i5 2500k or FX 8120

[gibbs007]

I'm buying a CPU for gaming (BF3 multiplayer, and all the newest games), and for occasional video editing and 3d modeling. I know i5 is faster for games, but how long will it last, since it only has 4 cores? Normally, I would go for the i5, but FX is 30€ cheaper.
Basically, my question is, which one will last longer: i5 or FX?

 

[Smoblikat]

Ill just say this before all the fanboys get in here.
The I5 is superior to lightly threaded apps, so its better for gaming. Even in BF3 its arch is so superior that it beats teh FX while having half the cores. But, the FX will outperform it in heavily threaded apps and running servers/VM's. So whichever thing you do moer of (real work/video editing, or gaming) should be the decider. Also, the FX uses considerably more power so make sure your PSU is up to the challenge.

 

[tulx]

I'm buying a CPU for gaming (BF3 multiplayer, and all the newest games), and for occasional video editing and 3d modeling. I know i5 is faster for games, but how long will it last, since it only has 4 cores? Normally, I would go for the i5, but FX is 30€ cheaper.
Basically, my question is, which one will last longer: i5 or FX?

Not sure what you mean by "last longer". Which CPU will be more viable a few years from now, considering the rise in hardware requirements? Which CPU is more durable?

I can tell you that both CPU's will run BF3 on ultra detail with ease, provided a sufficient video card. And I can tell you that both CPU's will "last" long enough for them to become absolutely useless in anything. Like the fully functional Pentium I 166 MHz I still have.
Fact is - you don't need a very fast CPU for games. You will see no difference between a 2500k and an FX 6100 or even FX 4100 in almost all games - they will all be limited by the video card. For highly threaded applications, more cores are, of course, better. Not sure if the two additional cores of the FX will make up for the IPC difference when compared to a 2500k. A 8120 definitely would.

 

[gibbs007]

Not sure what you mean by "last longer". Which CPU will be more viable a few years from now, considering the rise in hardware requirements? Which CPU is more durable?

What I meant was, a few years from now, which one would perform better?
The other thing is power consumption. If I go with FX, will 650W power supply be enough? (paired with a 6950).

 

[Edrick]

Buying an i5 2500K today lets you drop in upgrade to IB tomorrow. Just another point to consider.

 

[Herald85]

Very difficult to say.

If you take a medium-end CPU from 2003 (P4 / AMD 64) both are too slow for anything but webbrowsing.

A dualcore CPU from 2008 (Core2Duo E8200 or Phenom 9500) are still fine for officework and light gaming. A highend quadcore from end 2008/beginning 2009 (Q4950 or Phenom II x4 955) are both still capable chips that are just now showing their age in games like BF3.

And yes, 650W is enough if it's a fairly recent model that has most of it's wattage on the 12v rail.

EDIT: I just thought of an example. My sister has an E2180 that we bought in beginning 2008 that I OC'ed for her. She still uses it today (with a 4890) for games like HoMM 6 on her E2200WS Iiyama (1680x1050) .

 

[tulx]

Buying an i5 2500K today lets you drop in upgrade to IB tomorrow. Just another point to consider.

Good point.
Same goes for FX and Pilediver on the AM3+ socket, of course. But that's a bit more of a gamble. Who knows how it'll turn out.
Noone knows how IB will perform either, but it is more likely to be decent.

 

[Lex Luger]

You would be a fool to buy fx8120 for gaming, or anything else for that matter. I dont know what people try to be nice about it, compared to sandy bridge bulldozer cpus are trash. The performance per watt figures dont lie.

You would be better off buying a phenom2 cpu.

And if you want to overclock the fx8120, good luck, you're gonna need a large cooler and a lot of voltage.

aNd ivy bridge will be a large improvement, at least 20 percent when you factor in additional overclocking due to superior efficiency of 3d transistors. This isnt speculation, its a fact. Everyone knocking ivy bridge is gonna look like a utter fool when its released.

The only people pushing fx cpus are hopeless fanboys and amd stock holders.

 

[Ferzerp]

It's just phenomenal how many people have taken up "occasional video editing and 3d modeling" in the last 4 months!

Buy the i5. It may render slightly slower than the AMD part in certain scenarios, but you're only doing that occasionally, and it will be faster in every single other thing that you do.

 

[Annon2255]

To throw in another question, how do the AM3+ motherboards compare to 1155? Do the AM3+ motherboards offer the same things as 1155, such as USB 3.0, plenty of PCI express slots, etc.

Not sure how much this would effect the OP, but I was just curious myself.

 

[gibbs007]

aNd ivy bridge will be a large improvement, at least 20 percent when you factor in additional overclocking due to superior efficiency of 3d transistors. This isnt speculation, its a fact. Everyone knocking ivy bridge is gonna look like a utter fool when its released.

