£300 sub-build. Phenom X6 or not?

[mania_maniac]

Experience PC builder blah blah...

Date Sooner is better, no pressure because I have a working rig.


Current Stuff I have a sufficient PSU and Case. CoolerMaster 650W, Antec TruePower 2.0 550W, Silverstone TJ05, Coolermaster Wavemaster. ATI 3870 512GDDR4, XFX 9600GSO 368GDDR3 XXX.

I'm currently still using a pre-built HP OEM PC with just a jacked up GPU, PSU and Case. The CPU is a AMD Athlon X2 3800+ Toledo @ stock 2.0GHz. No chance of any OCing because of the OEM mobo's limitations.


Use of new PC I realize that I actually don't have that much time to game as I would want to and so the rig isn't going to be for gaming. I want a heavyduty multitasking PC.

Monitor Setup *EDIT* I want to use 1 1080p monitor and I will be using 4 monitors as well(1280 * 1024) and will be multitasking in the region of:

Options in mind I'm going to upgrade to something new and I'm stuck between getting a budget CPU such as the AMD Athlon II X3 445 @ 3.1GHz AM3 or a higher end Phenom II 945, 955 BE or something like a Phenom II X6 or even an i5.

CPU

Intel i3-530 Dual Core @ 2.93GHz SKT 1156 : £87.81
Intel i3-540 Dual Core @ 3.06GHz SKT 1156 : £101.73
Intel i5-750 Quad Core @ 2.66GHz SKT 1156 : £156.09
Intel i5-760 Quad Core @ 2.80GHz SKT 1156 : £167.99

AMD Athlon II X3 Triple Core @ 2.7GHz SKT AM3 : £55.95
AMD Athlon II X3 Triple Core @ 2.9GHz SKT AM3 : £79.37
AMD Athlon II X4 635 Dual Core @ 2.9GHz SKT AM3 : £87.17
AMD Phenom II X2 555 Dual Core @ 3.2GHz BE SKT AM3 : £76.58
AMD Phenom II X4 945 Quad Core @ 3.00GHZ SKT AM3 : £117.71
AMD Phenom II X4 955 Quad Core @ 3.20GHz BE SKT AM3 : £114.24
AMD Phenom II X4 965 Quad Core @ 3.40GHz BE SKT AM3 : £139.24
AMD Phenom II X6 1055T Six Core @ 2.80GHz SKT AM3 : £154.96



Motherboard

I would prefer a 890FX/GX chipset because there is a possibility I will go CrossFire.
I am searching for Intel boards.


Other Questions

I use a lot of RAM with all of those tabs and programs kept open....
Now comes the question....what would be sufficient? And how much RAM would be enough?

 

[mania_maniac]

Oh, I forgot to mention, with my current HP OEM MS-7050 motherboard, there is an IGP (Xpress 200) which has a DVI and VGA out. I use my HD3870 with it (ATI+ATI) so I can enable SurrounView in the BIOS which enables me to use 4 monitors at the same time.

That's the only advantage of my old setup


I know that SurroundView has long since been out of use and that the similar HybridCrossfire is only for low end cards so I'm lost...the Matrox Triple Head to Go options are not available due to their price.

I could go Crossfire or SLI with the 9600GSO but I can't find a decent price for either in the UK.


I keep getting drawn in to buy something like a GTX460 or a HD5770 but I find myself having to remind myself that I'm not a gamer *rofl*.

 

[mania_maniac]

I would also appreciate it if you guys could point me out to some decent mobos and RAM modules...I'm up to date with CPUs and GPUs but I'm stuck in the 939 days as far as Motherboards and RAM are concerned.

Sorry mods, I can't seem to edit my post :/

 

[batuchka]

Actually the hybrid CF and Surroundview are 2 seperate functions i.e u can have SurroundView w/o HCF compatible IGP chipset/mobo and the basic requirements are

ATI IGP chipset 690G or later
Radeon class GPU (you got that covered with the HD 3870)

so with a Thuban safest is to go with an 800 series IGP mobo and ditch the overpriced 890GX for a 880G ^^

 

[mania_maniac]

To my understanding, there are no such motherboards...all I can find is motherboards that have onboard but onboard that disable itself when a higher end PCIe GPU is installed.

i.e. One of the other.

:/ Still looking...

 

[batuchka]

Gigabyte 880GMA-UD2H
Asrock 880G Extreme3
Biostar TA880GB+ (if u dun need USB/SATA III)
Asus M4A88TD-M/USB3

 

[mania_maniac]

Gigabyte 880GMA-UD2H
Asrock 880G Extreme3
Biostar TA880GB+ (if u dun need USB/SATA III)
Asus M4A88TD-M/USB3

I'm just drooling by seeing images of these mobos.

So if I've got this right; the bang for buck right now is a 880G NB Chipset mobo and that all of these mobos are capable of SurroundView?

 

[batuchka]

Yes but have a thorough look at respective spec sheet, connectivity, yada yada to zoom in on which mobo at its price point u feel best serve your needs ^^

 

[mania_maniac]

Yes but have a thorough look at respective spec sheet, connectivity, yada yada to zoom in on which mobo at its price point u feel best serve your needs ^^

Thanks for all the help! I'll just need to find out if I really do need to have a hex-core CPU...

Just another question but would I be able to use all 3 monitor ports on the IGP of the motherboard? For example, if I were to say add a 1080p HD monitor to the HDMI of the mobo...

