# [SOLVED] Whats the beater CPU for GAMING? (AMD)



## pokemoncatdog (Dec 2, 2007)

OS windows 7 x64
MB: biostar A780L
CPU: AMD Phenom 8550 X3 2.2GHZ _(I know, you're only as strong as your weakest link.)_
GPU: AMD/ATI Radeon HD 6850
Ram: 6GB DDR2 pc2-6400

Note: I need a 95w cpu AM2+/AM3. I know the MB works with 125w cpu's, but my cooler is only for 95w cpu. Whats the best 95w cpu I can get? 

With this setup, what would be the best cpu to upgrade to (FOR GAMING)?

I am trying to max my FPS.

Biostar A780L 6.x CPU compatibility list

Phenom II X6 1065T 2.9GHZ 95W HDT65TWFK6DGR (do not know if this one would work with my MB. It not on compatibility list) 

Phenom II X4 960T BE 3.0GHZ 95W HD96ZTWFK4DGR Also not on compatibility list but would it work? Would love to have A BE cpu.

Phenom II X4 945 3.0GHZ 95W HDX945WFK4DGM, HDX945WFK4DGI This is the best on that is on the list.

Thank you for the help!


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## toothman (Jul 13, 2008)

*Re: Whats the beater CPU for GAMING? (AMD)*

the 960t will not work. it's basically just a quad-core thuban, so if your board won't support the six-core thubans then it definitely won't support the 960t.

going higher on the tdp is also a bad idea since your power supply is probably not good quality. your best option is probably this:

Newegg.com - AMD Phenom II X4 925 Deneb 2.8GHz Socket AM3 95W Quad-Core Desktop Processor HDX925WFK4DGM - Processors - Desktops

a previous version of the Deneb 925 is supported by your board. the new model is probably just a slight revision and **should** work fine. can't guarantee anything.

the CPU i linked is OEM. when you say you have a cooler, do you mean a CPU heat sink? OEM processors do not come with heat sinks.


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## pokemoncatdog (Dec 2, 2007)

*Re: Whats the beater CPU for GAMING? (AMD)*

Yes I have a heat sink with a fan. Also your saying the the phenom 2 x4 925 @ 2.8 GHz is beater than the phenom 2 x4 945 @ 3.0 GHz? 

Thank you, I just want more info before spending $150 on a CPU.


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## PoWn3d_0704 (Aug 17, 2009)

No, and for gaming GHz is more important than cores.
For instance, I have a 1090t 6 core processor. It's at a clock of 3.4 currently. I built a PC for a friend, and put a 3.8 GHz quad core in. His is definatly better for gaming.

We're worried about the components other than the CPU. Your Power Supply, for instance. We like to recomment a minimum 650 watt QUALITY power supply, typically made by Corsair.

Also, a cooler ranges from 10 bucks all the way to 200+. I for instance, have a 60 dollar cooler, and am upgrading to water cooling soon.

AMD processors don't like heat, but you need to either buy a slow enough processor your PC can handle, or upgrade your Power supply.


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## toothman (Jul 13, 2008)

*Re: Whats the beater CPU for GAMING? (AMD)*

My bad, the only 945s i saw were 125w. Not a lot of places sell the 95w versions. I don't recognize any of the vendors I see on Google shopping that still have it.

That processor, by the way, is not worth $150. Probably more like $100.

You can get the 945 now, and probably be fine (no guarantee), but in the long run your computer will be of much better quality if you start by getting a quality power supply and following up later with a motherboard _and_ cpu replacement.


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## gcavan (Aug 13, 2009)

*Re: Whats the beater CPU for GAMING? (AMD)*

You could also look into the Phenom II X3 740 Black. 3 GHz core speed, unlocked multiplier and the same 6MB L3 cache. At around $75 when you can find one, it makes a very effective and inexpensive upgrade for AM2+ systems. As a bonus, the odd one will unlock a stable fourth core but don't bank on it.

The official Biostar support list; somewhat easier to read than CPU-Upgrade.

