• Welcome to TechPowerUp Forums, Guest! Please check out our forum guidelines for info related to our community.

Phenom II - 965 @ 3.8Ghz - Worth an upgrade ?

Joined
Dec 13, 2008
Messages
344 (0.06/day)
System Name The Browser
Processor AMD FX-8350
Motherboard Asus 90 Aura Gaming
Cooling Noctua D14
Memory Crucial Balistix Slim 16gb
Video Card(s) Sapphire AMD 7950 3GB
Storage Crucial MX 240gb + 2X3TB WD Reds
Display(s) Dell 2515H 25"
Case Corsair Carbide 540 (piece of shit case)
Power Supply Seasonic G-650W Gold
Mouse Corsair M65 RGB
Keyboard Corsair K70
Software Win 10
Hello there TPU.

So Right now I have a nice Phenon 965 Black edition (C3) on a 990FX board from Gigabyte. Some 8gb of Corsair Vengeance RAM. a 600W TT PSU, and a Radeon 7950 3GB.

My primary Windows uses are Adobe Acrobat, Photoshop, Movies, Premiere, Tixati, and various Astronomy tools.

Primary 3D uses are: Counter Strike, GO- Diablo III, and any new Quest Adventure.


I never experienced any special lag, but I don't know... I'm not doing much in the way of heavy gaming, or any rendering of some sort. I also don't usually notice the CPU Load at 100% ...

Is there any reason at all to get one of those 8-core AMD FX ? Can operations be even faster or is it meant for people who need the computing power only ?

Otherwise I figured I'd get a nice case and a bigger SSD with the 200$ the FX-8 costs :)
 
Joined
Dec 13, 2008
Messages
344 (0.06/day)
System Name The Browser
Processor AMD FX-8350
Motherboard Asus 90 Aura Gaming
Cooling Noctua D14
Memory Crucial Balistix Slim 16gb
Video Card(s) Sapphire AMD 7950 3GB
Storage Crucial MX 240gb + 2X3TB WD Reds
Display(s) Dell 2515H 25"
Case Corsair Carbide 540 (piece of shit case)
Power Supply Seasonic G-650W Gold
Mouse Corsair M65 RGB
Keyboard Corsair K70
Software Win 10
Also, while I am here... That Toughpower 600W is like a thousand years old - works perfectly as far as I am concerned. Is there any reason to get one of the newer- budget 600w PSU's (corsair/tt) over it ? Some power saving technology that I am missing perhaps ? Or is it more or less the same nowadays...
 

eidairaman1

The Exiled Airman
Joined
Jul 2, 2007
Messages
40,435 (6.62/day)
Location
Republic of Texas (True Patriot)
System Name PCGOD
Processor AMD FX 8350@ 5.0GHz
Motherboard Asus TUF 990FX Sabertooth R2 2901 Bios
Cooling Scythe Ashura, 2×BitFenix 230mm Spectre Pro LED (Blue,Green), 2x BitFenix 140mm Spectre Pro LED
Memory 16 GB Gskill Ripjaws X 2133 (2400 OC, 10-10-12-20-20, 1T, 1.65V)
Video Card(s) AMD Radeon 290 Sapphire Vapor-X
Storage Samsung 840 Pro 256GB, WD Velociraptor 1TB
Display(s) NEC Multisync LCD 1700V (Display Port Adapter)
Case AeroCool Xpredator Evil Blue Edition
Audio Device(s) Creative Labs Sound Blaster ZxR
Power Supply Seasonic 1250 XM2 Series (XP3)
Mouse Roccat Kone XTD
Keyboard Roccat Ryos MK Pro
Software Windows 7 Pro 64
Seasonic, xfx, antec, enermax, corsair, rosewill, evga, all make respectable units. Search for johnny guru or research power supply reviews here
 
Joined
Aug 11, 2011
Messages
4,355 (0.95/day)
Location
Mexico
System Name Dell-y Driver
Processor Core i5-10400
Motherboard Asrock H410M-HVS
Cooling Intel 95w stock cooler
Memory 2x8 A-DATA 2999Mhz DDR4
Video Card(s) UHD 630
Storage 1TB WD Green M.2 - 4TB Seagate Barracuda
Display(s) Asus PA248 1920x1200 IPS
Case Dell Vostro 270S case
Audio Device(s) Onboard
Power Supply Dell 220w
Software Windows 10 64bit
For that kind of usage your CPU is fine. Unless you use several filters on Photoshop I don't think you'd see an improvement with an updated CPU. The PSU is getting long in the tooth though.

