AM3+ boards, chipset options

[Time Bandit]

It's all going to be down to the budget.

Agreed, up to a point. The 'pure budget' option as you mentioned would probably be an Athlon II with AM3 760g - still a big performance leap for this machine!

I have some bits I can reuse - OCZ 500W psu, monitor, case(maybe), OS, but I have deliberately not given myself a budget because the old machine really owes me nothing and has performed well for (most of) its working life - I think it must be at least 8 years old!

So while I am not going to go mental, I am happy to spend money where it is sensible to do so given the kind of stuff this machine is likely to be doing and the life expectancy I hope to get. The rate of development of the various technologies seems to be accelerating so I am not banking on getting 8 years of of the new build.

In light of what CAT has pointed out, the 880g chipset does not seem as good value as I initially thought. It may be that waiting (for a bit) is the better option, there is no deadline and no shortage of other computers in the house.

I havent had a chance to fully digest the monolith that is the current Bulldozer thread, but I will.

[Pob255]

Umm CAT did you look at the hexus review I linked to?
leaving out the graphics, when doing pure cpu work the A8-3850 isn't beating the AthlonII x4 645 which is slightly slower than the PhenomII X4 840

granted I've not gone in depth on these, it's not really held much interest to me, so other reviews may show different results, as I said something that can use the APU to accelerate the processing (off hand video encoding probably gets a good boost)
Those forms of applications are still fairly uncommon.

If you add a 6750 to it then you've got a better graphics cards than ether the A6 or A8 can manage, so you're paying for an advanced APU that you're not actually using.

For an HTPC the new Llano is a great option, for a basic internet/office pc I think it's a bit over kill but for the cost it's a good option.
But add a graphics card and it's not that good an option.

[CAT-THE-FIFTH]

It does seem overall the A8-3850 tends to be faster than the Phenom II X4 840 for gaming with a discrete card:
http://techreport.com/articles.x/21208

No doubt in applications which are more dependent on clockspeed alone a higher clocked Phenom II or Athlon II will do better. For instance if you look at the HandBrake chart you can see all three CPUs perform similarly at the same clockspeed.

On top of this like I said before you need to spend around 42 quid to get a faster graphics card. If we put the value of the IGP at 30 to 35 quid,the CPU section is essentially around 65 to 70 quid which is not bad IMHO.

Also as I mentioned the Llano A4 3400 dual core is being released soon and it looks ideal for an office or internet PC. The IGP looks to be around the same speed as HD6450 which is not bad for a 60 to 65 quid CPU.

[CAT-THE-FIFTH]

It seems the FM2 processors might actually work with socket FM1 motherboards:

http://avsforum.com/avs-vb/showpost....&postcount=491

[Time Bandit]

There is so much going on a the moment, I feel like I am going into geek overdrive.

While Llano has many remarkable features I can't quite get my head round spending too much on an integrated gfx solution. Part of the problem for me is the rate at which gfx cards seem to become obsolete so even though, as CAT has pointed out, you can end up with HD5550 capability for about 26 quid, this value is eroded pretty rapidly in the world of gfx. And while I would be happy to chop an change gfx cards every so often, I am kind of wedded to the idea of hanging onto the processor for a bit longer. Spending extra for the APU then, only to override it with a discrete solution a little way down the line doesn't quite work for me.

I am sure Llano will be a great htpc and mobile chip (although a TDP of 100W may be a bit high for some - A4 anyone?)

Looking back at the chipset options for AM3+ (I don't think the old machine will hang on until Piledriver arrives), the only 900 series boards I can see are all ATX and I had a meany, penny pinching idea to reuse an old mATX case seeing as I won't be fiddling with it too much once its set up. I guess some of the mATX boards will start to appear after BD is released (?) At least this will give me a bit of time to check out BD performance before committing.

[Pob255]

Actually the low end area of gpu's doesn't progress that much most software ether has high graphics demands or low graphics demands.

For things like games a 5550 isn't really good enough, for things like internet browsing it's loads of power.

[CAT-THE-FIFTH]

I don't know TBH. The OP said for some gaming(light gaming) and as the reviews have shown the Phenom II X4 840 is still generally slower. However it is not surprising as the Athlon II X4 does have a relatively low L2 cache.

I was quite surprised that the 65w A8-3800 can run a whole load of relatively new games at 1680X1050 and 1920x1200:

http://www.guru3d.com/article/amd-a8...ssor-review/11

http://www.xbitlabs.com/articles/cpu..._17.html#sect0

It also fits in what I have seen with a few friends who have HD4670 graphics cards. It will be interesting to see whether the FM2 CPUs will be backward compatible like the AM3 ones were.

However it does seem the build the OP wanted has morphed from a general purpose build to one which is seemingly geared towards being a higher powered gaming build.

[CAT-THE-FIFTH]

The OP seems to already have a Phenom II X4 940 and an HD4850. Why don't they use the core parts to replace the old machine and then they can save up some more dosh and get a BD or SB based computer with a better graphics card.

[Time Bandit]

The OP seems to already have a Phenom II X4 940 and an HD4850. Why don't they use the core parts to replace the old machine and then they can save up some more dosh and get a BD or SB based computer with a better graphics card

I suppose I am a bit reluctant to replace this machine atm as I use it so much for work (and a bit of play) and it handles anything I throw at it. Having said that it could be a pretty cool way of getting myself something newer while appearing to do something generous for the family!

it does seem the build the OP wanted has morphed from a general purpose build to one which is seemingly geared towards being a higher powered gaming build.

Creeping elegance we call it in project specification speak - I real bummer when you are paying for it yourself! Seriously though, I still want a gp build and would be quite happy to stick a cheap chip into a board with a decent upgrade path (the cheapest 900 series boards seem to be about the same price as the 880g), particularly if the arrival BD chips make some of the Athlons even cheaper.

[bassjunkie]

X4 840 with a 880G modo would be a great system for what you want just built a simular system for my farther and he is v pleased can recommend the core 3000 too.