Fx8120 or i5 3rd gen base system

[cristi77]

hello,

im looking to switch computer to a new one around christmas this year

im trying to decide on going with either amd or intel

currently i have

intel core 2 duo running at 2.1mhz

6gb ddr2

gigabyte mobo

win7 pro 64bits @ secondary win xp

1x 500mb seagate sata2 ( o.s. )
2x 2tb green hard drives

gygabyte gtx 550ti videocard

samsung syncmaster 22.6' 1680/1050 monitor

------------------------------------------------------------

i'm interested mainly in the multimedia aspect more than gaming ( movies, music, radio news, pdf book reading. etc)

i do play games on my comp but they dont require too much video computing power ( counterstrike online, strategy games)

i think my videocard will pass to the new computer, as my 2 storage 2tb hdd, and the 22' monitor for now

i will get thogh ddr3 ram ( 2x 8gb)
new case ( antec one is my choice)

motherboard + psu

well im not decided yet between the two

thank you for advices

 

[g-unit1111]

There's no comparison - i5 all the way: http://www.cpu-world.com/Compare/361/AMD_FX-Series_FX-8120_vs_Intel_Core_i5_i5-3450.html

 

[nekulturny]

Either would work for you, especially if the strongest video card you're planning to pair it with is a 550 TI. However, when deciding you should be aware of the Dr. Jeckel and Mr. Hyde nature of the FX-8120s, there are some games they can really under-perform in. CPU intensive ones. However, with the graphical limitations of a 550 TI, you will not be playing at any resolution in which the problems will be apparent. So you're fine.

You might consider though if you're not planning on buying til Christmas, to wait til PileDriver comes out (FX-8320s/8350s). These are expected to be 10-15% better than Bulldozers. Which for certain things will still put them underperforming compared to Intel i5s, however, a much more viable solution. But for your described multi-media usage, it really seems as though both CPUs are more power than you'd actually need.

 

[g-unit1111]

Either would work for you, especially if the strongest video card you're planning to pair it with is a 550 TI. However, when deciding you should be aware of the Dr. Jeckel and Mr. Hyde nature of the FX-8120s, there are some games they can really under-perform in. CPU intensive ones. However, with the graphical limitations of a 550 TI, you will not be playing at any resolution in which the problems will be apparent. So you're fine.

You might consider though if you're not planning on buying til Christmas, to wait til PileDriver comes out (FX-8320s/8350s). These are expected to be 10-15% better than Bulldozers. Which for certain things will still put them underperforming compared to Intel i5s, however, a much more viable solution. But for your described multi-media usage, it really seems as though both CPUs are more power than you'd actually need.

I honestly don't think Piledriver is going to be worth waiting for if it's going to be using the same aging AM3 socket. AMD fanboys are arguing that the performance is greatly going to be improved with Windows 8 - but the vast majority of reviews I've been reading point to Windows 8 sucking big time. If that's the case you're going to see a lot of gamers jump ship and move to Ubuntu and Chrome - especially with Steam becoming available on Ubuntu later this year.

 

[kevin83]

g-unit speaks the truth
AMD improves with windows 8. windows 8 is junk according to almost any pc dev you ask. Steam migrating to native Ubuntu compatibility (and according to Valve's developers L4D2 is actually faster on ubuntu ) means gamers no longer need windows or desire AMD processors.
Piledriver in Christmas will be irrelevant when haswell hits in the spring and smashes up ivy bridge as well.

 

[cristi77]

Either would work for you, especially if the strongest video card you're planning to pair it with is a 550 TI. However, when deciding you should be aware of the Dr. Jeckel and Mr. Hyde nature of the FX-8120s, there are some games they can really under-perform in. CPU intensive ones. However, with the graphical limitations of a 550 TI, you will not be playing at any resolution in which the problems will be apparent. So you're fine.

You might consider though if you're not planning on buying til Christmas, to wait til PileDriver comes out (FX-8320s/8350s). These are expected to be 10-15% better than Bulldozers. Which for certain things will still put them underperforming compared to Intel i5s, however, a much more viable solution. But for your described multi-media usage, it really seems as though both CPUs are more power than you'd actually need.

thank you for reply

firstly that 550 ti willpass to a new comp but not pairing with another one ( 550 ti = solo man playing lol) so no problems there

if these piledrivers are new , maybe they will cost more, and now there's a 60$ difference between 8120 and i5 3570k,

yes, you're right. i do have now current comp , but has a crappy case ( only one 80cm cooler to the side in the whole case) , the front usb is damaged, and is usb2 anyway, and the dvdrw start to get errors on reading some dvd with divx movies), so giving that , im looking to change that.

