Tom's asks "Gamers: Do You Need More Than An Athlon II X3?"

[Bah!]

Originally Posted by Bearclaw

I was moreso joking. I know what they are and I can tell the difference, however, IMO, there is minimal difference at best. I simply don't mind not having it. So, no, I don't need top end hardware.

Joking or not, did you see the screenshot I linked? How anyone can call that "minimal at best" is amazing to me. It's basically akin to saying that there is a minimal difference between HD and SD television. And like I said, you don't need top end hardware for it, chances are whatever card you own can run it with minimal hit, if any.

Originally Posted by Bah!

Joking or not, did you see the screenshot I linked? How anyone can call that "minimal at best" is amazing to me. It's basically akin to saying that there is a minimal difference between HD and SD television. And like I said, you don't need top end hardware for it, chances are whatever card you own can run it with minimal hit, if any.

I saw it, and yes while there is a difference, this has now fallen on personal preference rather than would I get the latest hardware. For example, most games automatically choose levels for you to game at. Once they do that, I usually won't touch them. I simply don't need to.

So, after this thread, definitely considering an x3 for my next build...

[Biskit64]

I bought a x3 445 , its a sweet little chip runs any game i want smoothly as a x3.
I was able to unlock the extra core and cache, so it was a excellent value.

[ragejg]

Originally Posted by Bearclaw

So, after this thread, definitely considering an x3 for my next build...

Look hard for inexpensive x4s around 2.7-3.0ghz though. Unless you have it @ 3.5ghz+ an x3 is starting to show its age, IMO. I say that based on my experiences with them (x3 8600B, x3 425, x3 720BE) over the last year. If you can deal with a bit of compromise, though, it's fine.

[Biskit64]

My x3 445 will run @ 3.6ghz with no voltage adjustment , i can get it to 3.8 with voltage set at 1.46 but it gets a little warm.
Right not i have it running unlocked as a Phenom 2 x4 @ 3.1 ghz, but had to bump voltage to 1.35 to be truly stable in games.

If it was your chip would you run it as a overclocked x3 overclocked or a unlocked x4 ?

[ragejg]

Originally Posted by Biskit64

My x3 445 will run @ 3.6ghz with no voltage adjustment , i can get it to 3.8 with voltage set at 1.46 but it gets a little warm.
Right not i have it running unlocked as a Phenom 2 x4 @ 3.1 ghz, but had to bump voltage to 1.35 to be truly stable in games.

If it was your chip would you run it as a overclocked x3 overclocked or a unlocked x4 ?

Idk, I have both, a decently overclocked Ph II x3 @ 3.5 and an unlocked Ph II x3 @ x4, 3.1. They both perform very similarly.

Originally Posted by ragejg

Look hard for inexpensive x4s around 2.7-3.0ghz though. Unless you have it @ 3.5ghz+ an x3 is starting to show its age, IMO. I say that based on my experiences with them (x3 8600B, x3 425, x3 720BE) over the last year. If you can deal with a bit of compromise, though, it's fine.

I was going to get an x4 965 but the i7 930 was the same price on a sale a while back so I grabbed that.