First off, I would like to apologize if this question has been posted elsewhere, I was unable to locate it.

I am looking at an upgrade to my PC's processor and currently I'm debating between a Phenom II X4 or X6. I'm not sure which would be better, so I could use some suggestions.

As an aside on the upgrade, my current processor is rated for 80W TDP. Can I go to the 125W TDP processors in the X4 or X6 families without much difficulty, or should I scale back the ambition of the upgrade for the sake of a still functional machine?

I am looking at an upgrade to my PC's processor and currently I'm debating between a Phenom II X4 or X6. I'm not sure which would be better, so I could use some suggestions.

All other things being equal (clock rate, cache, ...), 6 cores will crunch more. I've been quite happy with my X6.

As an aside on the upgrade, my current processor is rated for 80W TDP. Can I go to the 125W TDP processors in the X4 or X6 families without much difficulty, or should I scale back the ambition of the upgrade for the sake of a still functional machine?

The answer depends on your motherboard. I upgraded my Gigabyte GA-890XA-UD3 from a Phenom II X4 955 to a Phenom II X6 1055T. However, my motherboard specifically lists support for 125 watt processors, so the upgrade works fine.

Check the CPU support list for your motherboard, or look in the manual, to find out of your board supports the power requirements of your proposed processor.

I notice that the Gigabyte CPU support list for my motherboard lists four Phenom II X6 processors with a TDP of 95W, so an upgrade to a hex core processor doesn't necessarily mean 125W TDP.

Bob

you might also consider waiting a bit since the Bulldozer CPU is supposed to be arriving soon

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In a rich man's house there is no place to spit but his face.
Diogenes Of Sinope

First off, I would like to apologize if this question has been posted elsewhere, I was unable to locate it.

I am looking at an upgrade to my PC's processor and currently I'm debating between a Phenom II X4 or X6. I'm not sure which would be better, so I could use some suggestions.

As an aside on the upgrade, my current processor is rated for 80W TDP. Can I go to the 125W TDP processors in the X4 or X6 families without much difficulty, or should I scale back the ambition of the upgrade for the sake of a still functional machine?

The TDP of the 1050 (hexa core) is the same as the 955 (quad core), so provifding you have the cooling aspect covered and your mainboard supports the 6 core CPUs (not all AM3 boards do), it makes ense to seriously consider the 1050T.


[edit] What about your PSU; how close are you to drawing its maximum rated output? Although there is only a small additional power draw between a 955 and a 1050, you may find yourself OTT if going from an 80 watts TDP CPU up to 125 watts[/edit]

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First off, I would like to apologize if this question has been posted elsewhere, I was unable to locate it.

I am looking at an upgrade to my PC's processor and currently I'm debating between a Phenom II X4 or X6. I'm not sure which would be better, so I could use some suggestions.

As an aside on the upgrade, my current processor is rated for 80W TDP. Can I go to the 125W TDP processors in the X4 or X6 families without much difficulty, or should I scale back the ambition of the upgrade for the sake of a still functional machine?

The TDP of the 1050 (hexa core) is the same as the 955 (quad core), so provifding you have the cooling aspect covered and your mainboard supports the 6 core CPUs (not all AM3 boards do), it makes ense to seriously consider the 1050T.


[edit] What about your PSU; how close are you to drawing its maximum rated output? Although there is only a small additional power draw between a 955 and a 1050, you may find yourself OTT if going from an 80 watts TDP CPU up to 125 watts[/edit]

TDP is not the amount of power it's using. TDP = Thermal Design Power:

TDP is typically defined as Thermal Design Power, the amount of power (heat) that a cooler must dissipate in order to keep a silicon chip within its operating temperatures. While Intel and AMD disagree as to what test to run to measure this, both agree that it’s a measurement of waste heat output from a chip.

As far as power consumption. According to TechpowerUp's measurements the 1055T would only use about 12 more watts on load than the 955. So I would hope you aren't operating with a tight enough psu that you would need to change it due to 12 watts. ;)

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Traveling through space at ~67,000mph!

it ain't hardcore....unless it's hexacore!

MEGAGIGABYTES SON!!!

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I was wondering when somebody would say that here.

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The T1 Trust, PRR T1 Class 4-4-4-4 #5550, 1 of America's First HST's

TDP is not the amount of power it's using. TDP = Thermal Design Power:

Never claimed it was, and I'm well aware of what TDP represents. I was simply pointing out that cooling a 1050 is no different to cooling a 955 since their TDP values are the same (I used to run a 955, and now I run a 1050).

The edit to my post was simply to point out (before someone else did), that when upgrading a CPU, you do need to consider the PSU side of things as well and not just assume that your current setup can handle whatever you demand of it.

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TDP is not the amount of power it's using. TDP = Thermal Design Power:

Never claimed it was, and I'm well aware of what TDP represents. I was simply pointing out that cooling a 1050 is no different to cooling a 955 since their TDP values are the same (I used to run a 955, and now I run a 1050).

The edit to my post was simply to point out (before someone else did), that when upgrading a CPU, you do need to consider the PSU side of things as well and not just assume that your current setup can handle whatever you demand of it.

And you assumed I was talking to you? The power consumption part was the rest was informational as the other's who have talked TDP have referenced power instead of heat. No need to explain friend this isn't a competition of whits more a combination of knowledge.

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Traveling through space at ~67,000mph!