Now, if you still have that X1800 it might be a good idea to get a current GPU, even a R7 260 would be an upgrade and consume way less power while also getting you OpenCL support which could help on Photoshop and Premiere (if your versions support OpenCL that is).

I would get an SSD or maybe a new bigger monitor (19" is just so small :oops: ). A 24" would be very nice.
 
Joined
Dec 13, 2008
Messages
344 (0.06/day)
System Name The Browser
Processor AMD FX-8350
Motherboard Asus 90 Aura Gaming
Cooling Noctua D14
Memory Crucial Balistix Slim 16gb
Video Card(s) Sapphire AMD 7950 3GB
Storage Crucial MX 240gb + 2X3TB WD Reds
Display(s) Dell 2515H 25"
Case Corsair Carbide 540 (piece of shit case)
Power Supply Seasonic G-650W Gold
Mouse Corsair M65 RGB
Keyboard Corsair K70
Software Win 10
Oh yea, I upgraded since then :) I've got a 7950, and an IPS Dell.. I have a SSD but a small 120gb one, which needs to be upgraded as well.
So what can I get from a new 650W Power supply that I don't have in my 6 year old Thermaltake ?
 
Last edited:
Joined
Aug 11, 2011
Messages
4,355 (0.95/day)
Location
Mexico
System Name Dell-y Driver
Processor Core i5-10400
Motherboard Asrock H410M-HVS
Cooling Intel 95w stock cooler
Memory 2x8 A-DATA 2999Mhz DDR4
Video Card(s) UHD 630
Storage 1TB WD Green M.2 - 4TB Seagate Barracuda
Display(s) Asus PA248 1920x1200 IPS
Case Dell Vostro 270S case
Audio Device(s) Onboard
Power Supply Dell 220w
Software Windows 10 64bit
Does your Thoughpower have an input voltage switch at the back? (small red one with 115 or 220 writen on it). If so, newer units would get you Active PFC and greater efficiency. Still, at 650w it has power to spare as your rig barely uses ~300w. My OCed FX8350 + OCed 7970 peak at 310w (365w at the wall).
 

newtekie1

Semi-Retired Folder
Joined
Nov 22, 2005
Messages
28,472 (4.25/day)
Location
Indiana, USA
Processor Intel Core i7 10850K@5.2GHz
Motherboard AsRock Z470 Taichi
Cooling Corsair H115i Pro w/ Noctua NF-A14 Fans
Memory 32GB DDR4-3600
Video Card(s) RTX 2070 Super
Storage 500GB SX8200 Pro + 8TB with 1TB SSD Cache
Display(s) Acer Nitro VG280K 4K 28"
Case Fractal Design Define S
Audio Device(s) Onboard is good enough for me
Power Supply eVGA SuperNOVA 1000w G3
Software Windows 10 Pro x64
The thing is the capacitors age in power supplies. 6 years is pretty close to the maximum age for a power supply, IMO.
 
Joined
Dec 13, 2008
Messages
344 (0.06/day)
System Name The Browser
Processor AMD FX-8350
Motherboard Asus 90 Aura Gaming
Cooling Noctua D14
Memory Crucial Balistix Slim 16gb
Video Card(s) Sapphire AMD 7950 3GB
Storage Crucial MX 240gb + 2X3TB WD Reds
Display(s) Dell 2515H 25"
Case Corsair Carbide 540 (piece of shit case)
Power Supply Seasonic G-650W Gold
Mouse Corsair M65 RGB
Keyboard Corsair K70
Software Win 10
Actually no such switch... Well so I could even get a nice 500W modern PSU correct ? Will it work fine as long as I keep my future upgrades at the same "tone" of low-mid range hardware with average graphics ?
 

