Need CPU/mobo recommendation

[Chang10is]

I'd like to build a budget system with a Wolfdale core and do a little overclocking. I'm not very experienced with overclocking and want to do something that's simple and won't tax my system much (no increases in voltage). I was thinking about picking up an E5200 and matching it up with a reliable mobo. Maybe I'd just increase the bus to 1066. I'm partial to Asus and was thinking about getting the Asus P5QPL-AM LGA 775 or the Asus P5QPL-VM EPU LGA 775. I'm also open to other ideas. BTW, I'll be using 2 x 2 GB 1066 MHz RAM.

If anybody could toss out some recomendations for a CPU and mobo, I'd really appreciate it! Oh, and the heatsink... it sounds like some people have been able to o/c the Wolfdale with stock cooling. I'd prefer to stick with stock cooling (it's OK if that limits my o/c potential), but if you'd recommend something else that's quiet and cools better, I could go that route too.

 

[alyarb]

Neither of those motherboards are great overclockers, and if you stick with stock cooling you really shouldn't do more than 3.4 GHz for a 24/7 overclock anyway. but frankly socket-775 is a lame duck platform for new builds. The socket is at the end of its life and will not be refreshed, so this will be a rather disposable build. There will be no architectural upgrades available for 775 other than what's on the market right now. You'll have to spend more on the board, but your money will go a lot farther if you get an Athlon II X2 with a decent AM2+ motherboard. I see you've already got memory ready to go (if you haven't purchased it yet, then consider stepping up to AM3/DDR3).

I would start with a solid motherboard, and it looks like you need integrated video too. What kind of monitor are you using? I would get the gigabyte GA-MA785GM-US2H. It's a better board compared to the ASUS 785Gs, has the SB710 southbridge and comes with a BIOS that supports ACC. This means you'll be able to unlock single-core Sempron "sargas" processors into dual-core Athlon II "regor" cores. It also gives you the ability to unlock dual and triple-core Phenom II's into full-fledged quad-core Phenom II's. This (core unlocking) is an important feature because it's a free vector lunch which you get in addition to overclocking (a free scalar lunch).

The GA-MA785GM-US2H comes in at $80, but it's got a far richer feature set than any integrated intel board, and is intended for overclocking. If you're only looking for a dual core in the low-3GHz range, I really recommend the 785G board and going for the unlock with the $40 single-core Athlon II. So the total cost comes to $120 between the CPU and board, this costs a lot less than a decent 775-based overclocking setup, and you'll have the perfect foundation to step up to a 4 GHz quad core once you've got a little experience under your belt.

 

[Chang10is]

Thanks for the advice!

My priorities are: 1) a high clockspeed on 2 cores rather than unlocking a 3rd or 4th core, 2) low power consumption. The availability of future architectural upgrades is not an issue for me. I don't upgrade processors in my systems anymore these days because I don't like the hassle of taking things out and then needing to sell them. I like to build my systems and then leave them alone for years.

Does this change the recommendation? I was originally thinking E5200 because I read it's easy to o/c and it consumes less power than the Athlon II. The motherboards for the AM3 do seem to be better, but wouldn't I get better performance from overclocking an E5200 rather than a Sempron 140? I don't really understand all the variables involved with the mobo chipset, etc., so maybe I'm wrong--that's why I'm posting here.

My display for this computer will be an old 17" LCD for the time being. An upgrade to a 22" will probably come soon. Integrated video would be nice because it'll save me some money... although, would it be better to have a video card once I start using Windows 7? I'm not a gamer, but I heard that the aero graphics in the Vista/Win 7 OS's require a video card.

 

[alyarb]

Originally posted by: Chang10is
Thanks for the advice!

My priorities are: 1) a high clockspeed on 2 cores rather than unlocking a 3rd or 4th core, 2) low power consumption. The availability of future architectural upgrades is not an issue for me. I don't upgrade processors in my systems anymore these days because I don't like the hassle of taking things out and then needing to sell them. I like to build my systems and then leave them alone for years.

Does this change the recommendation? I was originally thinking E5200 because I read it's easy to o/c and it consumes less power than the Athlon II. The motherboards for the AM3 do seem to be better, but wouldn't I get better performance from overclocking an E5200 rather than a Sempron 140? I don't really understand all the variables involved with the mobo chipset, etc., so maybe I'm wrong--that's why I'm posting here.

