AMD camp gets a feasible upgrade path
By HoboGamer • Mar 30th, 2008 • Category: News
As you all know, AMD recently released a new B3 stepping of their Phenom series. The original Phenom’s were plagued with issues that lead to them not being the optimum upgrade path for gamers/enthusiasts at the time.
The new Phenom’s have addressed these issues and they look to provide a good upgrade alternative to the Quad Core (and even the Dual Core Wolfdales which are in scarce supply at the moment) Intel offerings.
This is especially true for owners of existing AM2 and AM2+ setups, with the highest of the new releases, the X4 9850 ‘Black Edition” ( 2.5Ghz, 2MB L2 cache, 2MB L3 cache, unlocked multiplier, 4000Mhz HyperTransport Bus ) with an estimated release price of $235 USD.
The unlocked multiplier should be very appealing to enthusiasts/overclockers, this review over at TechReport.com shows an easily attainable, stable 2.9Ghz overclock.
Check out the TechReport review for the full benchmark details, but here’s an interesting line from the article:
The Phenom X4 9850 Black Edition can’t always keep pace with the Core 2 Quad Q6600 or the Core 2 Duo E8500, but it’s close.
This is something to think about for anyone wanting to upgrade at the moment, the E8500 is around ~$300 USD (if you can find it, and due to demand the price may rise), but both the 65nm Kentsfield Q6600, and the 45nm Wolfdale E8400 are around ~230-250 USD, which places it in direct competition with the new X4 9850 “Black Edition” Phenom.
It’s a tough choice, but in my opinion, if you have an AM2/AM2+ setup and wanting to upgrade i would go with the new X4 Phenom line (especially the X4 9850 ‘Black Edition’ due to the unlocked multiplier - allowing for very easy overclocking). If you already have a previous generation Intel setup (with a P35 or G33 type board, check here for a listing of Wolfdale & Yorkfield compatible motherboards) then go with an E8400 if you can find it. Both upgrades only require a CPU replacement and will keep your system in the gaming stakes.
Whatever choice you make, it’s good news for all, with AMD providing a viable and competitive alternative.
HoboGamer is a devout PC Gamer, who loves his budget hardware and getting the most bang for his buck, i.e cheap-skate.
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I saw that youtube with about a triple core on amds new board, even without a gpu it was running games at mid settings. That needs to become more the norm for all entry level pc gamers.
Thanks for the heads up, i think i found it. I’m trying to find some benchmarks for a more accurate idea of how it performs but since it’s not due for release until Q2 2008 i guess i won’t find much
, but from what i can see in the video it looks like a better integrated graphics solution over anything Intel currently have.
I’ve seen some people putting down the 780 and comparing it to “normal” graphics cards but they are completely missing the point, this will help make entry level PC’s feasible for casual gamers at a mainstream price point.
In the long run, it could help rejuvenate the PC Gaming industry, and this maybe the cure to the main problem Tim Sweeny thinks is wrong with the PC Games industry right now. Too high a cost barrier to get into PC Gaming.
Even if u drop a low end radeon in that, it acts as crossfire(sli) and vastly bumps up the performance.
Their really is a barrier to entry my friend made a system back in 04 and then his stuff got outdated rapidly, then he bailed out of it and went back to just consoles because of the simple factor of cost, shouldn’t be the reason.