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New m/b time help needed

HairyMcbiker
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New m/b time help needed

OK I am in the market for a new motherboard/processor.
I have up to 200quid to spend.
I have seen:
Intel Core i3/4130 with ASUS H81M-PLUS
AMD FX8320 8 core with ASUS M5A78L-M
Both about 180, so adding memory is about the top of my price range.
What is the forums thoughts on these units?
(Last time I bought a processor it was about 9 years ago so well out of touch on what is "hot or not" at the mo)
44 REPLIES 44
rongtw
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Re: New m/b time help needed

a lot of what you decide is to do with what you need your PC for , as some CPU are better for different applications  Wink
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kmilburn
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Re: New m/b time help needed

There's a nice comparison between the two here.
Generally, for roughly equivalent models,  the Intel chips have better single core performance, while the AMDs have better multicore performance,  until you start getting into silly money.
The other prime difference is power consumption, which is heavily in favour of the Intel chips.
HairyMcbiker
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Re: New m/b time help needed

Use for...
50% surfing/listening to the radio
30% gaming via steam
10% video conversion
10% other stuff maxing out my current processor
Currently running:
Dell Dimension 9200
Intel Core 2 6700@2.66Ghz
4Gb ram (max)
GT-610 video
2 monitors connected via vga (no DVI or HDMI ports)
I have an HDMI-Vga convertor that I have used on my pi so can use that if I get an onboard video with an HDMI port.
The m/b will be put in to a different case as this is a BTX box. But I have a box with a 550W psu in it.
Hmm power consumption what is the difference?
Oldjim
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Re: New m/b time help needed

For gaming you should be considering an i5 if going Intel as the i3 only has dual core and you need quad core
As an example the latest Far Cry won't even run properly on a dual core
I know that this will break your budget but in my opinion going i3 for gaming would be a mistake
HairyMcbiker
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Re: New m/b time help needed

FC doesn't run under Linux any way so ...
But I take the idea, that's why I was thinking of the Amd 8 core.
At the mo I am playing Borderlands 2 & Xcom (both running under Linux & Steam)
A core i5 adds about £40 to the pool, so I am looking at £250 after ram is added, need to think whether the i5 is better than the Amd. I don't need to run the latest games, and it will not be a total gaming rig, only the odd couple of hours gaming vs loads doing normal things.
nanotm
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Re: New m/b time help needed

if your trying to do this on a budget the mobo is more important than the cpu.
I recently replaced my starting to fail m4a89tdpro/usb3 mobo with a sabertooth 990fx rv2.0  the mobo cost $140 but the old 1055xt cpu and the 1300mhz ddr 3 ram still runs fine on it.
ok so your looking to replace your cpu as its an old thing and not up to task then look at the mobo first that offers what you want then look at the cpu that fits on it, as someone mentioned more and more new games wont run on cpu's that don't have at least 4 cores
also you will need to check your new mobo is compatible with the PSU (newer generation boards often have different connectors or power requirements) if your psu is a modular type can you get the right accessory cable for it and so on and so forth.
when choosing the CPU check the thermal proeprties of the mobo, many of the budget mobo's cannot handle the heat generation of newer generation cpu's and so on and so forth
as to the amd option on your initial post that cpu will be bottlenecked by that mobo if you plan on overclocking (its a good cpu and one I'm planning on upgrading to in the future)
also look to the future and what you expect to be doing in 2 years time (unless you plan on upgrading every couple of years)
https://www.google.co.uk/shopping/product/11926119095525708765?q=asus sabertooth 990fx bundle&biw=17...
but why waste the effort when you can get an os free prre built system for 30 quid over your budget
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/AMD-FX-8350-EIGHT-CORE-DESKTOP-PC-COMPUTER-ATI-USB3-0-barebone-/2714692956... as an example of the first item in the listings under a search on google Smiley
just because your paranoid doesn't mean they aren't out to get you
shutter
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Registered: ‎06-11-2007

