Rx460 or r9 270x i3 2120

[Mcjv2016]

Hi looking for some upgrade advice got a prebuilt Acer machine before xmas to get myself familiar with PC and the internals etc, anyway currently I have a i3-2120 8gb ram hd5850 1gb. So far its been great but I'm starting to see its limits and looking to upgrade. I plan on running games like GTA 5 black ops 3 bf 4 etc nothing to intensive.

I've narrowed my choice down to a local used r9 270x for £65 or waiting a few weeks and getting a new RX 460 as they seem to keep coming down in price at around £92 now both 2GB. What else would be good for this PC there's loads out there the r9 is just something I've seen recently from a shop I trust.

I will also be using this GPU in my next build so this was persuading me to go with the new card, my original plan was to get a i5-2500 along with my newer graphics card but then this pc will have cost me the same as what I could build a newer haswel or even skylake platform. But would there be that much difference in performance.

My apologies if I've made any classic noob mistakes, not owned a PC since high school and can't believe what I've been missing having a blast ! any help/guidance appreciated.

 

[Chas_1]

get the r9 they are almost the same card SOOO close mind you the 460 is just 1 frame better in gta5

it becomes a question of warranty as new will have a warranty on it as used tends to not... saving 30 ish worth it imho get the R9

 

[velocityg4]

As you are willing to go used. If you hunt about on eBay UK. You can pick up a used R9 280x 3GB for around £80. It is cheaper but much faster than either the R9 270x or Rx 460.

In between the 270x and 460. The 270x is faster. If you don't mind the heat and noise. It is a better buy.

As far as the CPU upgrade you mentioned. You can pick up an i7-2600 for about £90 used. ~£170 for a Core i7-2600 and Radeon R9 280x 3GB will get you a far better system then you could ever hope for in building a new one for the price. Although not the best. It certainly won't be a slouch and that i7 should have a few more good years to it. Perhaps long enough for one more GPU upgrade beyond this one.

I have an i5-3570K @4.2Ghz and GTX 970 4GB. I certainly can't see any reason to upgrade my CPU anytime soon. Although I'll likely upgrade my GPU next year to whatever higher end option nVidia or AMD offers. The i7 doesn't need as high a clock speed due to hyperthreading as most recent and upcoming AAA titles are heavily multi-threaded.

Your motherboard should support up to an i7-3770k with a BIOS update. Check your manufacturer.

 

[Mcjv2016]

As you are willing to go used. If you hunt about on eBay UK. You can pick up a used R9 280x 3GB for around £80. It is cheaper but much faster than either the R9 270x or Rx 460.

In between the 270x and 460. The 270x is faster. If you don't mind the heat and noise. It is a better buy.

As far as the CPU upgrade you mentioned. You can pick up an i7-2600 for about £90 used. ~£170 for a Core i7-2600 and Radeon R9 280x 3GB will get you a far better system then you could ever hope for in building a new one for the price. Although not the best. It certainly won't be a slouch and that i7 should have a few more good years to it. Perhaps long enough for one more GPU upgrade beyond this one.

I have an i5-3570K @4.2Ghz and GTX 970 4GB. I certainly can't see any reason to upgrade my CPU anytime soon. Although I'll likely upgrade my GPU next year to whatever higher end option nVidia or AMD offers. The i7 doesn't need as high a clock speed due to hyperthreading as most recent and upcoming AAA titles are heavily multi-threaded.

Your motherboard should support up to an i7-3770k with a BIOS update. Check your manufacturer.

Thanks for giving me some assurance in this generation CPU to be fair this i3 is the best ive had so far so i will be amazed once i get an i7, i cant find anything on my specific PC/MOBO all i can find is a pdf document from acer saying any 2nd Gen i3/i5/i7 is compatible. ive tried everywhere on the web forums to no avail but im happy to stick with 2nd gen for now.

As for the GPU i think i will definitely go with the r9 270x 2GB i would hold out for a deal on ebay for a 3GB version or better but i could get the 2GB tomorrow i can also trade in my old card for store credit to get even cheaper, the same store has a i5 2500 also for £55 but i think ill hang on for an i7.on ebay thanks for all the help.