My display for this computer will be an old 17" LCD for the time being. An upgrade to a 22" will probably come soon. Integrated video would be nice because it'll save me some money... although, would it be better to have a video card once I start using Windows 7? I'm not a gamer, but I heard that the aero graphics in the Vista/Win 7 OS's require a video card.

architecturally the wolfdales are still a bit faster per-clock than AMD's 45nm dual cores, even if there are a couple inferior design decisions, it's nothing to quibble about. So if you hate upgrading, by all means get an E5200. The trouble is finding a cost-effective integrated board that'll get you to ~3.5 ghz....

well, this G41 board seems up to it. The integrated video is powerful enough to run the aero interface. However, if you ever plan on playing blu rays or other high def content, you should upgrade to a G45 model for $30 more.

edit: now that i'm reading some newegg reviews, people are having weird issues with overclocking and using the integrated video. at least with the G41 boards. No one reported issues with the Asrock G45. Still, maybe it's smarter to go with a P-series board and a $30 video card?

 

[o1die]

For a couple of more hours, newegg has their back to school sale. They have a jetway 8100 micro atx board with full hdmi support for $55 with free shipping. Combine that with the regor 245 at $66 shipped, and that should hold you for awhile.

 

[Chang10is]

How quiet are the stock coolers for the E5200 and for the Regor 245? And how effective are they? I'd like to stick with the stock cooler if possible, but only if it can't be heard from inside the PC case.

I'm also still looking for a reliable mobo to match with an E5200, if anybody has some suggestions!

 

[alyarb]

i think they're audible when they rev up. depends on the airflow in your case, room temps, and the condition of your OC. if you don't like them, there are heat towers in the $30 range that'll solve all your heat probs.

 

[Arkaign]

I just went from an overclocked E5200 to an overclocked Phenom II X4 805 (now at 3.43ghz on Gigabyte MA790X-UD4P), and miss the E5200. GREAT little chip. If you just care about dual-core, high overclockability, and fairly low power, it's a great deal.

 

[Chang10is]

Originally posted by: Arkaign
I just went from an overclocked E5200 to an overclocked Phenom II X4 805 (now at 3.43ghz on Gigabyte MA790X-UD4P), and miss the E5200. GREAT little chip. If you just care about dual-core, high overclockability, and fairly low power, it's a great deal.

I'm still looking for a good mobo with integrated video to go with the E5200. Haven't been able to find one yet, so I might go with alyarb's original recommendation of a Gigabyte GA-MA785GM-US2H paired with a dual core Phenom II. If I could get the 3rd or 4th core unlocked and increase the clock speed a little, I'd be pretty happy with that as an alternative to the E5200.

 

[Chang10is]

Actually, I take that back about the integrated video. I just found a cheap MSI HD Radeon 4350 512MB, so integrated video is no longer necessary. But that Gigabyte mobo still looks attractive because there are several package deals with Athlon II and Phenom II CPUs at a couple different retailers. I don't suppose the Phenom II has the ability to shut off inactive cores to save power like the i7, does it?

 

[cusideabelincoln]

No, they don't. The Phenom (Is) could independently clock cores down to 800 MHz, but AMD made sure all cores worked at the same frequency with Phenom II (whether full speed or 800 MHz) because of issues with thread handling. It's discussed in AT's review of the Phenom II launch: http://www.anandtech.com/cpuch...howdoc.aspx?i=3492&p=6

Newegg does have a lot of deals going on. I saw

For the E6300: http://www.newegg.com/Product/...d=0&PageSize=10&page=1
For the E5300: http://www.newegg.com/Product/...d=0&PageSize=10&page=1
For the E5200: http://www.newegg.com/Product/...d=0&PageSize=10&page=1
For the PhII 550: http://www.newegg.com/Product/...d=0&PageSize=10&page=1
For the PhII 545: http://www.newegg.com/Product/...d=0&PageSize=10&page=1
For the AII 250: http://www.newegg.com/Product/...d=0&PageSize=10&page=1
For the AII 240: http://www.newegg.com/Product/...d=0&PageSize=10&page=1

 

[Chang10is]

I went ahead and ordered the Gigabyte GA-MA785GM-US2H and Phenom II 545 combo from Newegg. I tried to find some information about unlocking the 3rd and 4th cores but didn't see anything on this forum. Could somebody explain how to do it or help me find a site with some instructions? I went to overclock.net but haven't found anything on unlocking dual core Phenom II's.

