amd phenom 2 x4 840 vs intel i5 3470

[Saad_solangi]

hi everybody, i have recently just upgraded my system, i got myself hd 7850 along with a 32 inch led tv, i am using a dell motherboard with cpu amd phenom x4 9650, but im not geting those fps that i see in the reviews and benchmarks, probably bieng botlenecked by the cpu, what ive heard is that a decent gpu along with an average grade cpu will get my things going just fine, i know core i5 would be a better choice but geting another phenom would be alot cheaper as i dont have to replace my motherboard so what do u people sugest, should i buy phenom 2 x4 840 or get a i5 3470?

 

[Jaxem]

Well, the i5 would last much longer, the Phenom II, while quite a bit better than the first-gen Phenoms, is still quite dated itself. If it's within your budget, id' go i5....though i think you'd be fine with it as long as you're on your 7850, that's pretty well matched and i think that gpu will cap out around where the phenom ii would...

 

[logainofhades]

New motherboard would probably require a new case as well unless you are willing to work with the wiring for the front panel a bit. OEM's tend to make front panel connectors proprietary to prevent most people from upgrading their systems and forcing people to buy a new PC. For less than the cost of the i5 3470 and new motherboard, you could get an FX 6300, new AM3+ board and a case. Make sure your power supply in that Dell is capable of handling that graphics card as well. Here is something to give you an idea for CPU, MB, Case, and PSU.


PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: AMD FX-6300 3.5GHz 6-Core Processor ($99.99 @ Newegg)
Motherboard: ASRock 970 EXTREME4 ATX AM3+ Motherboard ($89.98 @ Outlet PC)
Case: NZXT Source 210 (Black) ATX Mid Tower Case ($37.99 @ Microcenter)
Power Supply: XFX 550W 80 PLUS Bronze Certified ATX12V / EPS12V Power Supply ($54.99 @ NCIX US)
Total: $282.95
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2013-10-02 11:18 EDT-0400)

Compared to going with Intel and a similarly capable motherboard.
PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: Intel Core i5-3470 3.2GHz Quad-Core Processor ($188.98 @ SuperBiiz)
Motherboard: ASRock Z77 Extreme4 ATX LGA1155 Motherboard ($124.99 @ Newegg)
Total: $313.97
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2013-10-02 11:21 EDT-0400)

Even with a cheapest H77 motherboard, it would still be $253.97. That is more than the FX 6300, motherboard and case.