system upgrade query..

eggybob

eggybob

eggybob

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26 Jun 2011
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69
hi all, i am by far no computer tech head but im also not completely useless when it comes to computers. i currently have a 4ish year old pc which has stood me well but is in vital need of upgrading now. i have an old amd x64 dual core 3000 i have 2gb old ddr2 ram and (actually) a new evga GTX 550ti fpb graphics card which i will be keeping in the new system. i have a 570w trust psu.

here are my options for upgrading.

i3 - http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=BU-042-OE

or

AMD - http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=BU-011-OP&groupid=43&catid=2053&subcat=

now i want to use the system for gaming and multitasking. i have read that intel are better for gaming? but have also checked the cpus pcmark scores

i3 -550 = 3091
AMD phenom 2 x4 = 4282

now im not sure how much these mean but i am swaying towards the AMD bundle atm.

also on a last note will my 570w Trust PSU be enough to handle both or either of the linked systems above?.

all and any advice would be greatly apprecaited and with as much detail as possible in plain english would help me understand which may be the best option for me.

thanks
-James. ;)
 
PCMark scores are generally in favour of a greater number of cores, and ignore the i3's impressive overclocking potential. Most games are still dual core, which the i3 will sail ahead on, and the i3's HyperThreading which makes it pretend to have 4 cores means it actually performs slightly better than the X4 in quad core games, as well. That said, many people still hold by the kneejerk "must have 4 cores" response, even when benchmarks say different.

The PSU isn't fantastic and I'd upgrade it as soon as possible, but if it can run your graphics card, I doubt a socket upgrade (as long as you don't OC) will make that much difference.
 
thanks for the response hybrid. my main reason for upgrading was (appart from old CPU) the fact I have had a lot of games freeze and crash on me since installing the new gpu, could this be psu related?.

are you saying that in your opinion that I may find that the I3 system is slightly better for what I am looking for?

also could you recommend a decent (fairly cheap) psu that would be stable with that setup?

thanks again.
-James.
 
I'd say grab this PSU first and see if your rig holds up to the games you play (£51 from great make, OCZ) and then see if you want to upgrade the rest... I'm sure you probably will! You might want to get an even better PSU than that (higher wattage) just to make sure, for example I have a 1000W 'just in case' to be honest.
 
I will be upgrading anyway :) but if I get crashes with new system I will probably take your advice on that psu good price.

back to my main post. intel i3 550 or amd bundle (links above)??


-James
 
This is another option, you wont be able to OC it but its faster at stock anyway and yes you need a new PSU, the above is decent recomendation, or the BeQuiet 530W would be my choice
 
but thats only 2.8 ghz? the i3 is oced at 4ghz and the amd at 3.6ghz. now.. i may sound silly. please explain as i am not to clever with cpus. i was going to go for the i3 bundle.
 
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