OneMoar

There is Always Moar
Joined
Apr 9, 2010
Messages
8,740 (1.72/day)
Location
Rochester area
System Name RPC MK2.5
Processor Ryzen 5800x
Motherboard Gigabyte Aorus Pro V2
Cooling Enermax ETX-T50RGB
Memory CL16 BL2K16G36C16U4RL 3600 1:1 micron e-die
Video Card(s) GIGABYTE RTX 3070 Ti GAMING OC
Storage ADATA SX8200PRO NVME 512GB, Intel 545s 500GBSSD, ADATA SU800 SSD, 3TB Spinner
Display(s) LG Ultra Gear 32 1440p 165hz Dell 1440p 75hz
Case Phanteks P300 /w 300A front panel conversion
Audio Device(s) onboard
Power Supply SeaSonic Focus+ Platinum 750W
Mouse Kone burst Pro
Keyboard EVGA Z15
Software Windows 11 +startisallback
yes and I would be looking at a cheap intel Z97 combo
at the risk of starting a flame war the FX Chips quiet simply aren't worth the money
 
Joined
Dec 13, 2008
Messages
344 (0.06/day)
System Name The Browser
Processor AMD FX-8350
Motherboard Asus 90 Aura Gaming
Cooling Noctua D14
Memory Crucial Balistix Slim 16gb
Video Card(s) Sapphire AMD 7950 3GB
Storage Crucial MX 240gb + 2X3TB WD Reds
Display(s) Dell 2515H 25"
Case Corsair Carbide 540 (piece of shit case)
Power Supply Seasonic G-650W Gold
Mouse Corsair M65 RGB
Keyboard Corsair K70
Software Win 10

OneMoar

There is Always Moar
Joined
Apr 9, 2010
Messages
8,740 (1.72/day)
Location
Rochester area
System Name RPC MK2.5
Processor Ryzen 5800x
Motherboard Gigabyte Aorus Pro V2
Cooling Enermax ETX-T50RGB
Memory CL16 BL2K16G36C16U4RL 3600 1:1 micron e-die
Video Card(s) GIGABYTE RTX 3070 Ti GAMING OC
Storage ADATA SX8200PRO NVME 512GB, Intel 545s 500GBSSD, ADATA SU800 SSD, 3TB Spinner
Display(s) LG Ultra Gear 32 1440p 165hz Dell 1440p 75hz
Case Phanteks P300 /w 300A front panel conversion
Audio Device(s) onboard
Power Supply SeaSonic Focus+ Platinum 750W
Mouse Kone burst Pro
Keyboard EVGA Z15
Software Windows 11 +startisallback
Joined
Dec 13, 2008
Messages
344 (0.06/day)
System Name The Browser
Processor AMD FX-8350
Motherboard Asus 90 Aura Gaming
Cooling Noctua D14
Memory Crucial Balistix Slim 16gb
Video Card(s) Sapphire AMD 7950 3GB
Storage Crucial MX 240gb + 2X3TB WD Reds
Display(s) Dell 2515H 25"
Case Corsair Carbide 540 (piece of shit case)
Power Supply Seasonic G-650W Gold
Mouse Corsair M65 RGB
Keyboard Corsair K70
Software Win 10
So AM3+ is dead ? no roadmaps ?
 