 

[Chang10is]

In case anybody is looking for info on how to overclock or unlock the extra cores on this CPU, here are a couple of resources:
http://hardforum.com/showthread.php?t=1426852
http://www.overclock.net/amd-g...verclocking-guide.html

 

[Lemon law]

Originally posted by: Chang10is
How quiet are the stock coolers for the E5200 and for the Regor 245? And how effective are they? I'd like to stick with the stock cooler if possible, but only if it can't be heard from inside the PC case.

I'm also still looking for a reliable mobo to match with an E5200, if anybody has some suggestions!

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------
I have an e5200 and a gigabyte G31M-ES2L board. I am using the stock heat sink and fan and no present overclock. As we speak, my idle temps are 33C according to real temps, my fan speed is a near silent 1781 according to speed fan, and even running prime95 for 15 minutes fails to push CPU temps over 55 C while the fan speed stays under 2500 rpm. Since I have a case fan that also runs at about that fixed speed, I have to listen very hard to notice I have any fans running.

But for real information on the e5200, check out some of the recent Kenmitch posts, as he has overclocked the chip to up to 4.2 GHZ, and now has it running, as I recall, at some 3.3 GHZ, using under stock Vcore voltages, and without causing any temperature rises.

I add this in terms of information only, and refuse to say the AMD option may not be the better choice. But the OP asked the question and he can get a lot of information by reading the recent Kenmitch posts. As I recall Kenmich has the slightly better gigabyte G41 mobo that is also inexpensive.

And the other point to make is that the e5200 stock heat sink and fan is really inadequate, not near as good as the stock heat sink and fans for the Pentium D's, and almost any third party heat sink and fan would run rings around it. Even those inexpensive ones that do not add much weight and stick out from the mobo six inches or more.

 

[Rezist]

IMO if you had to go the integrated video route no question for a 785G board, but I'd recommend a decent vid card (4670) and a P43/45 for your intel route.

I recently had to make this same choice, I went with the Athlon II 240 with a 785G-US2H and it's decent performance I haven't OC'ed it at all yet however. I put in a 4850 for a vid card though but the integrated had no issues in windows prior to installing the vid card.

I went this route purely on cash, it was on a combo deal for 139.99 CDN when the Intel system woulda cost around 155.00. God I wish I was in the States probably could got the Athlon II 240 and the US2H for like 100 USD.

 

[xps700xtreme]

hello all, i just recently rebuilt a xps 700 system my question is i know dell provides overclocking features for this systme but i dont know how i would go about doing this?
a little help please my cpu is core 2 e6700 2.6 ghz

 

[happy medium]

Originally posted by: Chang10is
I'd like to build a budget system with a Wolfdale core and do a little overclocking. I'm not very experienced with overclocking and want to do something that's simple and won't tax my system much (no increases in voltage). I was thinking about picking up an E5200 and matching it up with a reliable mobo. Maybe I'd just increase the bus to 1066. I'm partial to Asus and was thinking about getting the Asus P5QPL-AM LGA 775 or the Asus P5QPL-VM EPU LGA 775. I'm also open to other ideas. BTW, I'll be using 2 x 2 GB 1066 MHz RAM.

If anybody could toss out some recomendations for a CPU and mobo, I'd really appreciate it! Oh, and the heatsink... it sounds like some people have been able to o/c the Wolfdale with stock cooling. I'd prefer to stick with stock cooling (it's OK if that limits my o/c potential), but if you'd recommend something else that's quiet and cools better, I could go that route too.

Budget e5400 (13.5 multy) system? look at my signiture. I paid 100$ for my board cpu combo. I just picked up a tuniq tower (35)$ and I'm gonna do a bsl mod and have my chip run at 1066 bus (3.6). With the bsl mod I should be able to take her above 3.8/4.0 before my ram gives out.:thumbsup: