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Old Dec 22, 2012, 10:20 AM   #1
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Phenom II X4 965 on AM3+ mobo: upgrade?

This is my wife's gaming PC. I purchased the AM3+ mobo back when Bulldozer was only hype, with the hope that it would have decent performance. Also, the mobo use to be paired with an X6 1100t which has somehow become damaged, even though it still works, but seriously underperforms in benches and games.

Anyway... Yeah. The PC is sporting an old X4 965 (140W model, too!) which is now paired with a Radeon 7970 video card. It works well enough I guess, but I'm always looking to upgrade. So my question is, would an FX-8350 be significantly better? And by better I don't mean just in BF3 which is highly multithreaded, but in older, single-threaded games too?

I looked on various sites for comparisons, but all I can find is the FX compared to other FX'es, Sandies, and Ivies. Never the older Phenom II generation, so it's really hard for me to form an opinion. Thoughts?
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Old Dec 22, 2012, 10:25 AM   #2
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http://www.bit-tech.net/hardware/201...-8350-review/6
Yes it will be better than a 965 but i don't think its worth to make that upgrade.
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Old Dec 22, 2012, 11:58 AM   #3
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Well, are games bottle-necking on the CPU? If GPU cycles aren't being left un-used, I wouldn't worry about it. It's a worth while upgrade if you want to upgrade though, it really depends on what games are being played and if the CPU is the weakest link.
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Old Dec 22, 2012, 12:01 PM   #4
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It will be better, present games or older games, remember it has 4 ghz. but It just might add a few FPS. so I'd recommend not upgrading.. Steam Roller will be am3+ so you could still use the mobo for next gen
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Old Dec 22, 2012, 12:44 PM   #5
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It will be better, present games or older games, remember it has 4 ghz. but It just might add a few FPS. so I'd recommend not upgrading.. Steam Roller will be am3+ so you could still use the mobo for next gen
Correction, it might be on AM3+.
I went from a Phenom II X4 940 to a FX-8120 and now to a FX-8350. Each CPU offered me a substantial performance increase in games and in Real World everyday usage.

Yes upgrade, it's well worth the gains. AMD did a great job with Piledriver.
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Old Dec 22, 2012, 12:47 PM   #6
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Correction, it might be on AM3+.
I went from a Phenom II X4 940 to a FX-8120 and now to a FX-8350. Each CPU offered me a substantial performance increase in games and in Real World everyday usage.

Yes upgrade, it's well worth the gains. AMD did a great job with Piledriver.
http://www.theinquirer.net/inquirer/...or-steamroller
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Old Dec 22, 2012, 01:38 PM   #7
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Wait for the next generation. Save your money for something better.
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Old Dec 22, 2012, 02:11 PM   #8
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Wait for the next generation. Save your money for something better.
Next generation. Piledriver is fine. Why the hell would you say this?
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Old Dec 22, 2012, 02:55 PM   #9
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Next generation. Piledriver is fine. Why the hell would you say this?
Piledriver is fine, but it might be worth waiting for the next one because he got already got a Phenom II X4 965 and it is still be using the same socket
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Old Dec 22, 2012, 03:03 PM   #10
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Also you can oc your 965 as they seem to handle it pretty well.
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Old Dec 22, 2012, 03:21 PM   #11
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Piledriver is fine, but it might be worth waiting for the next one because he got already got a Phenom II X4 965 and it is still be using the same socket

Piledriver is a substantial upgrade. Waiting for next one is an ongoing battle. Then GPU is then outdated and it is a never ending battle to stay current. Piledriver is current technology, performs well and priced right. Waiting means a minimum of mid 2014, most probably 3rd quarter of 2014. Your talking 8 to 10 months.

