Curious what people think, due to hype about Zen 'but no official release timetable yet, do people still feel building an AMD rig right now is a good idea? Especially for the budget conscious buyer?
Or is an Intel 1155 mobo with a G4500 Pentium a better decision? The advantage with an intel build is that Skylake does support DDR4 and also gives people an option of starting out small with a low end dual core cpu for cheap but upgrading to a Core i5 or i7 later on when they have more cash perhaps..
It may seem like I have answered my own question here but the catch seems to be that a good quality Intel Mobo on the 1155 chipset can still set you back more than the price of an 8 core AMD cpu with a decent 970 motherboard.
I am really curious what people think at the moment, because there is still an abundant amount of AMD product floating around from last generation, and still being sold actively while people wait for Zen... How long will we have to wait for Zen, one would think its not too far because AMD did show the cpu off at computex... But as of yet no real info on boards / support / tests etc... but some very bold claims about how the architecture works and how amazing it maybe. I do not doubt that Zen will be a great product but its not a case of whether it is but instead when it comes out.
So AM3+ 8core build in mid 2016 worth it ? or not ? for budget conscious builders...
For gaming? Hmm.. Probably not. BUT ... Choosing the right board will get you ECC memory support and then we are talking home server on the very cheap.
On the other hand I wouldn't recommend a dual core CPU in 2016 either.
If we are talking gaming for less than a current i5 system, I would recommend hunting for a used office PC with a 2500 or so and just add a GPU.
Interestingly I find the FX 8core cpus still hold their own in most games when paired with a decent enough graphics card. Gigabyte actually released a solid AM3+ board recently that retails around $120 and offers M.2 and SLI / Xfire support too with 2x USB 3.1 also.
An 8 core AMD cpu vs a Core i5, I wonder after pricing is considered how many people would choose the core i5, at the moment on amazon you can buy an 8350 FX for around $165, Cheapest Core i5 (Skylake) is around $180ish, but you can pickup an older generation core i5 or the 2500 for about $100. But if you did that with an older generation i5 CPU you would still have no upgrade path since the architecture has changed since then for intel boards.
Currently it's not worth a damn for gaming, still decent for doing work with videos and the like. It may become relevant again with the emergence of 8+ core optimization for gaming since DX12 is really pushing towards that.
If you can get the parts really really cheap, then yes. But as a build from scratch with msrp prices, not worth it because it is basically EOL I am still using an overclocked FX 8370E as my main rig, no problems smooth as butter. Got it from microcenter for around $100, so I'm set until the next Zen/Intel upgrade.
Decent budget build I would opt for i3, h110 and ddr4 these days. Better gaming perf than an fx8350 in many titles, worse perf in a few others but overall lower power consumption, no need for 3rd party cooling and an upgrade path to an i5 or i7. Plus any savings can go towards an rx 480...
Based on my experience "upgrade path" and "future proofing" does exists, but now is very limited unlike before.
Years ago I started with an AMD Athlon 64 X2 5400+ on an AM2 mobo. Upgraded that CPU to a Phenom II X4 955 using same mobo. Then upgraded to AM3+ mobo and still used the 955. Then finally upgraded the CPU to an FX. Then overclocked it when I had a better cooler. To me, that's a pretty good example of upgrade path in a span of 10 years.
Okay it looks like there is a whole lot of stupid in here.
Would I recommend a new build with one? Only unless you are under the tightest of budgets and there is no other alternative.
BUT is it still viable for gaming? Absolutely. infcat I am still running the original FX 6100, got a 290 with it too and it keeps up blow for blow in a lot of games. Only a very few which are extremely CPU heavy will suffer on the AM3+ platform.
So why not recommend it then? Basically upgradability is done for it. They work fine but are firmly in the End Of Life stage. I will be going Zen once it is reasonable price to move over.
In the mean time Kyle build a super budget VR PC and yup the 8350 holds up great with a 480:
Also NJM moved over to a 5930K from a FX 6350 and not a lot of game showed huge benefit.
Ironically the other comments saying Gaming = NO but Other Tasks = YES are kind of backward unless that other task is heavily multithreaded.
That is exactly .... not the question. No one is saying "you cannot game on that, its impossible, it will explode". You already have your system and obviously it is fine. BUT: Would you buy that platform again today?
Exactly why I said Only unless you are under the tightest of budgets and there is no other alternative. I mean you even quoted me and then just ignored what I said, Yeah if used is cheaper do that, that is kind of the point with it being an alternative. USED PARTS ARE AN ALTERNATIVE, in case you miss it again.
Then why the fuck did you lead with that exact scenario? In case you also missed your own post some how here it is again:
There was no stated use case for the PC in the original post. Most PCs here are built for gaming, most every other PC can do most every other type of work around about equally unless it is stated that they specifically want a render PC or NAS or reliable server for example. Again was not stated so I went for the default around here Gamin PC, which I would like to point out, SO DID YOU!
And to add insult to injury you got it wrong. it holds up fine in gaming which I provided support for my claim. You on the other hand wrote it off with out any support, probably because you were wrong which has now been established.
Yes I have a system, I will tell you want it can and can't do. I out right said i would not build one today unless under a situation where you had no other choice. how many times are you not going to read?
My 8350 and a fury at 1440p has perfectly acceptable gaming performance in todays games on win 10. With that being said so much technology has improved and changed since the am3+ platform was launched that purchasing an Am3+ platform is not the best buy. If you can get it and get it cheap enough then it is not completely terrible. I recommend either waiting for the next platform or purchasing a modern intel platform. Most people suffer from exposure to too much marketing hype so taking the time to honestly assess your needs is alittle difficult in this day and age. Let your use of your pc determine your build.
Seems like I pissed on your favorite toy... I didn't mean to, calm down.
If we make this a reading contest then lets start at the top: "Is AM3+ FX8xxx PC Builds still a good choice for budget buyers in mid 2016?" So it is not about "Can you game on it" but about "Would you buy one today". Can we agree on that?
My answer was: "For gaming? Probably not. .... I would recommend hunting for a used office PC with a 2500 or so and just add a GPU." Your answer is: "Only unless you are under the tightest of budgets and there is no other alternative."
That means literally "If there is an alternative, do not buy the AMD part." Basically we agree. ..... What are you so outraged about?