APU vs CPU+GPU

[chiranjitpal2010]

Hello,I want to know which is better- A8 APU or AMD phenom IIX4 955 3.2GHz and SAPPHIRE 100293DP Radeon HD 5570 1GB 128-bit DDR3 PCI Express 2.1 x16 in terms of price/performance ratio.
plz describe in detail

 

[jaguarskx]

The Phenom II will perform better since Llano is basically based on the less powerful Athlon II core.

As far as the integrated HD 6620G (I believe that's what it's called) graphics core, it is a little less powerful than the HD 5570.

 

[chiranjitpal2010]

The Phenom II x4 955 would be much more powerful and Overclocking friendly due to it's higher clocks and unlocked multiplier,
GPU would also not be bottlenecked by onboard RAM.


on a AMD Fusion APU system, the IGP could be bottlenecked by as much as 25% by ddr3-1333 RAM as oppose to using ddr3-1866 RAM.
As far as CPu performance go, both chips should be relatively the same clock/clock


and consider a HD5670 at least.......seriously[/quotems

then plz suggest me a good configuration for gaming under Rs. 15,000. only CPU, GPU (or APU), Mb, RAM is needed. consider price of newegg.com.

 

[rugdoctor]

http://www.cpubenchmark.net/cpu_value_available.html

Cross ref with tom's charts.

If Gamer do not skimp on video card (the one you list will not cut it for 1080p); the following will do 1080p at near max settings:
AMD Phenom II X4 925 38.38 $89.99*
Radeon HD 5830 16.19 129.99* (Buy 2 now if you plan to crossfire because these are going away very soon)
Crossfire ready mobo
or
1x Radeon HD 6850 17.74 159.99* (similar performance as 5830, but you can buy another later down the road)
or
GeForce GTS 450 14.41 99.99* (you probably want this one with a sly ready board you can get another in a year or so to play the new releases)

Not Gamer:
AMD Phenom II X4 925 38.38 $89.99*
or
AMD A6-3650 APU with Radeon HD Graphics 51.28 $119.99* (your APU)

I know that is more than you want to spend, but it's just not worth spending money on anything less. Your better off buying someone else's used system for cheap rather than buying new outdated components.

For gaming, your phenom 925 will be severely bottlenecked by a HD5570, you might as well save more money and buy a X3 450 for $63. You will see no noticeable difference in games between the two processors using a 5570, especially at higher resolutions. You're simply not balancing the two and therefore wasting money IMO. The 5570 is even pathetic in Crossfire which is why I recommend the cards above.

 

[rugdoctor]

I didn't answer your question...

The AMD phenom IIX4 955 3.2GHz and SAPPHIRE 100293DP Radeon HD 5570 1GB 128-bit DDR3 PCI Express 2.1 x16 = $175
vs
AMD A8-3850 APU with Radeon HD Graphics = $139.99*

Its hard to know exactly the price/performance ratio, but generally the phenom/HD5570 is going to positively crush the APU in graphics heavy apps. In 2d processing the phenom will generally have a slight edge and thus the APU starts to look better because you save $35 bucks.

I assume you saw Toms article: "Even mainstream gamers with $500 bucks to spend on hardware can do better than the best integrated graphics we’ve ever seen" http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/amd-a8-3850-llano,2975.html

Even if your not gaming I would not go with the APU. If you are gaming my post above is my opinion. GL

 

[chiranjitpal2010]

thanks for ur advice.

i go for 955 as i want to do some computer simulation programme. my probable confn. is phenom IIX4 955, 4GB DDR3 1600 GHz, HD 5570/HD5670, MB not decided yet.


my budget is $335.

plz suggest me a good confn.

will IGP motherboards make any difference except the excess dollar?

my monitor has highest graphics 1024X768, so i think good graphics cards will be bottlenaked. give ur suggestion.

is any extra cooler is needed in phenom II ?

is the memory of graphics card very important factor ?

 

[chiranjitpal2010]

The Phenom II will perform better since Llano is basically based on the less powerful Athlon II core.

As far as the integrated HD 6620G (I believe that's what it's called) graphics core, it is a little less powerful than the HD 5570.

but the graphics in A8 is HD6550D. is it more powerful than HD5570 discrete card ?

 

[jaguarskx]

The CPU core in the A8-3xxx series is less powerful than the Phenom II.

The graphics core in the A8-3xxx series is almost as powerful as the Radeon HD 5570.

 

[rugdoctor]

Hmm.

1024X768 max res? That's old school! At that res the importance of the video card is reduced. 5670 is sufficient if you'll never go past 1024x768.

