Considering switch to Intel

[TCates90]

Hi all,

So I've been considering switching to an Intel-based rig in what's effectively a half-system revamp (I'm deciding to keep my graphics card, storage and RAM). Current specs in sig

What's the advantage using an Intel chip over an AMD one?
If I do go ahead and switch, what might be a decent mid-range board/chip combo to go for? I'm aiming for a nice overclock in the 4GHz region

Thanks in advance

-TC-

Sorry, current specs are...
FX-4130 on an Asus M5A97 Pro
16GB RAM, 60GB SSD, 1TB & 750GB HDD
HD 7850
OCZ 750W Fatal1ty PSU

 

[Cru]

please include the specs in your post as well, your signature might change and that could confuse people who read this later on

to keep it simple, intel's per-core performance is quite a bit higher. so for example an i5 4670k performs better than a fx 4100. they also consume less power - most of the time

can't really recommend any specific parts without a usecase. also, there are a lot of good motherboards out there in many different colours. so might want to include a colour scheme if you want your parts to fit together nicely

 

[SeekaX]

do you hate your mainboard and have about 350 euros to spend? go straight away with intel. you are okay with your mainboard and don't have a whole lot of money? 8320 is the way to go.

 

[TCates90]

please include the specs in your post as well, your signature might change and that could confuse people who read this later on

to keep it simple, intel's per-core performance is quite a bit higher. so for example an i5 4670k performs better than a fx 4100. they also consume less power - most of the time

can't really recommend any specific parts without a usecase. also, there are a lot of good motherboards out there in many different colours. so might want to include a colour scheme if you want your parts to fit together nicely

Sorry, current specs are...
FX-4130 on an Asus M5A97 Pro
16GB RAM, 60GB SSD, 1TB & 750GB HDD
HD 7850
OCZ 750W Fatal1ty PSU

Bit of a Frankenbuild in terms of storage, but I got what I could afford at the time for a half decent gaming rig.
I'm thinking of going with a white/blue colour scheme, so I'm thinking of using a NZXT Phantom (probably the smaller 410).

The i5-4670k seems to be in the same area as my current CPU, would that be a good choice if I want to make the switch? If I want to have a slight OC, what kind of board should I be looking at?

-TC-

 

[Excalabur50]

It's a bit of a shame you want blue cause some of the best Z87 boards are red!
eg the GD65 with an 4670 would be an absolute beast.

 

[Surfie]

Hmmm, could mod the board by painting it. G-Dubs showed us that this was possible in Project NZXSPC.

But most people (including me) would just choose the scheme that their mainboard comes with by default, and run with that.

 

[MacLeod]

The thing is with your current board, you wont be able to overclock a 8320 very well so if youre planning on doing something like that, youd need a beefier motherboard and if youre gonna do that, you might as well go all out and go Intel.

The FX-8300's are very power hungry and there are only a handful of motherboards that can do them justice and handle their power draw at significant overclocks. If youre just wanting to get one and run it at stock speeds, then you could get away with that though.

Bottom line I guess is if you can afford a new motherboard and CPU, then you should probably be going Intel. In all likelihood Ill be switching myself eventually. I want an upgrade from my 8150 and AMD doesnt have anything better so Intel is my only option for a CPU performance upgrade.

 

[NeverBackDown]

Your current board is fine. Just do not expect to hit 5ghz.. i say around 4.6ghz is what the boards limit will be around. Also by keeping the board you could buy an 8320(best option) and then use the saved cash to save up for a new gpu.

 

[SeekaX]

Your current board is fine. Just do not expect to hit 5ghz.. i say around 4.6ghz is what the boards limit will be around. Also by keeping the board you could buy an 8320(best option) and then use the saved cash to save up for a new gpu.

Mate i had that board before and it's utter garbage for overclocking. Either you enable llc which causes the board to overvolt or you don't, which causes it to undervolt. No other settings there. I am hinestly wondering how he managed to get 4.5ghz out of that thing because i couldn't get anything above 4.2 stable for more than 2 hours

 

[NeverBackDown]

CPU silicon lottery has a great affect too.

Even if he did 4.2ghz is more than enough for games.

Edit: if he is that worried then he could always sell his 4170 and motherboard and spend money on either a 8320 and better board or go the intel route. Personally the 8320 seems to be rocking with new games so IMO so far is that is the best cpu for the money as of now.

 

[SeekaX]

CPU silicon lottery has a great affect too.

Even if he did 4.2ghz is more than enough for games.