OneMoar

There is Always Moar
Joined
Apr 9, 2010
Messages
8,740 (1.72/day)
Location
Rochester area
System Name RPC MK2.5
Processor Ryzen 5800x
Motherboard Gigabyte Aorus Pro V2
Cooling Enermax ETX-T50RGB
Memory CL16 BL2K16G36C16U4RL 3600 1:1 micron e-die
Video Card(s) GIGABYTE RTX 3070 Ti GAMING OC
Storage ADATA SX8200PRO NVME 512GB, Intel 545s 500GBSSD, ADATA SU800 SSD, 3TB Spinner
Display(s) LG Ultra Gear 32 1440p 165hz Dell 1440p 75hz
Case Phanteks P300 /w 300A front panel conversion
Audio Device(s) onboard
Power Supply SeaSonic Focus+ Platinum 750W
Mouse Kone burst Pro
Keyboard EVGA Z15
Software Windows 11 +startisallback
So AM3+ is dead ? no roadmaps ?
pretty much expect a new socket 2016 or so
the logic is thus
the intel chip will use less power and provide better performance
I am 100% sure it will match/outperform anything AMD intends on releasing
 
Joined
Dec 13, 2008
Messages
344 (0.06/day)
System Name The Browser
Processor AMD FX-8350
Motherboard Asus 90 Aura Gaming
Cooling Noctua D14
Memory Crucial Balistix Slim 16gb
Video Card(s) Sapphire AMD 7950 3GB
Storage Crucial MX 240gb + 2X3TB WD Reds
Display(s) Dell 2515H 25"
Case Corsair Carbide 540 (piece of shit case)
Power Supply Seasonic G-650W Gold
Mouse Corsair M65 RGB
Keyboard Corsair K70
Software Win 10
Sweet, so I take it the general consensus right now is to not get a new FX and work with the Phenom until a need for a real upgrade in the direction of Intel emerges ... And meanwhile I can get a SSD and a nice Corsair Carbide 540 case :)
 

OneMoar

There is Always Moar
Joined
Apr 9, 2010
Messages
8,740 (1.72/day)
Location
Rochester area
System Name RPC MK2.5
Processor Ryzen 5800x
Motherboard Gigabyte Aorus Pro V2
Cooling Enermax ETX-T50RGB
Memory CL16 BL2K16G36C16U4RL 3600 1:1 micron e-die
Video Card(s) GIGABYTE RTX 3070 Ti GAMING OC
Storage ADATA SX8200PRO NVME 512GB, Intel 545s 500GBSSD, ADATA SU800 SSD, 3TB Spinner
Display(s) LG Ultra Gear 32 1440p 165hz Dell 1440p 75hz
Case Phanteks P300 /w 300A front panel conversion
Audio Device(s) onboard
Power Supply SeaSonic Focus+ Platinum 750W
Mouse Kone burst Pro
Keyboard EVGA Z15
Software Windows 11 +startisallback
Sweet, so I take it the general consensus right now is to not get a new FX and work with the Phenom until a need for a real upgrade in the direction of Intel emerges ... And meanwhile I can get a SSD and a nice Corsair Carbide 540 case :)
You need a upgrade now lol
I had a phenom II @ 4Ghz this chip blows it out of the water
 
Joined
Dec 13, 2008
Messages
344 (0.06/day)
System Name The Browser
Processor AMD FX-8350
Motherboard Asus 90 Aura Gaming
Cooling Noctua D14
Memory Crucial Balistix Slim 16gb
Video Card(s) Sapphire AMD 7950 3GB
Storage Crucial MX 240gb + 2X3TB WD Reds
Display(s) Dell 2515H 25"
Case Corsair Carbide 540 (piece of shit case)
Power Supply Seasonic G-650W Gold
Mouse Corsair M65 RGB
Keyboard Corsair K70
Software Win 10
Really that much ? In what way though.. What are you doing with your PC ?
 
Joined
Aug 11, 2011
Messages
4,355 (0.95/day)
Location
Mexico
System Name Dell-y Driver
Processor Core i5-10400
Motherboard Asrock H410M-HVS
Cooling Intel 95w stock cooler
Memory 2x8 A-DATA 2999Mhz DDR4
Video Card(s) UHD 630
Storage 1TB WD Green M.2 - 4TB Seagate Barracuda
Display(s) Asus PA248 1920x1200 IPS
Case Dell Vostro 270S case
Audio Device(s) Onboard
Power Supply Dell 220w
Software Windows 10 64bit
For those games your current rig is fine. If anything I would overclock the CPU if you really needed more oomph.