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Old Dec 22, 2012, 03:27 PM   #12
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Piledriver is a substantial upgrade. Waiting for next one is an ongoing battle. Then GPU is then outdated and it is a never ending battle to stay current. Piledriver is current technology, performs well and priced right. Waiting means a minimum of mid 2014, most probably 3rd quarter of 2014. Your talking 8 to 10 months.
He is asking if it is significantly better, which is not quite. so its better to stick with his current build. wait for months, then go with steamroller. If the GPU is outdated, then fine. upgrade it as well, nothing wrong with that.
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Old Dec 22, 2012, 03:35 PM   #13
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He is asking if it is significantly better, which is not quite. so its better to stick with his current build. wait for months, then go with steamroller. If the GPU is outdated, then fine. upgrade it as well, nothing wrong with that.
Negative. why would he wait for almost a year? The instruction code has been re written by AMD for Piledriver and it would be a good upgrade. And heck, he can get a 8350 for $189. Go for it. Some people are so negative. LOL (kidding)
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Old Dec 22, 2012, 04:00 PM   #14
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The gaming performance of the Piledriver FX series is onpar with the Bloomfield i7 920 or better or about the same as an Ivy Bridge i3. So I would say it would be a jump from an Phenom II X4 965.

http://www.anandtech.com/show/6396/t...x4300-tested/5

Non gaming seems to be anywhere from on par with the i5 2500k to above the i7 3770k. So in that respect its a huge upgrade.


http://www.anandtech.com/show/6396/t...x4300-tested/4
http://www.anandtech.com/show/6396/t...x4300-tested/3
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Old Dec 22, 2012, 04:23 PM   #15
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The gaming performance of the Piledriver FX series is onpar with the Bloomfield i7 920 or better or about the same as an Ivy Bridge i3. So I would say it would be a jump from an Phenom II X4 965.

http://www.anandtech.com/show/6396/t...x4300-tested/5

Non gaming seems to be anywhere from on par with the i5 2500k to above the i7 3770k. So in that respect its a huge upgrade.


http://www.anandtech.com/show/6396/t...x4300-tested/4
http://www.anandtech.com/show/6396/t...x4300-tested/3

Thanx Dent!
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Old Dec 22, 2012, 10:06 PM   #16
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Originally Posted by Dent1 View Post
The gaming performance of the Piledriver FX series is onpar with the Bloomfield i7 920 or better or about the same as an Ivy Bridge i3. So I would say it would be a jump from an Phenom II X4 965.

http://www.anandtech.com/show/6396/t...x4300-tested/5

Non gaming seems to be anywhere from on par with the i5 2500k to above the i7 3770k. So in that respect its a huge upgrade.


http://www.anandtech.com/show/6396/t...x4300-tested/4
http://www.anandtech.com/show/6396/t...x4300-tested/3
What, all the way up to i3 levels?

Oh AMD, why?

I dunno, I'll see if i can pick one up cheap... Mostly because I don't think overclocking a 140W CPU is such a good idea. The mobo might be quality, but it can only take so much...

So thanks for all the info guys. Certainly Steamroller on the same socket is good news indeed. AMD, please, do a good job OK? Please? I don't want to be forced to go Inhell...
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Old Dec 22, 2012, 10:20 PM   #17
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If that motherboard is damaged in anyway, no guarantee you will reap benefits of a Piledriver CPU.

OCing the 940 watt part with proper cooling is still a plus, besides the Am3+ motherboards have additional powerphases that the previous AM3 did not.
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Old Dec 22, 2012, 10:47 PM   #18
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What, all the way up to i3 levels?

Oh AMD, why?

I dunno, I'll see if i can pick one up cheap... Mostly because I don't think overclocking a 140W CPU is such a good idea. The mobo might be quality, but it can only take so much...
You say that like its a bad thing. The Ivy Bridge i3 is pretty powerful for a dual core. In actuality in many limited threaded games the Ivy Bridge i3 can hang with the i5 and i7 just fine.

