Question [TechDeals] FX-8300 retirement day

[VirtualLarry]

I'm going to retire my AM3(+) FX990 board with three GPU slots, and my Thuban 6-core CPU in the next couple of weeks here too.

 

[JustViewing]

I'm going to retire my AM3(+) FX990 board with three GPU slots, and my Thuban 6-core CPU in the next couple of weeks here too.

Why? keep them going until the bitter end . Is the FX still keeping its boost clock and stock voltage?

 

[dark zero]

It was a very long run. Thanks to showing us that the FX got resurrected in the late years.

 

[Insert_Nickname]

I'm going to retire my AM3(+) FX990 board with three GPU slots

Wish them happy retirement. They've had a good run.

, and my Thuban 6-core CPU in the next couple of weeks here too.

I'd certainly like to help you get rid of those, but that's a probably a non-starter with shipping costs.

Been looking for a reasonably priced 95W Thuban for a while.

 

[DAPUNISHER]

I agree with his musings about goofing up by not buying the 8350 and 990FX combo. But as he pointed out, he did build very late in the life cycle, right before Ryzen. At which point, the 990FX was less common and more expensive. Making it understandable why he went 970.

Also, he ain't wrong about the 970 VRMs. As I have written before; I went through 2 MSI 970 Gaming with the FX-8350 because the VRMs cooked. Total War: Warhammer marathons were too much for it. Thor V2 full tower and 74f room temp were not enough. I would have needed to actively cool them to have any chance at extending the boards lives. The thermal pads started to liquify and soaked through to the other side.

The Gigabyte 990FX I got from FS/FT and FX-8350 I bought from you Larry, are excellent so far. I've been using my Noctua D15 on it. CPU temp is excellent, even with a vcore bump and running 4.6GHz. The Gigabyte 970 you sent me that was still NIB runs great. But it really highlights how poorly most 970 boards were. While my FX-6100 will hit 4.2GHz or so in the 990FX, it is only stable at it rated 3.9GHz boost in the 970. Anything over that and instability ensues.

As he pointed out, it used to be every couple of years your old system was already way behind the curve for new games. If it could run them at all. The old i7 and FX 8 cores still being able to play some modern games over a decade later is a stark contrast to those times.

 

[Ranulf]

Yeah that was a regret for me as well. I realized when I put an 8350 in a 970 board from 2011 that I probably didn't really want to overclock it and never really did because that system was a daily driver for a long long time. I used it effectively for 11 years. I still have a couple of back up boards and an 8300 or something sitting around. I meant to replace my old board with an asus 970 one that actually had a m.2 slot on it, with rgb too. Figured it wasn't worth the hassle though.

 

[Insert_Nickname]

Also, he ain't wrong about the 970 VRMs. As I have written before; I went through 2 MSI 970 Gaming with the FX-8350 because the VRMs cooked. Total War: Warhammer marathons were too much for it. Thor V2 full tower and 74f room temp were not enough. I would have needed to actively cool them to have any chance at extending the boards lives. The thermal pads started to liquify and soaked through to the other side.

125W FX's were always very hard on VRMs. The 95W rated ones were much better behaved, but still tough.

I'm amazed what kind of lifespan the FX family has had. For a supposedly "inferior" platform, it's had quite a run.

 

[DAPUNISHER]

125W FX's were always very hard on VRMs. The 95W rated ones were much better behaved, but still tough.

I'm amazed what kind of lifespan the FX family has had. For a supposedly "inferior" platform, it's had quite a run.

Indeed. I started FX with a 8320e I bought here in FS/FT. I regretted ever replacing it with the 8350. The only performance difference was in benchmark runs. For gaming, there was no perceivable difference. Where a difference was immediately noticeable was temps and power use. All for 300-400MHz of superior overclocking.

