Cpu upgrade for hd 7770

[benxiii]

Hi guys... I am new here so pardon me for any mistakes
i have an intel pentium dual core e5400 oc'ed at 3.64 on an asus p5g41tmlx mobo with a 6570 for a small 1366x768 tv.
I want to play upcoming games on med-to-high settings. I have chosen sapphire hd 7770 but is my current cpu okay for it ? I think it's not. I am also on a tight budget so can't change the mobo or even afford i3+mobo yet. I can manage core 2 duo 2.93 and quad 2.80 but are they enough for the card to avoid bottleneck ?
The best i can get is those pentium gxx+mobo but plz let me know if i'll be okay with my current cpu or the c2duo/c2quad.

 

[Dent1]

Hi guys... I am new here so pardon me for any mistakes
i have an intel pentium dual core e5400 oc'ed at 3.64 on an asus p5g41tmlx mobo with a 6570 for a small 1366x768 tv.
I want to play upcoming games on med-to-high settings. I have chosen sapphire hd 7770 but is my current cpu okay for it ? I think it's not. I am also on a tight budget so can't change the mobo or even afford i3+mobo yet. I can manage core 2 duo 2.93 and quad 2.80 but are they enough for the card to avoid bottleneck ?
The best i can get is those pentium gxx+mobo but plz let me know if i'll be okay with my current cpu or the c2duo/c2quad.

You are already at your limit with the processor, your current E5400 is probably best suited for your current HD 7770. If you drop in a better video card it'll only be held back and you'll get significant demishing returns.

In your situation I would keep saving, do a new build. CPU, RAM, and GPU together. If you can't afford Intel, go AMD.

 

[Jetster]

If your staying at 1366x768 you might be ok. The 7770 is a low end card anyway. It hard to say what frame rates you will get at high settings but it wont be much more then 30

 

[GSquadron]

Low end cards are 7670 and below
You might need an upgrade, but you won't see big difference to tell you the truth

 

[benxiii]

You are already at your limit with the processor, your current E5400 is probably best suited for your current HD 7770. If you drop in a better video card it'll only be held back and you'll get significant demishing returns.

In your situation I would keep saving, do a new build. CPU, RAM, and GPU together. If you can't afford Intel, go AMD.

well i haven't changed to 7770 yet.... but are you sure my pentium 3.64 won't bottleneck the card ?
i'll upgrade in a year or two but there are games to play this year and i want a smooth gaming experience in my little tv

 

[DarkOCean]

Low end cards are 7670 and below
You might need an upgrade, but you won't see big difference to tell you the truth

that's a rebranded 6670, the slowest 7xxx 28nm part is the 7700 series cape verde gpus.

 

[benxiii]

or do i need a better cpu ?
available options : core 2 duo 2.93; core 2 quad 2.80 (matches my cpu socket)

 

[Cotton_Cup]

well if you can get both just get both gpu and cpu ^_^. but if possbile do a whole new rig XD but yeah it would cost more but, hmm,

 

[benxiii]

If your staying at 1366x768 you might be ok. The 7770 is a low end card anyway. It hard to say what frame rates you will get at high settings but it wont be much more then 30

but i saw in tpu, tom and other benchmarks that they get decent fps even in 1080p with this card. But they use i7 2600/3700 or something like that.
And i have half that res.. So normally i'd get some extra performance out of it. But will my 3.64 pentium dual core hold it back ? If so... What about the duo and quad ?

 

[Dent1]

well i haven't changed to 7770 yet.... but are you sure my pentium 3.64 won't bottleneck the card ?
i'll upgrade in a year or two but there are games to play this year and i want a smooth gaming experience in my little tv

Yes your processor will bottleneck it, but the 7770 tier card is your only option.

And no modern games will not be smooth. Even at low and medium settings you will get occasional lag.

If you afford a Core 2 Quad AND a 7770 together. You might be in a slightly better position. But I'm not sure its worth the effort.

 

[benxiii]

well if you can get both just get both gpu and cpu ^_^. but if possbile do a whole new rig XD but yeah it would cost more but, hmm,

that would have to wait i need to buy a phone and and ultrabook first... Budget on my pc upgrade is low

 

[DarkOCean]

or do i need a better cpu ?
available options : core 2 duo 2.93; core 2 quad 2.80 (matches my cpu socket)

neither of those will bring you any noticeable performance, I advise you to oc what you have or change the whole paltform (cpu+mobo+Ram).

 

[benxiii]

Yes your processor will bottleneck it, bit the 7770 teir card is your only option.

And no modern games will not be smooth. Even at low and medium settings you will get occasional lag.

even a core 2 quad at 3.0 + ghz ?
And by smooth i mean an average 40 fps.
But as you see with my 6570 i played ac3, blackops 2, most wanted 2, battlefield 3 at medium settings or high (no AA+shadow tweaks) and they ran pretty smooth like 35-40 fps average...

 

[benxiii]

neither of those will bring you any noticeable performance, I advise you to oc what you have or change the whole paltform (cpu+mobo+Ram).

so those two and my dual core pentium at 3.8 (that's as high i can reach) will be pretty much the same ?

 

[DarkOCean]

so those two and my dual core pentium at 3.8 (that's as high i can reach) will be pretty much the same ?

exactly. At the same speed they offer similar performance bacause the architecture are pretty much the same and all of those are just dual cores.
Better get some cash and change it all since 775 is a dead platform(for some time now).

