OC budget processor

[chankingguan]

If i were to use a budget processor (e.g. pentium dual core E5200) and OC it up to the speeds of an E8400, will it cause a bottleneck when paired with a geforce 295? I understand that when OC to the same speed the only place where the E5200 loses out is the cache and FSB. Any opinions on this?

 

[salabarria]

it will bottleneck the card alot i would suggest getting a quad like at lowest a q6600 and then oc it

 

[efeat]

Unless you play single-threaded games almost exclusively, or you run extremely aggressive video settings (2560x1600 @ 16x AA or something equally ridiculous) it will probably hold the gtx 295 back to some degree. It would work, but wouldn't be the best balance of GPU and CPU power.

 

[gkay09]

+1 for both...but you could mayb change the CPU to an E7300 or E7400 and overclock it...This wont bottleneck the GPU much...

But comparing the performance value, you cant beat the E5200 overclocked...

 

[mactronix]

I think you guys are painting a worse picture than is really the case.

If you clock the 5200 to a similar spec as a 8400 it shouldn't have any issues running a 295, you can run a 5200 up to 3.95 Ghz with a slight volt mod, so 3.5 should be easily within reach. That's assuming the chip you get will overclock the same as most of them do. Remember with any form of overclocking results are not guaranteed.

@ salabarria,
And that gets you what exactly ? Whats the advantage here then ?

@ efeat,
How many games do you know that are coded effectively (mulit threaded) for Dual/Quad cores.

As gkay09 says it comes down to a toss up between Budget and performance.
You wont (technically ) be bottle necked with the 5200 Overclocked anyway. Yes the 295 would most probably run better with the 8400 but thats not the same thing.

Can i assume you are running a large screen(24" +) and want lots of detail AA/AF enabled ? Seems likely given your chosen GPU. If this is the case then the extra load on the GPU will actually help the 5200 as the card will be doing more and so not calling for new info from the CPU as frequently.
If this is not the case then you may want to think about getting a slightly lesser=Cheaper GPU and spend the extra on a better CPU that you wouldnt need to OC as much or just pocket the differance.

Mactronix

 

[chankingguan]

if i were to use a 650w PSU for the above spec wud it be enuf?

 

[wh3resmycar]

if you want a budget proc, look for a q8200, considering its also nearing the phaseout stage with the q8300s knocking @ the door, you might get it cheap.