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Woe is me, (but not for much longer....I hope!)

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onetruecharlata

New Member
Joined
Nov 14, 2011
Hi all,

Just joined up and I'd like to point out that my nic is actually onetruecharlatan :-/. Should've paid more attention during the sign-up page :D

Anyway, just read a thread on here by Mantis187 http://www.overclockers.com/forums/showthread.php?t=689657 and his trials with the new FX-4100. I stumbled upon it after googling "best air cooler for AMD FX-4100 cpu".

I'd like to say at this point how nice it was to see all you guys respond so readily and constructively, especially Rgone. Kinda made me think of you as everyones "Dad". You seem like a nice chap Rgone and kudos to you.

Back to the reason why I'm here and posting this thread. This is my current pc, (hangs head in shame :escape:):

MOBO - MSi MS-7100 nForce4 :attn:
CPU - Athlon 64 3200+ 2GHz (with MMX(+) and 3DNow!(+) no less :shock:)
RAM - 2GB DDR get in
PSU - OCZ Modstream 520W modular
GPU - Radeon x850 xt PE 256MB whoop whoop
HDD - 500GB something or other
OS - Win XP 32bit
Case - Li-on Li

Total cost back then circa £550 with k/b, mouse

Anyway, you get the picture :cry:. I've kinda not really been that bothered with massive specs, huge overclocks, shiny coolers and LED's as you can see. I built this back at the arse end of 2004 and it really is showing it's age now. The GF even has a way better pc than me and that's still 4 years old almost. Never really had the need. I play MMO's mostly - Neocron, (back in the day), SWG, Tabula Rasa, Runes of Magic :confused:, so big performance wasn't strictly necessary. But now, I've pre-ordered SWTOR and I want to see this in all it's Star Wars glory.

I was going to upgrade in the new year and go the Sandy Bridge/nVidia route at first and spending around £1200 or so, (having run this old AMD/ATi setup into the ground pretty much), but I got accepted for the SWTOR beta testing and their systems told me my cpu "had too few cores" but would I like to install it anyway?? Err, duh! And then it failed to play past the opening sequence :fight:. So, with xmas coming rather annoyingly in the same week as the SWTOR release, (ffs Santa :santa:, what WERE you thinking of :clap:), I've had second thoughts and this is what I am going to run with, (95% there). I'll ask you a couple of questions re: the following list afterwards:

M/B - Asus M5A99X EVO 990FX AM3+ £100
CPU - AMD FX-4100 3.6GHz AM3+ Quad Core £90
RAM - Corsair Vengeance LP 16GB DDR3 1600MHz £69
PSU - Corsair TX850 £92 -- "probably"
GPU - HIS 2GB ATi Radeon 4870x2 dual gpu £82 /w Accelero Extreme cooler £26
SSD - Kingston 128GB SSDNow SV100S2/128 as boot £112 -- "probably"
HDD - WD 2TB Caviar Black WD2002FAEX £106 -- possibly in raid
Optical - Budget DVD/RW +/- £15
Sound - Onboard Realtek® ALC 892 8-channel High Definition Audio
NIC - Onboard Realtek® 8111E Gigabit LAN
OS - 64bit Windows 7 Ult or Pro £108 (not decided on the flavour yet)
Case - CM Storm Trooper £140
Monitor - Dell U2410 - already in use

Total cost circa £940

So, firstly, what do you think of the above? Having read about the FX-4100 issues, I'm wondering whether to just deny the parcel when it arrives, (sometime this week), and get a hexacore AMD instead. I'd like to think the new budget FX will do all I need it to re: as a games chip. What do you think?

And about the "yellow" highlights, the psu enough for this setup? The SSD good or bad? Worth putting the WD's in raid, (if I buy 2 that is)? And the OS - Ultimate or Pro, or should I just stick with Home Premium??? :shrug:

What do you all recommend as an air cooler for this processor? That was after all what lead me here :p

The M/B and CPU are on their way. The RAM should be shipped this week also. The GPU was purchased 2nd hand for a very reasonable price, (was on the cusp of buying a new 6950 and try for an unlock, but that was almost 3 times the cost of the 4870x2, and SWTOR isn't DX11 exclusive). The only thing I'm really waiting on is the case. It's just been released and still no stock at overclockersUK.

