CPU and GPU upgrade (AMD and Radeon)

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Mario

Ambassador of Buzz
Hi Folks...

One of my friends is going to upgrade his proccy and get a discrete gpu.

Total budget - 15K.

Current config -

AMD X2 (dont know more than this)
Asus M4A785D-M Pro
DDR2 RAM (dont know how much)
Crappy PSU (ya he's got some bull-crap psu and wont upgrade it...so I say, let it blow and let him learn "it" the hard way)
Some crapshit cabby (Frontech I think)

and the usual sh1t!!

Ok, so he is going to upgrade to a X4 (I do not have any idea about AMD proccys - so I will just assume this is an upgrade from a dual-core to a quad-core proccy)

And he wants to buy a discrete GPU (in his words, a "1 GB RAM GPU" - ya, he is ur typical more-VRAM=more performance-and-thats-it kind of guy)

So, I need help from u guys in deciding the best proc+gpu combo his 15K is gonna get him....

I am guessing the X4 shud come within 5K. so that leaves us with 10K for the GPU.

Plz suggest.

My friend likes to game at medium to low settings...basically he will go from high to low till it works...(so ya, u might find him at 640X480 with everything turned off, simply for the sake of playing the game)

I think (and I am not sure of it)...that a 6 series Radeon might bottleneck, given the rest of his old hardware (not so sure how new a model a X4 is, I am bad with AMD CPUs like I said earlier)

So I was thinking may be a 5 series GPU with DDR3 VRAM might be it???
(Me thinks GDDR5 VRAM might be a bottleneck???? yes/no???)

I think the 5670 1GB DDR3 will come in at around 4K...

Whoa hope he's not reading this; coz if he sees 6K getting saved, he will get this before I have had a chance of completing this post!! :p :p

Anyway, no use my guessing around like a fool!! Let me just shut up!

Step in with ur suggestion guys!!

Thanks.

Keep in mind that -
We have about 2 weeks before we hit Chandni!
Dont suggest any online shops!
 

Souro_Ray

In the zone
If your friend wants a decent gaming system, he can try the Phenom II X4 CPUs... I have the 955 BE which i got at ~6.5-6.7K.. For GPU, if you want HD5xxx series, a good one would be HD5770 by MSI or Sapphire... That would come to ~7K.. Correct me if im wrong, guys...

For cheaper investment, go for Athlon II X4 CPUs... Stick to the 5xxx GPUs and tell him to buy a decent PSU!
 
OP
M

Mario

Ambassador of Buzz
If your friend wants a decent gaming system, he can try the Phenom II X4 CPUs... I have the 955 BE which i got at ~6.5-6.7K.. For GPU, if you want HD5xxx series, a good one would be HD5770 by MSI or Sapphire... That would come to ~7K.. Correct me if im wrong, guys...

For cheaper investment, go for Athlon II X4 CPUs... Stick to the 5xxx GPUs and tell him to buy a decent PSU!

Tell him to buy a decent PSU???? A hundred billion times...so many that now I wish that his PSU blows up so that he finally learns his lesson!! :-x:-x:-x:-x:-x

Ok now for some noob questions from me-

..955 BE, u say...is it any good with DDR2 ram? (Darn, I hate the fact that I dont know sh1t about AMD CPUs)

HD5770 comes with GDDR5 memory right? Bottlenecks?? (super fast cpu+very fast gpu+snail-paced ram)
 

Souro_Ray

In the zone
I have never used a Radeon card before, so i cant tell about GDDR5 bottlenecks... I have only used ddr2 vram... :p

But the Phenom II 955 BE should be backwards compatible with DDR2 ram...

PS: Dont get the BE if your friend wont OC... BE stands for Black Edition.. This is the series of AMD processors specially made for OCers.. Get the non-BE Phenoms...

And dont take my word for it! Im new to this forum.. Get the blessings of Topgear, Skud, Tkin, Nginx, Nil260gtx and the other gurus before doing anything! I just gave my 2 cents...

