CPU, Worth the bother?

[Guest ianrivaldosmith]

Hi all,Have a few questions for all the hardware in the know people!1.) Would upgrading my x2 3800 CPU to a x2 CPU 6000 AM2 CPU benefit me? I fly FS9 mainly, but would like to give FSX another shot. Is this CPU going to give me much more resluts in fs9 and fsx?2.) if I were to upgrade, would I need to upgrade my GFX card? what about my power supply?Hope you can help, system specs belowCheersIanAMD AM2 x3800X1600XT GDDR3 256MB2 Gig DDR2 667mhz RAM19" TFT @ 1280x1024edit* Forgot to mention PSU is 420W.

[FTD1949 0]

Ian, 1) Yes. I just built a new system and decided to to with a Core2Duo E6850. I previously had an AMD64 3700. I believe you will need a new MOBO to go with the AM2. Not knocking AMD since I've owned both but you might consider Intel this time around. 2) Would also consider upgrading your vid card (model?) and P/S. CraigLian-Li PC60-B Case Corsair HX Series CMPSU-620HX 620W Power Supply Gigabyte P35 DS3R Intel Core2Duo E6850 Arctic Cooling Freezer7 Pro Crucual Ballistix 2GB PC2-8500 (DDR2-1066) EVGA 7950 GT OC 512 Mb Plextor PX-810SA/SW-BL 18X SATA DVD Seagate Barracuda 7200.10 500GB 7200 RPM 16MB Cache SATA 3.0Gb/sec Seagate Barracuda 7200.10250 GB 7200 RPM 16MB Cache SATA 3.0Gb/sec

[Guest ianrivaldosmith]

My current cpu is AM2. So i would benefit then going from the 3800 to the 6000?

[fbobum 0]

Here is a link to observe the performance differences between CPUs:http://www23.tomshardware.com/cpu_2007.html

[Guest wayupthere]

Hey Ian,Going from an 3800 to a 6000 is a good upgrade, however for gaming i'd steer clear from AMD's at this time.In most applicationa the 6000 is faster than the E6550, but cost/performacewise if you want a good CPU and want dual instead of Quad, consider atleast to go with Intel starting with the 6600 and up depending on what you budget allows.Pair that with a good Intelmobo with ICH8R, and your good to go for a while to come. If you use onboard sound, steer clear of ADI soundchipsets, reason for that is that there are no longer driver updates.As to your PSU, depending on as to what GPU you are intending to upgrade to, you might or might now need to update your PSU.

[Guest wayupthere]

Rick,Here is a link to observe the performance differences between CPUs:Have alook through this boards HW sections, and you might want to do some research yourself about THG before recommending anyone to go there. THG IS BIASED and NOT TRUSTWORTHY.It been said sooo many times already across many ITboards not just here.You want quality review go to the likes of Anandtech and HardOCP to start with.

[Guest ianrivaldosmith]

I see, the reason I was going to go to the 6000 was because of money! If i go to intel ill need a new motherboard right? How much is that going to cost me extra? Im planning on keeping the x1600x a while longer yet until the whole dx10 thing settles down, and I can afford a new 8 series card.so I can either buy the new 6000 AM2 chip which will work on my current setup for

[Guest wayupthere]

Hey Ian,Ohh ok... Just check if your CURRENT AM2 mobo supports the 6000.Yeah, if you go Intel you will need a new mobo, the ammount depends on what mobo you want, you can have an Asrock mobo as little as under 100usd at some places.Your DDR2 will be fine as the Core2 (Intel) uses exactly that atm.If your sticking with your X1600, psu-wise your still in the clear.

[Guest ianrivaldosmith]

Thank you :)Tough decision now. Do I just go with the AMD 6000 for now and do a complete overhaul next year sometime. Or do I scramble for the extra

[Guest wayupthere]

No problem Ian :)Yeah i know the feeling, If you look at it BOOSTwise, there is no choice but to go that route, but yeah.. with DDR3 and the Intel Pens maybe wait a bit, lowering the current prices.Personally I dont think its a wise choice to keep going AMD right now, atleast not with their AM2 line... not to knock them because i too have been a long time user, and their new lineup does look intriguing.My advice, sleep on it a few days and have a browse through AnandTech and HardOCP they can help solve maybe any doubts you still might have, hasty decisions are bad ;)

[Guest ianrivaldosmith]

I think ill wait and see what kind of price reductions take place in the next few months, ive heard a lot about new cpu's coming out. I may even upgrade to quad core if fsx sp2 seems any good on it!Thanks for the help...IAn

[Gypsy Baron 10]

>I think ill wait and see what kind of price reductions take>place in the next few months, ive heard a lot about new cpu's>coming out. I may even upgrade to quad core if fsx sp2 seems>any good on it!>>Thanks for the help...>>IAnI just built up a new system using the Q6600 CPU and it is great inFSX. The Q6600 easily overclocked to 3.1Ghz with only a very modestvoltage increase to 1.3V from the stock 1.275V.My temperatures running FSX are aorund 42C for Tc with the individualcores running 4-7C higher. Well under the 71C max for Tc.I run FSX on cores 1-3 and all other processes on core 0. FSX usesall three assigned cores but average CPU usage is around 25%.IMO this is a good mid-range-cost upgrade for FSX and beyond. Hereare my system components:CPU: Intel Core 2 Quad Q6600 Kentsfield 2.4GHz LGA 775 Processor Model BX80562Q6600M-Board: GIGABYTE GA-P35C-DS3R LGA 775 Intel P35 ATX Intel MotherboardMemory: CORSAIR Dominator 2GB DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 1066 (PC2 8500) Dual Channel KitVideo: EVGA 640-P2-N821-AR GeForce 8800GTS 640MB 320-bit GDDR3HD's: 2 x Seagate Barracuda ES ST3250620NS 250GB 7200 RPM SATA 3.0Gb/sDVDCD: LITE-ON 20X DVD

[fbobum 0]

>Rick,>>Here is a link to observe the performance differences>between CPUs:>>Have alook through this boards HW sections, and you might want>to do some research yourself about THG before recommending>anyone to go there. THG IS BIASED and NOT TRUSTWORTHY.>>It been said sooo many times already across many ITboards not>just here.>>You want quality review go to the likes of Anandtech and>HardOCP to start with.Guess that didn't pass muster. Oh well, here's another. Hope this one's usable...http://www.anandtech.com/cpuchipsets/showdoc.aspx?i=2933&p=1

[Guest wayupthere]

Hey Rick,Didn't mean to come across harsh :-shy, sorry if it sounded like that. Just hate to see that THG still gets attention, and luring people into thinking they get an honest unbiased review from them. They've made a name for themselves in the past that....., well lets just say people are better of in other places.