Please engulf me with your replies. I look forward to hearing them.

OTC
 
:welcome:

What is the price difference in the UK between what you ordered and the FX-6100 or the FX-8120?

If you are set on going with AMD's new FX line then in my opinion... go for the 8-core if your budget will allow for it. If you have budget limitations then you might want to also consider one of AMD's older (non FX) 4-core or 6-core cpu.

P.S. I didn't see anything listed for a cooler? Some of these cpu can run hot when overclocked and it can be helpful to upgrade from the stock cooler if you do plan to overclock.
 
Hi Pol and thanks for the welcome.

Price difference in the UK are:

FX-4100 - £89
FX-6100 - £130
FX-8120 - £160

As you can see, the price ramps up quite considerably. Things are a little tighter than I'd like but with xmas on the doorstep, it's only to be expected, (big heart, EXPENSIVE gifts and all that :ty:), so I just wanted to build a MUCH better PC than my current pig, I mean rig :clap:, hence the entry point for Bulldozer.

In the new year, if the FX-4100 proves to be a big pile of steaming turd, then I'll re-look at the line up and either move up the scale or go backwards to come forwards and get a Phenom II. The 4 core route was due to a). cost, and b). 6 cores aren't needed for gaming performance increases, unless I've been reading the wrong stuff all this time, and that's all I do with the pc tbh.

With regards to the cooler, this is what I said, (buried amongst all the guff I spouted - it was late last night when I typed this :fight:):-

What do you all recommend as an air cooler for this processor? That was after all what lead me here :p

So, I've looked at many a review on current air coolers. Jesus, how things change in 7 years. Some of them are chuffing E nor mouse.

I guess it come down to one of the following:

Be Quiet! The Dark Rock Pro - dual fan
Coolermaster Hyper 212 EVO - dual fan
Noctua NH-D14 - dual fan
Thermaltake Silver Arrow
Zalman CNPS11X Extreme

Or something equally massive by the time all parts arrive. I still have to wait for the arrival of my case of choice inthe UK, so I still have time to decide. i also like the look of the Alpenfohn K2 and Himalaya coolers.

Let me know what you think. I'll keep you posted as and when items arrive. I've recieved so far:

M/B, CPU and GPU. Ram has been despatched, so might be here before the weekend.

OTC.
 
I would suggest the Corsair H-100 if your case have the ability to run two 120 fans in the top, if not then the H-80 will be my next suggestion.
I understand they may not be as inexpensive as some of the air coolers but for their price point I think they are hard to beat.
 
GPU - HIS 2GB ATi Radeon 4870x2 dual gpu £82 /w Accelero Extreme cooler £26 = That is perhaps the only thing you may regret, if you want to run all the background image data in a game.

Other than that, the FX-4100 should game alright. If not it is not the most expensive and you might sell it an move upwards in cpu or across to the non-FX cpu.
 
I have looked into water cooled "kits", but I don't know whether or not this cpu will really run hot enough to justify fitting one? Besides, the hugeness of todays air coolers is so much more impressive :)

@RGone:
GPU - HIS 2GB ATi Radeon 4870x2 dual gpu £82 /w Accelero Extreme cooler £26 = That is perhaps the only thing you may regret, if you want to run all the background image data in a game.

Couple of reasons why I opted for this card right now:

a. As previously mentioned, I'd originally looked at either getting an unlocked 6950, or, a 6970, but the price of these right now I just couldn't justify at this time of year. The 4870x2 will more than impress me after using an x850xt PE with 256mb for nearly 7 years.

b. I read an article on tomshardware.co.uk, (http://www.tomshardware.co.uk/best-graphics-card,review-31829-6.html), that culminated in an extensive list of both nVidia and ATi cards dating back what would seem about 10 years or so. It listed them in terms of their peers, and it ranked the 4870x2 along side the GTX260 and GTX275, which was no mean feat.

But like I said, even if this card isn't as good as I might have hoped, it will see me right for a few months, until I can get past the holiday season and have more money to play with.

Still, I'd like to hear your thoughts on the 4870x2. You don't think it will perform well in SWTOR?

OTC.
 
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