i have a 2 core Athlon II X2 220 and although steam sets skyrim to high graphics settings it is very slow the problem is not my GC its my CPU i was going to buy an amd 6 core CPU but the price went up and i want one fast my MoBo is an AM3 socket would...
1750839
I had a 240 and the upgrade wasn't amazing straight out of the box - if you're lucky and get one that you can unlock, then you're obviously in good shape. Otherwise you won't notice much improvement until you overclock it a bit - luckily there you have a lot of guides on the Internet specifically for the Phenom X2 550. Mine's running comfortably at 3.72 GHz, (1.45v, x15.5 multiplier, CPU up from 200 to 240) - it's on all the time because it's a work/media server, and restarts are only necessary when I'm installing updates (or it crashes playing Far Cry 3). For the price, it was a good stopgap upgrade, but I'm still looking to move to Intel at the middle-to-end of the year.
1435423
Both of those processors are on the lower end of performance when it comes to current cpu's. Where as the 560ti is pretty high on the performance list. What type of motherboard do you have? Is it an AM3 or AM3+? What kind of gaming do you want to accomplish? What resolution is your monitor, 1080p?
1391215
That shouldn't really matter. If you are thinking along the lines of overclocking or cooling, Id suggest using softwar for tweaking and testing those settings.
2015789
That's the setup I use. The ASRock boards are excellent quality. I run Elder Scrolls Online with max graphics and have had zero issues for months. I enjoy the ease of the graphical BIOS that ASRock has been using on these boards also.
439786
As long as it's low end, you might be okay. This processor doesn't even officially support dual graphics. If I were building a system that I had any intent to game on, I would step up to at least the A6, if not the A8 or A10. I've used the A4 in three builds now and it does basic email, word processing, web browsing and such quite well. We use it to play Portal 2 Coop on occasion and it takes a really long time to load up and then the fps is only just over 30. As for thermals, I've never paid attention. AMD chips are designed to run hotter than their intel counterparts and I haven't seen anything remarkable heat wise on this one. One more thought...even if you go this route, make sure the motherboard is FM2+, not just FM2. This chip will still fit, but you will have much better upgrade options.
1443162
I have no experience with that cpu. I'm running the intel 4770 k at 4.2 ghz I have it looped through an asus maximus iv formula mobo so it's pushing twice the route that it is designed for. benchmark is 984 at 86 degress Celsius. I think the only better option is the koolance stand alone unit but it's pricey
2252042
No do not run this card on a stock PSU. You also want a new CPU your Athlon isn't even close to having enough power to keep up with this card.
1283966
You didn't say what generation of Athlon you have (AMD has been making 64-bit processors branded "Athlon" for over 10 years and they have completely different characteristics and performance), but the answer is certainly "no," because Phenom IIs dissipate a lot more heat than even their contemporary Athlon IIs and the latter's heatsink is not powerful enough to cool a Phenom II down. However, that's not a problem, unless you buy an OEM pack. All boxed versions come with a heatsink and fan included. If you buy an OEM processor (plain, no heatsink), then you will need an aftermarket cooler. Please note that the Phenom II series is out of production, so if you need one (because of legacy mainboard compatibility or some other reason), you'll have to get it used. Check if your mainboard is AM3+ compatible (or can become so with a BIOS update) and if it is, you should get a current FX processor instead.