Edit: if he is that worried then he could always sell his 4170 and motherboard and spend money on either a 8320 and better board or go the intel route. Personally the 8320 seems to be rocking with new games so IMO so far is that is the best cpu for the money as of now.

nah that barely had anything to do with the silicon lottery, the board just doesn't deliver stable voltages, i'm pretty sure his 4.5ghz oc isn't 24/7 stable.
the 8320 might go well with new games, but it does horrible in anything older and even some new titles run horrible on it like planetside 2. i don't see a problem with someone going AMD if he plays exclusively new games, but if you are going to spend money on a new board + CPU, why not go the save route.
i sure as hell won't play the lottery on CPUs again.
i see AMD CPUs getting relevant again by the end of 2014/ early 2015, but what's the point of getting a CPU that will be useful in a year.

 

[barnsley]

the 8320 might go well with new games, but it does horrible in anything older and even some new titles run horrible on it like planetside 2...
i sure as hell won't play the lottery on CPUs again.
i see AMD CPUs getting relevant again by the end of 2014/ early 2015, but what's the point of getting a CPU that will be useful in a year.

I have no problem with planetside 2, the older bulldozer chips can't run it but the pile driver chips do fine at stock (or rather my 8320 did). ARMA 2 (and to some extent ARMA 3) are defiantly not good with AMD as it is with intel chips.

In terms of overclocking that board does have a bad rep, 8320s have a turbo clock of 4ghz and I've not seen an 8320 that can hit that stock volts however from then onwards it really depends on the chip as to how much voltage you need to go higher, my personal experience is that I can hit 4.2 with a tiny increase in voltage but any higher and you're at the mercy of the lottery.

In my opinion you should go for the 8320 as it will give a big boost in performance however if you plan on doing alot of video rendering/image processing I'd go intel.

 

[SeekaX]

I have no problem with planetside 2, the older bulldozer chips can't run it but the pile driver chips do fine at stock (or rather my 8320 did). ARMA 2 (and to some extent ARMA 3) are defiantly not good with AMD as it is with intel chips.

i saw some benchmarks where the 8320 barely got 40fps on max settings, not that great. but that was already 3/4 of a year ago, things probably got better.

In my opinion you should go for the 8320 as it will give a big boost in performance however if you plan on doing alot of video rendering/image processing I'd go intel.

yep, bang for the buck is obviously far better since he already owns an am3+ board. but if he upgrades the mainboard as well, which i highly recommend if he wants to keep overclocking, then intel is the more reliable option.

 

[barnsley]

i saw some benchmarks where the 8320 barely got 40fps on max settings, not that great. but that was already 3/4 of a year ago, things probably got better.

Yeah, I ran it on my old i3 550 (which used to choke on it) recently and it was much smoother, its nice to see they've finally improved CPU usage on that game. I wonder if the announcement of it coming to the next gen consoles made them optimise it.

 

[SeekaX]

Yeah, I ran it on my old i3 550 (which used to choke on it) recently and it was much smoother, its nice to see they've finally improved CPU usage on that game. I wonder if the announcement of it coming to the next gen consoles made them optimise it.

well their own console uses AMD processors, they'd shoot themselves in the foot if they wouldn't optimize it.

 

[tinytomlogan]

Pretty much every board will get the most from your cpu. Just depends how lucky you are and how much you listen to our overclocking guide.

Ive not seen a board budget posted in the thread yet?

 

[SeekaX]

Pretty much every board will get the most from your cpu. Just depends how lucky you are and how much you listen to our overclocking guide.

not the m5a97. the only thing worse than the vdroop on that board is LLC.

 

[TCates90]

The stock speed for the FX-4170 is 4.2 GHz. I managed to nudge it up to 4.5 for a few months, but something's been causing my rig to become unstable. I've taken it down to 4.4 and haven't had any problems yet. The board is a budget board, so imo any kind of significant overclock is ambitious.
*promptly updates sig*

TTL: I'm no expert on board ranges and prices, so I've no idea how much I'll be spending. I'm hoping to keep the board below the £200 mark (preferably £150, or is that a tad stingy for a decent mid-level gaming board?). the 4670k alone is around £180.

-TC-

 

[Topham]

TCates,

One of these MSI Z87 GD65 Gaming - SCAN £150 Right on your Budget

Either
I5 4670k - SCAN £179
I7 4770k - SCAN £250

 

[theDTP]

I'm in love with my Gigabyte Z87X-UD4H and 4670k.

Gigabyte own it this gen, in my opinion