• Budget CPU/mobo/RAM combo
    13 replies, posted
Hey guys, I want to upgrade my CPU, mobo and RAM. I don't do anything too intensive, but my current CPU is a C2D E4500 which is the worst CPU ever. I'm just wondering, is there any combination of those parts that's better for the same price in Canada than this bundle? ($200) [url]http://www.tigerdirect.ca/applications/SearchTools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=9083286&Sku=M69-10047[/url] Thanks.
What do you plan on using this machine for? 2.9GHz Dual-core is a bit 2008ish, same for 4GB of Ram. With a 1GB graphics card you'll be able to max source games easily, maybe not quite CS:GO.
[QUOTE=KnightVista;46244789]What do you plan on using this machine for?[/quote] Some gaming, but mostly web browsing and stuff. My 775 mobo is kinda dying, so even web browsing is laggy sometimes with 30+ tabs. [QUOTE=KnightVista;46244789]2.9GHz Dual-core is a bit 2008ish, same for 4GB of Ram.[/quote] Well, at least it's Haswell. The RAM is a bit low, I know. I have 8 GB right now but it's DDR3-800. I dunno if it would be good to mix some of that in. [quote]With a 1GB graphics card you'll be able to max source games easily, maybe not quite CS:GO.[/QUOTE] Yeah, I only play games from before 2005 anyway. CS 1.6 mostly. Anyway, I just wanna know if I can get something better for $200.
[QUOTE=ShaunOfTheLive;46247120]Some gaming, but mostly web browsing and stuff. My 775 mobo is kinda dying, so even web browsing is laggy sometimes with 30+ tabs. Well, at least it's Haswell. The RAM is a bit low, I know. I have 8 GB right now but it's DDR3-800. I dunno if it would be good to mix some of that in. Yeah, I only play games from before 2005 anyway. CS 1.6 mostly. Anyway, I just wanna know if I can get something better for $200.[/QUOTE] If you're on a tight budget and willing to overclock then you can get a Pentium G3258 and overclock it on a good Z97 motherboard with a stock cooler. You'll get a very substantial performance boost and it will definitely outperform your processor in games. [url=http://ca.pcpartpicker.com/p/3q2kgs]PCPartPicker part list[/url] / [url=http://ca.pcpartpicker.com/p/3q2kgs/by_merchant/]Price breakdown by merchant[/url] [b]CPU:[/b] [url=http://ca.pcpartpicker.com/part/intel-cpu-bx80646g3258]Intel Pentium G3258 3.2GHz Dual-Core Processor[/url] ($69.99 @ Canada Computers) [b]Motherboard:[/b] [url=http://ca.pcpartpicker.com/part/asrock-motherboard-z97mpro4]ASRock Z97M Pro4 Micro ATX LGA1150 Motherboard[/url] ($107.50 @ Vuugo) [b]Total:[/b] $177.49 [i]Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available[/i] [i]Generated by PCPartPicker 2014-10-17 15:21 EDT-0400[/i] DDR3-800 is substantially slow by today's standards and can have an impact on performance (unless your PC is incorrectly reporting it as 800MHz instead of 1600MHz).
[QUOTE]Triot's post[/QUOTE] I reccomend the G3258 as its the 20th aniversery of pentium model which can overclock really well, however you wouldnt be able to use the ram as the motherboard doesnt support 800mhz ram. It could probably be fixed but I'd much reccomend getting new ram: PCPartPicker part list: [URL]http://ca.pcpartpicker.com/p/fCTqwP[/URL] Price breakdown by merchant: [URL]http://ca.pcpartpicker.com/p/fCTqwP/by_merchant/[/URL] [B]CPU[/B]: Intel Pentium G3258 3.2GHz Dual-Core Processor ($69.99 @ Canada Computers) [B]Motherboard[/B]: ASRock Z97M Anniversary Micro ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($88.00 @ Vuugo) [B]Memory[/B]: Corsair 4GB (1 x 4GB) DDR3-1333 Memory ($41.97 @ DirectCanada) [B]Total[/B]: $199.96 [I]Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available Generated by PCPartPicker 2014-10-17 17:15 EDT-0400[/I] Opinions on this?
That CPU looks great, guys! And as for the RAM, actually, I think Triot might be right, I'm confused with the whole double data rate thing. Looks like my RAM actually is DDR3-1600, which runs at 800 MHz because of double data rate (still confused on that)?. This is my RAM: [url]http://www.newegg.ca/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820104244[/url]
[QUOTE=ShaunOfTheLive;46266330]That CPU looks great, guys! And as for the RAM, actually, I think Triot might be right, I'm confused with the whole double data rate thing. Looks like my RAM actually is DDR3-1600, which runs at 800 MHz because of double data rate (still confused on that)?. This is my RAM: [url]http://www.newegg.ca/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820104244[/url][/QUOTE] Your RAM is fully compatible and will work fine. Your system will report the speed as much lower since it's DDR but in reality it generally will be running at a higher than reported speed. In order to fully benefit from your specific RAM though you will need to go into BIOS/UEFI and set the RAM to operate at 1600MHz (if your motherboard supports that speed).
