AMD APU A10 6800K best GPU

flasher33 · Aug 10, 2013

Hi.
I am building a new rig based on the new APU from AMD and was wondering what GPU from AMD 7000 series should I go for.
I want the Highest one that has no bottleneck with the system like the 78XX.

refllect · Aug 10, 2013

Don't put a GPU with a A-series processor. Really not cost efficient.

getochkn · Aug 10, 2013

If you plan on adding a video card to an A10 system, why not go a different processor instead like the FX series. The chips are near the same price. You could get a 6350 that would blow the A10 out of the water for the same price.

The A8/A10 APU chips are great a budget build where someone doesn't game, the APU is great for HD video, facebook gaming, a few light older games, etc. It blows away intels integrated GPU's. If you want to add a discrete video card later, it's great for that too.

Building a system off the start with a video card, I would stay away from the A10 and go the FX 6300 or FX 6350. It's a 6 core CPU that will do much better than the A10's. You don't need the built in video of the A10 since your adding a video card, so why pay for it. You're better off paying for the extra 2 cores and speed increase instead.

Burdu · Aug 10, 2013

You can wait kaveri APU... maybe it can dual graphics with 7xxx radeon series.but you shouldn't buy an APU and a GPU that can't dual graphics.Buy a CPU and a separate GPU,not an APU.
APU=cpu+gpu
APU is made when you don't have money for both(CPU and GPU)

Vacka · Aug 10, 2013

Hello, i believe that the best gpu you can hybrid crossfire an a10 with is the 7750(90$) also, since this is an apu build, you should go with higher speed ram because in an apu rig there can be a 12 fps diffirence between 1600mhz ram and 2400mhz ram.

minty33 · Aug 31, 2013

getochkn :

i disagree. obviously there is more expensive routes to go to yeild better graphics, but the real advantage of the A10 is it has a good integrated radeon already and is the first integratedf chip to work with crossfire so you would never be waisting your money as you would be able to add a new less expensive card making it equivelent to just one more expensive card. i am a comp. tech and i built my system with a10 because it was the most cost effective solution for this build. the tower is really for hosting VM's for my "lab" environment hence the 32gb ram and 3 1tb disks. the idea is the one disk is my main linux desktop the other has windoze for me to play WoW and the third is xen for VM hosting. before you ask xen has to be on a seperate drive because it's bare metal virtualization and must think it's the only boot loader so for me to use the others i must change bios since xen can't multiboot nor should it for security reasons. since gaming wasn't the focus of my build the A10 was perfect. if i was just using it for VM lab i woulda got an 8core to handle the multiple IO's, and not worried about the integrated chip, but after seeing the A10 i figured i could get 2 pretty good spec builds from the one machine. it all cost under $1,000, including blueray/dvd/cd/ RW, multicard reader, remote for tv/hdvide a ton of usb 3 ports, all SATA 6gbs on the board, wirelss lan card, and surround sound speakers etc.... long story short is unless it's sole purpose is the best graohics/frame-rate then your right, but for 99% of gamers the A10 or A10 with crossfired 2nd gpu is plenty. too many gamers become graphics snobs, and the returns are negligible on the money they invest to get the highest end gpu's. granted i'm not playing crysis 3 on highest settings but i don't really feel it's neccessary unless you just want to be able to say you can. it's not a ridiculously huge difference. for me it's perfect for mmorpg's, team fortress, and as you said HD video. don't forget alot of the most popular titles ppl play are not of the crysis 3 variety. most ppl pc game mmorpg's, minecraft, ARMA stuff like that where high end stuff is overkill. oh yea i also knew i would have a ton of fast ram at my disposal(32gb 2400) because of the VM's need for it. keep in mind the A10's memory unit can't handle all 32gb at once set at 2400 but i can dial back the quantity and up it to 2400 via bios. i just need to tell it to use 1 slots for 8gb not all four. actually shitty windoze 7 home basic will only ever use 16gb(MS caps ram on basic edition for some reason) so i don't even need to do that in my case. FYI i hate windoze if you hadn't noticed

