Opinion on a CPU switch ... would it be worth the effort?

I was just wanting to have few folk opinions on a possible CPU switch out I might be doing.

Would it be worth the effort to replace the Intel Pentium Dual Core E5300 (2.60GHz, 2MB Cache, 800MHz FSB) with an Intel Pentium Dual Core E5800 (3.20GHz, 2MB Cache, 800MHz FSB)?

I know neither is very cutting edge or impressive, but I'm on a fixed budget and the E5800 is only $75 (and is the fastest processor my motherboard can actually take.)

So, would the performance be enough of an increase to make up for the hassle of a CPU swap or should I just not bother?

Thanks all!

not worth it in my opinion. the increase in speed would likely be negligible.

i say put away your $75 and save up for a much better cpu and motherboard.

quick glance at newegg and i see an amd 6 core + motherboard + 8 gigs of ram for $250. shop around and you could likely do even better than that, for a pretty nice system.

Don't bother. Oh, it may help here and there, but my feeling is you will be very disappointed in the overall results. you might see an extra frame or two, maybe, or the rendering of a complicated internet web page might show up a couple of seconds faster, but you're not really going from an Aveo to a Corvette with that, more like an Aveo to a Cavalier. Little roomier, maybe an extra gadget or two, so there's that, but overall, not much more performance for the money.

Not the best analogy, but the idea's close, methinks.

The best thing would be to somehow borrow one and see what happens before committing the money. But I think that's gonna be a smidge tough to pull off...

Agreed, while it will give you some performance boost I doubt you'd notice it unless you're really watching your benchmarks. The biggest performance boost comes in the video card anyway... swapping out your CPU would gain a few percent increase but nothing earthshaking and you'd probably have to look at your FPS before and after to tell anything changed.

What does the rest of your machine look like? There may well be other improvements you could make for your budget that would be noticeable. Still, I would tend to think you're better off putting that money into a savings account and adding a few dollars every paycheck until you've enough to do a major upgrade; tossing a new CPU into your current machine is basically wasting money.

Agree with what other people have posted. Waste of time and money.

Agreed.

Save up, buy a new system if you are going to upgrade.

Get a 1155 socket Intel, with a p67 or z67 controller chip motherboard
a core i5 2500(k) intel cpu
Gefore 560gtx TI (1 not 2...or if you got cash, 2)
corsair 80+ bronze 650w psu
8gb of 1333-1866 ddr3 ram
Windows 7 64bit

this is a cheaper version of a powerful gamin rig, runs normal applications without a hitch along with being able to support and play pretty much any game at good quality and speed.

Thanks for the thoughts everyone. Based on what everyone has said, I'll pass on the processor switch then.

System wise I've got 6GB of ram , a 2TB drive (7200rpm sata3) and an ATI Radeon HD 5770 (1GB) ... I have shadows off, AO off (never could tell a difference with it turned on - apart from a frame rate drop) and water & reflections at medium ... and I get 50+fps everywhere (apart from at the Zombie events & other lag fests ... & even then it's never dropped below 20fps.)

I sometimes have a second instance running for my alt account (mainly to transfer IOs stored in one SG base to characters in a differant SG & for SG invites for new characters when no one else in the SG is online) & I was wanting to reduce the lag that causes. But based on everyone's thoughts, I don't think the CPU switch out would help much.

Again, thanks everyone for the replies.