Fx 4170 or i3 2120

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zayzo

zayzo

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Aug 4, 2012
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Hello, i am wondering on whether i should gte the fx 4170 or the i3 2120... i plan on mostly gaming and on a 600$ budget and these are about in the same price range.
 
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Goden

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Jul 9, 2012
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Here is my observation on the situation:

Intel:
- More expensive CPU and Motherboard
- Socket life shorter than AMD equivalent
- More powerful


AMD:
- Cheaper CPU and Motherboard in comparison (depending on where you shop)
- AM3+ Socket has continued long life.
- Less powerful at stock speeds
- Very overclockable

Regardless of what you pick, I truly don't think you will see a huge difference because games just are not CPU pushers. They have poor multi-core utilization still, and unless you're doing media processing you won't really notice a difference once you break the bottleneck.

My advice: Get a CPU/Mobo that won't bottleneck you (the FX would do fine) and spend the rest on a awesome graphics card. The GPU is THE MOST important performance enhancer for games. Even an SSD will give you a nice boost.

If you can, try and get the best Phenom II that you can. They will outperform the FX chips by quite a bit.
 
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dudewitbow

dudewitbow

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Apr 11, 2012
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do you happen to live next to a frys?


edit: only offered because frys doing a 118+tax sale on i5-2400s store pickup only. normally microcenter has these kinds of prices, but is limited in locations. frys have slightly more locations than microcenter does i think.
 
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G

Goden

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If he's getting both CPU's offered at the same price then the i3 is the better deal.

But if it's more expensive then the FX would work perfectly fine. The saved money can be put towards a better graphics card. (Which is actually more relevant for most games)
 
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M

molo9000

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In some games (mostly console ports and games with older engines) the i3 is going to be marginally better, but overall the FX 4170 is simply a faster CPU.

I wouldn't buy a dual core CPU in this day and age.
 
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photonboy

photonboy

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Jun 20, 2006
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I've been through this many times and the Intel CPU system always came out on top at the i3-2120 level.

However...
It is very painful when trying to build a $600 "gaming" computer because you have to balance the parts perfectly to really get the bast bang for your buck.

What is often overlooked is long-term value.

By spending about $170 for the Intel i5-2300 ($50 to $60 more than an i3-2120) you get a quad-core CPU which won't bottleneck the Graphics card. In this case, he could build his system and maybe buy a better graphics card in two or three years but with the dual-core CPU he'll be bottlenecked.

Tough choices and don't flame me, I'm just stating facts.

GAMES and CPU/GPU:
Also, games vary a lot based on CPU/GPU usage. And YES, you could most likely put that extra $50 or so saved on the cheaper CPU towards better graphics and games would run SLIGHTLY better, but then your computer is not upgradeable in the future as your CPU is bottlenecked and probably not in stock anymore (whereas GRAPHICS CARDS area all PCIe and there's no issue with compatibility).

Just my two cents.
 
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S

Smeg45

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Mar 9, 2012
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The 2300 is already EOL, in two years what will the OP upgrade to? A new system. Get the 4170, its good enough. Games need a GPU at 1080 to run them not a CPU. Even Bulldozer can push a 1080p gaming system. Save the cash and go for AMD.
 
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G

Goden

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Going to newegg and just randomlly grabbing the cheapest product doesn't really mean anything

especially when the parts you picked are things like Micro-ATX boards with low wattage-limits.




Not to mention the AMD uses a socket which is still very much being used. The upcoming Piledriver will work in that socket after a BIOS update.
 
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photonboy

photonboy

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Jun 20, 2006
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QUESTION:
Does that $600 budget include Windows (i.e. Windows 7 Premium 64-bit)?

Is $700 possible?
(I ask because there's a MINIMUM amount you need to spend to build a basic computer. Once you get above that you can start putting that extra money towards the CPU, graphics and motherboard.

It's simply a pain trying to scrape together a $600 gaming PC because it feels like you are actually wasting money by choosing parts (like a dual-core CPU or lower-quality motherboard) that limit the long-term value of the PC.

I've been recommending $800 (hardware only) as the best value long-term for people who will swap in a different graphics card after two or three years.
 
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photonboy

photonboy

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Wow, completely ignore my "don't flame me, I'm just stating facts" didn't you.

It's HIS DECISION. I'm just making the point that the long-term value isn't there. If he wants to scrap everything after two years, sure.. whatever. I was just making a point and he can do whatever he wants.
 
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Kamen_BG

Kamen_BG

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From what i looked up right now
Intel Core i3 2120 should be a bit faster and will also consume less power.BUT LGA 1155 is a dead socket.If say you want to upgrade your CPU after two years every LGA 1155 CPU will be discounted and you'd have a very hard time finding one.

With the AM3+ platform you get a great upgrade path to Piledriver which in my opinion is worth a lot.