A780L :: Motherboard :: BIOSTAR


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## pokemoncatdog (Dec 2, 2007)

*[solved] Re: Whats the beater CPU for GAMING? (AMD)*

My power supply is a 500w. and ShopBLT.com sells the 945 95w cpu. Oh its only 130 and free shipping. I think I an going to get that one. So you say Phenom II X3 740 is unlocked, but I think I will go with the 4 core cpu. I can oc the 945, it just not as easy.

I know there is a 95w 955 but can not found it. So I am going to get the 945.
(cpu world) AMD Phenom II X4 955 95w/c2 Black Edition -HDX955WFK4DGM 

If you can find the 955 95W cpu, I would like to know.

Thank you for the help.


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## toothman (Jul 13, 2008)

*Re: Whats the beater CPU for GAMING? (AMD)*

i can't find it, either, but the 945 should be fine.

personally, i would replace the processor, power supply, motherboard, and ram. a better power supply will be healthier for all of your parts, a new motherboard would give you the ability to install superior processors _and_ ddr3 ram, and of course both the new processor and ram would speed up your system considerably.

that would benefit you more in the long run over just getting that cpu today. but would take more patience :neutral:


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## gcavan (Aug 13, 2009)

*Re: Whats the beater CPU for GAMING? (AMD)*

I have to strongly disagree. Think about it. $100 or so to breathe new life into an aging but still capable system or $500+ for a full rebuild? For those of us who are economically-challenged, it sounds like a no-brainer.


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## toothman (Jul 13, 2008)

*Re: Whats the beater CPU for GAMING? (AMD)*



gcavan said:


> I have to strongly disagree. Think about it. $100 or so to breathe new life into an aging but still capable system or $500+ for a full rebuild? For those of us who are economically-challenged, it sounds like a no-brainer.


more like $300 or less, but true. that's why I said it required more patience


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## pokemoncatdog (Dec 2, 2007)

*Re: Whats the beater CPU for GAMING? (AMD)*

I have ordered the 945 cpu for now. If I save up some $. I may get this mb ASUS M4A79XTD EVO AMD 790X For $60 and a 2nd ati card for crossfire. 

My card is a xfx Radeon HD 6850. Does the 2nd card have to be the same brand? I found a Sapphire 6850 for $120. 

Also is this a good PSU? Coolmax 650W 120mm Fan Power Supply NW-650B for $54


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## gcavan (Aug 13, 2009)

*Re: Whats the beater CPU for GAMING? (AMD)*

For CrossfireX, the cards only need to be from the same 'family'. Meaning, you could pair up your 6850 with another 6850 or with a 6870 but not with a 6770 or 6970. The cards do not need to be the same brand name.

Stay away from the Coolmax supply. If you really intend to go with a dually set in Crossfire, get a good quality 750 (or better) supply.


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## pokemoncatdog (Dec 2, 2007)

*Re: Whats the beater CPU for GAMING? (AMD)*

Ok Thank you.


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## toothman (Jul 13, 2008)

*Re: Whats the beater CPU for GAMING? (AMD)*

keep in mind that if you crossfire, the board will normalize the cards just like RAM sticks. meaning, if you have two 6850s and one is overclocked, or one 6850 and one 6870, your motherboard will run them both at the lowest speed of the two.

for upgrading graphics, you're better off selling the old card and buying a new card. single GPU is far more cost-effective.


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## pokemoncatdog (Dec 2, 2007)

*Re: Whats the beater CPU for GAMING? (AMD)*

So BLT told me that AMD has stopped making the 945 cpu. They said I could get the 960t BE. So I got a 960t BE (I know not on compatibility list). It came in today and I install it. The bios is reading the cpu at 800mhz (multiplier 4X) and not 3.0ghz (multiplier 15x). The bios reads the cpu as the right cpu. It just the core speed that is wrong (all other info for the cpu is right in the bios). All so I can not found any were in the bios to change the multiplier. I can even unlock to 6 cores if I want to. 

The MB is a biostar A780L. Do not say update the bios because I have the newest one. biostar A780L info

What can I do to get the right core speed in the bios?