2173209
Your motherboard is limited to a 95 Watt CPU so you would require this CPU Phenom II 945 AMD Phenom II X4 945 Deneb 3.0 GHz 4x512 KB L2 Cache Socket AM3 95W Quad-Core Processor - Retail HDX945WFGMBOX .. I remember this from a family members motherboard I upgraded a while ago . ASUS makes it hard to find the support page for this motherboard ,I found it once . The M2N68-AM SE is the 95 watt version of the M2N68-AM. I found the support page on my computer http://support.asus.com/cpusupport/list.aspx?SLanguage=en&p;=1&s;=24&m;=M2N68-AM%20SE2&os;=25&hashedid;=rzWjxRHTivB96wPd .. You may have to update the BIOS to a newer version to run any CPU upgrade Your motherboard is limited to a 95 Watt CPU so you would require this CPU Phenom II 945 AMD Phenom II X4 945 Deneb 3.0 GHz 4x512 KB L2 Cache Socket AM3 95W Quad-Core Processor - Retail HDX945WFGMBOX .. I remember this from a family members motherboard I upgraded a while ago . ASUS makes it hard to find the support page for this motherboard ,I found it once . The M2N68-AM SE is the 95 watt version of the M2N68-AM. I found the support page on my computer... » Read More Your motherboard is limited to a 95 Watt CPU so you would require this CPU Phenom II 945 AMD Phenom II X4 945 Deneb 3.0 GHz 4x512 KB L2 Cache Socket AM3 95W Quad-Core Processor - Retail HDX945WFGMBOX .. I remember this from a family members motherboard I upgraded a while ago . ASUS makes it hard to find the support page for this motherboard ,I found it once . The M2N68-AM SE is the 95 watt version of the M2N68-AM. I found the support page on my computer http://support.asus.com/cpusupport/list.aspx?SLanguage=en&p;=1&s;=24&m;=M2N68-AM%20SE2&os;=25&hashedid;=rzWjxRHTivB96wPd .. You may have to update the BIOS to a newer version to run any CPU upgrade « Show Less
1158763
I have not had any bottlenecking which is one of the main reasons I bought this card. I have a AM3+ board with pci express 2 because AMD has not really released any good express 3.0 boards, I heard in some reviews that there was no bottlenecking and they were right.
450538
Here is the specifications:CPU Socket AMD Socket AM3 / AM2 / 940 / 939 CPU Support AMD:Phenom II X4/X3 (partial)Phenom X4/X3 (partial)Athlon II X2Athlon X2 (partial)AthlonSempron About adding a second fan... it is up to you, since Athlon X2 does not heat up as much as the new AM3 models, it would be more cosmetic like adding a LED fan, just to make it more appealing
1852630
I don't know about Skyrim. My son said that even the most loaded up computer will experience some lag with Skyrim. When he used to play Minecraft, it made a HUGE jump in frames per second. He used to set everything on full in that game.
35754
First, your bios has to have an option to unlock cores. Then, you set to desired clock (if u wish). Personally, I didnt go further than 4.2 while i tested. In reality, however, I discovered that overclocking mostly adding heat, increases noise amd power consumption without significant performance achievement. I dont think you calculating live planetary orbits, thereof, you got already good CPU so just have some memory, SSD and good video card. Enjoy your gaming
954788
Yes, and I have successfully overclocked the the core to 4.5GHz (Turbo off, Cool 'n Quiet ON), with stock cooling, standard voltage--other people I know have reached 4.3GHz with standard cooling and voltage...has the added benefit of running @ 95W Max TDP. Six cores is all you need for gaming--don't know of a single game that uses more than 4-cores, actually...this is the cpu to buy
1072661
Yes, it works fantastic. I OC mine to 4.5 and it runs like a beast! It works great at stock 3.5 too. Because I'm running SLI, it can't run anywhere from 73-78 degree at long game play in Elder Scrolls Skyrim, but other than that, it's golden. I'm currently in the middle of changing over to liquid cooing on both cards and CPU. Once completed I'll post some readings. In all , I think this is still the best adv consumer GPU out there; I just wish it were 4gb rather 3 but that's just me being greedy :). Hope this helps some.
99319
I have this coupled with a 6 core CPU at 3.5GHZ and I have not been able to find a single game that I cannot play on high or more settings. As far as the list you provided, short of your other component limitations I don't see why you wouldn't be able to crank these up to max with this card. Also it stays very cool ( I have a roomy case) and it is nice and quiet. Great card.
844102
I can only tell you that I found this computer to be very slow. I don't know much about gaming, but I understand that games require "Fast" processors. I hope this helps.