Okay, thanks. One more question: is there any reason to get the Z97M Pro4 over the Anniversary if I'm not doing Crossfire? The Anniversary actually has two PCI-E 1x ports for expansion cards, and the Pro4 only has one extra PCI-E and two regular PCI ports. I only have one expansion card right now (my PCI-E WiFi adapter), so that's fine, but I might buy a sound card or something in the future, and it looks like [i]most[/i] of those are PCI-E.
The ASRock Z97M Anniversary cuts corners on pretty much everything in order to deliver overclocking (audio, networking...etc) for a slightly smaller price compared to other boards. As such it's not something I'd fully recommend. You can spend a bit extra and get a board that's much more fully featured over it. If you want to step up and have more PCIe slots then you could instead consider this: [b]Motherboard:[/b] [url=http://ca.pcpartpicker.com/part/msi-motherboard-z97pcmate]MSI Z97 PC MATE ATX LGA1150 Motherboard[/url] ($118.04 @ DirectCanada) It costs a bit more but it includes 2x1 and 2x16 PCIe slots. It's an ATX motherboard so if you are interested in it then check whether or not it will fit inside your case. (As a note you'll be able to insert a PCIe card into any PCIe slot if the edge connector is the same or less size of the slot itself, such as inserting a PCIe x1 card into a PCIe x16 slot for example)
There are also a fair number of h81 and b85 boards that you can overclock the 3258 on. They are good for a budget
[QUOTE=Levelog;46272027]There are also a fair number of h81 and b85 boards that you can overclock the 3258 on. They are good for a budget[/QUOTE] The only modern chipsets that Intel officially support and endorse for overclocking are Z87/Z97. H81 and B85 motherboards are not included. Manufacturers have been known to counter this by implementing an unofficial shoddy hack which allows them to do so. It's unreliable and they could easily remove it a future BIOS update without warning. Aside from that the H81 is the cheapest motherboard on the market which is only suitable for barebone office usage, not for playing games. I can't imagine what would happen to it in a year or so if it's used for gaming. An H81 motherboard is an absolutely poor choice.
[QUOTE=Triot;46272478]The only modern chipsets that Intel officially support and endorse for overclocking are Z87/Z97. H81 and B85 motherboards are not included. Manufacturers have been known to counter this by implementing an unofficial shoddy hack which allows them to do so. It's unreliable and they could easily remove it a future BIOS update without warning. Aside from that the H81 is the cheapest motherboard on the market which is only suitable for barebone office usage, not for playing games. I can't imagine what would happen to it in a year or so if it's used for gaming. An H81 motherboard is an absolutely poor choice.[/QUOTE] There are still many that have the ability to overclock, and they can overclock the Pentium well. As for being removed in a future update, then don't update! They can't force you to update your bios.
[QUOTE=Levelog;46272664]There are still many that have the ability to overclock, and they can overclock the Pentium well. As for being removed in a future update, then don't update! They can't force you to update your bios.[/QUOTE] They just simply aren't designed for overclocking. Updating your BIOS is also a common procedure if you're diagnosing an issue with your computer. If you can't do that then you're shutting out a potential fix. I also forgot to mention in my previous post that an 8-series chipset does not support the Pentium G3258 (since it's a Haswell Refresh processor) without a BIOS update to do so (if there even is one). If the motherboard BIOS isn't updated to support it when OP receives it then his computer won't boot, nor will he be able to update the BIOS in most circumstances. He's far better off getting a Z97 with a Pentium G3258 for his situation (like what I've specifically listed above). Also I really do apologize for somewhat derailing your thread ShaunOfTheLive but I'm hopeful you might see all of this as informative and useful to you.
[QUOTE=Triot;46273103]Also I really do apologize for somewhat derailing your thread ShaunOfTheLive but I'm hopeful you might see all of this as informative and useful to you.[/QUOTE] Yeah, thanks. I'll definitely get a Z97. I'm still leaning toward the Anniversary because I don't really care about the LAN chipset (I use a crappy WiFi card anyway) and I don't really care about the audio chipset either (I use a USB headset with its own audio chip). But I'll consider the MSI PC MATE. Anyway, I guess I'll mark this as solved. Thanks again.
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