In windows I have install AMD overdrive and set the multiplier to 15x and overdrive settings to "apply my last settings when system boots". That will get me the right core speed but does not fix the real problem.


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## emosun (Oct 4, 2006)

*Re: Whats the beater CPU for GAMING? (AMD)*

Your asking us how to get a cpu which is not compatible according to both the manufacturer and real life practice to BE compatible?


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## emosun (Oct 4, 2006)

*Re: Whats the beater CPU for GAMING? (AMD)*



PoWn3d_0704 said:


> No, and for gaming GHz is more important than cores.


And this is dependent on whether the game supports multiple core cpu's or not.


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## Narcissist (Jan 19, 2012)

*Re: Whats the beater CPU for GAMING? (AMD)*

clock speed is always more important than cores, and very few (if any) will not be able to use more than 1 core.


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## toothman (Jul 13, 2008)

*Re: Whats the beater CPU for GAMING? (AMD)*



pokemoncatdog said:


> In windows I have install AMD overdrive and set the multiplier to 15x and overdrive settings to "apply my last settings when system boots". That will get me the right core speed but does not fix the real problem.


I'd call you lucky for finding a workaround. And also for the CPU being operational in a board that doesn't support it.

What I'd be worried about is stability. Download Prime95 and Intel Burn Test and run them both to test for stability. I also recommend CPU Thermometer to monitor temperature and usage.

Are you sure your board doesn't just disallow overclocking? If stability tests fine, chances are your board just couldn't auto-detect the default multiplier. Which means so long as you keep things under control with AMD Overdrive, you should be good to go 

- -

Couple more things, make sure your voltage is also set to stock. If it's too low then that could cause stability issues. In AMD Overdrive, it's under Performance Control -> Clock/Voltage and is the first slider on the left in the bottom-right section.

If you do have stability issues with Prime95 or Intel Burn Test, post here and I can talk to you about other default settings that your motherboard might have failed to detect properly.


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## pokemoncatdog (Dec 2, 2007)

*Re: Whats the beater CPU for GAMING? (AMD)*

*Thank you for the help.*

I think I have fix it. I went in to the bios and found options for custom p state. In the custom p state I put the CPU FID to max. Now the the bios read the cpu at 3.2GHZ. OK good. So I went back in to windows, opened amd overdrive and the speed is stall 3.2GHZ (multiplier x15.75) Good right I have stock speed now, but I want to oc (it a BE, come on) 

This is a BE cpu. I am happy that the bios now see it at 3.2ghz. The bios has max multiplier as x15.75. There is no core multiplier setting in my bios. The core multiplier setting is really the CPU FID and the max is x31.5 6300mhz.

The auto in the bios was setting the CPU FID to min. (that's why it was reading at 800mhz, CPU FID x8.0). 

Now that I have the cpu at stock speed. Time to try OC. OC in bios = no good (as max is 3.2ghz or a FID of x31.5). I can up the core multiplier in overdrive, then hit apply. But after about 2-3 sec the multiplier is auto reset to x15.75. I can use turbo core to get turbo of 3.4ghz max. I know that some have get the 960t to 4GHZ (core multiplier x20)

* What could be going on? Is 3.4ghz in turbo mode the best I going to get?*

Last thing I can only get turbo via overdrive. The bios has the setting for it but it is grayed out (when custom p state is on).


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## pokemoncatdog (Dec 2, 2007)

*[FIXED] Re: Whats the beater CPU for GAMING? (AMD)*

I fix the OC. The CPU DIV was at 2. I put it to 1 and now can OC using CPU FID in bios.

Fixed my own problem. Can now OC via bios. Now running overdrive stability test.

Thank you for all your help.


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## Tyree (May 10, 2009)

*Re: Whats the beater CPU for GAMING? (AMD)*

You're welcome and best of luck.


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## Azeem40 (Jan 28, 2012)

AMD Or Intel: Which Offers Better Gaming Performance? : Picking A Sub-$200 Gaming CPU: FX, An APU, Or A Pentium?


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