20%? People are saying around 10% on the cpu side, and 60% on the gpu side (which I don't need).

 

[tulx]

To throw in another question, how do the AM3+ motherboards compare to 1155? Do the AM3+ motherboards offer the same things as 1155, such as USB 3.0, plenty of PCI express slots, etc.

Not sure how much this would effect the OP, but I was just curious myself.

AM3+ boards are generally somewhat cheaper than 1155 boards, especially when it comes to features like Crossfire and SLI. But there is no real difference in the features you can get - both have all - you just need to pick the board with the right features for you.

 

[tulx]

[...]The performance per watt figures dont lie.

aNd ivy bridge will be a large improvement, at least 20 percent [...] This isnt speculation, its a fact. Everyone knocking ivy bridge is gonna look like a utter fool when its released.

Firtly, performance per watt is something a lot of people don't and shouldn't care about. Unless you're in some green party, the power consumption of your PC is never a big deal when compared to the whole household costs. Many other appliances use a lot more power.

The 20% thing is indeed pure speculation. No facts about IB performance so far.

The last sentance makes you look like an AMD fanboy before BD release. Better be on the safe side and refrain from such claims.

 

[Maximilian]

It's just phenomenal how many people have taken up "occasional video editing and 3d modeling" in the last 4 months!

lol indeed.

 

[nickb64]

It's just phenomenal how many people have taken up "occasional video editing and 3d modeling" in the last 4 months!

I could see the video editing, but 3D modeling is a bit more specialized than that. Tons of people put shit out on YouTube, so some light editing of video is not unreasonable (I have a friend who tries to make game walkthroughs and random Minecraft videos), but I don't know a lot of people who do 3D modeling of any kind.

(a couple people I know took CAD classes in high school [I'm in the second half of my first year of college], still mess around with various things, one friend wants to try to make a game)

 

[blckgrffn]

I'm buying a CPU for gaming (BF3 multiplayer, and all the newest games), and for occasional video editing and 3d modeling. I know i5 is faster for games, but how long will it last, since it only has 4 cores? Normally, I would go for the i5, but FX is 30€ cheaper.
Basically, my question is, which one will last longer: i5 or FX?

There is no wrong answer here. What are you going to do with that 30(pound? Euro? sorry...) difference? What percentage of your total budget is that? Are you going to OC? How much do you care about power utilization (ongoing costs)? Is that lunch money for you or a serious difference in outlay?

I'd say you are better off sinking that money into an SSD or better video card and calling it a day with a mild OC (3.6 ~ 3.8) on the 8120, personally.

Unless you are adventuresome with the 2500k and go for a frequency in the north of 4Ghz range. Then I think you should drop a little more on a good air cooler and go the Intel route

Where is sm625? I also vote "buy a 2600k" and be done with it for a while if you can find the room in your budget. If it holds you for one extra tech refresh cycle vs the 2500k it will be money well spent.

My money is on the FX and the 2500k hitting a wall about the same time, usability wise (given the respective feature parity and strength of their FPUs).

"IMHO"

 

[BallaTheFeared]

Eight vs Four isn't really a factor, except when less than eight are used the FX can no longer keep pace with the four.

Quad core is the top end for gaming, even dual cores are still just as good in almost all games. It's been this way for years, and probably will continue to be this way for a long time to come.

 

[bononos]

Firtly, performance per watt is something a lot of people don't and shouldn't care about. Unless you're in some green party, the power consumption of your PC is never a big deal when compared to the whole household costs. Many other appliances use a lot more power.

The 20% thing is indeed pure speculation. No facts about IB performance so far.

The last sentance makes you look like an AMD fanboy before BD release. Better be on the safe side and refrain from such claims.

Isn't it odd for AMD fans to hype up Ivy Bridge?

 

[videogames101]

2500k

why is this thread so long

 

[tulx]

Isn't it odd for AMD fans to hype up Ivy Bridge?

I think you didn't quite understand what I meant. "Everyone knocking ivy bridge is gonna look like a utter fool when its released" sounds all too familiar when you replace IB with BD. Both claims have no numbers or proven facts to back them up and are based on pure speculation.
Hyping up for anything is stupid.
Wait and see how they turn out, then make your recommendations and decisions based on how the products actually perform, not how you feel about them.

 

[guskline]

To paraphrase the great line in the movie "Jerry Maguire" - you had me at gaming. 2500k.

 

[Ketchup]

which one will last longer: i5 or FX?

Answer: it doesn't matter. Both will last a few years, and by the time they are outdated, either one will require substantial upgrades (CPU, motherboard, and RAM).

Don't buy a CPU based on what it will do tomorrow, no one knows. What we do know is that the 2500k is significantly faster today, so that is your answer.