8150 first hand

[dave343]

I wanted to give my thoughts and first hand account on the FX 8150 since I just picked the CPU up over a week ago.

Now I know I'm going to get some "WHAT??" replies, but I actually just changed to the FX-8150 from a i5-3570K. Why? partly because I prefer AMD, but also I've been wanting to try Bulldozer out for a while now, and so my father grabbed the i5 off me and I picked up the FX.

I will say first off, I use my PC mainly for gaming, internet, and movies. No rendering, Autocad etc... and I convert maybe a handful of movies per yr.

Gaming:

I've been playing Far Cry 3 over the last 3 weeks, the first 2 of which I played on the 3570K, and this week finally beat the game on the FX. Quite honestly, there wasn't a difference, at least not one I could tell. Gameplay remained very smooth, I'm not sure what the frame rate was on the 3570, but it was still butter smooth on the FX. Now that's not to say there wasn't a diference, because I've seen all the reviews out there so I know the i5 was pulling highter FPS but it didn't dip to a point that altered my gameplay or required me to tonedown the settings.
I also fired up Max Payne 3 last night, settings on Very High, 1650x1050, Tess on Med, no AA, and it ran smooth as butter.

Windows/Apps:

Overall, I've been really enjoying it, and my experience hasn't been much different, if any from the 3570K when using Windows and various apps, but then it's not going to change much on any recent CPU. I converted a few videos last week, again I don't really keep track of the time since I could care less if a video takes 30secs or 2min to convert but speed was fast.

I'm definately glad I grabbed one, and I'll be the first to admit I know Intel has the upper hand this time, the i5 and i7 are fast CPU's, but benchmarks are far different from trying things first hand and the 8150 is a fast CPU in itself. If I were rendering drawing's in Autocad, or spent my days converting videos, then yes it may not be the first choice, but I simply wanted to add my experience with the CPU based on what an average user may do and want to know how well it runs. I've seen all the benchmarks so I know the 3570 is pulling more fps, but again if a game is running at 100fps and the 8150 is only scoring 80 it's deffinitely not something that's going to be noticied anyways.

So for anyone who's looking to grab one, either the newer 8350, or the previous Bulldozer, I really recommend it. But again, I'm an average user, I surf the web and spend a lot of time playing games. The i5 and i7 are faster, but depending on what you do, you'll probably not notice a difference.

And also, I didn't grab the 8350 because I only paid $100 CND for this CPU, a deal I wasn't about to pass up on. My specs are below.

AMD FX-8150
MSI 970A-G46
Zotac GTX 650Ti 2GB
Corsair HX 850w Gold
Kingston 8GB 1866 Black T1

 

[cybereality]

Cool. A lot of people like to get down on AMD but the reality is that the CPUs are still decent, even if they don't beat Intel outright.

 

[MacLeod]

Always nice to see a positive AMD thread cause the hate got pretty out of hand there for a while. Ill be the first to admit Intel is faster but AMD is plenty fast enough and you can have a perfectly capable and high performing rig with AMD.

 

[artimusbill]

I think people loose sight of the fact that the CPU is only one part of the equation. With AMD you get a pretty dang fast modern CPU, when combined with other nice components (nice GPU, SSD, etc.) you have a box that will toast a machine from say 5 years ago. If you run benchmark programs for a living, go all Intel. Otherwise build a balanced system with what components fit your needs. AMD FX, and Trinity APUs are great. Maybe not the king of the world, but most people will not notice a difference. Grats on the purchase.

 

[ziggo0]

I'd recommend a board with more than 4 phases if you plan to OC that 8 core...your vdroop will be terrible and will probably pop something if you push it far.

 

[Dan]

i run a i5 3570k now, but ive ALWAYS ran AMD in the past. you cant ever beat cost/performance of amd. I loved my phenom II x4 965 and my fx 4100, i couldn't imagion how the 8xxx series are. Great post of a real time user doing real time stuff. no bench marks, no nonsense. Thanks!

 

[wurmy]

Glad to have a positive post about AMD! While I rip on the company because I want it to survive, I do own and use a FX-8150, 6 other quads, 2 dual-core laptops, and am still using a Sempron in a rig that continues to "just work."

