AMD Phenom II X4 960T Black 3.0GHz vs. AMD Phenom II X4 980 BE

I don't if the 980E is worth the money over the 960T. Here's the configurations I have for both. Part list permalink: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/37ly
Part price breakdown by merchant: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/37ly/by_merchant

CPU: AMD Phenom II X4 960T Black 3.0GHz Quad-Core Processor ($124.99 @ Newegg)
CPU Cooler: Xigmatek LOKI SD963 52.0 CFM CPU Cooler ($4.99 @ Newegg)
Motherboard: Asus M5A99X EVO ATX AM3+ Motherboard ($136.99 @ NCIX US)
Memory: AMD Entertainment Edition 4GB (1 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($15.99 @ Newegg)
Memory: AMD Entertainment Edition 4GB (1 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($15.99 @ Newegg)
Hard Drive: Samsung Spinpoint F3 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($109.99 @ Newegg)
Video Card: Sapphire Radeon HD 6870 1GB Video Card ($199.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Total: $608.93
(Prices include shipping and discounts when available.)
(Generated 2011-12-19 16:21 EST-0500)
Or replace the CPU with the AMD Phenom II X4 980 BE. I still have to get a case and a 500 watt power supply, which I could use suggestions for too.

hey you can get an i5-2500k machine for that price! http://www.tomshardware.com/forum/ [...] 0#t2418878

No not at all in any way. You will be able to game fine on the setup you picked but intel is the gamesr choice right now.

Thent

The 980E is on sale at $170, so that rules out the intel-2500K. And if there isn't that much of a difference between the 980E and the 960T, I'll pay less money for the 960T. Any suggestions for cases and 500 watt power supply (not in a combo, separated.) I really don't want to spend over $700, just want cheap nut good quality. Not parts that are over the top, planning on playing X planes 10 on high settings though. I don't know what is required for that.

so you could get an i3 and used your saved money to get the i7-3770k.

very easy to change cpu's. The 3770k will most likely be around the price of the 2600k. Or you could get a i5-3570k. But we don't know how these cpu's perform.

Maybe sometime down the road I'll upgrade to a really nice processor, but not now. But do you know which AMD is a better buy?

The 960T is a better buy. You should overclock it to match and surpass the 980.

That's not a valid answer to which AMD

yet it is a better suggestion.

only cpu and mobo, possibly ram. Go and check out my previous thread, there is an entire system there.

If your budget is $600 then the build you posted is quite good. The i3 is slightly better in (some) benchmarks, nothing you would really notice while using your computer. I'm sure if I looked I could find some benchmark where the AMD CPU wins - either is great in this price range.

EDIT: that mobo is making your build quite expensive, are you sure you need all the features it has?

Get the PII 980 BE, an aftermarket cooler and look at some Overclocking guides.

Overclock it to a stupid clock speed and you will be sorted for gaming.

A lot of games these days like High Clocked Quads, and a 4.3+ghz PII will be more than enough to handle the latest and most CPU intensive games.

Ok buddy heres what i got with case and power supply, which will easily suite your gaming needs.
http://pcpartpicker.com/p/38aq

CPU AMD Phenom II X4 960T Black 3.0GHz Quad-Core Processor $124.99 FREE $124.99 @ Newegg Remove

CPU Cooler Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler $29.44 $29.44 @ NCIX US

Motherboard Asus M5A97 EVO ATX AM3+ Motherboard $118.09 $118.09 @ Amazon Remove

Memory Corsair Vengeance 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory $38.99 $38.99 @ NCIX US Remove
-
Hard Drive Samsung Spinpoint F3 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive $149.99 -$40.00 FREE $109.99 @ Newegg -
Video Card HIS Radeon HD 6870 1GB Video Card $159.99 -$20.00 FREE $139.99 @ Newegg Remove

Case Antec Three Hundred Illusion ATX Mid Tower Case $69.99 FREE $69.99 @ Newegg Remove

Power Supply Antec 650W ATX12V Power Supply $52.46 FREE $52.46 @ NCIX US Remove

Optical Drive Samsung SH-222AB DVD/CD Writer $16.99 FREE $16.99 @ Newegg Remove

Total (before mail-in rebates): $720.93
Mail-in Rebates: $-20.00
Total: $700.93

Part list permalink: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/38fB
Part price breakdown by merchant: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/38fB/by_merchant