Do you deal with Photoshop and Premiere professionally? As in, several filters that take minutes (or hours) to render and such? Do you rip movies with handbrake daily or something? If so, upgrading to an i7 would net you some time savings but if you only use them for recreational purposes I think shaving off a few minutes isn't on your top priority list.
 
Joined
Dec 13, 2008
Messages
344 (0.06/day)
System Name The Browser
Processor AMD FX-8350
Motherboard Asus 90 Aura Gaming
Cooling Noctua D14
Memory Crucial Balistix Slim 16gb
Video Card(s) Sapphire AMD 7950 3GB
Storage Crucial MX 240gb + 2X3TB WD Reds
Display(s) Dell 2515H 25"
Case Corsair Carbide 540 (piece of shit case)
Power Supply Seasonic G-650W Gold
Mouse Corsair M65 RGB
Keyboard Corsair K70
Software Win 10
Oh not at all ! Recently I used Photoshop to add a tail and severe gynecomastia on a friend's picture.
 

OneMoar

There is Always Moar
Joined
Apr 9, 2010
Messages
8,740 (1.72/day)
Location
Rochester area
System Name RPC MK2.5
Processor Ryzen 5800x
Motherboard Gigabyte Aorus Pro V2
Cooling Enermax ETX-T50RGB
Memory CL16 BL2K16G36C16U4RL 3600 1:1 micron e-die
Video Card(s) GIGABYTE RTX 3070 Ti GAMING OC
Storage ADATA SX8200PRO NVME 512GB, Intel 545s 500GBSSD, ADATA SU800 SSD, 3TB Spinner
Display(s) LG Ultra Gear 32 1440p 165hz Dell 1440p 75hz
Case Phanteks P300 /w 300A front panel conversion
Audio Device(s) onboard
Power Supply SeaSonic Focus+ Platinum 750W
Mouse Kone burst Pro
Keyboard EVGA Z15
Software Windows 11 +startisallback
Really that much ? In what way though.. What are you doing with your PC ?
its quiet literally twice as fast @ pretty much everything I picked up 15FPS going from a 4Ghz phenom II to a stock 4670k
a phenom II is in no way adequate for any kind of serious Photoshop/art production work
light work yes but it still a 5 year old CPU
 
Joined
Aug 11, 2011
Messages
4,355 (0.95/day)
Location
Mexico
System Name Dell-y Driver
Processor Core i5-10400
Motherboard Asrock H410M-HVS
Cooling Intel 95w stock cooler
Memory 2x8 A-DATA 2999Mhz DDR4
Video Card(s) UHD 630
Storage 1TB WD Green M.2 - 4TB Seagate Barracuda
Display(s) Asus PA248 1920x1200 IPS
Case Dell Vostro 270S case
Audio Device(s) Onboard
Power Supply Dell 220w
Software Windows 10 64bit
Oh not at all ! Recently I used Photoshop to add a tail and severe gynecomastia on a friend's picture.

I use Photoshop to edit manga on my 5350 and I don't notice any hiccup or anything so if that's the kind of work you do I'd say your Phenom is fine.

When you really need to upgrade take a while to research what's out at the time. Though unlikely, AMD might come up with something good in 2016 or so. If not there's always Intel.
 
