Overclocked 960T vs i3-2100?

[JEDI]

right now i can get the 960T w/mobo = $100 total.
2 months ago i could have gotten the i3-2100 w/mobo for $100 total.

i know at stock the 2100 kills the 960T.

but how about a 6core 3.6ghz 960T vs an overclocked i3-2100?


edit:
using it for gaming, specifically Diablo III

 

[lau808]

2100 will still beat it in lightly threaded work. 2100 doesnt overclock. what do you use your pc for?

 

[AtenRa]

What the PC is for??

Gaming ?? work, everyday use??

 

[God Mode]

Sounds like a professional web surfer and starbucks drinker. I'd go with the intel for overall balance.

 

[richierich1212]

I'd go with the 960T if overclocking.

 

[jacktesterson]

I'd personally go with the 960T if overclocking.

Games are starting to take advantage of 4 real cores more and more. O/C'ing should bring it close to IPC of stock 2100 (which can't o/c), and you'll have 4-6 cores instead of 2.

My 2 cents.

 

[sm625]

There would be some rare cases where the 960T would be faster. But that tiny little boost will cost you many more instances of poorer performance. AND you save 5 - 15 dollars a year in electricity...

 

[pauldun170]

i3-2100 doesn't overclock.

For gaming, I'd buy neither and save up more money.
For general usage (browse\ms office) i3-2100 without hesitation or regret.
If we are talking PS or other "work apps", I'd buy neither and save up more money.

 

[MegaWorks]

Get the 960T and overclock it, it games everything out there with the right graphic card obviously. Can you tell us the mobo's for both system so that we could have a better comparison.

 

[blckgrffn]

Buy the 960t, oc it.

Then come join us in the DC subforum That's where the Thuban will shine...

World Community Grid and all of the good science it does needs your assistance. Do it for the science.

Cave Johnson would support this. And buying moonrocks to line your case with, too...

 

[Leyawiin]

X4 960t will be faster in almost any multi-threaded task, but slower in gaming (at stock). OC'd to 3.8 Ghz to 4.0 Ghz (from what I understand is totally doable with that chip) and it should make up for the gaming deficit vs. a CPU that can't overclock. Potential unlocking to six cores can only help its multi-threaded performance.

 

[Don Karnage]

I thought I remember seeing a 4ghz phenom ii getting rocked by a 2130

 

[JEDI]

2100 will still beat it in lightly threaded work. 2100 doesnt overclock. what do you use your pc for?

What the PC is for??

Gaming ?? work, everyday use??

i3-2100 doesn't overclock.

For gaming, I'd buy neither and save up more money.
For general usage (browse\ms office) i3-2100 without hesitation or regret.
If we are talking PS or other "work apps", I'd buy neither and save up more money.

it's for gaming. i updated my OP.

paul- i buy best bang for the buck, and $100 for either of those 2 cpu/mobo combined is outstanding in my book.
what would u get instead? i5-2500k + z68 for $225 total?

 

[AtenRa]

it's for gaming. i updated my OP.

What graphics card do you have or planing to buy and at what resolution are you gaming ??

 

[VirtualLarry]

I'm not sure about gaming results, but some games really like quad-cores (although the SB dual-cores with HT perform admirably in those games as well).

I do distributed computing, so for that, the 960T would win hands-down. Not to mention, the possibility of unlocking into a hex-core.

 

[pauldun170]

it's for gaming. i updated my OP.

paul- i buy best bang for the buck, and $100 for either of those 2 cpu/mobo combined is outstanding in my book.
what would u get instead? i5-2500k + z68 for $225 total?

I'm fortunate enough to be close to a microcenter so my opinion is a little biased. At the price you listed sounds like a MC bundle.

So @ $100 stock for stock they are both ok procs where each has advantages (though the i3-2100 has the edge in benches, real world will probably feel the same between the 2)

Once you overclock, then it's not really a competition at $100.
There is only so much you can do on a stock cooler.
That's extra $$ on the 960t. (i3-2100 doesn't OC and the stock cooler is sufficient)
Also pay attention to the board offered if its a MC bundle. You could be looking at headaches if you try and push OC.

If you were to choose the 960t plus $20-$30 for the cooler then you start venturing into i5-2400 territory.

I have a i3-2100. Its fine for what I'm using it for. Since a 960t is in the same ball park benchmark wise (allowing for slight overclocks) I'm lumping the two together somewhat.

