Upgrade CPU now, or wait?

Hello!

I posted a while back about a friend of mine who just recently upgraded his GPU, from a 7600GT to an 8800 GTS 512MB. Problem is, now he's being bottlenecked by his CPU, which is an AM2 4600+ at stock clocks on an MSI K9N Neo-F. Gets a little lag playing Bioshock and COD4 on max settings at 1680x1050.

His main concern is about getting enough performance to play games at max settings at 1680x1050 without lag, and not being significantly bottlenecked anywhere.

3 options:

1) Get a Phenom 9600 and swap that for his 4600+. Can probably be acquired on the cheap - about US$175.

2) Pick up a fresh mobo and Intel CPU now. If so, which? A Q6600, or a Q9300? 9450, even? A Q6600 or Q9300 with mobo will cost about US$476, with a Q9450 costing maybe $100 more.

3) Hang on to the 4600+ and wait for the next round of Intel CPUs to be released and pick one up. Not entirely sure how much it'll cost, but looks to be about the US$450-550 mark. Can probably push the 4600+ to run at about 2.6-2.7 GHz (10% or so overclock) but I doubt the in-game performance increase will be that significant.

Which option do you reckon I should take? Any and all input is much appreciated!

 

Fresh mobo+intel cpu or nvidia sli.

 

if your waiting for the new batch of processors then the GPU will now be the bottleneck again just get an AMD Phenom processors now and after 1 yr. sell that pc and buy a new one

 

Intel motherboard and CPU.

The AMD Phenom doesn't quite match Intel's Quad in terms of performance. And for the price differences, just stick with a Q6600. You can acquire one for less than $200 if you look around.

 

I agree with boypogi, that sounds good.

 

What about the phenom x3? They are cheaper than the x4 and still better than the 4600+ and according to the review they overclock quite well.

 

Hmmmm. Looking at reviews of the Phenom X3, it doesn't seem like you get enough performance for the price when you could just pay a little more for an Intel Q6600, Q9300 or Q9450.

'course, it could be an overall cheaper option if X3s fit in his motherboard... hmmm.

 

Future proof with a Q6600 and new mobo. Overclocks easily to 3.0 and with better cooling, higher.

 

go with the amd a2 5000 be for 80 bucks or so and o.c. it. this will keep up with any game. runs cool and will not have to spend a lot of money to upgrade. how much ram does he have? that may be causing the lag.

 

Phenom true quad all the way, for some actual "future proofing" They can oc too if needs be, there's a vid on youtube of a phenom 9500 @ 3Ghz

 

If I were you, I'd go the Phenom route. Cheaper and is more than adequate for fueling the 8800 GTS.

 

Wow - looks like it's pretty evenly split between all available options XD

It's 2Gs of DDR2-667, at the moment.

-ponder-

What I wonder is - how far does one have to go for the 8800GTS 512MB to not be bottlenecked when playing at max settings at 1680x1050? I know you can push your 3DMarks higher and higher with each CPU, but past a certain point I reckon you won't feel gaming performance improvement.

The Phenom X3s look interesting - pity they're not yet available here. Also, 3 cores is just plain... weird <_< >_>

 

Before you buy anything, I'd go the overclocking route. A 10% speed increase is a 10% increase, and it's free.

I would also update the drivers.

Are you sure that he is being bottlenecked by the CPU?

 

Yea, you could OC if you know how to tame the heat and other possible arrising issues.
But the best choice would be an older model of the Q6600 from Intel, OC that to 3Ghz on air and wham,best cpu in the price/performance ratio.

 

Reasonably certain about the CPU bottleneck; I don't see what else the problem can be. It's pretty clearly not the GPU, and 2Gs of DDR2-667 should be enough to ensure minimal lag.

Well, guess I'll try that modest overclock first. If that doesn't work I'll probably look into replacing his 4600+ with a Q6600 or Q9450.

Thanks!

 

Q6600 + P35 Mobo = $300. Can't be beat.

 

umm you will get more bang for your buck going the phenom route considering that you will also need a whole new mobo just to do the intel switch, whereas you just need a cpu swap for phenom. (someone verify this).

if you have to get a new mobo either way, might as well go intel.

not to mention that getting a new motherboard will require completely taking the computer apart and rebuilding it, whereas a cpu swap is easy.

make sure to get a phenom like 9x50 and not 9x00. the 9x00 models have a nasty nasty defect. you can read about it on tomshardware or a bunch of other places.

 

I know it's late and I've drank a few drinks but I think his board does not support Phenom (at least the one listed 9x00 series).

http://global.msi.com.tw/index.php?...od_no=255&maincat_no=1&cat2_no=&cat3_no=#menu