Gaming Processor question

[Harsky]

I decided to upgrade my PC bit by bit. At the moment, the graphics card got upgraded from to a 9800GT. Now my next upgrade is possibly the motherboard/CPU. Unfortunately, I don't know if I should choose between one with an LGA775 socket so I can use the Quad Core or one with 1156 socket so I can get the Intel Core processors.

 

[Diablo1123]

I say check your RAM first. Don't think LGA1156 sockets support DDR2

 

[I am r4ymond]

Speaking of Processors, is AMD Athlon X2 with a little 64 on the bottom of the sticker good for playing games that take up the whole screen and have insane graphics?

 

[Velveteer]

Speaking of Processors, is AMD Athlon X2 with a little 64 on the bottom of the sticker good for playing games that take up the whole screen and have insane graphics?

It shouldn't have TOO much trouble, but they're getting on now. About the same as age as the first Core 2 Duos. What games did you have in mind? Because stuff like GTA4 and Bad Company 2 need better CPUs, but Crysis and the like need better graphics cards.

As for the OP, it all depends on what you want to spend. What do you have at the moment? With a 9800GT, the 1156s are probably overkill, but they leave more upgrade options later.

 

[Harsky]

Speaking of Processors, is AMD Athlon X2 with a little 64 on the bottom of the sticker good for playing games that take up the whole screen and have insane graphics?

It shouldn't have TOO much trouble, but they're getting on now. About the same as age as the first Core 2 Duos. What games did you have in mind? Because stuff like GTA4 and Bad Company 2 need better CPUs, but Crysis and the like need better graphics cards.

As for the OP, it all depends on what you want to spend. What do you have at the moment? With a 9800GT, the 1156s are probably overkill, but they leave more upgrade options later.

If that's the case, then I suppose an LGA775 mother board will do for now. At the moment, my CPU is a Intel Pentium D 3.0Ghz but am I right in thinking that choosing any core2/quad core CPU is a massive improvement even if it says it's only 2.8Ghz?

 

[cobleman]

Speaking of Processors, is AMD Athlon X2 with a little 64 on the bottom of the sticker good for playing games that take up the whole screen and have insane graphics?

It shouldn't have TOO much trouble, but they're getting on now. About the same as age as the first Core 2 Duos. What games did you have in mind? Because stuff like GTA4 and Bad Company 2 need better CPUs, but Crysis and the like need better graphics cards.

As for the OP, it all depends on what you want to spend. What do you have at the moment? With a 9800GT, the 1156s are probably overkill, but they leave more upgrade options later.

If that's the case, then I suppose an LGA775 mother board will do for now. At the moment, my CPU is a Intel Pentium D 3.0Ghz but am I right in thinking that choosing any core2/quad core CPU is a massive improvement even if it says it's only 2.8Ghz?

Yes you are rite i went from a 541 single core 3.2ghz to the Q6600 quad 2.4ghz and doubled the proccessing speed

 

[raulpica]

LGA775 is being slowly phased-out, so if you want to be able to upgrade in the future (and you have the cash to do so), go for a LGA1156, it'll be a huge improvement, and you'll also use the new memory type (DDR3), so you'll be able to expand your RAM without paying too much.

 

[Berthenk]

Or you can go for AM3. AMD's not going to change socket for a while. I bought a dualcore 2,8 GHz processor, with motherboard, and 4 GB DDR3 1333 RAM for only 200 Euro's. AMD is not for the huge-best-of-best performance, though. Only for the good price/performance ratio. Not that AMD hasn't got good processors, but if you want the best, you should go for Intel and pay a 1000 bucks.

 

[GundamXXX]

Get a AM3 mobo and get a Phenon X4 or X6 ... dont go for Intel at all ;p

Intel is going to change sockets next year or something and not a minor change either .. a big one and they already stopped support for alot of sockets and CPU's

AMD doesnt do that, it still supports AM2+ so yea ... GO AMD cheaper too

 

[Originality]

AMD's only flagship CPUs are the Phenom X4 and X6. Anything else and you're looking at the definition of a budget CPU (although CPC now pick an Intel Pentium as the best budget CPU because of how stupidly overclockable it is for the fairly low price). AMD is generally weaker than Intel CPUs in all areas (3Gz AMD = around 3.5Ghz Intel), but they are slightly cheaper (depending where you look).

And, as mentioned, Intel will be changing to the SandyBridge and SandyBridge E next year, using SKT1155 (to replace SKT1156) and SKT2011 (to replace SKT1366). That doesn't mean they'll stop producing Core i chips/motherboards for a while, just like how Core 2 chips/motherboards are still hanging around.

Just have a look at what's available for your price range and work around that. Also keep in mind that you shouldn't get quad core unless you really are planning to do a lot of multi-tasking - dual cores generally perform faster in most games than quad cores (of course, there are some exceptions).

 

[Berthenk]

Also keep in mind that you shouldn't get quad core unless you really are planning to do a lot of multi-tasking - dual cores generally perform faster in most games than quad cores (of course, there are some exceptions).

That depends mostly on the GPU he'll use. If he uses a high-end GPU, the quadcore processor most likely will affect gaming.

 

[Originality]

...and that depends on the game. More modern games are putting more stress on the GPU and less on the CPU to the point where even a Pentium will work fine when coupled with certain high end GPUs. I forget who linked that example a few months back.

 

[Harsky]

From what I gathered, I'm in a little catch 22 situation. I can buy a shiny top of the line CPU... BUT the motherboard will have to be upgraded. Or I can buy a shiny "future proof" motherboard but it won't take my DDR2 RAM or my current CPU.

So I decided to just put the money towards a new HDD in the end. Thanks for the help and suggestions. At the end of the day, there's no point in trying to wait for the "best and the greatest" since everything will become obsolete fast so I'm going to have to be patient again and see what will be available next year.

 

[Originality]

Only the current budget line becomes obsolete after 6 months. My Core 2 Duo E8400 has been around for a long time and it still outperforms some Core i5s in certain functions. I'll have to wait and see for the SandyBridge series to find out if it's worth upgrading then, and that'll probably mean getting a new motherboard or even a whole new system. It'll be sad putting away my Rampage Extreme for the last time.