I gave away my last Intel rig (dual-xeon northwood) and haven't looked back.

AMD offers very compelling pricing advantages on CPUs/ALUs, and I use the money I save from buying AMD and put it into GPUs, gold PSUs, and whatever else makes sense for the particular rig that I am building.

As mentioned before, the CPU often gets too much attention over other components in the system, and it's nice to see your balanced approach fit your budget targets and meet your needs.

 

[maxius]

This post is what reviews and some people do not understand sure intel is faster but 90% of the time they will not notice any difference between the two.

 

[LigTasm]

I ran an 8150 for a while myself and it was perfectly fine. I could detect no real differences between it and any other CPU I've had from 2500/3570k to 3770k to 3930k. Sure, the benchmarks say the intel are faster, but it was never readily apparent in normal use.

I ended up getting rid of it simply because I wanted to move to ITX and nothing in the form factor works with AM3+ that I'm aware of, nor would it probably support such a power hungry CPU.

 

[RamonGTP]

This post is what reviews and some people do not understand sure intel is faster but 90% of the time they will not notice any difference between the two.

That may or may not be true depending on the individual. This "move" would make some sense if the OP was doing a lot of encoding where the FX does quite well.

Lets put all the fanboy arguments aside for a moment and stick with facts. The OP knowingly spent money on a system that under-performs his existing system for the uses he described. Take the brand names out of it, and if a friend of yours tells you "hey, i'm going to go spend money on a new computer that is slower at what I use it for and consumes more power than what I currently have" you'd probably try and talk that person out of it, and if he did it anyway, you'd probably say he was leaning on the stupid side of the spectrum.

 

[maxius]

That may or may not be true depending on the individual. This "move" would make some sense if the OP was doing a lot of encoding where the FX does quite well.

Lets put all the fanboy arguments aside for a moment and stick with facts. The OP knowingly spent money on a system that under-performs his existing system for the uses he described. Take the brand names out of it, and if a friend of yours tells you "hey, i'm going to go spend money on a new computer that is slower at what I use it for and consumes more power than what I currently have" you'd probably try and talk that person out of it, and if he did it anyway, you'd probably say he was leaning on the stupid side of the spectrum.

not really to each their own some people love ketchup and hate tomatoes i say if it meets their needs more power to them and god damn Ive been here 11+ years lol now i feel old

 

[RamonGTP]

not really to each their own some people love ketchup and hate tomatoes i say if it meets their needs more power to them and god damn Ive been here 11+ years lol now i feel old

Yes really. It's not a matter of 'meeting your needs' he didn't get an 8150 instead of a 3570. He had a 3570 and spent money on a downgrade. It's not the difference between ketchup and tomatoes. If you want an accurate analogy, it's like having a headache, knowing Excedrine works better for your type of headache better than Advil, having Excedrine in your medicine cabinet, but going to the store and buying Advil instead and giving your Excedrine away.

 

[runs2far]

I wanted to give my thoughts and first hand account on the FX 8150 since I just picked the CPU up over a week ago.

Now I know I'm going to get some "WHAT??" replies, but I actually just changed to the FX-8150 from a i5-3570K. Why? partly because I prefer AMD, but also I've been wanting to try Bulldozer out for a while now, and so my father grabbed the i5 off me and I picked up the FX.

That may or may not be true depending on the individual. This "move" would make some sense if the OP was doing a lot of encoding where the FX does quite well.

Lets put all the fanboy arguments aside for a moment and stick with facts. The OP knowingly spent money on a system that under-performs his existing system for the uses he described. Take the brand names out of it, and if a friend of yours tells you "hey, i'm going to go spend money on a new computer that is slower at what I use it for and consumes more power than what I currently have" you'd probably try and talk that person out of it, and if he did it anyway, you'd probably say he was leaning on the stupid side of the spectrum.

I think you represent one of the "WHAT??" replies

Who cares if he bough something slower, it's his system and if he has the money to spare on a new toy, then let him.

I think it is nice to see someone who takes the time to write that you don't have to own a 3570 to play recent games.