I didn't properly understand how futile the extra clockspeed advantage was, because I had been out of PC gaming for 7yrs or so while my son grew up. Played consoles so we could game together. I have stated here many times; thanks be to Minecraft! All hail Minecraft! For it was the catalyst leading to his ascension to the PCMR. Now he works as a software engineer. I don't think he would have chosen that path if not for the Minecraft modding scene on PC. That's how important PC gaming can be to a child's future. So when the S.O., parents, grand parents, friends or neighbors, throw shade at the kids playing PC games? Remind them it can lead to a career. All being console kid gamers leads to, is a bunch of stoners drinking Mt. Dew and eating Doritos. LOL! /hyperbole.

The above is a big part of the reason I get so salty with reviewers. Instead of asking for help here, I relied on their data. That, and when I left PC gaming AMD had been my go to since the K6 2 era. Always a great value thanks to overclocking. I owned P4 Northwoods as well. But unlike most Intel loyalists. I never had that eureka moment with the platforms. In fact, there was always something wonky enough, or frustrating enough to put me back on AMD. I am certain if I was PC gaming instead of the long hiatus, that I would have been on the Phenom platform.

I did eventually put my son on an overclocked i5 Devil's canyon. Arma 3 demanded it, as FX was a horrible choice for that game. He logged close to 1600hrs in that title. He is also team green. While we keep getting accused of all being AMD lovers in these forums, I am a best tool for the job kind of guy for everyone but me. I ride AMD because without them you get what Nvidia is doing at the moment. I suppose I could sellout and rationalize it by buying stock in the companies and using the dividends and profits as why it's Okay I have to pay 2k+ for a GPU. But then I have never been that selfish or materialistic. I don't just want what benefits me, I want all PC gamers to be able to afford to have a good time. Not get priced out of the market or be stuck as PC peasants because they are too young or too financially strapped to afford the stock or hardware.

PostScript: I probably owe anyone that reads this for a therapy session.

 

[Just Benching]

Remember I upgraded my Phenom X4 965 (which was also an upgrade from an phenom x3 710 or something) with an fx8350 back in 2014-2015?. I had that new 970 asus mobo, I think it was called aura gaming. CPU was fine, temps were fine (was using a noctua c14), the only game it had trouble running was watchdogs 2, but then I realized even modern i5s of the time were facing issues with that game maxed out.

Other than watchdogs 2 it was perfectly fine, I never noticed any issues or abnormally low framerates. Originally I had it paired with an HD7870, later I upgraded to a 1060 3gb. And the FX kept on giving, even in modern games. I know Arma III played like complete crap, but even the rest of the people I was playing with had huge issues with overclocked 3770k's, dropping to mid 20ies, so I'm not sure the FX was the issue in that game.

In 2017 I tried it with a 1080ti on a 2560*1080 monitor and that's when I realized, this is the end of the road for the FX. It was majorly bottlenecking that card. So I went for an R5 1600, and oh boy was it a revelation.

I guess I didn't have any issues with games cause I've bought it relatively late in it's lifecycle, when games started becoming more and more multithreaded than they were 2--3 years ago,so I never understood all the drama about the CPU.|

It's still alive and kicking, gave it to my brother who uses it as a streaming machine.

 

[Insert_Nickname]

I didn't properly understand how futile the extra clockspeed advantage was, because I had been out of PC gaming for 7yrs or so while my son grew up. Played consoles so we could game together. I have stated here many times; thanks be to Minecraft! All hail Minecraft! For it was the catalyst leading to his ascension to the PCMR. Now he works as a software engineer. I don't think he would have chosen that path if not for the Minecraft modding scene on PC. That's how important PC gaming can be to a child's future. So when the S.O., parents, grand parents, friends or neighbors, throw shade at the kids playing PC games? Remind them it can lead to a career. All being console kid gamers leads to, is a bunch of stoners drinking Mt. Dew and eating Doritos. LOL! /hyperbole.

Not entirely hyperbole. Learning how things work is not a bad career move. Not only the thing itself, but the principles and theory behind can get you quite a long way. Learning by playing is a good start.

That goes across any discipline or field in fact.

I might have gone too much out of my way to teach my kids the principles behind computing. Now, unlike too many of their peers, they can actually use different GUIs/OSs/programs without specific knowledge. They even have, like, opinions on the (bad) design of such.