 

[batuchka]

The general rule for IGP dual display is

1 x Digital out (DVI or HDMI, not both)
1 X Analogue (VGA/D-Sub)

 

[mania_maniac]

Drat. That just wrecked my plan

Will I be able to use SurroundView if I have my HD3870s in CrossFire?

 

[batuchka]

Wait: so are u planning to add a 5th HDMI/LCD display?

 

[mania_maniac]

I am planning to some time in the future yes. I want to be able to watch fully HD videos.

 

[mania_maniac]

I just read that a user like me will not exactly get better performance using a Phenom II X6 because web browsers are mostly single/dual threaded and that program heavy users would get better performance out of the Intel CPUs in the same price bracket such as the i5 750 or the i5 860.


Once again I am now wondering if I should get a Phenom II X4 a Phenom II X6 or Intel i5....

I would just like the socket that would last the longest. I haven't looked at Intel's motherboard offerings yet though.

 

[infernox_01]

from ebuyer i found out some cheaper prices for the cpu that might help u out.
AMD triple core x3 440 with 3ghz for £56.23. (not sure why it doesnt have a picture, heres the exact same processor from the same site except it costs £62.14)
AMD quad core x4 635 with 2.9ghz for £76.87.
AMD x4 955 with 3.2ghz for £109.37.
AMD x4 945 for £113.13.
AMD x4 965 black edition for £136.36.
Intel i3 540 for £95.87.
Intel i5 760 for £166.14.

no idea why the x4 945 costs more then the x4 955.

 

[Silvune]

FYI inferno. The two X3 440s you linked are different revisions; one is an IBOX version (which I assume is the older version) the other is MBOX. This is based on the MBOX versions of the 955 and 965 being the newer versions.

@ mania_maniac, AMD will definitely have the longer lasting socket AM3 might even get bulldozer. Sandy Bridge won't be on 1156 nor 1366. Westmere (32nm Nehalem processors for 1156 and 1366) has already happened, so there is unlikely to be anything significantly new for Intel's sockets.

I somehow missed what multitasking you want to do so I can't help you pick a processor until you fill me in on what you're using this machine for.

 

[infernox_01]

alright thanks for the info. according to the cpu hierarchy chart the i3 processors are in the same tier (the 3rd tier) as the x3, some of the x4 processors and the x6 processor in your description. the x4 black edition is 1 tier higher. the i5 processor is at the top tier. according to that the i5 would be the best choice and the x6 is overpriced. the i3 might be seen as overpriced aswell.

 

[mania_maniac]

Thanks for the info guys.

I will be multitasking (I know it sounds ridiculous but ah well) in the region of :

Microsoft Office Suite: Excel, PowerPoint, Word, Outlook
Firefox = 100 tabs
Chrome = 50 tabs
Music playback...oh wait xP
1080p video file playback
YouTube HD 1080p ontop of that
Heavily scripted sites with large...I mean large images!
Skype
Input Director....meh
Ultramon....meh
Speedfan....meh

Internet Security KIS (uses masses of resources)

Across 4-5 monitors btw.



I'm guessing more RAM is what I need...not so much of a CPU...but if you kinda get the idea, Chrome and Firefox do stress out up to 50% of my current CPU if I have a flash video & 50 tabs open. I do sense the lagginess as well.

 

[mania_maniac]

alright thanks for the info. according to the cpu hierarchy chart the i3 processors are in the same tier (the 3rd tier) as the x3, some of the x4 processors and the x6 processor in your description. the x4 black edition is 1 tier higher. the i5 processor is at the top tier. according to that the i5 would be the best choice and the x6 is overpriced. the i3 might be seen as overpriced aswell.

Um...anyone can read off that table...myself included. I appreciate your help but I aint spending £300 based on a table

:lol: *n00b* cough *n00b* :lol:

Only kidding.

Yeah, I've been a customer over at ebuyer but I was disappointed with their customer service. Absolute pants! I was looking at some cheap ass windowed case and there were two completely different pics. I phoned them and they said that they were very busy and that it would be impossible for them to take the case out of it's box because. Phoned again day after, same reply.

Same guy...and guess what the guy said!? He said..."well it's only £20 pounds"...

I've heard bad stuff when it comes to returns as well...


I'll pay a minor premium to get decent service....and the latest CPU revisions

 

[infernox_01]

ebuyer has been great for me. free delivery on everything, they say you will recieve it in 5 working days but everytime it comes on the 3rd working day. never had to return anything though so no idea about that. wow 100 tabs on firefox and 50 tabs on chrome. i guess the table isnt really useful in your case as its a gaming cpu hierarchy. all i know is that more cores are better for multitasking.

 

[mania_maniac]

ebuyer has been great for me. free delivery on everything, they say you will recieve it in 5 working days but everytime it comes on the 3rd working day. never had to return anything though so no idea about that. wow 100 tabs on firefox and 50 tabs on chrome. i guess the table isnt really useful in your case as its a gaming cpu hierarchy. all i know is that more cores are better for multitasking.

Not exactly...I mean I'm multitasking using mostly dual or single threaded applications and so I gather that having 6 cores isn't going to be beneficial for me since I dont re-encode videos and all that kind of stuff.

I'll be better off if I get a medium CPU and get about 8GB or decent RAM.