Just for reference:
*www.cluboverclocker.com/reviews/cpu/amd/x4_955/p1.asp

And im a bigger noob than you, so there! :p
 
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M

Mario

Ambassador of Buzz
I have never used a Radeon card before, so i cant tell about GDDR5 bottlenecks... I have only used ddr2 vram... :p

But the Phenom II 955 BE should be backwards compatible with DDR2 ram...

PS: Dont get the BE if your friend wont OC... BE stands for Black Edition.. This is the series of AMD processors specially made for OCers.. Get the non-BE Phenoms...

OC?? he got the Pro board and hell, he doesnt even open the tweaking app that comes with it!!!! Forget it, he never gonna OC unless there's a gun to his head!! :p

Ok, so I gather Phenom II X4 (maybe 955 non BE) is a proccy he can safely get...and this would be around 6K, I am guessing..so far so good!!

Now lets focus on the GPU ??......

Come on guys, no more takers???
 

Souro_Ray

In the zone
Ok, made a massive noob error... Most Phenom II are Black Edition only.. I dont think they have non-BE CPUs in that series... Anyway, there are a lot of good cpus between the 4-7K range... Mah bad, Mario.. Sorry bro..
 
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M

Mario

Ambassador of Buzz
Ok, made a massive noob error... Most Phenom II are Black Edition only.. I dont think they have non-BE CPUs in that series... Anyway, there are a lot of good cpus between the 4-7K range... Mah bad, Mario.. Sorry bro..

no problem dude!! :)
 

Cilus

laborare est orare
There are no Non BE Phenom II X4 955 processor, all of them are BE and comes with unlocked multiplier.
Since you have already decided the processor, you are now with 9K of cash. Get FSp SAGA II 500W @ 2K from smcinternational.in as it os not available in Kolkata. If you are buying from Chandni, spend 3K to get Tagan Stonerock 500W

Rest of the money can be used to get a Sapphire HD 6770 1 GB @ 7.1K (if PSU is FSP SAGA II 500) or Sapphire HD 6750 1 GB @ 5.8K (if the PSU is Tagan Stonerock)
 

coderunknown

Retired Forum Mod
@Cilus bro. no to good psu & online shopping.

@Mario, X4 955BE + HD5770 1Gb should fit within the budget. & ask your friend run game at highest possible setting. Psu will blow up sooner.

or a 2nd combo is Phenom II X4 840 (it is an Athlon II X4 chip) with HD6850.
 

SlashDK

MV VIP to the MAX
Phenom ii x4 925 & 945.are non BE parts. Get:
AMD Phenom ii x4 925 @ 5k
Gigabyte 880gm ud2h @ 4k
Corsair 2 gb ddr3 1333MHz @ 1k
HD 5670 512 MB @ 3.75k
FSP saga ii 350w @ 1.4k

Tell him that in the graphic cards he will get for his budget 512 MB and 1 GB VRAM won't make any difference. Also, tell him to sell of his old DDR2 RAM. He can use the extra money to but another GB of DDR3 RAM which is cheaper than DDR2 these days.
 

Souro_Ray

In the zone
Sorry for posting this here, but i cant figure out where to post this:

@Cybertronic,

How is the 880GM-UD2H board by Gigabyte? I bought this board last december and i just want to know, how much upgradability can i expect from it? Besides the RAM, i mean...

If anyone can tell me anything else about this board, please do.. and thanks a tonne in advance!
 

Skud

Super Moderator
Staff member
CPU can be upgraded up to Phenom II X6 1100T, RAM up to 16gb DDR3 2300 if you use slot 3 & 4, for slot 1 & 2 it is limited to DDR3 1600, up to 5 internal SATA devices, and any graphics card that you care to throw.
 
