Best gaming rig for $550? Also worried about bottlenecking

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tymann23

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May 6, 2013
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Hi guys, I guess this is the right place to ask this question?

Anyway, right now I'm thinking about getting an AMD FX 6300 and a 660 2gb on Microcenter, I would prefer to get an Intel CPU, but it would take me out of my budget. Now I'm worried that if I get an FX 6300 that it might bottleneck a 7870 or a 660/660ti.

I will be playing at a resolution of 1440 x 900, given that is my monitors native resolution. And, the games I mostly will be playing will be Fallout 3 and Fallout NewVegas, Skyrim and all three of them I will be playing with mods. Other games I know I want to play through at least once that I can think of are Metro 2033, Far Cry 2 and 3, Max Payne 3, Borderlands 1 and 2, the Battlefield series, the Dead Space series, the Crysis series, maybe some Call of Duty etc. But, Fallout 3 and Fallout New Vegas, and Skyrim will be definitely my go to games that I'll be playing the most and I'll be playing them with mods.

So, I'd like to know will I be okay with this CPU & GPU at a resolution of 1440 x 900? And, will the FX 6300 and 660/660ti or 7870 be a sufficient combination? Also, I'll probably be getting 8 gigs of RAM. Thanks guys in advance for your help. I really could use the help for my first gaming rig.
 
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Matsushima

Matsushima

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Mar 6, 2013
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The processor would be ok for the video card. Also there are 7870LE/XT models that use the superior 79xx series architecture with some functionality removed-basically a crippled 7950/7970. Also read this article http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/gaming-processor-frame-rate-performance,3427-5.html and see if you can afford a cheap i5 processor.

The setup will get you playing but Crysis 3 is a veryveryvery demanding game so it might not run as fast. However your resolution is 1440x900 so you don't have much to worry about.
 
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envy14tpe

envy14tpe

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Mar 3, 2012
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Since you are playing at 1600x900 the 660 is plenty and will handle all games. Also, the FX-6300 is the best value CPU (in my opinion) and it will not bottleneck in current games. If you had a 3 year old dual core then I'd be worried, but the 6300 is awesome.

You could buy a 660ti but I think it is wasted on a 1600x900 monitor. Stick with a $200 GPU.

Yes, get 2x4gb RAM 1600.

I highly recommend you overclock the 6300. You'll need a Cooler Master Evo to help with the cooling but the performance you will gain is phenomenal.

What is your motherboard?
 
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Matsushima

Matsushima

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The 6300 is a very capable processor but keep in mind that some, not all, 970/760G chipset motherboards only support it after a BIOS update, I'm not sure about 990X and 990FX, but it is good to check the motherboard manufacturer's website.
 
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Matsushima

Matsushima

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The motherboard you chose is great, but remember to check the CPU support list because you may need to update BIOS before the CPU can work in the motherboard. The BIOS is the 'brain' of the motherboard. If the BIOS does not support the processor, chances are it will not work. Also, I do not think there is Crossfire on that motherboard, rather Hybrid Crossfire. This means you will need a HD 3450 GPU-a low-end card from five years ago. Hybrid Crossfire means the iGPU and dedicated GPU work together, but this is only compatible with a 3xxx GPU-five years ago. Asus is one of the best brands out there, but I would recommend this board. http://www.asrock.com/mb/AMD/980DE3U3S3/?cat=CPU It has USB3 and SATA 6Gb/s connectors, and also natively supports FX processors (That's what it says on the AsRock website-the FX is supported by the earliest BIOS version).
I'm not sure about availability though, so you might be better off buying the Asus board if you can't find it.
Low-end boards designed for AM3+ processors have mostly the same features, just don't get MSI's. Mine had bad voltage regulators, memory slots that made a high-pitched squeaking noise and no audio.

G.Skill is a good, reputable quality manufacturer; Kingston is another.
 
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envy14tpe

envy14tpe

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Mar 3, 2012
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If Microcenter is an option then you are one lucky person:
http://www.microcenter.com/site/products/amd_bundles.aspx
You can get a FX-6300 + 970 Extreme 4 for $170. Insanely awesome.
 
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