 

[igor_kavinski]

I might have gone too much out of my way to teach my kids the principles behind computing. Now, unlike too many of their peers, they can actually use different GUIs/OSs/programs without specific knowledge. They even have, like, opinions on the (bad) design of such.

And the great thing is, young people coached on the practical aspects of everyday computing turn out to be better PC users than many so-called computer scientists because their degree programs give them sort of a tunnel vision whereas PC enthusiasts don't shy away from exploring new stuff and learning more and more.

 

[MrTeal]

I still have an 8350 and 970 Gaming sitting on my bench, I pulled it out of my Unraid server this summer. Got the combo on BF 2015 for $220CAD ($165US at the time), so getting 7 years out of it really wasn't too bad. Not sure what I do with it now.

 

[DAPUNISHER]

I still have an 8350 and 970 Gaming sitting on my bench, I pulled it out of my Unraid server this summer. Got the combo on BF 2015 for $220CAD ($165US at the time), so getting 7 years out of it really wasn't too bad. Not sure what I do with it now.

You can still get around $75 for that combo. Some of us have a soft spot for FX. It was the ugly dog no one wanted. For people like me, it can make them more loveable somehow.

Remember I upgraded my Phenom X4 965 (which was also an upgrade from an phenom x3 710 or something) with an fx8350 back in 2014-2015?. I had that new 970 asus mobo, I think it was called aura gaming. CPU was fine, temps were fine (was using a noctua c14), the only game it had trouble running was watchdogs 2, but then I realized even modern i5s of the time were facing issues with that game maxed out.

Other than watchdogs 2 it was perfectly fine, I never noticed any issues or abnormally low framerates. Originally I had it paired with an HD7870, later I upgraded to a 1060 3gb. And the FX kept on giving, even in modern games. I know Arma III played like complete crap, but even the rest of the people I was playing with had huge issues with overclocked 3770k's, dropping to mid 20ies, so I'm not sure the FX was the issue in that game.

In 2017 I tried it with a 1080ti on a 2560*1080 monitor and that's when I realized, this is the end of the road for the FX. It was majorly bottlenecking that card. So I went for an R5 1600, and oh boy was it a revelation.

I guess I didn't have any issues with games cause I've bought it relatively late in it's lifecycle, when games started becoming more and more multithreaded than they were 2--3 years ago,so I never understood all the drama about the CPU.|

It's still alive and kicking, gave it to my brother who uses it as a streaming machine.

Good stuff.

I don't think FX was ever as bad as advertised. It suffered, understandably, because the first iteration was worse than Phenom in some ways, and looked terrible compared to Intel Core CPUs. Also, the hype train derailing so hard, made for quite the can't look away disaster. The next iteration and price drops made it a good budget banger. And productivity was competitive for the money too. Freesync cured more of its flaws IME.

And the great thing is, young people coached on the practical aspects of everyday computing turn out to be better PC users than many so-called computer scientists because their degree programs give them sort of a tunnel vision whereas PC enthusiasts don't shy away from exploring new stuff and learning more and more.

My response to that is -

 

[Kuiva maa]

I agree with his musings about goofing up by not buying the 8350 and 990FX combo. But as he pointed out, he did build very late in the life cycle, right before Ryzen. At which point, the 990FX was less common and more expensive. Making it understandable why he went 970.

Also, he ain't wrong about the 970 VRMs. As I have written before; I went through 2 MSI 970 Gaming with the FX-8350 because the VRMs cooked. Total War: Warhammer marathons were too much for it. Thor V2 full tower and 74f room temp were not enough. I would have needed to actively cool them to have any chance at extending the boards lives. The thermal pads started to liquify and soaked through to the other side.

The Gigabyte 990FX I got from FS/FT and FX-8350 I bought from you Larry, are excellent so far. I've been using my Noctua D15 on it. CPU temp is excellent, even with a vcore bump and running 4.6GHz. The Gigabyte 970 you sent me that was still NIB runs great. But it really highlights how poorly most 970 boards were. While my FX-6100 will hit 4.2GHz or so in the 990FX, it is only stable at it rated 3.9GHz boost in the 970. Anything over that and instability ensues.