CPU: AMD Phenom II X4 960T Black 3.0GHz Quad-Core Processor ($124.99 @ Newegg)
CPU Cooler: Xigmatek LOKI SD963 52.0 CFM CPU Cooler ($4.99 @ Newegg)
Motherboard: ASRock 880GM-LE Micro ATX AM3 Motherboard ($54.99 @ Amazon)
Memory: AMD Entertainment Edition 4GB (1 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($15.99 @ Newegg)
Memory: AMD Entertainment Edition 4GB (1 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($15.99 @ Newegg)
Hard Drive: Samsung Spinpoint F3 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($109.99 @ Newegg)
Video Card: Sapphire Radeon HD 6870 1GB Video Card ($199.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Case: Cooler Master Elite 430 ATX Mid Tower Case ($33.08 @ Amazon)
Power Supply: SeaSonic 620W ATX12V / EPS12V Power Supply ($79.64 @ Newegg)
Total: $639.65
(Prices include shipping and discounts when available.)
(Generated 2011-12-20 11:32 EST-0500) I've been advised to go this way, it's a lot cheaper.

Your CPU cooler is crap.

The rest of the build is good to go.

Although im worried by your ability to OC on that mobo.

Yes that would be a better performing build.

If your running 64bit its worth the extra $22 for the extra 4gb of ram

Good but double the ram, you need 2 modules to get the double data rate, plus stick with the coolermaster elite 430 case, its a better case and i would buy at least a 600w PSU.

Any specific ram suggestions?

i








so enjoy intel fanboys steering people to i5 over amd soley based on benchmark performance and personal preference. Does the op need an i5 to surf the web or play MW3, Skyrim, or any other game. NO. Does the the i5 cost more? Yes! Will the op benefit from an i5? Only in forums when they say they own an i5. []

Ive soley been intel until i realized how much cheaper amd was. I really dont see any difference in everyday performance other than price and benchmarks. I do own an i7 rig and do not see a performance difference. It doesnt play games, surf the net, play movies, or perform sketch up duties any differently. If i was rendering in 3dmax or inventor i might see an decrease in total time. Just because amd says the 6990 0r soon 7990 is the fastest doesn't mean i should go out and buy it to play bf3 if i only play an hour or two twice a week. " Form should follow function. Thats my point. Could i have bought a new core processor for my build? Yep. Did i need to spend $200 or $300 more for a similar z68 mobo and a i5 or i7? Nope. I wish it were a $100, then i could have continued to be an advocate for intel. 1156 to 1155. And the x79?! I would rather hold onto my cash than continually be raped by intel for the next upgrade.

@Diabolic1: no one is 'steering' anyone to buy components from intel... or amd. i'm only offering intel-side for the sake of comparison.
you can easily find decent intel motherboards under $120, even $100 e.g. asrock z68 extreme3 gen3, gigabyte micro atx z68 motherboards etc. you can even put together a lower priced intel system that can outperform an amd system having twice the price.
a lot of intel cpus sell under $200, $100. they can easily outperform their amd counterparts. they get the regular jobs done. if you bought a sub $100 intel sandy bridge pentium or sub $150 core i3, you won't notice anything different from amd's phenom ii x4 or fx 6100 for everyday tasks. multitasking doesn't affect them despite having only two real cores. if you bought a core i7 system for only 'play games, surf the net, play movies, or perform sketch up duties' that's ... your own choice.
x79 is aimed at a niche segment where people demand every ounce of performance they can get out of their hardware. and x79 meets those demands well. so well, in fact, amd has nothing anywhere near the performance and efficiency x79 platform offers right now. but that's not for..say, 'play games, surf the net, play movies, or perform sketch up duties'. however, i think x79 platform can substantially speed up google sketchup.
when i compare amd's latest bulldozer line up against intel's latest sandy bridge line up, intel still comes out on top in terms of performance, power efficiency and price. even for everyday tasks.

Better TDP and the chance to unlock 1 or 2 extra cores have me wishing I could afford 960T right now. My 965 BE is a C2

Seriously, a quad Phenom II would be perfect for his/her needs for quite awhile.