 

[Tsumi]

Also, it wasn't as if he sold the i5, he gave it to a family member that needed a new computer anyways, which means he would have to had to buy a new system. He got a great deal on the 8150, and got a chance to play around with a Bulldozer system which was something he wanted to do anyways. There is absolutely no need to belittle him over his choice of giving his dad the i5 and picking up the FX, especially when the end result is satisfaction and no tangible differences in experience.

Additionally, the general sentiment around here is that AMD systems are significantly more fun to overclock.

 

[cageymaru]

I like my AMD because it's fun as heck to mess with settings to get more performance out of it. My only wish is that I had custom watercooling so I could try more things. All of my games run great on my FX 8120. If someone wants to say that the Intel systems are faster then I say it doesn't matter as the AMD is certainly up to the task with today's games.

When a game comes out that is slow on my processor, I will certainly post in a thread about it and what upgrade do I need to run it faster. Until then blame the game developers for not pushing the envelope.

 

[buttons]

I really enjoyed my FX8320, though i just sold it because I had an a8-3870k that wouldnt sell and is all i need.

OP if you plan to overclock your going to want a different motherboard. I believe the midrange MSI boards cant handle more then 125watts and sometimes struggle to handle that. A lot of blown up VRM's on the 870/970 MSI

 

[RamonGTP]

I really enjoyed my FX8320, though i just sold it because I had an a8-3870k that wouldnt sell and is all i need.

OP if you plan to overclock your going to want a different motherboard. I believe the midrange MSI boards cant handle more then 125watts and sometimes struggle to handle that. A lot of blown up VRM's on the 870/970 MSI

The problem isn't so much the motherboard manufacturer as it is AMD's inaccurate TDP ratings. There's a very long thread over at anandtech showing a default clocked 8350 consuming ~200 watts at full load. Imagine the OC you could get even on that MSI board if it actually only consumed 125watts. Now I know that TDP != power consumption, however, with the exception of AMD's FX line, I've always seen actual power consumption lower than TDP rating.

 

[HvyMtl]

OP's family had a need for a new system. He gave the one he was "tired" of to his father, and built a new one. Cant complain about that.
Wanted to try AMD, just to see what it would do. Cant complain about that.
May have found a great deal on AMD (as they typically are less $.) Cant complain about that.
So why complain?

 

[psyside]

Gratz on the downgrade.

This post is what reviews and some people do not understand sure intel is faster but 90% of the time they will not notice any difference between the two.

90% if all you do is surf, and basic stuff. Stop thinking that all users are using their pc's for ultra light stuff,in which case even G540 won't feel faster then 3960X...

 

[cageymaru]

Gratz on the downgrade.


90% if all you do is surf, and basic stuff. Stop thinking that all users are using their pc's for ultra light stuff,in which case even G540 won't feel faster then 3960X...

Oh so what does Intel run that AMD can't?

 

[psyside]

They bot run everything, but Intel does it better, and the biggest mistake of all of this nonsense on the net, for processor being good enugh is that no one understand that you lose alot as a platform when you go to AMD from Intel! its not just about CPU you know...

Better SATA controllers, better USB controllers, better lan controllers, better UEFI, better memory transfer, higher memory oc, lower power consumption, better expansion options etc..with AMD you lose as a platform, not only on cpu side...

 

[sheesh721]

Oh so what does Intel run that AMD can't?

Efficiently.

In all seriousness AMD typically excels over Intel in time sensitive tasks such as video crunching. In the daily work of productivity apps there is little difference to the end user because these apps are so optimized and modern processors are so fast that the hard drive or other component is more likely to be the bottleneck. This makes AMD the solid choice for most time sensitive applications which are often multi-threaded for performance reasons. However, Intel tends to give the across the board performance and in terms of Bulldozer/Piledriver the Intel chips work out to be similarly priced when taking into consideration power and total cost of ownership. But in terms of the 8150 and the 3750K the Intel chip tends to outperform the 8150 in many tasks that it was designed to compute more quickly. So it's definitely a downgrade for him.

