Upgrade from E4400 to Phenom 8750 X3 ?

[sprucebr1]

Hey, I'm looking at doing an upgrade soon. Currently I have an E4400, was looking at moving to AMD with Deneb coming soon. I thought maybe the 8750 X3 would be a good move, though I also like the E8400 very much too. Any thoughts on making a switch? I am not doing i7, Way to expensive at the moment. My specs are in my posting. Any thoughts on this would be appreciated. Thanks.

 

[Scotteq]

It seems to me you are asking if it is wise to trash your current computer and spend a bunch of money now, so you can be better positioned to turn around, trash your computer a second time and spend even more money again later on.

Does re-phrasing your question in this fashion give you a different perspective? It should...

IMHO, you would be better off keeping the perfectly usable computer you have now. That question settled:

(1) Wait for Deneb to hit the streets so you (a) have an opportunity to separate real information from Fanboi Hype; and (b) see what the actual street prices are on the pieces you need to replace

*Plus*

(2) You will be able to (a) compare actual Deneb information to the available I7 information; and (b) allow makers to produce budget parts instead of the enthusiast level gear you have obviously been (listening to others bitch about!?!) looking at.

Hopefully that makes better sense to you.

 

[sprucebr1]

Thanks Scotteg, you make some good points there. As of right now, waiting a while is probly a good idea.

 

[megamanx00]

Well, moving to that X3 would be an improvement, but it wouldn't be that much of an improvement. If your motherboard can take an E8400 then that would be your best option right now. You can get even more value out of it by overclocking. Really though if you want to see if Deneb changes anything just wait till Friday as the official launch should match up with it's unveiling this week.

 

[iggybeans]

I've got to admit, even though I've got an AMD based system, that I don't see the logic in moving to an X3. While I don't agree that you'd be "trashing" your system, you aren't likely to see any real gains. Further, the last poster is right about waiting to see how the real world performance and pricing of the next generation of processors turn out before commiting to a specific upgrade path. Even though I"ve already got an AM2+ motherboard (with an X2 processor), I'm not committed to a Phenom upgrade.

 

[Zenthar]

Until Denebs are out, wait. You never know what will happen, many manufacturer might not release updated BIOS for it and you end-up being screwed.

 

[Scotteq]

I said trashing his system because the changes he was contemplating necessitate a reformat and reinstall. So yeah he can reuse his hard disc, drives and RAM. But look at it from a data perspective, yes - he would be trashing the entire system.

 

[cyborg28]

Overclock... I have yet to hear of an E4400 that won't do over 3.0Ghz on air. You might need a better cpu cooler, but that is about all.

*Edit*

All you need to do to get 3.0GHz with minimal effort is:

1) Set Vcore to 1.35 V
2) Set FSB to 300 MHz if it is 200 right now or 1200 MHz if it is 800 (depending on how your mobo shows it)
3) Set Memory multipyer such that you get 800 MHz Memory speed again.

Then use coretemp and prime 95 to test stability. If it is 8-24hours stable try again with lower vcore untill you find a lower / lowest stable voltage. If it is unstable reduce your fsb speed or increase your vcore at your descretion. (vcore over 1.35 for 65nm Core2Duo might cause damage / void warranty).

 

[hathost82]

Also of note the next socket sets are 1366 for Intel and AM3 for AMD so if you are going to do an upgrade move to either one of those sockets since hopefully they last awhile.

 

[sprucebr1]

Thanks for the help.

 

[someguy7]

It is not worth it to switch your entire system to AMD. Even more so for the x3. If you want to upgrade just pop in faster cpu in your system. E8400/8500. Q9950 or any of the q9 series. Or the trusted ol q6600.

If you already had a AMD system that can run the X4's or The Phenoms II then those would be nice. For the amount the performnace you would get, its just not worth it to switch over your board plus cpu.