AMD FX-9370 Vishera 4.4GHz Socket AM3+ 220W 8-Core Desktop Processor - Black Edition FD9370FHHKWOX with Liquid Cooling Kit

Pros: Fast, this CPU will run anything you can throw at it and then some, it's not quite 4770k fast but it will keep up with one of those in many applications. . And considering this CPU is $50 less than a 4770k and it comes with a closed loop cooler that's conservatively a $50 value that's one helluva deal. You don't even need an overclock with this CPU but with a 5.0GHz overclock mine scores 793 pts in Cinebench CPU rendering, that's only 29 pts less than a 4770k at 4.4GHz. Unless you're really into overclocking or it's several years down the road and you're trying to extend the lifetime of the CPU before your next upgrade I see little need to overclock this CPU

Relatively futureproof for gamers. The new consoles that have just been released use 8 core AMD CPUs, this means that games in the future will likely utilize 8 threads and may even be better optimized for AMD systems. I think in the coming months we'll see AMD starting to shine brighter than Intel in games. This is one of the reason I chose to put my eggs in the AMD basket this round.

The liquid cooler this comes with is pretty good, the rad is very thick for a 120mm cooler and it seems to do an adequate job dissipating heat. The software it comes with isn't the best though if I'm honest, it feels clunky and unintuitive.

Cons: 220W TDP

Hot Hot Hot. With a 5.0Ghz overclock using the stock liquid cooler mine gets up to 70C. But I knew this was a hot CPU when I decided to get it. In addition this CPU can take 70C no problem. I've read on other forums that an AMD engineer said these FX CPUs can withstand temperatures of upto 90C. At stock clocks this CPU isn't too bad though, full load it will get as hot as 55C but this is a non issue because unless you're benchmarking your CPU won't really go up to 100% load.

You really need a high end motherboard to use this or the 9590. This isn't really an issue for me since the best 990fx motherboard you can buy is only $220 (Crosshair V Formula-Z) and it's a full featured ROG board. This is surprising to me because I've spent upwards of $400 for high end Intel boards back in the day.

Requires liquid cooling. This again isn't that big of a deal since liquid cooling is such an easy thing to achieve nowadays with closed loop coolers. And the closed loop cooler than comes with this CPU is more than adequate, it's actually surprisingly good.


This isn't really the CPUs fault but I've had to deal with more distraught Intel fanboys than I've ever had to after buying this CPU. Everytime I tell someone in the enthusiast hardware community that I'm running a 9370 they have to go into telling me how I made the wrong choice and how they think this isn't a very good CPU. I've had people go as far as to tell me that a Core i3 performs better than this CPU.

Overall Review: People say that this thing will end up costing you more in power than it's worth. They haven't done the math, A CPU like this will raise your power bills but by such an insignificant amount. At most this thing will cost you $30-$60 more per year in power than a 4770k. You won't even notice your power bill is more expensive. This is a baseless argument. In addition there are several power saving features that you can utilize. I have it set so when I'm just browsing or downloading the CPU clocks down to as low as 1.4 Ghz, during games like Chivarly or Skyrim the CPU will hangout around 3.4ghz to 4.4ghz.

Specs:
AMD 9370
AMD R9 270x x2
Asus Crosshair V Formula Z
16GB G.Skill Sniper at 2400Mhz
1TB Seagate SSHD
240GB Kingston SSD
Corsair 1200 Watt PSU
Windows 7 x64/Linux Mint 16

I had been running only Intel for my gaming PCs in the past, I've spent as much as $1000 for an extreme edition Intel CPU, I am no AMD fanboy, I buy what I think is best for me at the time and this time around I think AMD is just that for me. I think people need to stop letting their biases chose their hardware for them, we're all adults here we don't need to feel we're better than everyone else since we choose a certain piece of hardware over another. It's getting out of hand and ever since I bought this I've come to realize this, the relentless witch hunting done by other people who only use Intel is just ridiculous. Yes if you pay more you can get an Intel CPU that will out perform this, but that doesn't mean this is a bad CPU, it holds its own.

Pros: This processor is a beast. For this price I can overclock this baby pretty close to what a FX9590 would do and get a great performance out of it. It pretty much shreds every test I've ran on it. In my opinion, the right choice if you want a great performance/price processor. I run a dual monitor system, I do graphic intensive work on Photoshop, Maya, CorelDraw, and half the time I'm also running several webpages as well, not to mention games like The Witcher III, DA Inquisition and Fallout 4. Meanwhile this processor is almost bored asking if I got anything more to throw at it. Amazing.

Cons: THE COOLING SYSTEM. If you get this thing, do yourself a favor and purchase it without the included cooling system and upgrade to a better one. The reason? It sounds like an airplane inside the room. I literally think this has to be the loudest set of fans on a liquid cooling system on the market. It is ridiculously loud and it honestly annoys the (insert word here) out of me, to the point where I just have to turn up the speakers if I'm playing music while I work or just put the headphones on and tune it out. If I'm not listening to music and just browsing, it just sits there revving like a WWI biplane. Now after a few months of having it, it has started to make even more noise, I don't know what's wrong with one of the fans, but it is making a crackling noise as if one of the blades was loose or rubbing against something. I can't seem to pinpoint it. I'm thinking about returning it and hopefully getting a replacement or something. It's got to go.

Overall Review: If we're talking about the processor's performance, I couldn't be happier with it. On the other hand, the cooling system is extremely loud. I wish AMD had gone with something better, considering this is one of their best processors out there. I gave the product 3 stars simply bc of that fact. You can't produce a top of the line product and pair it with a lackluster "companion" It's like saying Ferrari just released their new car with a set of Mountain Bicycle tires. Totally ruins the experience.