Buying a house soon , so I don't plan on upgrading anything for a while.

So I've got my 8800 GTS 320, 2 gigs ram, Gigabyte AM2 mobo (no OCing), and the CPU. For better or worse.

However - I might be cough up a little $ to upgrade my CPU if the upgrade is noticable.

Is there an AM2 upgrade that would be worth the money out there? I troll sites and am always tempted to trade up CPUs but I always assume the real world improvement wouldn't be worth it (for the other components I have).

Or is the 4200+ good enough to last until the entire system is trashed?

PS - or maybe I should buy a mobo that allows OCing and keep the 4200+?

i think that only sensible upgrade for 4200 is x2 5000+ black edition. It works at 3,0ghz without raising FSB (200MHz x 15-unlocked multyplier). It cost about 135$, and that will be enough before real barcelona "comes to town".

X2 4200 is a very good CPU, i say get a good motherboard and OC it.
What is your budget ?

Thanks for replies. This has been nagging at me. Do I stay with 4200+ or do I make a cheap upgrade?

My budget is flexible, but I don't want to spend more than maybe $100-$150.

I would top out at around $200 for something that would buy me some good time. But I'd rather stick to $150 or less.

@torcida - you really think a 5000+ is $135 better than a 4200+?

X2 5000 runs @ 2.6
X2 4200 runs @ 2.2

for that $ , u have 2 options :

1_Get X2 5600
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6819103771

Or x2 6000:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6819103773

X2 5600 is cheaper and also it 200mhz doenst have noticeable difference

2_Get a new motherboard and OC

Will a 5600 give me a noticeable boost in 3d intensive games?

If it won't I'll stick to th 4200.

as i said x2 4200 runs @ 2.2 and x2 5600 runs @ 2.8 , 600mhz will make a noticeable difference , check out the becnmarks too :

1_http://www.firingsquad.com/hardware/amd_athlon_64_x2_5600/

2_http://www23.tomshardware.com/cpu_2007.html

3_http://www.anandtech.com/cpuchipsets/intel/showdoc.aspx?i=3038&p=7

as i said x2 4200 runs @ 2.2 and x2 5600 runs @ 2.8 , 600mhz will make a noticeable difference , check out the becnmarks too :

1_http://www.firingsquad.com/hardware/amd_athlon_64_x2_5600/

2_http://www23.tomshardware.com/cpu_2007.html

3_http://www.anandtech.com/cpuchipsets/intel/showdoc.aspx?i=3038&p=7

I checked it out. Theres no way replacing a 4200+ with a 5600+ for that $ makes sense. I can rest at ease.

Thanks again.

Yep. I would hold tight and wait til the budget allows for a new quad AMD system.

no problem , so u might want to get a a new motherboard and OC it

If you want a fast ass cpu then go for a 6000+ it is getting very cheap now that the 6400+ is out.

As i told you, 5000 black edition has a unlocked multyplier, so that makes him more "overclockable" for you. My friend OC 5000 black to 14x240=3360 with a stock cooler, and it works perfectly at 55-60 degrees. Even 6400 black edition can't work at that frequency on that low temperature. Think again. I agree with maziar that 5600 is good choice, but i stay at my choice, and thats 5000 black edition.

maybe we didn't understand each other. Not x2 5000+, => x2 5000+ black edition

Only thing why 5600 is better than 5000 black is L2 Cache (2MB instead 1MB), but i don't think that will give you much more performance, unless you'll do some video editing or something like that. In games that don't matter

Is it a 4200+ or X2 4200+?

Original poster:

You have 300 posts and you don't realize going from an AMD X2 to another AMD X2 is idiotic?

You want better performance buy an 8800GTX and OC your 4200+.

I apologize profusely for trying to learn about CPUs.

I know games, GPUs, and PSUs (thanks to more friendly members of this forum). Just trying to add CPUs to the list.

Besides - read my entire OP before calling me an idiot. I have no scratch to buy a GTX you dope.

We're lucky to have you on this forum. We would be lost in space without you.
Idiotic is to call yourself "Noya", but nobody didn't mention that.

do ypu belive me now? Did you see test from tom about x2 5000+ black edition. 3,3GHz for 130-135$ ?!?

Please Read ..............
http://www.tomshardware.com/2007/1 [...] erclocker/

Lean back while reading so you don't drool on your keyboard.

You will also likely be able to eBay your old chip to make up some of the price difference.