 

[g-unit1111]

g-unit speaks the truth
AMD improves with windows 8. windows 8 is junk according to almost any pc dev you ask. Steam migrating to native Ubuntu compatibility (and according to Valve's developers L4D2 is actually faster on ubuntu ) means gamers no longer need windows or desire AMD processors.
Piledriver in Christmas will be irrelevant when haswell hits in the spring and smashes up ivy bridge as well.

Haswell and Thunderbolt are really going to shake things up when they start becoming more readily available. I can't wait for Steam on Ubuntu - that's going to be awesome.

 

[nekulturny]

Haswell and Thunderbolt are really going to shake things up when they start becoming more readily available. I can't wait for Steam on Ubuntu - that's going to be awesome.

No they aren't.

Thunderbolt has all the making of BetaMax, FireWire and SonyMiniDisk.


Seriously, don't hold your breath on Thunderbolt becoming a big thing. Maybe for mobile devices it might be something, but its completely useless for the Desktop market. Its also a collaboration between Intel and Apple. Apple has quite the reputation of marketing things that look cooler than they are, cost a *** load more than they're worth and suckering people into buying it.

Haswell, based on 40 years of Intel history is not going to be the invention of the wheel.

Once again, a 550 TI is not a particularly powerful graphics card, an 8120 will keep up with it just fine, so will PileDriver.

 

[nekulturny]

I honestly don't think Piledriver is going to be worth waiting for if it's going to be using the same aging AM3 socket. AMD fanboys are arguing that the performance is greatly going to be improved with Windows 8 - but the vast majority of reviews I've been reading point to Windows 8 sucking big time. If that's the case you're going to see a lot of gamers jump ship and move to Ubuntu and Chrome - especially with Steam becoming available on Ubuntu later this year.

The OP says hes not buying til around Christmas. I didn't tell him to wait for PileDriver, I told him to look at PileDriver since it will out around the time hes ready to buy.

I never said performance is going to be improved with Windows 8. Actually I base the 10-15 percent from Trinity benches against the i3-2105. If Windows8 manages to squeeze another 5-10 percent out of PileDriver, so be it.

g-unit speaks the truth
AMD improves with windows 8. windows 8 is junk according to almost any pc dev you ask. .

Whats dis got to do with anything? lol.

 

[nekulturny]

Gunit- for your reading pleasure-
http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/a10-5800k-a8-5600k-trinity-apu,3241.html

My logic here is as follows:
1. Trinity uses PileDriver cores.
2. 2 PileDriver modules (4 cores), perform on par with i3 2 cores + 2 HyperThreads
3. PileDriver still has lacking individual core performance, but as mentioned in the article, single core applications are becoming less prevalent.
4. i5s do not have HyperThreading, so logically, 4 PileDriver modules (8 cores) against 4 Sandy/Ivy Bridge cores in an i5 should look quite interesting.

Lets not make assumptions about Haswell, its too soon to tell what they will perform like, and once again, based on 40 years of Intel history, its not likely to be a great leap. And not to mention the fact that Haswell is not coming out til late Spring, early Summer, which is several months after the OP will be in the market for a PC anyway.

Don't get me wrong, I still think both the Ivy i5 and Bulldozer/PileDriver is overkill for what the OP is looking to do, but simmer down son. lol.

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thank you for reply

firstly that 550 ti willpass to a new comp but not pairing with another one ( 550 ti = solo man playing lol) so no problems there

if these piledrivers are new , maybe they will cost more, and now there's a 60$ difference between 8120 and i5 3570k,

yes, you're right. i do have now current comp , but has a crappy case ( only one 80cm cooler to the side in the whole case) , the front usb is damaged, and is usb2 anyway, and the dvdrw start to get errors on reading some dvd with divx movies), so giving that , im looking to change that.

Yes, the PileDrivers probably will cost more. The 8120 when it was released I think cost about the same as a 2500K ($220), 3570Ks are their direct generational replacement, they run about $230-240. Most likely the PileDriver 8320 will cost around the same. So, if you're not building til Christmas, that will be the time to make the decision, plenty of tech sites will have PD benches by then.

 

[cristi77]

Best answer selected by cristi77.