The argument above with headache medication makes sense. But there's nothing wrong with choosing to downgrade your CPU performance and decrease desktop efficiency if you decide to do it for your own reasons. If having a slower CPU and adding power/heat to your machine is worthwhile because you want to support the underdog or simply because of the coolness factor, then go for it. Your money, your PC. His decisions don't effect anyone else on this board other than himself.

 

[Bman123]

They bot run everything, but Intel does it better, and the biggest mistake of all of this nonsense on the net, for processor being good enugh is that no one understand that you lose alot as a platform when you go to AMD from Intel! its not just about CPU you know...

Better SATA controllers, better USB controllers, better lan controllers, better UEFI, better memory transfer, higher memory oc, lower power consumption, better expansion options etc..with AMD you lose as a platform, not only on cpu side...

Someone knows what they are talking about, +1 I was thinking along those lines but didn't want to type all that on my phone

 

[Tsumi]

Again, why do you feel the need to belittle anyone that chooses to go AMD? OP got a great deal on the 8150 ($100 for the 8150 is a great price no matter how you slice it), and he got to satisfy his curiosity of owning a Bulldozer system. The IB system went to someone else in the family, so it would have been necessary for the OP to get a new system anyways. He got a great deal on a processor, got to satisfy his curiosity, and fulfill the need for a new system. His net experiences with both systems are the same, and he felt like sharing it with us.

 

[ClariorHincHonos]

Here's what everyone in this thread needs to take away from this:

OP swapped to AMD, shared his experience with others, and nothing more.

Seriously - he had a decent experience and wanted to share. Maybe those wanting to support AMD would like to hear things like this. Perhaps it fits someone's budget better. Maybe someone is running a dual-core Athlon II on an AM3+ board and needs an upgrade.

At any rate, stop with the BS and just take the post for what it is - a guy sharing his experience.

 

[RamonGTP]

I don't see any BS here. Yes the OP did what you said he did. Those like me saying it wasn't the best option have our own valid points. This is a public forum, we are free to criticize provided we stay within the forum guidelines which as best as I can tell, we are. I wouldn't want someone making what I consider to be a mistake, so I will post reservations if I have them should someone who doesn't know any better be reading the thread.

 

[wurmy]

Here's what everyone in this thread needs to take away from this:

OP swapped to AMD, shared his experience with others, and nothing more.

Seriously - he had a decent experience and wanted to share. Maybe those wanting to support AMD would like to hear things like this. Perhaps it fits someone's budget better. Maybe someone is running a dual-core Athlon II on an AM3+ board and needs an upgrade.

At any rate, stop with the BS and just take the post for what it is - a guy sharing his experience.

True!

The BS is the OP put a lot of thought into his build, it meets his needs, and he didn't go over the top in terms of his budget. It is a refreshing post as he's not bragging on anything but just wanted to share his positive experience in building an AMD rig after having an Intel rig. It looks to me like a very balanced rig considering he's using a gold PSU and an efficient 768-core Kepler GPU and "just" 8G of RAM.

Why turn someone else's positive experience into a negative one just because you hate on AMD CPUs?

 

[ClariorHincHonos]

I don't see any BS here. Yes the OP did what you said he did. Those like me saying it wasn't the best option have our own valid points. This is a public forum, we are free to criticize provided we stay within the forum guidelines which as best as I can tell, we are. I wouldn't want someone making what I consider to be a mistake, so I will post reservations if I have them should someone who doesn't know any better be reading the thread.

Point being - the dude knew what he wanted, knew the risks, tried it anyway, and shared his results. AND he explained that clearly. So your "advice" is quite obviously not needed, as all it did was detract from the thread.

 

[RamonGTP]

Point being - the dude knew what he wanted, knew the risks, tried it anyway, and shared his results. AND he explained that clearly. So your "advice" is quite obviously not needed, as all it did was detract from the thread.

You have no point. My "advise" wasn't for him. Your lack of attention is detracting from the thread further. Learn to read what you quote. I clearly said if someone is reading this thread who wouldn't know any better. I'm not at all concerned if you take issue with me voicing my opinion, especially considering the OP was likely well aware criticism was going to be coming his way.

 

[cageymaru]

Well this is why I've learned to read other forums for information on AMD processors.