minty33 · Aug 31, 2013

Vacka :

you're right but keep in mind the cpu limits the speed on large quantities ram even when it says rated forr 2400 thats not true for all quantities you put in the board.. the memory logic unit on an A10 can only run memory that fast if there is 4gb, at 8gb it drops to 1833 and 16gb to 1666 and 32gb, as i have, i must dial it down to 1333. that said i can just go into bios and tell it to use one stick and then up my speed because my ram is rated that high(2400). i just can't run it that high with all 32gb active. most ppl don't realize this about processors in genral. they see it rated for 2400 but don't know thats at an optimal amount of memory decided by the processor not the board or ram modules. it won't blow up or anything but stability suffers and pagefaults occur ect,,,
this is why price compounds so fast on a true gaming build. you can't just get one high end component and expect it to perform the way it should if all your components are not of an equivalent high end level. this is true even if they are compatible. compatibility and performance are two different things.

minty33 · Aug 31, 2013

flasher33 :

the radeon hd 6670 is the highest you can be with a dual graphics set up. don't let that fool you though it is still a compitent rig that way. these other guys are sinking 1000 dollars into gpu's so they can brag about highest settings on crysis3 and what not. the 6670 has the same architecture as the A10 APU's gpu but has the extra speed features lacking in the integrated one. so when you run them in dual graphics you get a nice little set up for a budget. the tests are confusing in that there doesn't appear to be a difference between running in dual graphics or just the discrete 6670 untiil you set it to 1080p and DX9 medium settings. with those setting the frame rates are 18fps faster than just running the discrete card. interestingly it is also 15fps faster than an i3 running a discrete 6670. there is no clear difference between these cards on high quality setting including an i3 with discrete 6670. so if your ok running games on medium, as most ppl should be, then at 1080p the a10 dual setup is 40% better. if you run on high settings the dual graphics only gets a 1-2fps difference however you stil need the discrete card to do that. it's kinda weird how it works but bottom line is for medium settings at 1080p it can't be beat for the money. i'll list the frame rates as tested on arkham and dirt with discrete only and dual below: best with dx9. keep in mind the i3 with same discrete card(alot more $$ combined) is the same as the A10 with duall in each case so i didn't put it.
***1080 & med quality - A10dual=65fps A10discrete only=47fps i3 w/6670=49fps ***
1080 & high quality - A10dual=46fps A10discrete only=45fps
720 & med quality - A10dual=73fps A10discrete only=72fps
720 & high quality - A10dual=81fps A10discrete only=82fps
** as you see these are decent fps's and blow away the consoles in all cases, but the return on dual graphics is only clear at 1080p with medium settings however to use it as a discrete alone you still need the card so might as well get the extra fps or 2 as it doesn't hurt. i myself am happy the overall results in the fact that for the money these are pretty good frame rates even on high so if it makes you happy then forget what these other ppl with their 500-1000 cards think. it's still way faster than a console and plenty of ppl enjoy those. keep in mind that fps is really only a big deal for shooters like COD Battlefeild and crysis etc.. most of the ps4 games scheduled are still capped at 30fps because the devs even say there is no need for 60fps for their type of game. also even battlefeild4 to acheive the 60fps rate is only in 720p on the ps4. as you see above you would be way faster than the ps4 battlefeild4 if you ran in 720 like they are. better yet you could go 1080 on medium w/ this rig and still be faster and better resolution than xbox1 or ps4 battlefeild4.

