Radeon R7 260X or Radeon 7850?

SmittyMIZ

Honorable
Jun 15, 2013
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10,530
Need some suggestions for my budget PC build. I wanna ultimately play BF4 on high/ultra settings at 1080p and I will probably overclock a little bit. Not sure which one to go with. Here's the rest of my build if it helps.

CPU AMD FX-6300 3.5GHz 6-Core $109.99
CPU Cooler Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing $29.99
Motherboard Asus M5A97 R2.0 ATX AM3+ $84.99
Memory G.Skill Ripjaws X Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Combo or $74.99
Storage Seagate 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Hybrid Combo or $99.99
Case Cooler Master HAF 912 ATX Mid Tower $49.99
Power Supply Corsair 500W ATX12V $39.99
Optical Drive Asus DRW-24B1ST/BLK/B/AS DVD/CD Writer $16.99
 
Solution
7850 should perform better than the R7 260x (aka 7790). The R7 260x does come with the True Audio chip built into the mobo, if that matters to you or not.

Here is what I'd consider (based on your parts):

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: AMD FX-6300 3.5GHz 6-Core Processor ($109.99 @ Newegg)
CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler ($31.00 @ Amazon)
Motherboard: Asus M5A97 R2.0 ATX AM3+ Motherboard ($84.99 @ Amazon)
Memory: G.Skill Ares Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-2400 Memory ($65.70 @ Newegg)
Storage: Seagate Barracuda 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive...
7850 should perform better than the R7 260x (aka 7790). The R7 260x does come with the True Audio chip built into the mobo, if that matters to you or not.

Here is what I'd consider (based on your parts):

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: AMD FX-6300 3.5GHz 6-Core Processor ($109.99 @ Newegg)
CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler ($31.00 @ Amazon)
Motherboard: Asus M5A97 R2.0 ATX AM3+ Motherboard ($84.99 @ Amazon)
Memory: G.Skill Ares Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-2400 Memory ($65.70 @ Newegg)
Storage: Seagate Barracuda 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($59.99 @ NCIX US)
Video Card: MSI Radeon HD 7850 2GB Video Card ($109.99 @ Newegg)
Case: Corsair 200R ATX Mid Tower Case ($49.99 @ NCIX US)
Power Supply: Corsair Builder 500W 80 PLUS Bronze Certified ATX12V Power Supply ($24.99 @ Newegg)
Optical Drive: Lite-On iHAS124-04 DVD/CD Writer ($14.99 @ Newegg)
Total: $551.63
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2013-11-03 00:51 EDT-0400)

* RAM has LOW PROFILE heat spreaders, so you should have no clearance issues with aftermarket CPU HSF's (aka CM 212 EVO)
* Case supports 2 x USB 3.0 front ports (your option doesn't) and your Mobo supports that option too :)
 
Solution
Whoops, I actually changed my motherboard to the M5A99X EVO R2.0 if that matters at all. Also, I noticed you changed the hard drive. Do you not recommend the hybrid drive? Thanks for the help!
 


Ah missed the Hybrid drive. I'm not sold on them at this point, but I haven't done enough research in them to recommend them at this point. I would rather have a 120-128 gb SSD for Boot and a few games drive and a standard 7200 rpm 1 TB hard drive for data and other games.
 
re: HIGH/ULTRA

Now I don't know what quality settings you'll achieve, but I do advise you TWEAK towards a specific frame rate goal and don't simply crank up the visual quality at the expense of low frame rates.

There are PROS and CONS to each choice:

1) 60FPS VSYNC:
Run FRAPS with VSYNC OFF then tweak until you achieve over 60FPS at least 90% of the time. Then turn on VSYNC.
Pro- no screen tearing
Con- lag added

2) 40FPS VSYNC OFF:
Tweak to achieve 40FPS average.
Pro- less lag, higher quality visuals
Con- screen tearing

*Screen tearing can vary between games, hardware or even in the same game. You may wish to game with VSYNC OFF and 40FPS average, but if tearing is too annoying you'll need to tweak to method #1.

3) 30FPS VSYNC (HALF VSYNC)
Not recommended. A lot more processing power for visuals, no screen tearing, but lag is excessive.