Got the itch again... Is my E8400 too slow to complement a 5850?

[d_brennen]

As title. I have a C2D E8400 @ 3.6GHz (can do 4.2 stable but has funny RAM speed dividers etc and don't see any point for extra heat)... Would it be worth pairing this with a 5850? Or should I just let this rig retire gracefully when the time comes to do a proper upgrade?

BTW My spec is as follows:

Core 2 Duo E8400 @ 3.6
4GB DDR2 800
Biostar T Series TF7150U-M7
Asus EAH4890 @ Stock
3 x Seagate 7200.12 500GB RAID0

I game at 1900x1080. There isn't much that troubles my computer at the moment (bar the obvious)... Could I just drop in one of the new gen dx11 cards when games become too much for my curren setup or will it be held back significantly by the outdated CPU?

 

[Raves]

I was loving my e8500 @ 3.8 + hd5850 until BFBC2.

I considered a complete system overhaul, but in the end decided to get a q9400 (also considered a q9505) and overclocked it to 3.6.

I think the chip I have can go past 3.6, but my mobo doesn't seem to like fsb beyond 450 to much. Anyways, I bet 3.6 with a q9400 is pretty easy with most p45 that can do 450, and 3.8 if you got a board that can do 475.

I am sure there are other games that demand a quad, but this was the first for me that I was actually interested in playing. Needless to say, BFBC2 plays much, much better with the quad.

Long story short, if there is a game or app that you use the demands a quad - go for it. If not, then your e8400 should be enough, especially if you can stabilize the OC at 4ghz!

 

[easyrider]

That chip is fine for the forseeable future.

 

[ooEy]

Im running an E8400 @ 4Ghz with a 5850 and I see no point in going to the i5/i7. I might grab a 45nm Quad if one comes up for a decent price but only if it will do 4Ghz.

Edit: Ive also had no issues with BFBC2.

 

[Locke]

That chip is quite fine for the immediate future, very good CPU. It would also pair nicely with a 5850

 

[d_brennen]

Good to hear it is ok (e8400+5850) with BC2. Haven't been able to get a beta key as yet hopefully there is a demo so I can try out my 4890

 

[Raves]

fyi, bfbc2 with e8500 @ 3.8, hd5850 @ 900/1300 was getting avg 45fps at 1650x1080 all high, 4xaa 8xaa

same system, same settings w/ q9400 @ 3.6 - avg 70 fps

it made a big difference to me.

of course game is beta, but worth considering imo.

but whatev, if u dont play a game or run an app that rocks more than 2 cores, then e8400 is sweet as.

 

[Phil2008]

I was loving my e8500 @ 3.8 + hd5850 until BFBC2.

BFBC2 is one of those games that it runs diff on everyone's pc, like you can have 2 identical pcs, 1 might run badly and other 1 may run fine. BFBC2 doesnt require a super cpu to run tho and thats a fact. It totally depends on how a game gets along with your hardware, minus how fast it is.

Its like all this stuff saying gta4 runs rubbish with anything less then quad core. Well I bought it a few weeks ago and it runs fine on my system maxed out @ 1280x1024, avg 48fps. System in sig.

 

[Raves]

Yeah BFBC2 beta doesn't seem to need uber fast cpu's, but it definitely wants more than 2 threads. Of that I have first hand knowledge, which confirms a number of other postings at different forums.

Whether on not that is due to poor optimization / console port-iness remains to be seen.

Btw, I think 'ideal performance' is the subjective bit, rather than identical systems running the game differently. For some, 35 fps is "smooth as silk" and "runs like a dream" whereas for others (like me) 60 fps is the absolute minimum for fps pwnage.

Personally, I think that BFBC2 and all future frostbite titles will need quads for ideal performance. If this is the case, and if the OP intends to play any of these titles, then I would recommend a quad to compliment the hd5850.

 

[Cesar67]

BFBC2 runs fine here, Only ever uses 80% CPU with my E8400 @4.2GHz.

I dont get any issues that makes me think i need to upgrade, Others who have made the switch could provide better advice though i think going from 45FPS to 70FPS by just swapping to a SKT775 Quad (RAVES) is some jump.

 

[Raves]

Indeed it is some jump, hence my recommendation to the OP.

Here is some data that is representative of the improvements that I have experienced:

http://forums.overclockers.com.au/showpost.php?p=11398817&postcount=1809

edit: relevant figure from the cited linkage

 

[Cesar67]

Indeed it is some jump, hence my recommendation to the OP.

Those are Phenoms but, You have went from Intel dual to Intel quad ?

I monitored my dual and it never got above 80% so, I thought it was cool.

Might think about picking up a second hand quad.

Cheers.

 

[Phil2008]

Its not like you need a quad to play is it, Its still perfectly playable on a dual,,

 

[d_brennen]

Thanks for the replies. I reakon I'll give it a shot on my E8400 and may bag a 5850 when they hit release price or lower...

Does anyone know if BFBC2 will have a demo?

 

[Cesar67]

Its not like you need a quad to play is it, Its still perfectly playable on a dual,,

Like i said, I never noticed any sub par performance without a quad.

Thanks for the replies. I reakon I'll give it a shot on my E8400 and may bag a 5850 when they hit release price or lower...

Does anyone know if BFBC2 will have a demo?

BFBC2 - E8400 + 5850 = Smooth gameplay for me, High settings.

 

[Raves]

Those are Phenoms but, You have went from Intel dual to Intel quad ?

Yeah from e8500 (3.8) to q9400 (3.6).

Again, "smooth" performance is quite subjective. Personally, I was disappointed that my hd5840 was averaging 45 fps, and it appears to me that this was due a cpu bottleneck.

 

[C64]

Wait until the full games out no point judging yet for all we know this could be some xbox 360 code thus the better performance on quad.
I can tell you that I have a [email protected] 4gb ram@401mhz and a 4850 512mb at stock running 1680-1050 all on high 1x aa and it's very decent.It's very much in their interest to make this run smoothly on dual cores as the majority of people have dual.

 

[Phil2008]

I still think dual core is still more then capable for all the latest games.

 

[Vir]

I'm in the same boat kinda....
Think I'm gonna do this... wait for the full version of the game and see how that runs on my current system (maybe I'll get a 5850 in the meantime) and then if I still feel the need for a quad core I'll upgrade to a cheap Q9450. I think it's best to just wait a bit until the game is final. The developers have actually said there are some problems with dual core processors and that they are trying to fix them.
Other than bfbc2 I don't feel the need for more cores atm.

 

[Raves]

The newest build of the beta seems to have improved performance across the board - for dualies in particular. I dunno what you can expect from retail, but unless the money is burning a hole in your pocket, its probably a good call to wait and see.