OP
M

Mario

Ambassador of Buzz
There are no Non BE Phenom II X4 955 processor, all of them are BE and comes with unlocked multiplier.
Since you have already decided the processor, you are now with 9K of cash. Get FSp SAGA II 500W @ 2K from smcinternational.in as it os not available in Kolkata. If you are buying from Chandni, spend 3K to get Tagan Stonerock 500W

Rest of the money can be used to get a Sapphire HD 6770 1 GB @ 7.1K (if PSU is FSP SAGA II 500) or Sapphire HD 6750 1 GB @ 5.8K (if the PSU is Tagan Stonerock)

Cilus, he wont get anything but the gpu and the proccy! Why else do u think I want his psu to blow (and perhaps some components along with it as well)

@Cilus bro. no to good psu & online shopping.

@Mario, X4 955BE + HD5770 1Gb should fit within the budget. & ask your friend run game at highest possible setting. Psu will blow up sooner.

or a 2nd combo is Phenom II X4 840 (it is an Athlon II X4 chip) with HD6850.

Hmm...good suggestions!

Phenom ii x4 925 & 945.are non BE parts. Get:
AMD Phenom ii x4 925 @ 5k
Gigabyte 880gm ud2h @ 4k
Corsair 2 gb ddr3 1333MHz @ 1k
HD 5670 512 MB @ 3.75k
FSP saga ii 350w @ 1.4k

Tell him that in the graphic cards he will get for his budget 512 MB and 1 GB VRAM won't make any difference. Also, tell him to sell of his old DDR2 RAM. He can use the extra money to but another GB of DDR3 RAM which is cheaper than DDR2 these days.

hahahhahaahahaha!! thats what his reaction would be to this suggestion!!

Thanks for all the input guys....can you post some power draw numbers for the BE 955 and the 6770 gpu?
 

Souro_Ray

In the zone
Thanks Skud.. And can you please tell me the difference between Hybrid Crossfire and normal Crossfire? In the 880GM-UD2H board, im pretty sure you cant have a dual gpu set up, can you?

And sorry for jacking your thread, Mario.. :(
 

mukherjee

Treatment in progress...
Not sure but BE 955 should consume between 95-125W @ stock and

HD 6770 around 75-100W @ stock.
 
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M

Mario

Ambassador of Buzz
Thanks Skud.. And can you please tell me the difference between Hybrid Crossfire and normal Crossfire? In the 880GM-UD2H board, im pretty sure you cant have a dual gpu set up, can you?

And sorry for jacking your thread, Mario.. :(

Normal Xfire --> 2 discrete radeon gpus x-fired!!
Hybrid Xfire --> 1 onboard (mobo inbuilt) radeon gpu and another discrete radeon gpu --> X-fired!!

Note that hybrid xfire is a mobo feature...only some cards can be hybrid x-fired with the onboard gpu!!

Not sure but BE 955 should consume between 95-125W @ stock and

HD 6770 around 75-100W @ stock.

Idle 75W and load 100W ??? :shock::shock::shock::shock:
 

soumo27

→|Requiescat| |in| |Pace|
Cilus, he wont get anything but the gpu and the proccy! Why else do u think I want his psu to blow (and perhaps some components along with it as well)



Hmm...good suggestions!



hahahhahaahahaha!! thats what his reaction would be to this suggestion!!

Thanks for all the input guys....can you post some power draw numbers for the BE 955 and the 6770 gpu?


Post entire System Specs here and u will get the required power wattage:-

eXtreme Power Supply Calculator
 

Skud

Super Moderator
Staff member
Thanks Skud.. And can you please tell me the difference between Hybrid Crossfire and normal Crossfire? In the 880GM-UD2H board, im pretty sure you cant have a dual gpu set up, can you?

And sorry for jacking your thread, Mario.. :(


880G can Hybrid Crossfire with 5670, 5570, 5550 & 5450. See here:-

*sites.amd.com/PublishingImages/Public/Graphic_Illustrations/WebBannerJPEG/AMD_CrossfireX_Chart_1618W.jpg

So quite a wide range of options there.
 

Souro_Ray

In the zone
Ah well.. Thanks again, Skud.. But i think better option will be to just buy an HD5770.. wont buy now, maybe in November, as a personal b'day present :)
If newer GPU prices go down, i'll be in a dilemma and i'll be pestering you with questions again! :p
 
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