 

[Tsumi]

You have no point. My "advise" wasn't for him. Your lack of attention is detracting from the thread further. Learn to read what you quote. I clearly said if someone is reading this thread who wouldn't know any better. I'm not at all concerned if you take issue with me voicing my opinion, especially considering the OP was likely well aware criticism was going to be coming his way.

Well the OP clearly outlined his situation in the OP... the only person with misconceptions would be someone who only read a few select lines from the OP or maybe read a few select replies. There was absolutely no need for you to come in and "advise" and "clarify" things.

 

[Deleted member 82943]

dude overclock that bastage

 

[RamonGTP]

Well the OP clearly outlined his situation in the OP... the only person with misconceptions would be someone who only read a few select lines from the OP or maybe read a few select replies. There was absolutely no need for you to come in and "advise" and "clarify" things.

The misconception is yours, seeing that I read the entire post (twice) and I feel that their was a need. There's a select few of you that will just need to make friends with the reality that this is a public forum and people are going to voice their opinions weather or not it agrees with you.

 

[Solomutt]

There was no need to even speak on your points. It is like walking into a car discussion about how some guy likes his 4.9 liter inline six that he swapped from his 2.3 turbo. He says he likes the experience, but you have to come in talking about the obvious 80 or so HP loss, as if his decision was some kind of bad call.

This is a public forum, but posts get deleted, edited, and sometimes accounts get locked when you ignore etiquette. Unfortunately for us users, etiquette is subjective, and is decided by the moderators. I will say that you breached common etiquette, in my opinion.

I like my 8320 just fine, and my overall platform doesn't lack anything relative to a similar cost Intel setup, and is far more stable and feature rich than almost all anywhere near the same cost. Am
I next in line to be told I shouldn't disclose my happiness without some kind of disclaimer?

 

[RedShifty]

I've had a 8120 since last December. I keep it at a modest 4.2ghz with 1.3v and while it's only paired with a 5870, I have yet to find a game or program that doesn't meet my expectations. I saw the doom and gloom of the benchmarks before my purchase but have zero regret. I actually really enjoyed my build as it was also my first water cooling attempt.

 

[RamonGTP]

There was no need to even speak on your points. It is like walking into a car discussion about how some guy likes his 4.9 liter inline six that he swapped from his 2.3 turbo. He says he likes the experience, but you have to come in talking about the obvious 80 or so HP loss, as if his decision was some kind of bad call.

This is a public forum, but posts get deleted, edited, and sometimes accounts get locked when you ignore etiquette. Unfortunately for us users, etiquette is subjective, and is decided by the moderators. I will say that you breached common etiquette, in my opinion.

I like my 8320 just fine, and my overall platform doesn't lack anything relative to a similar cost Intel setup, and is far more stable and feature rich than almost all anywhere near the same cost. Am
I next in line to be told I shouldn't disclose my happiness without some kind of disclaimer?

I'm glad you're not a moderator then, since your definition of breaching etiquette is having a differing opinion and posting it. People around here post about what they feel was a bad call all the time, its typically not a big deal but in this sub forum, it appears to have hurt some feelings, which is interesting to say the least.

 

[sun_bean]

I agree with OP. AMD's new FX 8350 is the way to go, you can save over $100 for comparable INTEL cpu and used that towards other parts.

 

[drescherjm]

I agree with OP. AMD's new FX 8350 is the way to go, you can save over $100 for comparable INTEL cpu and used that towards other parts.

You generally will not get an FX 8350 for ~$100 so that kind of savings is not typical.

 

[K1tty]

Some people just like to tinker with things I can't say I've not debated picking up an AMD combo at MC and selling off my stuff just for the fun of playing with something new. If I were building another desktop I would certainly go AMD just to have something different than what I already have.

 

[buttons]

Gratz on the downgrade.


90% if all you do is surf, and basic stuff. Stop thinking that all users are using their pc's for ultra light stuff,in which case even G540 won't feel faster then 3960X...

I would say 90% is generous. my best guess would be more like 99.9%

Both can play every game except red orchestra smooth as butter (30fps+), both can encode movies very well, both can surf the web well, what else is there?