Lee Robbins · Sep 19, 2013

minty33 :

flasher33 :

the radeon hd 6670 is the highest you can be with a dual graphics set up. don't let that fool you though it is still a compitent rig that way. these other guys are sinking 1000 dollars into gpu's so they can brag about highest settings on crysis3 and what not. the 6670 has the same architecture as the A10 APU's gpu but has the extra speed features lacking in the integrated one. so when you run them in dual graphics you get a nice little set up for a budget. the tests are confusing in that there doesn't appear to be a difference between running in dual graphics or just the discrete 6670 untiil you set it to 1080p and DX9 medium settings. with those setting the frame rates are 18fps faster than just running the discrete card. interestingly it is also 15fps faster than an i3 running a discrete 6670. there is no clear difference between these cards on high quality setting including an i3 with discrete 6670. so if your ok running games on medium, as most ppl should be, then at 1080p the a10 dual setup is 40% better. if you run on high settings the dual graphics only gets a 1-2fps difference however you stil need the discrete card to do that. it's kinda weird how it works but bottom line is for medium settings at 1080p it can't be beat for the money. i'll list the frame rates as tested on arkham and dirt with discrete only and dual below: best with dx9. keep in mind the i3 with same discrete card(alot more $$ combined) is the same as the A10 with duall in each case so i didn't put it.
***1080 & med quality - A10dual=65fps A10discrete only=47fps i3 w/6670=49fps ***
1080 & high quality - A10dual=46fps A10discrete only=45fps
720 & med quality - A10dual=73fps A10discrete only=72fps
720 & high quality - A10dual=81fps A10discrete only=82fps
** as you see these are decent fps's and blow away the consoles in all cases, but the return on dual graphics is only clear at 1080p with medium settings however to use it as a discrete alone you still need the card so might as well get the extra fps or 2 as it doesn't hurt. i myself am happy the overall results in the fact that for the money these are pretty good frame rates even on high so if it makes you happy then forget what these other ppl with their 500-1000 cards think. it's still way faster than a console and plenty of ppl enjoy those. keep in mind that fps is really only a big deal for shooters like COD Battlefeild and crysis etc.. most of the ps4 games scheduled are still capped at 30fps because the devs even say there is no need for 60fps for their type of game. also even battlefeild4 to acheive the 60fps rate is only in 720p on the ps4. as you see above you would be way faster than the ps4 battlefeild4 if you ran in 720 like they are. better yet you could go 1080 on medium w/ this rig and still be faster and better resolution than xbox1 or ps4 battlefeild4.

You seem to know your stuff there mate you've just sold the a10 to me this is exactly what I was looking for in my build something not over the top cost wise but a little better then the ps4 thanks

Adam Landsberg · Oct 4, 2013

No guy it wont beat a ps4...

The ps4 has a 7850 inside way faster than the a10 with a 6670.
I have a A8 -5600k and use a geforce 550ti my girlfiend has a 550ti with a fx4150 cpu and my A8 is faster.. not sure why I think its beacause the A8 boosts to 3.8 easyer than fx4150

Vacka · Oct 13, 2013

Adam Landsberg :

Uh dude that will beat the ps4 graphics because the 6670 will hybrid crossfire with the integrated on the a10-6800k. Which will pretty much boost it to around a 7850.

Guest · Oct 13, 2013

The hybrid crossfire mode for APUs has terrible microstutter.

Avro Arrow · Oct 13, 2013

I must agree with getochkn. There is no reason to have an A10 APU with a powerful discrete card. The lack of L3 cache is a serious limitation to gaming at high levels and it is far more expensive. This is why they're never used in high end gaming situations. If you want to use an HD 78xx or better card, get an FX-6300 and use the savings to possibly increase your GPU to the next available level.

getochkn · Oct 13, 2013

Avro Arrow :

Exactly. It's like buying a smart car because they are cheap on gas, and while they don't go very fast, they are cheap and suit your needs BUT you want to rip out the engine, but in a bigger one, add in nitro, and all kinds of other boosters. Then why not buy a car that is suited to being tweaked out in the first place.

