Processor Help

[Mr. Teriyaki]

so buying a new motherboard is a better choice than getting a new processor?
and if i get a motherboard, which one is good?

 

[cool breeze]

Not necessarily. The choice to upgrade what you have, your platform (ie. your motherboard, which is the basis and defining point ((in my opinion)) of where you\your computer is in terms of the state or era of the technology you have at your disposal), or, to start anew, even if you still have the same case, maybe power supply, dvd\cd drives, and other minor side components.

What I'm saying is would you rather spend money nursing along your PC, or is it practical for you to start over so that you can blow TF2 away and future games will play just as smoothly for a few years?

You can pop in the highest end CPU that your motherboard can handle, as much of the fastest RAM your motherboard can handle, as much video card as your motherboard and power supply can handle with as much technology built in as your processor can make use of, OR, you can get a new motherboard, processor and RAM, maybe another power supply, and cram it all into the case you already have.

Here is how I make the choice myself: I add up the cost of "maxing out" my current mother board. I do this by creating an itemized list, then create another itemized list (both have prices on them for each new part you are buying) of parts it would take for me to essentially build a new computer (or "core" as I saw one poster put it). I compare part for part and weigh the advantages and disadvantages in my head, both for price up front AND long term, and then for the advantages of each part. I'll give you an example:

I have a motherboard that uses DDR2 RAM. It can take 8GB total of DDR2, 4 2GB sticks, and the maximum operating frequency is 800MHz (I've read they left out that one of my recent BIOS updates brought us up to 1066MHz, but we'll leave that alone for now). As games and software get more advanced, the fact that I already have 4GB and its more than I need at this time is irrelevant because the future will cause a need for higher frequency and greater quantity. So, my choice is add 2 more 2GB sticks of DDR2 800 and reach my "maxed out" point for the board, hoping and praying that 4 more GB will suffice and that the need for higher frequencies doesn't catch up soon, or I can look at a new platform.

Well, how does one make the choice? I compared the price of the matching sticks I need to max out, and, at like $110 shipped versus like $70ish or something shipped for 2 2GB sticks of DDR3 running at 1333MHz, it doesn't seem logical to buy more of the old stuff unless I can find it used and in great condition. So there's the consideration for RAM. Not a definite, yet, so lets weigh out the other components.

The latest BIOS revisions for my motherboard now allow me to use up to a Phenom 2 940 Black Edition. That's a STEEP upgrade from where I am and what the board could originally handle. Plus, there are similar processors for less money that I can consider using, like the Phenom 2 5XX series that operate in 3.0GHz territory and, given that I don't really use any software "right now" that needs more than two cores, I can save money and get an insane increase in performance.

Say, I went with the Phenom 2. Its an AM3 processor, so I can use it in my AM2 motherboard, pull it out and stick it into a new AM3 motherboard later when I upgrade that and my RAM. The bump in performance on my current technology is enough to make purchasing the rest of the RAM I can fit a pointless endeavor (4GB more of RAM on top of a current 4GB setup won't make a dent in performance compared to improving processor frequency, instructions, bus speeds, and internal caches).

So, if I select this processor, I, like you, can upgrade my rig enough to play WAY more stuff than I already can before I need to upgrade the entire core or platform that I'm working with. Plus, when I do, I won't even have to buy a new processor when I get a new motherboard and RAM that are up to date and ready to handle the new software of the time. In fact, just the processor alone will open up so many more new gaming avenues that buy the time I'm done exploring them all, I will have saved up enough money to buy the new stuff, NEED the new stuff AND I will have the cash on hand to jump on crazy good deals for new parts before the offer goes away.

This analysis points towards an upgrade, but its for MY situation. Its caters to practicality more than overall or max performance and it feeds my need to have more right now while saving money. Even if I got all new stuff, I wouldn't have any money to buy games and software that need it left over to make having purchased it all worth it, plus, the increase in performance to the software I already have won't be so astronomical that I WON'T have buyers remorse.

This by the way hasn't addressed my power supply or video card, but in short, only upgrading the processor would still last me long enough to have saved up for replacing them as well for the next build.

Ask yourself what your particular situation and application call for. Is money tight? Consider just upgrading the processor and enjoy better gameplay for long enough to save up for a new rig. Is it not much of an issue? Then don't waste any money buying minor upgrades only to turn around and upgrade completely to a new platform. That's spending money twice and even if you have it, it doesn't make a lot of sense to do.

 

[Mr. Teriyaki]

Ok thanks for the help.
and if i get a processor, is there a limit of what kind i get so it would work for a motherboard or would it be just any intel processor would work on any Intel motherboard?

 

[cool breeze]

You are limited to what processor you can use with your motherboard based on the "socket type" that your motherboard excepts. Naturally, in your case, you can only use an Intel chip to begin with, which means, you have an Intel based motherboard, but what "socket type" of Intel chip will matter. You can't stick a newer socket type processor in a much older socket type of mother board and vice versa even if they are both Intel based products. Same thing for AMD, just because you have AMD motherboard, doesn't mean every socket type that AMD made was compatible with it. I can't combine a socket A processor with a socket AM3 motherboard.

Your motherboard is a socket 775 Intel motherboard if I remember correctly. I'm way too tired to check on anything to make this post