It would be easy to jump on the bandwagon, but I think it depends as well. A faster CPU and more memory can impact MINIMUM FPS quite a bit. Some games, such as Crysis and AOC, can really choke sometimes and benefit more from processing power and adequate memory.
It's not, after all, average FPS that you notice. It's the minimum.
IF you have a good cooler, and good motherboard, and can push the E7200 up over 3.4Ghz, then I say yes to that.
It's not about an OC'd e7000 series beating a stock e8400 because both chips will be OC'd.
Will you be replacing this PC in 2 years or will you just be upgrading? In a future upgrade situation I would rather be GPU limited instead of CPU limited.
To upgrade the GPU you just drop in a different card. If you need to get a new CPU that could mean getting a new mobo and RAM as well.
I'm currently running an E8200 @ 3.6 and an 8800GT. Planning to drop in a new GPU when the 8800 doesn't give me the FPS I want.
Message edited by calinkula on 01-31-2009 at 02:10:27 AM
hello again, thanks for everyones input. im building this for a friend who is on a really tight budget. something around $800-830 Canadian. this rig is gonna be brand new. the main purpose of this computer will be gaming
these are the parts ive decided on so far
Gigabyte EP45-UD3L
G.SKILL F2-8500CL5D-4GBPK
Freezer 7 pro
1680x1050 monitor
BTW if i get a e7200 do you think i could push it to 3.4+ with the freezer 7 pro?
thanks again
I think so. The Freezer 7 Pro can even push a Q6600 to 3.4, and a quad is hotter.
Still, there are better coolers out there that don't cost a lot. For example at www.newegg.ca both the Freezer 7 Pro and the Xigmatek HDT-S1283 are C$45.49 with free shipping, and the Xigmatek is better.
I think the cpu they got was a fairly bad one but hitting 3.4 GHz wont be an issue for you . The e7300 i identical to an e7200 but it has a slightly higher multiplier . To get an e7300 to 3.3 GHz just needs you to rest the FSB to 333MHz [ 1333] . I have a scythe ninja cooler on mine and it didnt need any extra voltage to hit 3.3 GHZ .
Its summer here and about 30 C [ 90 ish F ] and the cpu core temps are in the 45- 50 C ranged maxxed out , and 32-35 at idle
I use this to OC my E8200 from 2.6 to 3.6 and even have a little more room to OC if I really want. So I would expect similar performance using this on an E7200.
If you're not sure the large Xigmatek HDT-S1283 will not fit in your friends case and want to spend a bit less than the Freezer 7 Pro
here are some other 92mm coolers that are in the same performance class as the Freezer 7 Pro:
XIGMATEK HDT-SD964 - COOLER MASTER Hyper TX2 - OCZ Vanquisher
i appreciate all this input guys, the site i plan on buying off of is directcanada.ca the prices are a bit cheaper and they offer free shipping (which really kills newegg.ca). the freezer 7 pro is only $22, it seemed like the best deal for me
http://www.directcanada.com/produc [...] %20COOLING
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