Graphics memory? Get at least 1GB. Even at 1024x768 the extra memory can be utilized by turning on AntiAliasing to get the most out of your really horrible monitor.

I don't think you'll regret going with a better processor like the 955, which will destroy the A8, but you're in a tough spot gaming wise. You might be best off going with the Asus M4A78LT-M that greg recommends, get 4MB of cheap CAS8(!) DDR3 1600 RAM, and buying the best GPU you can afford with the intent to upgrade later. At 1024x768 you might even be able to hold off on buying the GPU at all and just use the motherboard's integrated graphics. I have a ASRock M3A770DE, which I think makes more sense because it gives you the ability to crossfire 2xGPUs later and the M4A78LT-M does not have that capability.

Bottom line: I still think you should stay away from the APUs until price comes down and more performance tests are posted. Phenom + GPU is the way to go. You would do well to get a mobo with 2xPCIe slots for Crossfire and a 6000 series GPU that will still be around in a year so that when you get that new HD monitor you so desperately need, you can buy a second 6000 series card and play all the newest games at HiDef resolutions.

Extra cooler is not needed unless serious overclocking, which you should not do. Other folks will disagree but if you don't have a lot of money to spend on replacement equipment, then major overclocking is not worth the risk. From reading the boards you would think overclocking is gods gift to man, but nobody mentions all the fried equipment expended in pursuit of this hobby. The phenom 955 you mention is easily overclocked to a modest degree with the stock cooler.

IMO the biggest reason to change out the cooler is NOISE. When AMD CPU's are under load the stock coolers are quite loud. However, spending money on an aftermarket cooler for a build that lacks funds for even a decent video card is a waste to me personally, loud or no.

 

[chiranjitpal2010]

thanks for ur valuable suggestion.

is a integrated graphics motherboard + a GPU makes any sense in performance in gaming ?

in my system will a DDR5 card make a huge difference than DDR3?

i am going for phenom II 955, 4GB 1600MHz DDR3 RAM, two PCI Express slot mb and a graphics card in about 100$(suggest me a good card).

 

[chiranjitpal2010]

Best answer selected by chiranjitpal2010.

 

[rugdoctor]

Integrated graphics motherboard is completely worthless if you're going to buy a video card; there are little to no practical gain to be had by crossfireX the two.

The DDR5 vs. DDR3 thing is not what you should focus on. Instead, look at the performance of the cards as a whole. As with processor clock speed, higher is not always better; the architecture, number of cores, on-die cache, the given application, and several other factors will dictate performance. Similarly, although DDR5 is generally better, it is possible for a DDR3 card to be faster than a DDR5 at certain tasks and in certain cards.

Again, greghome makes a good suggestion. The 5750 is the best you can do for around 100, at least this week. The best price/performance cards change every week. Furthermore, prices are in a high upswing right now in my opinion, and this may not be the best time to buy.

Consider a 6850 for $160 shipped: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814150551 If you're lucky you might even get the rebate.

The best I can do to help you decide is probably this. Assume: (1) 1024x768/1280x1024; (2) 1440x900/1600x900; (3) 1920x1080

Playing Metro2033 and Crysis2, among the most performance hungry games out right now.
5750 - 1 is great, even at max settings. 2 is playable at med settings, max probably not playable. 3 is unplayable at anything other than low to medium settings.

6850 - 1 and 2 are great, you will notice slowdowns only occasionally at near max settings. 3 is still playable at high settings with just a little AA and AF turned on.

Those are estimates from personal experience and benchmarks. Greghome is running a 6850 (correction 6950), perhaps he can correct me on the performance he sees. The point I am trying to make is that the 5750 is good for your current monitor, but you will not be happy with it once you upgrade. The difference is $45 USD, but will save you from upgrading your video card later. Here's the tie breaker for me: if you bought a second 5750 later on to crossfire, the performance of 2x5750 is only a little better than 1x6850 at higher resolutions. It is highly unlikely that the 5750 will be less than $50 in a year or two, what is more likely is that you won't be able to buy one at all. Moreover, your system would then be capped GPU wise, whereas a single 6850 would allow you to buy a second 6850 later (hopefully they will be around in 2 years) and thus extend the life of your system another couple years. The new call of duty and battlefield are coming out soon, and don't forget Diablo3, etc. etc. If you want to enjoy these games as they are meant to be played, mow a few extra lawns and pony up the $45 bucks!

Good luck.

 

[rugdoctor]

Oh, and if you are not in the states and thus less likely to be surrounded by rich white folks with lawns to mow, then I have no suggestions on how to make an extra fifty dollars. It will be worth it if you can, tho.