Few options for upgrade... stay with AMD? Switch to Intel?

[M4A1]

Should I upgrade:

1) Newegg.com - AMD Phenom II X4 940 Deneb 3.0GHz 4 x 512KB L2 Cache 6MB L3 Cache Socket AM2+ 125W Quad-Core Black Edition Processor - Processors - Desktops

Newegg.com - Open Box: ASUS M4A78T-E AM3 AMD 790GX HDMI ATX AMD Motherboard

-- or --

2) Newegg.com - Intel Core 2 Quad Q8400 Yorkfield 2.66GHz 4MB L2 Cache LGA 775 95W Quad-Core Processor - Processors - Desktops

Newegg.com - GIGABYTE GA-EP45-UD3L LGA 775 Intel P45 ATX Intel Motherboard - Intel Motherboards

If I chose this Intel upgrade, is it future-proof if I want to upgrade to i7? Or will I need another mobo for an i7 upgrade later on?

Thx..


Current Build:
AMD Athlon 64 X2 5200+ Windsor 2.6GHz
SAPPHIRE Radeon HD 3850 512MB 256-bit
MSI K9A2 CF-F AM2+/AM2 AMD
G.SKILL 2GB (2 x 1GB) 240-Pin DDR2 and G.SKILL 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 (PC2 6400)
Sony NEC Optiarc 20X DVD±R DVD Burner Black IDE Model
Cooler Master CM 690 Case
Seagate 500GB HD
Ultra V-Series 500W PSU (+12V, 28A)
Windows Vista 64 bit SP1

 

[myowngod]

i7 needs an x58 mobo... so no... but in electronics.. nothing is future-proof...

 

[M4A1]

what is x58? link?

 

[baron5]

I would go with the top option, you should pair the 940 with a biostar 128m which will be in a combo deal.
If you were to go i7 The cheapest x58 that is a decent board is the gigabyte UD3R which is about $200. I can't get a newegg link because my internet is really slow atm.

 

[hikaricloud]

The Q8*** series as a whole is a load of crap. The AMD would be the best.

x58 is strictly for i7, which is socket 1366. Completely different than the older quads, which are socket 775.

 

[baron5]

The only real good quad was the q9550, the rest were not worth the price, and now better cpus are out like the phenoms which are great.

 

[hikaricloud]

Well, I wouldn't say all that now.

The early Q6600's were great. Q8***'s full of fail. The Q9*** series in general isn't terrible. The Q9650 is way too expensive for what you get, but the Q9300/9400/9450's weren't bad.

 

[M4A1]

Ok thanks for the help. If I go with the first option (new CPU and new mobo), should I get a new PSU?

I was looking into the Corsair 550TX or 650TX. Im only thinking about the 650 because I had some of my Team Fortress 2 (TF2) games just suddenly stop and the PC would restart itself automatically - perhaps a bad PSU?

 

[baron5]

Your psu should be fine as long as its decent quality, 28A will be enough to power your system. But since i havent heard of the brand ULTRA so much it could be the reason why your computer is dropping out at load, to solve this you should run a stress test like 3dmark06 and see if it drops out in the that test because that will put your computer at more load then any game would. I would probably get a cheaper psu like the OCZ modxstream 600w which has great efficiency and is generally a bit cheaper.

Also, sorry hik, i meant all the newish quads after the kentsfields. (q8/9's)

 

[hikaricloud]

Oh no, it's cool. I was just pointing it out.

Don't mind me, it's 1:30am here. Lol.