Re: New m/b time help needed

@ HB.... re - gaming.... I understand your "allocation of time" for different usages.... BUT... if you are using the machine for gaming.... then that is 100% of what you are doing at the time.... think of it as buying a new bike....
If you get one with 6 gears... it will get you from a to b... quite adequately... .. with the occasional hill climb, where you might be struggling and have to get off, near the top...
on the other hand...
if you had bought a bike with 12 gears.. you would not need to get off near the top, and enjoy your bike ride...  using a computer is pretty similar... don`t you think? 
HairyMcbiker
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Re: New m/b time help needed

@nanotm didn't think about a box set as I already have several cases about here, better mb. Maybe a separate purchase then, cpu & mb. SInce that one is £50 more than the mb option I should be able to get it cheaper without the box.
I thought all the m/b's needed were a 24 pin & a 4pin header. I will check my psu's and see what they have by they way of connectors, last one I bought had sata connectors. I can't upgrade my current pc any further, the cpu is a "new" one I added last year, this maxes the unit out (it is >8 years old & I got it from freecycle then)
nanotm
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Re: New m/b time help needed

I'm not that super at pc parts as it were, I know that I had to get an 8 pin mobo connector for a modular psu some months back when swapping mobo's for a friend when he wanted his system upgraded.
in the end after buying all the bits separately it would of worked out cheaper just buying a new box system and swapping the hdd's over Sad
iirc the newer generation mobo's come with 8 pin cpu power headers and 24pin atx headers but i always stick to the idea that the psu should cost about the same as the mobo as the parts it protects.
just because your paranoid doesn't mean they aren't out to get you
HairyMcbiker
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Re: New m/b time help needed

@Shutter I understand where you are coming from BUT if I am playing a game, I will not notice if it is doing 80fps vs 30fps. My graphics card is an all rounder and a few years old so not up to games playing at full screen on my 22" monitor.
@nanotm
The Gigabyte is different, it has an IDE interface????
I don't have any ide stuff connected any more, this pc was sata & usb only. (no ps2 connectors on the back)
However it does say
1 x 24-pin ATX main power connector
1 x 8-pin ATX 12V power connector
Which would mean a new psu unless it is 2x12V 4 pins.
But getting that would mean breaking my budget as new ram will take me nearer 300 than 200.
nanotm
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Re: New m/b time help needed

yeah I know....
but a decent psu with a gold rating and 5 year warrantee will be well worth the extra, the big problem is the ram pricing, decent ram costs a fortune but cheap ram doesn't work as well, if your going with the sabertooth mobo don't bother getting more than 1366mhz ram though the board downclocks the stuff mine is running at 667 despite being 2100 rated but if I used a lower end processer it would run higher/
of course a new decent psu should last through to the next build if not further my original hx1000 died after 3 years, got replaced with a hx1050 which has been operating perfectly for the last 3 years unlike the mobo's which have suffered leaky caps in that same time period....
just because your paranoid doesn't mean they aren't out to get you
HairyMcbiker
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Re: New m/b time help needed

Ho hum will keep looking. I am not looking at overclocking as I used to play that game years ago. Along with water cooling etc, now I just want to use the pc 😉
If I go with the one you suggested, add 8Gb of ram I need ~£270... hard to get by SHMBO.
Oldjim
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Re: New m/b time help needed

Decent memory doesn't cost a fortune
For example with the AMD motherboard proposed it is only about £38 for 4GB and £68 for 8GB from Crucial (this is where I always buy my memory because of their excellent support)
nanotm
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Re: New m/b time help needed

yeah but when your talking about adding in other parts its hard to permission to revise upwards the initial estimate, I learned a decade ago that it was better to say it would cost about a grand and then get everything for under 500 so I had the flexibility to change a few parts from the initial viewing and then its all good when she sees me being "frugal" and getting stuff for less than half price  Wink
just because your paranoid doesn't mean they aren't out to get you