Joined
Dec 13, 2008
Messages
344 (0.06/day)
System Name The Browser
Processor AMD FX-8350
Motherboard Asus 90 Aura Gaming
Cooling Noctua D14
Memory Crucial Balistix Slim 16gb
Video Card(s) Sapphire AMD 7950 3GB
Storage Crucial MX 240gb + 2X3TB WD Reds
Display(s) Dell 2515H 25"
Case Corsair Carbide 540 (piece of shit case)
Power Supply Seasonic G-650W Gold
Mouse Corsair M65 RGB
Keyboard Corsair K70
Software Win 10
That reminds me Moar.... What were your settings at 4GHZ phenom ? (multiplier x bus x voltage) .. Let's see if I can hit 4. I have the Noctua D14
 

OneMoar

There is Always Moar
Joined
Apr 9, 2010
Messages
8,740 (1.72/day)
Location
Rochester area
System Name RPC MK2.5
Processor Ryzen 5800x
Motherboard Gigabyte Aorus Pro V2
Cooling Enermax ETX-T50RGB
Memory CL16 BL2K16G36C16U4RL 3600 1:1 micron e-die
Video Card(s) GIGABYTE RTX 3070 Ti GAMING OC
Storage ADATA SX8200PRO NVME 512GB, Intel 545s 500GBSSD, ADATA SU800 SSD, 3TB Spinner
Display(s) LG Ultra Gear 32 1440p 165hz Dell 1440p 75hz
Case Phanteks P300 /w 300A front panel conversion
Audio Device(s) onboard
Power Supply SeaSonic Focus+ Platinum 750W
Mouse Kone burst Pro
Keyboard EVGA Z15
Software Windows 11 +startisallback
That reminds me Moar.... What were your settings at 4GHZ phenom ? (multiplier x bus x voltage) .. Let's see if I can hit 4. I have the Noctua D14
try 200 x 20 @ 1.50v @ 2600NB @ 1.165V cpu-nb-vid
its not gonna make that much of a difference slow chip is slow
 
Joined
Jul 18, 2007
Messages
2,693 (0.44/day)
System Name panda
Processor 6700k
Motherboard sabertooth s
Cooling raystorm block<black ice stealth 240 rad<ek dcc 18w 140 xres
Memory 32gb ripjaw v
Video Card(s) 290x gamer<ntzx g10<antec 920
Storage 950 pro 250gb boot 850 evo pr0n
Display(s) QX2710LED@110hz lg 27ud68p
Case 540 Air
Audio Device(s) nope
Power Supply 750w superflower
Mouse g502
Keyboard shine 3 with grey, black and red caps
Software win 10
Benchmark Scores http://hwbot.org/user/marsey99/
one moar you are talking crap dude, sorry but you are trying to scare this guy into think his, more than upto the task, pc is an abacus.

best way to upgrade that system on the cheap would be an x6 and overclocking imo but overclocking that cpu would help too.

yes amd are slower, and yes and upgrade would be better but saying things like "you need and upgrade now LOL" is just not needed. you need an upgrade now as your i5 is shit compared to a i7 5860......
 
Joined
Sep 2, 2011
Messages
702 (0.15/day)
Location
Where the hand of man has never set foot
Processor AMD Ryzen 5 3600X
Motherboard ASUS TUF GAMING X570-PLUS
Cooling Noctua NH-D15 SE-AM4
Memory 2x8GB G.SKILL Ripjaws V DDR4-3200MHz CL16 1.35V
Video Card(s) MSI Radeon RX 6600 XT Gaming X 8G
Storage Crucial MX100 512GB + Samsung 870 EVO 2TB
Display(s) MSI Optix MAG24C
Power Supply Seasonic FOCUS GX-550
Mouse Razer Viper Ultimate
Keyboard Corsair K60
Joined
Dec 13, 2008
Messages
344 (0.06/day)
System Name The Browser
Processor AMD FX-8350
Motherboard Asus 90 Aura Gaming
Cooling Noctua D14
Memory Crucial Balistix Slim 16gb
Video Card(s) Sapphire AMD 7950 3GB
Storage Crucial MX 240gb + 2X3TB WD Reds
Display(s) Dell 2515H 25"
Case Corsair Carbide 540 (piece of shit case)
Power Supply Seasonic G-650W Gold
Mouse Corsair M65 RGB
Keyboard Corsair K70
Software Win 10
Top