Sick of 3800+ Need new Cpu

[drippyfausett]

So my system is getting to be too old and slow for my taste and I want to upgrade it. I have about $230 usd to spend on my system. I want to multitask, encode, game some, and just overall have a snappy system.

My specs are as follows:

amd x2 3800+

hsf Vendetta 92mm

MB: GA-MA78G-DS3H (rev. 1.0) http://www.gigabyte.com.tw/Support/Motherboard/CPUSupport_Model.aspx?ProductID=2800

2gb geil 4-4-4-12 ram ddr2 800

win xp

hd 3870

Centurion 5 case

19in monitor 1280x1024

corsair hx620

My dilemma is should I buy a Phenom II 920 and maybe 4gigs of ram, 940 be and add some 2 512mb ram stick i have to up my ram to 3gb (they are different brands and I didn't know if it was a good idea to mix brands they are adata ddr2 800 but 55515 , or possibly one of the new AM3 phenoms? I don't know how long I want to wait. I know I wouldn't really want to wait like 2 months. I haven't seen any am3 on the egg yet I thought they were released today or was I mistaken? Would the 910 be available to the public? What's your thoughts. Thanx

 

[Wolfshadw]

First off, major kudos to you for including the link to Gigabyte's CPU Support List!

I'm not a big fan of mixing and matching RAM so, personally, I'd replace what I have with 2x2GB DDR2-800. You can get that for a little over $40 shipped from Newegg. Add to that a Phenom II X4 920 and you should come in at just about $230 - $240 shipped. You could also drop down to an 9950BE quad-core for $30 less than the 920.

-Wolf sends

 

[caskachan]

what they both said

 

[drippyfausett]

Thanks guys for the quick response.
@Wolfshadw My motherboard does not support the 9950be or even 9850be.

Does anyone have a guess at what kind of oc i could get with this board and the 920? Also any word on the AM3's and when they will show up on the egg?
Thanks

 

[drippyfausett]

anyone else??

 

[aevm]

Buy new ram and sell old.
It would be a huge upgrade from a 3800+ to 920.

+1.

Get a Phenom II 920, upgrade the BIOS, get this RAM:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231209

LOL at overclocking. You lived with the X2 3800+ for a long time, and now the Phenom II 920 at stock is too slow for you and you HAVE TO overclock it? Come on, give it a try as it is for a while. At least until you know everything works properly. If you overclock right away and something goes wrong it will be hard to say if it was because of the overclocking or not.

 

[drippyfausett]

Thanks, lol, no its not too slow I was just thinking down the road to prolong the system life as much as possible. I just don't want to jump the gun with new tech around the corner. Would I really see that much of a difference with 4gigs of ram?

 

[aevm]

You'd only see 3.5 GB because you have a 32-bit system. Still, I think it would help in games. More RAM means better minimum fps, i.e. less stuttering. Here's an article about it:
http://www.bit-tech.net/hardware/2008/07/08/is-more-memory-better/5

 

[drippyfausett]

Thanks for all of your advice I ended up deciding on the 920 but without the ram. My budget was changed. Oh well maybe in a few weeks or next month.