In games the Piledriver FX is just above or below the i5 3470 and i5 2500k or the same as the Ivy Bridge i3. I don't know how you can ask for more?

http://www.techspot.com/review/586-a...300/page6.html


Gaming performance will only get better too. i3 are dual core so they are already at the end of the line. If invest in a FX you've got security that your CPU will only perform better between now and your next upgrade.

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Old Dec 22, 2012, 10:58 PM   #19
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Well i currently run a 965 with two 7870's and i just bought a 8350 but i havent installed it yet as im goiing to benchmark the old 965 first in a bunch of games and then compare with the 8350 to see if there is a jump or not. If your interested ill post some results?
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Old Dec 22, 2012, 11:18 PM   #20
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You say that like its a bad thing. The Ivy Bridge i3 is pretty powerful for a dual core. In actuality in many limited threaded games the Ivy Bridge i3 can hang with the i5 and i7 just fine.

In games the Piledriver FX is just above or below the i5 3470 and i5 2500k or the same as the Ivy Bridge i3. I don't know how you can ask for more?

http://www.techspot.com/review/586-a...300/page6.html


Gaming performance will only get better too. i3 are dual core so they are already at the end of the line. If invest in a FX you've got security that your CPU will only perform better between now and your next upgrade.
Trinity beats most i3's. LOL

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Well i currently run a 965 with two 7870's and i just bought a 8350 but i havent installed it yet as im goiing to benchmark the old 965 first in a bunch of games and then compare with the 8350 to see if there is a jump or not. If your interested ill post some results?
Post the results.

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What, all the way up to i3 levels?

Oh AMD, why?

I dunno, I'll see if i can pick one up cheap... Mostly because I don't think overclocking a 140W CPU is such a good idea. The mobo might be quality, but it can only take so much...

So thanks for all the info guys. Certainly Steamroller on the same socket is good news indeed. AMD, please, do a good job OK? Please? I don't want to be forced to go Inhell...

The last batches of 965's got up to 4.5GHz BTW. Older batches were lucky to hit 4.1GHz.

Last edited by Black Panther; Dec 23, 2012 at 10:43 AM. Reason: triple-posting
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Old Dec 22, 2012, 11:22 PM   #21
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Trinity beats most i3's. LOL
All i3's ..and the i7 3xxx too.

If we are talking about the Ivy Bridge as an APU rather than CPU, then AMD is miles ahead of Intel in the gaming department.

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Well i currently run a 965 with two 7870's and i just bought a 8350 but i havent installed it yet as im goiing to benchmark the old 965 first in a bunch of games and then compare with the 8350 to see if there is a jump or not. If your interested ill post some results?
Very interested to see your results. Keep us posted.

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Old Dec 22, 2012, 11:31 PM   #22
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The last batches of 965's got up to 4.5GHz BTW. Older batches were lucky to hit 4.1GHz.
use the multiquote button, its there for a reason
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Old Dec 22, 2012, 11:32 PM   #23
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Well i currently run a 965 with two 7870's and i just bought a 8350 but i havent installed it yet as im goiing to benchmark the old 965 first in a bunch of games and then compare with the 8350 to see if there is a jump or not. If your interested ill post some results?
I noticed a boost in performance with Skyrim and RAGE with my FX-8350 and them some with my OC. Don't know if it's my batch or not but this Piledriver is fast.
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Old Dec 22, 2012, 11:45 PM   #24
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Very interested to see your results. Keep us posted.
Will do, ill try to do all the benchmarking today as im getting the itch bad to run this 8350 lol

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I noticed a boost in performance with Skyrim and RAGE with my FX-8350 and them some with my OC. Don't know if it's my batch or not but this Piledriver is fast.
Ok awesome, well ill find out i guess, i have a thread here > http://www.techpowerup.com/forums/sh...d.php?t=177387 to give you an idea on what ill be benching But ill be running the Intel systems after xmas sometime
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Old Dec 23, 2012, 12:07 AM   #25
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use the multiquote button, its there for a reason
I have done 4.5Ghz with water. What's the biggie?
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