In my opinion you should either save up for a Intel Core i5 which is far faster than any of those two_Or, if you're going to overclock, buy a cheap Phenom II X6.
http://www.outletpc.com/qr8652.html?utm_source=googleshopping&utm_medium=cse

If i had to build a PC for 600$ it would be this
PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: AMD Phenom II X6 1045T 2.7GHz 6-Core Processor ($126.98 @ Outlet PC)
CPU Cooler: Corsair CAFA50 61.0 CFM CPU Cooler ($17.99 @ Newegg)
Motherboard: Asus M5A97 EVO ATX AM3+ Motherboard ($94.99 @ Newegg)
Memory: G.Skill Ares Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($43.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($82.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Video Card: MSI GeForce GTX 560 1GB Video Card ($129.99 @ Newegg)
Case: Zalman Z9 ATX Mid Tower Case ($29.96 @ Microcenter)
Power Supply: Rosewill 450W ATX12V / EPS12V Power Supply ($56.00 @ Newegg)
Optical Drive: Sony AD-7280S-0B DVD/CD Writer ($16.99 @ Newegg)
Total: $599.88
(Prices include shipping and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2012-08-05 04:49 EDT-0400)
 
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W

wr6133

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Feb 10, 2012
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Get a Phenom X4 not the X6 above as the low clock speed and difficulty OC'ing with the locked multi sucks for gaming.

If it is out of the 2 original choices though get an i3 as long as the prices are similar.

By spending about $170 for the Intel i5-2300 ($50 to $60 more than an i3-2120) you get a quad-core CPU which won't bottleneck the Graphics card. In this case, he could build his system and maybe buy a better graphics card in two or three years but with the dual-core CPU he'll be bottlenecked.
Click to expand...

It wont bottleneck his graphic card because this method just blew most his GPU budget. This suggestion is just un-educated very few people buy a system to be crap for 3 years then add a good GPU when the CPU will be dated You basically suggest he has poor graphics for 2-3 years and an overkill CPU for the GPU he can afford. You know budget gaming rigs are normally run till the wheels fall off then just replaced. Balancing parts is key on a budget making a CPU heavy machine to run games that are largely GPU dependent is just a lame suggestion that smacks more of some blind fanboyism than any educated information.

With the AM3+ platform you get a great upgrade path to Piledriver which in my opinion is worth a lot.
Click to expand...

While I think he should by an AMD Phenom II this arguement is dud. Why is PD such a great path? We know its going to be weaker than IB therefore weaker than Haswell which will soon follow it.

Its a budget gaming rig why would anyone get a budget mobo and then in 12 months or less (the period of relevence PD will occupy) get a new CPU?


@OP the build Karmen_bg made above is pretty good for your budget but you shouldreplace the CPU for a Phenom X4 965BE (in my opinion)
 
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esrever

esrever

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Dec 27, 2011
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Spend as much money on a gpu as possible. The extra $20 between the i3 and the FX4100(don't buy the 4170 unless its as cheap as the 4100 since you can OC the 4100 to match the 4170 easily) could get you a much better gaming performance if you are on a budget. Buy at least a radeon 7850 for gpu and then calculate how much you have left to spend on a cpu and motherboard.
 
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photonboy

photonboy

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Jun 20, 2006
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Hey,
If you're going to quote my response and call me "uneducated" at least read the entire thing. This is the last thing I said in that post:
"YES, you could most likely put that extra $50 or so saved on the cheaper CPU towards better graphics and games would run SLIGHTLY better, but then your computer is not upgradeable in the future as your CPU is bottlenecked and probably not in stock anymore"

I clearly acknowledge in this and other responses that you can build a "gaming" PC for $600 but that I didn't think the value was there long-term.

By bottlenecking the graphics card, I was talking about the one in two or three years. If he bought a dual-core CPU now for about $120 he'd be bottlenecked in the future. Okay, maybe some people don't care about two or three years down the road but I was pointing out that he probably couldn't buy a CPU for his motherboard by then.

So in other words, for the sake of $50 now to invest in a quad-core he would't have to replace his ENTIRE COMPUTER to upgrade in 2-3 years, just the graphics card.

So don't just skim though these comments looking to flame people.
 
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nekulturny

nekulturny

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Feb 9, 2012
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The i5-2300 SUCKS, at least compared to its bigger brothers which cost only $10-20 more like the i5-2400 or 3450. My Phenom II @ 4.0GHZ performs as well as it does. For gaming you would probably be better off with the i3-2120 because of the disamal clock speed the i5-2300/2310 have.

But, it doesn't suck nearly as bad as the FX-41xx.. /thread.

Think I'm kidding about the i5-2300? I'm not...
http://img215.imageshack.us/img215/198/i52300vphenomiiat4ghz.jpg
 
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G

Guest

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i didn't just randomly pick parts on new egg but use pcpartpicker. and the low wattage limits only affects the AMD board. (and in that case the AMD board is limited in upgrade path)
still as i said, i laugh when people say intel boards are more expensive. can you show a cheaper as good AMD board for less?
 
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nekulturny

nekulturny

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You can keep that trashy H61 mobo. Just sayin. lol
 
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