I have built several systems for my buddies....4 core, and 6 cores....the 4 cores numbers rival the 6 cores.....with the same video card....not many programs support multipul cores......but for seti 2 more cores is nice....if you can afford the 6 core go balls out.....get the 6 core black edition, and a 460 video card, and a 600 watt power supply.....

:)

I'm running a 550W power supply right now, and I've found out that the mobo I have can support the Phenom II X6 series thanks to a BIOS flash. The main thing I'm having to debate at this point is if the system can handle the additional heat. I'm currently running at 45C pretty consistently (yay other projects when Seti is down).

How much of a temperature increase have people noticed moving from 2 cores to 6? I know that some of that will depend on the location of the machine, but I'm just hoping for a ballpark figure increase. If I have to take the machine out of it's current cabinet, I can. I'd just like to know if that's something I have to think about before I upgrade.

As for the video card, I've definately looked at the NVidia GTX 460s. The Radeon 46XX I'm using now has been good, but with the wealth of projects that can use NVidia GPUs I'd be a fool not to go with them.

On the plus side, this will also be a nice gaming rig when I'm not crunching. :D

I'm running a 550W power supply right now, and I've found out that the mobo I have can support the Phenom II X6 series thanks to a BIOS flash. The main thing I'm having to debate at this point is if the system can handle the additional heat. I'm currently running at 45C pretty consistently (yay other projects when Seti is down).

How much of a temperature increase have people noticed moving from 2 cores to 6? I know that some of that will depend on the location of the machine, but I'm just hoping for a ballpark figure increase. If I have to take the machine out of it's current cabinet, I can. I'd just like to know if that's something I have to think about before I upgrade.

As for the video card, I've definately looked at the NVidia GTX 460s. The Radeon 46XX I'm using now has been good, but with the wealth of projects that can use NVidia GPUs I'd be a fool not to go with them.

On the plus side, this will also be a nice gaming rig when I'm not crunching. :D

You aren't going to generate that much more heat. Using a front and rear 120 mm fans you should easily be able to keep your CPU temps down.

As far as your GPU is concerned your ATI card is a bit slow. Try upgrading to a 5850. You mention all the projects that an Nvidia card can run on. Actually, the only project that you currently can run an Nvidia and not an ATI is GPUgrid. Also note that dollar for dollar and flop for flop the ATI is king on the other projects. Seti is the one exception to that rule.

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In a rich man's house there is no place to spit but his face.
Diogenes Of Sinope

I'm running a 550W power supply right now, and I've found out that the mobo I have can support the Phenom II X6 series thanks to a BIOS flash. The main thing I'm having to debate at this point is if the system can handle the additional heat. I'm currently running at 45C pretty consistently (yay other projects when Seti is down).

How much of a temperature increase have people noticed moving from 2 cores to 6? I know that some of that will depend on the location of the machine, but I'm just hoping for a ballpark figure increase. If I have to take the machine out of it's current cabinet, I can. I'd just like to know if that's something I have to think about before I upgrade.

As for the video card, I've definately looked at the NVidia GTX 460s. The Radeon 46XX I'm using now has been good, but with the wealth of projects that can use NVidia GPUs I'd be a fool not to go with them.

On the plus side, this will also be a nice gaming rig when I'm not crunching. :D

See previous post re TDP; there is no additional heat output.

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I read it and you mentioned going from 4 to a 6 core. you didnt mention going from 2 to 6

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In a rich man's house there is no place to spit but his face.
Diogenes Of Sinope

Actually, if you want the best return on your dollar, buy a used GTX295 off of Ebay. They can be had for between $100 and $200 and retailed new for $500. Per dollar, this is probably the best card for crunching SETI WUs. Also work very well on FAH.

Actually, if you want the best return on your dollar, buy a used GTX295 off of Ebay. They can be had for between $100 and $200 and retailed new for $500. Per dollar, this is probably the best card for crunching SETI WUs. Also work very well on FAH.

Provided you're only considering capital (purchase price) $$.

If you factor in revenue (running costs), you might find that the TCO $$$$$ for the older and less energy efficient technology used in the GTX295 might make a difference.

Provided you're only considering capital (purchase price) $$.

If you factor in revenue (running costs), you might find that the TCO $$$$$ for the older and less energy efficient technology used in the GTX295 might make a difference.

Not to mention your return on a Fermi card once they get the code polished up for them. 295's are aging move on, they are hard to find, and I wouldn't trust second hand parts unless they came from someone I knew local.

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Traveling through space at ~67,000mph!

i'm running a hexacore, the 1090t, at 4.0 i love this thing. temperatures are 23-33c idle-full load, i can play games while its crunching, its great.
does anyone here have the msi fusion power edition?

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So, the parts have been ordered. Thank you all for the suggestions, advice, and findings about all of the different processors and cards. I finally settled on a Phenom II X6 1090T, and a GeForce GTX 465. Can't wait to get them installed and see how I can start screaming through WUs.

i'm running a hexacore, the 1090t, at 4.0 i love this thing. temperatures are 23-33c idle-full load, i can play games while its crunching, its great.
does anyone here have the msi fusion power edition?

You have a 1090T overclocked to 4.0 GHz and it idles at room temperature (23 C = 73.4 F)? May I ask what you're using to cool it? Mine is only at 3.57 GHz (210x17) and idles at around 40 C on the stock heat sink. Under full load, it's all I can do to keep it under 60 C.

(Yes, I know the stock heat sink wasn't meant for overclocking. I'll be upgrading soon, just not sure to what yet...)


-- Tony D.