As he pointed out, it used to be every couple of years your old system was already way behind the curve for new games. If it could run them at all. The old i7 and FX 8 cores still being able to play some modern games over a decade later is a stark contrast to those times.

Yeah, it didn't take long for FX users to realize that you needed beefy VRMs to run/oc the 8 cores. I made two FX systems back then and for the first one I used what I considered the overall most reliable 970 board (at least of the early offerings,I do not know if in the later years better ones arrived). That model was the Asus M5A97 evo R2.0, with a 6+2 delivery iirc. Generally speaking if you wanted both good hardware and reliable bios, Asus was the way for AM3+. Crosshair V Formula,Sabertooth, M5A97/99X evo etc.

 

[DAPUNISHER]

Yeah, it didn't take long for FX users to realize that you needed beefy VRMs to run/oc the 8 cores. I made two FX systems back then and for the first one I used what I considered the overall most reliable 970 board (at least of the early offerings,I do not know if in the later years better ones arrived). That model was the Asus M5A97 evo R2.0, with a 6+2 delivery iirc. Generally speaking if you wanted both good hardware and reliable bios, Asus was the way for AM3+. Crosshair V Formula,Sabertooth, M5A97/99X evo etc.

Right on.

I did overclock with the first 970 gaming until it cooked. I was direct with the MSI rep about overclocking. He asked how I did it. I said multiplier and a vcore bump. He seemed very MEH about having overclocked, and issued an RMA#. The replacement I ran stock speeds with a slight undervolt iirc, but as noted, it got Warhammered. I was doing 10-12hr sessions some days, and it didn't last long under those conditions. I had been gaming it up great with the 8320e overclocked for quite a while. TW:Warhammer came with the FX-8350. If I was putting on my tinfoil hat, I'd say that combo was a deep dark plot to sell more 990FX boards LOL.

 

[Kuiva maa]

Right on.

I did overclock with the first 970 gaming until it cooked. I was direct with the MSI rep about overclocking. He asked how I did it. I said multiplier and a vcore bump. He seemed very MEH about having overclocked, and issued an RMA#. The replacement I ran stock speeds with a slight undervolt iirc, but as noted, it got Warhammered. I was doing 10-12hr sessions some days, and it didn't last long under those conditions. I had been gaming it up great with the 8320e overclocked for quite a while. TW:Warhammer came with the FX-8350. If I was putting on my tinfoil hat, I'd say that combo was a deep dark plot to sell more 990FX boards LOL.

I had a plain 8320 early on and it was a gloriously leaky cheap. You could switch off turbo, undervolt and take the multiplier high enough to run 4100MHz all core, 24/7, steady as a rock. Getting to 4500MHz was easy with added voltage but for 4700 I needed 1.525V my Nepton 280L AIO to run full tilt, a small 80mm fan attached behind the socket and copious amounts of heat dumped in my room (together with the asus 290X I was running ). I had to open the window during gaming seasons in the middle Finnish winter, no joke. It wasn’t a bad system, it could mostly keep up with my other system (3770 based) but Haswell was the death of Vishera.

 

[Ranulf]

Remember I upgraded my Phenom X4 965 (which was also an upgrade from an phenom x3 710 or something) with an fx8350 back in 2014-2015?. I had that new 970 asus mobo, I think it was called aura gaming. CPU was fine, temps were fine (was using a noctua c14), the only game it had trouble running was watchdogs 2, but then I realized even modern i5s of the time were facing issues with that game maxed out.

Yup, thats the one. The 970 Pro Gamer Aura.

https://www.amazon.com/ASUS-970-Gaming-Aura-Motherboard/dp/B01A33PHLA

 

[Shmee]

I'm going to retire my AM3(+) FX990 board with three GPU slots, and my Thuban 6-core CPU in the next couple of weeks here too.

I am also wondering why you need to retire them. Are they giving you issues? I know you like to have a fair amount of hardware, so why not use it for DC or something?