Having said that, if I were putting together a gaming machine I'd want something with a wee bit more oomph and a MC 2500K is a the best bang for the buck to me.

However, its your budget and either the 960t or the i3-2100 will be fine for a entry level gaming box when paired with the right card. If you are planning on overclocking then you should adjust your budget to accommodate a cooler. Dont think the stock cooler is very OC friendly.

 

[JEDI]

What graphics card do you have or planing to buy and at what resolution are you gaming ??

i have the radeon 4850.

i have a 27" LCD running at 2560 x 1440.
a 2nd lcd (21.5") at 1920 x 1080

shouldnt be a problem for Diablo III?
and will upgrade when i can no longer get 35fps w/moderate bells/whistles on the 4850

 

[sm625]

http://www.bit-tech.net/hardware/cpus/2011/07/01/intel-core-i3-2100-review/6

i3 minimum framerate 25% higher than a 4.3 GHz amd. lol


I know its just one example, and the other example on that same page is a lot closer. But come on, 25% faster than a 4.3GHz phenom? Why even take the risk. Results like that are simply not acceptable. There might be cases where a dual core is allowed be weaker than a quad. But this the reverse. It is just not acceptable that a highly overclock quad could be slower by 25% at anything.

If you're on a budget do what I did... get an i5-750/760 and oc it. Look at how it scores on that chart. Blows em both away.

 

[BD231]

At $100 bucks with a free mobo you can't complain, the i3 is going to cost you more and while you may get a little more life out of it I doubt it'll be worth the added cost of the motherboard.

If you're going intel go i5 with the $50 off motherboard deal, there's no point in buying an i3 when u can get the i5 for $50 to $60 more. Considering the free motherboard u can't really beat the price to performance ratio of the 960t if u can OC it.

 

[richierich1212]

http://www.bit-tech.net/hardware/cpus/2011/07/01/intel-core-i3-2100-review/6

i3 minimum framerate 25% higher than a 4.3 GHz amd. lol

If you're on a budget do what I did... get an i5-750/760 and oc it. Look at how it scores on that chart. Blows em both away.

I don't think OP is looking to buy these processors for those particular games. 1680x1050? I highly doubt that as well.

 

[AtenRa]

I cant say about Diablo III but the majority of new DX-11 games are GPU bound at 1920, not to mention 1440p.

You will not see any performance difference between AMD Phenom or FX vs Core i3 or Core i5 with HD4850 at those high resolutions.
Unless, you run the game in very low quality settings, something a gamer will not do

 

[daveybrat]

I'm pretty sure you are talking about the MC deal right with the free Gigabyte 760G motherboard?

If so, don't even think about it. Spend the $30 extra to get this motherboard with it:

http://www.microcenter.com/single_product_results.phtml?product_id=0375772

The $129.00 combo gives you a fantastic motherboard that is far superior to the cheap free one.

Reason being, that cheap motherboard only supports 95Watt processors, which is what the 960T is at STOCK settings.

However, once you unlock that cpu to 6-Cores, then you jump up to 125Watts and higher with overclocking. (I know, i have that cpu!).

That motherboard alone goes for $109 on Newegg, so essentially you are getting a killer cpu for $20!! Well worth it IMO.

 

[JEDI]

I'm pretty sure you are talking about the MC deal right with the free Gigabyte 760G motherboard?

If so, don't even think about it. Spend the $30 extra to get this motherboard with it:

http://www.microcenter.com/single_product_results.phtml?product_id=0375772

The $129.00 combo gives you a fantastic motherboard that is far superior to the cheap free one.

Reason being, that cheap motherboard only supports 95Watt processors, which is what the 960T is at STOCK settings.

However, once you unlock that cpu to 6-Cores, then you jump up to 125Watts and higher with overclocking. (I know, i have that cpu!).

That motherboard alone goes for $109 on Newegg, so essentially you are getting a killer cpu for $20!! Well worth it IMO.

ahh thx.. never knew u that...
thought as long as the mobo handles the stock wattage of chip, your fine even when o/c cause the mobo has built in tolerances

 

[AtenRa]

I have just finished my FX-4100 DX-11 gaming evaluation review. I believe you will find it interesting.

Have a look at my sing bellow

 

[Stayfr0sty]

6 core 960?
Dude, core unlocking is not a garuntee.
Never buy a part expecting it to so and so just cause others got lucky.