 

[Liquid Cool]

I've got a dual core pentium e5200 and I have several e8400's...the only game in my arsenal the e8400's don't love is the Battlefield series. Although, with an HD7770(XFX) and an e8400 on a small monitor at 1366x768...I don't see why you wouldn't be doing just fine. The e8400's are 40 on e-bay and I'd recommend the XFX dual fan unit...dead silent, runs cool...and I've never had a problem with it.

Better than nothing.... I've helped quite a few people that would consider this above combo a decent cheap man's gaming rig. Don't always have to have the best...just know the best workarounds...

Best,

LC

P.S. That dual core Pentium...for what it is....is a very decent little chip in its own right. I love my little e5200.

 

[Melvis]

E5200 is still based on the core 2 arch just with less L2 cache? and my m8 ran two GTX 460's with a E8400 and yours is clock alot higher then that, im sure you would be fine with a 7770 at that res easy, you could go as far as maybe a GTX 650 Ti?

I dont see any if much at all bottle neck with a 7770 TBH

 

[benxiii]

E5200 is still based on the core 2 arch just with less L2 cache? and my m8 ran two GTX 460's with a E8400 and yours is clock alot higher then that, im sure you would be fine with a 7770 at that res easy, you could go as far as maybe a GTX 650 Ti?

I dont see any if much at all bottle neck with a 7770 TBH

i have even seen people suggest 6850 for e5400/5500 XD
and these pentium chips do overclock better.
And btw, what was your m8's tv res ?

 

[Sasqui]

Here's my take... a Core 2 E6600 @3.2Ghz with a 6850 could play Crysis at med quality @1920x1200 quite well. Core 2 E8600 @ 4.2Ghz with a 5870 could play Crysis at high quality @ 1920x1200 with virtually no lag.

Find a 6850 or 6870, assuming you have enough PSU. A 6850 can be had for $100 or less if you're willing to be patient and find a used one.

 

[TRWOV]

Apparently you can upgrade to a Core 2 Quad. Dual cores are fine but Quads are better for the next wave of games. With 1366x768 limiting your GPU output I'd say that the 7770 is plenty. As for the CPU you don't need to upgrade unless you find yourself having low performance.

The 2.8 Quad is a Q9500 I assume? That's a fine chip. If you want to upgrade to a Quad that's a pretty good option IMO.

 

[tokyoduong]

or do i need a better cpu ?
available options : core 2 duo 2.93; core 2 quad 2.80 (matches my cpu socket)

There's a lot of people still using core 2 quad q6600 and runs almost every game on max. The new line of processors like ivy bridge that I have is faster but it's really not that much faster. In benchmarks, it is significant but for gaming and general use then you're not going to see -50% frame rates because of it. Buy Q6600 or something around that and OC to 3.5. Paired with Radeon 7770, you should be able to run almost all new titles on high with more than acceptable frame rates. Honestly, I think you should just cough up the extra $40 for a 7850 if you can afford it.

If you feel that you'll never upgrade your monitor to 1080p then stick with 7770.

 

[benxiii]

E5200 is still based on the core 2 arch just with less L2 cache? and my m8 ran two GTX 460's with a E8400 and yours is clock alot higher then that, im sure you would be fine with a 7770 at that res easy, you could go as far as maybe a GTX 650 Ti?

I dont see any if much at all bottle neck with a 7770 TBH

Here's my take... a Core 2 E6600 @3.2Ghz with a 6850 could play Crysis at med quality @1920x1200 quite well. Core 2 E8600 @ 4.2Ghz with a 5870 could play Crysis at high quality @ 1920x1200 with virtually no lag.

Find a 6850 or 6870, assuming you have enough PSU. A 6850 can be had for $100 or less if you're willing to be patient and find a used one.

well i can't afford a 6850 neitger can i find a cheap one. And i've seen 7770 catch or outperform 6850 in tpu benchmarks.... Specially in crysis 2. Anyway what do you think of core 2 duo 2.93 ? What model is it ? E8XX ?

 

[tokyoduong]

well i can't afford a 6850 neitger can i find a cheap one. And i've seen 7770 catch or outperform 6850 in tpu benchmarks.... Specially in crysis 2. Anyway what do you think of core 2 quad 2.93 ? What model is it ? E8XX ?

yes that chip should run every game you want to play. Unless you want to play metro 2033 at max setting, you should be able to run every other game above 30 fps easily on a 7770 with your 768p monitor.

 

[Sasqui]

And i've seen 7770 catch or outperform 6850 in tpu benchmarks....

They are very close, I didn't realise that. I'd go with the best price or bundle between them depending on what you find.

http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/Sapphire/HD_7770_Vapor-X/28.html

 

[benxiii]

E5200 is still based on the core 2 arch just with less L2 cache? and my m8 ran two GTX 460's with a E8400 and yours is clock alot higher then that, im sure you would be fine with a 7770 at that res easy, you could go as far as maybe a GTX 650 Ti?

I dont see any if much at all bottle neck with a 7770 TBH

There's a lot of people still using core 2 quad q6600 and runs almost every game on max. The new line of processors like ivy bridge that I have is faster but it's really not that much faster. In benchmarks, it is significant but for gaming and general use then you're not going to see -50% frame rates because of it. Buy Q6600 or something around that and OC to 3.5. Paired with Radeon 7770, you should be able to run almost all new titles on high with more than acceptable frame rates. Honestly, I think you should just cough up the extra $40 for a 7850 if you can afford it.

If you feel that you'll never upgrade your monitor to 1080p then stick with 7770.

i can get a core 2 duo 2.93 ghz (stock speed) for free. But is a core 2 quad worth upgrading ? though it won't cost me much.