CPU for gaming Rig

[Mystyx]

Ok guys, I am upgrading my rig, built it about 3 years ago and just seems to be lacking. I am still novice to all all of this with just a little experience. I am looking to upgrade my CPU and mobo. Right now I am running an ECS GF8200a mobo with a phenom ii quad core. Anything seems to be an upgrade at this point. The main thing I am wondering is would I benefit from grabbing an eight core AMD, specifically the AMD FX 8350. I also have another quad core I am looking at, 4.2ghz per core for half the price. As far as gaming is concerned, just wondering what would be my better options. I have read some posts that say games only use 2 or 3 cores, but these were outdated posts and could not find anything current. The quad core I am looking at is also the new FM2+ interface.

 

[ldewitt]

FX 8350 takes am3+, and newer games are actually starting to utilize more cores (up to 6 now i believe) So yeah i would say for gaming wise would be good to go with a 8 core PC since the newer games like bf4 are utilizing more cores, and this would ensure you to be able to play games for some years to come. I use a FX 8120 @ 4.0 and i love it, wish i would of gone with the 8350 but hey not worth the upgrade now(for me anyways since i already have a 8 core) gona wait until piledriver or whatever the new line up of AMD is releasing.

 

[Mystyx]

Thank you for the reply, this helped alot. I figured games were going to start utilizing more cores, just wanted to make sure before I shelled out $200 on the FX eight core processor. Going to be a more expensive build, but should be worth it in the end.

 

[minerva330]

Currently most AAA games use 4 cores, you do have the rare exceptions like BF4 which has been shown to use 6 but a 4 core CPU with a better GPU will always win over a 6 core with a sub-par GPU

It is hard to say what developers will do in the future to maximize hardware. I personally lean towards hyperthreading versus more core utilization but who knows. I think anything over 6 is overkill.

 

[ldewitt]

Minerva330 is right you need to pack a hard punch in the CPU category as well as the GPU category to get the best performance on newer games.

 

[Mystyx]

Now you have me thinking. The quad I have picked out is not too bad from what I can see. It is the AMD a8-6600k black edition. It is an FM2+ build compared to the AM3+ eight core build. But I do not know a lot of the technical stuff. Is AM3+ better than FM2+ or the other way around? Or is this just simply a different interface and is personal preference?

 

[minerva330]

I think that the FM2+ holds a little bit better value for the money but they will both play modern games well.

Also FM2+ is newer socket so it possible that it will be supported for a longer period of time vs the AM3+.Which might allow you the possibility to upgrade in the future

 

[minerva330]

I would say that if money is tight go with the 600k and invest the extra $100 in a better GPU, if your planning to buy one soon.

 

[Mystyx]

Money is not terribly tight, my current video card is a Geforce GTX 650. And do you have any suggestions on a better CPU? I just want to make sure I do this right this time instead of cheaping out like I did when first building my rig.

 

[ldewitt]

Well the FX 8350 is the best gaming* AMD CPU you can get at the moment. And your graphics card is decent, and will play newer games. But like you said money isn't tight you would need to get a new motherboard aswell if you went with the 8350. If thats the case I have the sabertooth 990fx and i love it! just a heads up.

 

[aylafan]

Thank you for the reply, this helped alot. I figured games were going to start utilizing more cores, just wanted to make sure before I shelled out $200 on the FX eight core processor. Going to be a more expensive build, but should be worth it in the end.

FYI. The AMD FX 8320 Black Edition (8 cores) is only $99.99 at Microcenter as of today if you decide to go the AMD route. I think it's amazing deal.

 

[minerva330]

FYI. The AMD FX 8320 Black Edition (8 cores) is only $99.99 at Microcenter as of today if you decide to go the AMD route. I think it's amazing deal.

That is a great deal. If that's the case grab the 8320

 

[Mystyx]

That is an amazing deal, only problem is, it is only available for in store pickup, and looks like the closest store is 2 states away. Thank you for the suggestion though, great deal.

 

[Mystyx]

Well, taking the plunge for that 8320. It is a 3 and a half hour drive, but worth it. Thank you for posting that @ Aylafan! Now time to find a mobo that pairs well with that CPU (=

 

[minerva330]

Dude try and make the trip worth while the money you save will just be put back into gas

 

[Mystyx]

Oh it will be worth while, have some friends close to that store, so gives me a reason to stop by and see them. And I thought about the gas money as well. Looked up a closer store and is in the next state over, so roughly a 2 hour drive. And my vehicle gets a little over 40 mpg, so price is still a little cheaper sadly. I have looked all over the place for the same price on that site, closest I have found is $155 before shipping.

 

[minerva330]

Sounds like you have all worked out. Awesome. Good luck

 

[JOOK-D]

Well, taking the plunge for that 8320. It is a 3 and a half hour drive, but worth it. Thank you for posting that @ Aylafan! Now time to find a mobo that pairs well with that CPU (=

I'd recommend:

Gigabyte GA-970A-UD3(p)
ASUS M5A99X
Gigabyte GA-990FXA-UD(3,5,7)
ASUS Sabertooth 990FX

The GA-970A is ample, great for overclocking if you're ever interested in it.

 

[ldewitt]

Sabertooth 990FX like i said is fking awesome. Give it a gander if you want: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813131736

 

[JOOK-D]

When you're spending that much on a 990FX motherboard though I'd say you'd be better off with an Intel Xeon 1230v3 and a B or H series motherboard. Or an i5 4670. Just IMO.

 

[aylafan]

Another FYI. The Core i5-4670K just went down to $179.99 from $199.99 at Microcenter yesterday... just incase you want to go the Intel route. Sorry for giving you so many options. Haha. There are even CPU/motherboard combos with the 4670K.

 

[Mystyx]

Well after everyone's reply here and a lot of reading, I have decided to go with the FX 8320 processor with the Gigabyte GA-970A-UD3(p) mobo, 8gig of dual channel memory, and a Case, all from Micro Center. Paying right at $400 for this great setup. Their prices are unmatched it seems. Thank you all for your replies, has been very helpful!