, Intel will drop its prices considerably (they're just ridiculous ATM) and you could probably swing an i3-4170 (which apparently games at or above the FX-8350 level) instead of a Pentium-series CPU for about the same price.

I know you want to go "pie-in-the-sky" on it, I get that, I'm the same way (I never buy graphics cards one at a time for instance, lol). There is something to be said for the timing of a purchase however and waiting until February would get you far more for your buck. Regardless of what you spend now, it will be money thrown away because you're going to upgrade whatever you buy now sooner rather than later. I was just trying to think of how you could throw away the least amount of money and get the best possible products when the timing is right for making the purchase.

I believe that theonerm2 is correct about the upgrade interval for serious gamers but if what your wife plays is smooth on an old-a$$ graphics card and a Phenom II X4 940 CPU, she is anything but a serious gamer. She just wants it to work and from what you've been saying, it doesn't sound like it takes much. Also keep in mind that if you get some powerhouse CPU, that old vidcard is going to bottleneck it something fierce when gaming.
 
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wicked_sticky

wicked_sticky

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Q1/Q2 2017 I will get a new chip/mobo a Zen if it actually performs as expected and AMD undercuts Intel's prices like they did in the past

But as it turned out, I dont need a new anything, my friend his computer was dead, bought a prebuilt gaming rig, was selling me his old video card (AMD 6950-obsolete but better than wifey's GTX 275 by a good margin). He was throwing away the old rig so I took it.
30min of diagnosing, I swapped out out the dead PSU, took out the dead 1gb stick of ram (and the 3 not dead ones) put in four 2gb sticks, slapped on my old hyper 212. Wife now has a functioning I7 860 (already better than her phenom, once I figure out how to overclock a locked intel chip, may be much better than the old phenom.
 
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