jaguarskx · Oct 13, 2013

Here are some examples of why you should not get an AMD APU for a gaming rig if you can afford to buy a more powerful CPU. The benchmarks uses the prior generation Trinity APU (A10-5700) vs. the current generation Richland APU. The only difference between the two is that Richland officially supports DDR3-2133 RAM. Reviews have shown there is very little performance difference between the APUs.

http://www.techspot.com/review/706-splinter-cell-blacklist-benchmarks/page5.html

http://www.techspot.com/review/689-company-of-heroes-2-performance/page4.html

http://www.techspot.com/review/670-metro-last-light-performance/page6.html

http://www.techspot.com/review/648-simcity-performance/page4.html

http://www.techspot.com/review/642-crysis-3-performance/page6.html

http://www.techspot.com/review/615-far-cry-3-performance/page6.html

http://www.techspot.com/review/608-hitman-absolution-performance-benchmarks/page6.html

jbollinger0 · Feb 16, 2014

Ok but are those min fps max or avg? i mean if they are minimum then lol the athlon 2 would do avg ya not to good and high well thats the highest it hit so it is irrelevant. Not only that many game companies have stated they dont make them to run on the HIGHEST or MAX settings. that wasnt the way it was intended to be played on current hardware.

jaguarskx · Feb 16, 2014

Those are max FPS.

Most hardcore gamers prefer maxing out the graphics quality.

vibhu bhardwaj 8dewil8 · Aug 23, 2014

getochkn :

look brother i am having a same question i have 2 options 1. to buy amd fx6300 and 1 graphic card between 4000-5000 2. to buy amd a-10 and no graphic card as it have a inbuilt one ,i also have one zotac gt210 with me i want to know if it can increase the power of my amd a-10? and can i use dual graphic card of different companies like one gt210 and one another graphic card of amd for amd fx6300?
pls tell wat is best for me ,and i will buy good heatsink also as amd heats up fast ,thank you in advance

BIGMACASSASSIN · Aug 26, 2014

flasher33 :

I have a amd a8-6600k and it runs games like skyrim with no problem as long as u have 8gb of 1866 or higher and you can always pair the apu with a Radeon 6670 and the integrated graphics will combine with the gpu and if you add an even better graphics card it will automatically use the gpu I think the amd a series is a great buy for the price but if you can afford a good graphics card than your probably better off buying a different processor

marcostet · Oct 17, 2014

getochkn :

but what if you already have a amd a8 and you want to add more graphics power i have a fm2 socket so a FX is out of the question. what video card could i add to make my rig more "game friendly?"

prizedcoffeecup · Nov 13, 2014

Adam Landsberg :

Just thought I would let you know that I found a 1 GB EVGA GTX 460 SE faster than the 550 ti back when I was using it. In fact, I am trying to locally sell a next to mint GTX 460 of the aforementioned model right now.

Colin Sheffer · Jan 26, 2015

getochkn :

I know this is a late response, but I can tell that you don't own an AMD A-Series Processor. I have an a8 that runs most, no ALL the games I have (Skyrim, SWTOR, COD, etc) on default (usually around medium) settings. I see your point, as if you are really serious maybe it isn't the best option. But I'd like to add I only use the intergraded graphics for these settings. Hope the next person that sees this understands, as FX doesn't have built-in graphics so the price is higher anyway,

getochkn · Jan 26, 2015

Colin Sheffer :

getochkn :

I know this is a late response, but I can tell that you don't own an AMD A-Series Processor. I have an a8 that runs most, no ALL the games I have (Skyrim, SWTOR, COD, etc) on default (usually around medium) settings. I see your point, as if you are really serious maybe it isn't the best option. But I'd like to add I only use the intergraded graphics for these settings. Hope the next person that sees this understands, as FX doesn't have built-in graphics so the price is higher anyway,

I do have one in my media PC. The whole point of my post, that you missed, and the original post, was that they wanted to buy a APU and a GPU. Why bother. Buy a CPU and GPU. Makes no sense to buy a APU and not use the GPU part of it.

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