Tom's Hardware > Forum > CPU & Components > CPUs > Phenom x4 9650 or Phenom II x3 720?

Phenom x4 9650 or Phenom II x3 720?

Forum CPU & Components : CPUs - Phenom x4 9650 or Phenom II x3 720?

Tom's Hardware: Over 1.4 million members in 6 different countries available to answer all your high-tech questions. Sign up now! Its free!
Ask the community Add a reply
Word :    Username :           
 
jyparkcan   05-15-2009 at 04:34:04 AM

I recently bought a Radeon HD 4850, and I should say, the graphics look amazing. Huge difference over my old 8600GTS.
But I can't help but get a feeling that the CPU is being the bottleneck, especially when I play CoH and Crysis.
So, if I decide to upgrade my CPU from my old Phenom 8400, which will be better, Phenom x4 9650 or Phenom II x3 720?
I wanted to upgrade to something like the Phenom II x4 940, but the TDP supports only up to 95W, so I'm out of luck until I buy a new mobo.
So, of these two CPUs, which will be better value? Or should I just save my money and go for something bigger later?
Thanks in advance.

------------------------------ Windows XP Pro. SP3/AMD Phenom x3 8400@2.11GHz/3GB RAM/640GB HDD/Ultra 600W PSU/ASUS M2N-LA (NARRA3) Motherboard/HIS Radeon HD4850
Add a reply
Sponsored Links
Register or log in to remove.
jerseygamer   05-15-2009 at 04:49:43 AM
- 0 +

As an X3 user and an avid gamer I can say the x3 is worth every penny. One click out of the box 3.6 with almost no increase in voltage and it runs super cool. Its worth every penny.

Reply to jerseygamer
jyparkcan   05-15-2009 at 04:55:02 AM
- 0 +

I guess I'll go for the x3 if I need to, since I'm a gamer and do not encode a lot of videos nor do a lot of processing work.

------------------------------ Windows XP Pro. SP3/AMD Phenom x3 8400@2.11GHz/3GB RAM/640GB HDD/Ultra 600W PSU/ASUS M2N-LA (NARRA3) Motherboard/HIS Radeon HD4850
 Reply to jyparkcan
bige420   05-15-2009 at 09:45:08 AM
- 0 +

Definitely go with the 720 if your going to be mainly gaming. Overclocks way better than the original phenoms and just generally better performance.

Reply to bige420
mi1ez   05-15-2009 at 10:25:15 AM
- 0 +

X3 720 for reasons already listed.

Reply to mi1ez
gkay09   05-15-2009 at 11:08:44 AM
- 0 +

+1 for PII X3 720...

Reply to gkay09
zipzoomflyhigh   05-15-2009 at 02:06:48 PM
- 0 +

X3 720.

Phenom 2's are 10x better than the old Phenoms. Also, with gaming, its all about clock speed.

------------------------------ P965/Q6700@3.2 8MB HD4850 OC Edition
4GB Corsair XMS 800
Vista64/Win7
Fatality 550w/Antec 300
 Reply to zipzoomflyhigh
Ask the community Add a reply
Tom's Hardware > Forum > CPU & Components > CPUs > Phenom x4 9650 or Phenom II x3 720?
Go to:

There are 1175 identified and unidentified users. To see the list of identified users, Click here.

Forum map
Bestofmedia Forum ©
2000-2009 Bestofmedia Group
Page generated in 0.246 seconds
Please mind

You are about to answer a thread that has been inactive for more than 6 months.
If you still wish to proceed, please ensure that your posting is original and does not duplicate or overlap any prior responses to this thread.

Add a reply Cancel
Sponsored links
  • Ask the community now
  • Publish
Ad
They won a badge
Join us in greeting them
How do I win badges?