AM3+ CPU upgrade help please

[wasabi91]

I was looking to upgrade my cpu but realized my Mobo socket type is AM3. What is the best AM3 cpu on the market for under 200$? Is it even worth upgrading or is it smarter to buy a cheap AM3+ Mobo and get a AM3+ CPU? I primarily use my Machine for gaming.

Specs:
CPU: AMD phenom x4 965
GPU: MSI Twin 560 Ti
RAM: Corsair Vengeance 8GB 1600MHZ
PSU: Corsair CMPSU-650TX
HDD: WD Caviar Green 1.5 TB
OS:Windows 7 Home 64bit

I play at 1920x1080 resolution.

 

[rds1220]

I was looking to upgrade my cpu but realized my Mobo socket type is AM3. What is the best AM3 cpu on the market for under 200$? Is it even worth upgrading or is it smarter to buy a cheap AM3+ Mobo and get a AM3+ CPU? I primarily use my Machine for gaming.

Specs:
CPU: AMD phenom x4 965
GPU: MSI Twin 560 Ti
RAM: Corsair Vengeance 8GB 1600MHZ
PSU: Corsair CMPSU-650TX
HDD: WD Caviar Green 1.5 TB
OS:Windows 7 Home 64bit

I play at 1920x1080 resolution.

You already have a Phenom II 965, that's pretty much the best AM3 socket CPU available right not. AMD has stopped making AM3 processors and most of the top of the line Phenom II's are long gone. I would keep what you have and wait to see what happens with Piledriver.

 

[Sonophos]

I was looking to upgrade my cpu but realized my Mobo socket type is AM3. What is the best AM3 cpu on the market for under 200$? Is it even worth upgrading or is it smarter to buy a cheap AM3+ Mobo and get a AM3+ CPU? I primarily use my Machine for gaming.

Specs:
CPU: AMD phenom x4 965
GPU: MSI Twin 560 Ti
RAM: Corsair Vengeance 8GB 1600MHZ
PSU: Corsair CMPSU-650TX
HDD: WD Caviar Green 1.5 TB
OS:Windows 7 Home 64bit

I play at 1920x1080 resolution.

That still looks like a good system. If you want to stick with AMD why not invest in a AM3+ mobo and move the processor over to it?

 

[wr6133]

Is there a specific reason you want to upgrade? I would suggest you buy a better cooler and just overclock that CPU its still got plenty of life in it.

*EDIT* Just noticed that "green" HDD will be slowing your entire system down. Its not meant to be used as your main HDD its for storage. An SSD or a proper 7200RPM HDD would make your entire build feel ALOT faster.

 

[mitunchidamparam]

What is the main use of your system, as far as i can see for gaming only your GPU will be a bottleneck your processor is more than good enough. If you wnat to upgrade a GPU would be a better option.
An SSD will give you a significant performance improvement.
Get A SSD.

 

[Max1s]

Upgrading to bulldozer AM3+ would not be much of an upgrade, if you want more CPU power you'd have to switch to intel. (or cross your fingers and hope for piledriver.)

 

[Kamen_BG]

Your CPU is more than fast enough for your system.If you want to make it faster just overclock it.Its a black edition so that shouldnt be too hard.Otherwise i suggest you buy an SSD or just a good HDD.

If i were you i'd buy a good cheap CPU cooler like this one.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835118059
Overclock the CPU a bit.

Then buy an SSD.The OCZ Vertex 3 series are pretty much the best bang4buck right now.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820227737
Install your operating system in it (Windows probably) and your PC will work a lot faster.

 

[cobot]

I agree with the guys above, your weak link is the HDD, not the CPU.

 

[wasabi91]

Yea i agree, i really was thinking about replacing my HDD being it consumes less power would not be giving me optimal performance. What would you guys recommend for SSD's under 200$ that would be used for some gaming and bootup? Or is it better to buy a 10k HDD or WD caviar black?

Btw do you guys think that 650W PSU is sufficient for my setup? My case also have 3 LED fans. I dont want to not give my self sufficient power.

 

[rds1220]

WHat are yuou goint to be doing with the SSD. The problem is that you don't get many gigs for the price so If you want to spend no more than 200 then you are looking at onlt 128 to maybe 164 Gigs. Right now given the price to performance (or in this case gigs) SSD's are best used as a boot drive and have a mechanical drive for main storage.

 

[wasabi91]

Yea i really dont care how fast it boot's up it doesnt really bother me. I was mainly thinking about getting a new drive for better perfomance overall because the green drive isnt ideal for the rest of my system. From the sounds of it, im mainly looking for a fast HDD for gaming and video editing. The ones i've looked at are the Samsung f3 and the WD Caviar Black.

 

[mocchan]

Personally, I use a Corsair Force 3 120GB SSD. It does perfectly fine for my needs (OS, few games, and tons of documents).

I can't stress enough - you can do your other work on your storage HDD...no matter how fast your HDD may be (7200RPM, 10k RPM, or RAID0 for that matter) you can't match the overall snappiness of an SSD.

 

[mocchan]

I say your cpu is fine compared to their new architecture. Just clock it up to 4.0ghz and put a good quality cooler on it. I have asked myself (I use a 965be too) the same question. The answer is always keep it and wait for the next round of cpus. Their may be a BIOS update to make your motherboard AM3+ compatible, there was one for mine.

+1

I personally use an X4 955. I was very tempted to get one of the new FX line-ups, but I decided it wasn't worth the money :lol: I'll wait for Piledriver before I make any decisions.