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[Solved] Intel Core i5 750 or Phenom II X3 720

Forum CPU & Components : CPUs - [Solved] Intel Core i5 750 or Phenom II X3 720

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lordofcattown   09-25-2009 at 04:37:04 AM

Topic. Which one should i get? There is also the Phenom II X2 550 option.

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Best answer from maniac5999
It definately depends on price. AM3 Motherboards are much cheaper than LGA 1156. you can get a Phenom II x3 720 and Mobo for under $200. an i5 and Mobo is a $300 deal. The i5 is better, but it's also 50% more expensive, and to be honest most games only use 2 cores right now, some use 3, but not many. The big advantage of a 3 core processor is that it lets you unload all the additional background windows crap onto the third core. Given my expenses I'd definately go for the x3 720. The x2 550 is also a nice chip, and it may clock slightly higher than the 720, but it's only $20 cheaper, and from most of the benchmarks that I've seen, it looks like the third core is much more beneficial than an extra 100-200mhz of clock speed, and it'll probably become an even bigger advantage as games get more threaded.
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ghoulsrulefools   09-25-2009 at 04:44:57 AM

How much do you want to spend? There is a big price difference between the x3 and the i5.

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lordofcattown   09-25-2009 at 04:53:55 AM

hmmm, i looked, what about the AMD Phenom™ II X4 955 Black Edition Quad-Core CPU? And i am willing to spend ABOUT $100-$200

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welshmousepk   09-25-2009 at 05:30:11 AM

i think he means the entire budget for your PC.

if you have the cash, id go for the i5. its a brilliant chip and worth it if you have the cash.

if you are on a tight budget though id say get a 550BE and put the saved cash toward a better vid card.

my system is a phenom ii 550 so i can vouch for its effectiveness, though if they had been released when i vuilt my system i would have gone i5.

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Bronze CPUs badge cjl   09-25-2009 at 05:35:48 AM

The i5 is what I'd go for, despite the fact that it's quite a bit more expensive than the x3.

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i7 965 @ 4.2GHz (200*21), 1.384V
12GB Corsair Dominator DDR3-1600 CAS 7
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maniac5999   09-25-2009 at 05:44:57 AM
Best answer

It definately depends on price. AM3 Motherboards are much cheaper than LGA 1156. you can get a Phenom II x3 720 and Mobo for under $200. an i5 and Mobo is a $300 deal. The i5 is better, but it's also 50% more expensive, and to be honest most games only use 2 cores right now, some use 3, but not many. The big advantage of a 3 core processor is that it lets you unload all the additional background windows crap onto the third core. Given my expenses I'd definately go for the x3 720. The x2 550 is also a nice chip, and it may clock slightly higher than the 720, but it's only $20 cheaper, and from most of the benchmarks that I've seen, it looks like the third core is much more beneficial than an extra 100-200mhz of clock speed, and it'll probably become an even bigger advantage as games get more threaded.

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jj463rd   09-25-2009 at 07:41:21 AM

I think that you might want to look at Tom's Hardware's current Sept 2009 budget build.
It's pretty potent and hard to beat for the price.Also the Phenom II X2 550 BE used in the build can possibly have it's extra 2 cores unlocked with that motherboard nearly giving you a Phenom II X4 955 BE if successful.With the extra cores unlocked the benchmarks would be even better.
http://www.tomshardware.com/review [...] ,2424.html

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yomamafor1   09-25-2009 at 08:17:41 AM

Personally I would also recommend the Phenom II X3. Its a great CPU for gaming for the right price.

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RetiredChief   09-25-2009 at 05:23:25 PM

My vote is for the i5, myself debating a i5 or I7 860 - leaning more toward the i5 (cost vs performance) The AMD route is cheaper and that means a better GPU for better performance in games. But overall performance, the i5 is WAY better. Also 4 cores vs 3 cores (Low end amd CPU, granted you MAY be able to get 4th core working - BUt not always)

I tend to look a few years down stream, and if you can afford the i5 route - Go for it!!!

Some performance charts comparing I5/i7/AMD CPUs, You decide

http://www.anandtech.com/cpuchipse [...] =3634&p=11
http://www.anandtech.com/cpuchipse [...] spx?i=3641

Performance even better if you're into OC. Also the I5/I7 will considerably OC one core itself when only one core is used.


Message edited by RetiredChief on 09-25-2009 at 09:10:32 PM
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Hellboy   09-25-2009 at 10:05:31 PM


Core i5 is the better processor. Its dearer and next gen, faster than Phenom 2 x4.

good move alround really


Message edited by Hellboy on 09-26-2009 at 12:31:31 AM
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