Need help picking GPU and CPU for $600 gaming rig

potatofarms · Sep 3, 2013

Hello, I'm in the process of picking parts for a $600 gaming rig. I mostly plan on playing Guild Wars 2 and Battlefield 3, however I will most likely get other games in the future.

My original plan was to get the i3-3220 ($118) along with the HIS IceQ Boost Clock Radeon HD 7950 ($214) or the MSI Radeon HD 7950 OC edition($209, although I'm not sure about this card because a lot of the newegg reviews say it runs REALLY hot). Note: I'm also considering the AMD FX-6300 instead of the i3, although I'm not sure which is the better option.

As I did a little bit more research, I've seen a lot of people say that Guild Wars 2 is very CPU intensive, so I was then rethinking my part list to maybe upgrade to the i5-3350p along with the Radeon HD 7850.

So my question is: which of the two options would be better performance for Guild Wars 2 and other games? Also, any tips to make my build better? (Part lists below)

Also, should I wait to see if AMD releases the HD 9000 series? If so, then I guess the question would be i3-3220 + similar cost to the 7950 HD 9000 series card or i5-3350p + similar cost to the 7850 HD 9000 series card.

Thanks!

Edit: Forgot to mention that I'm playing on a 1600x900 resolution monitor.

Here are my PCPartPicker lists if you want to see specifics:
i53350p + HD 7850:

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: Intel Core i5-3350P 3.1GHz Quad-Core Processor ($177.98 @ SuperBiiz)
Motherboard: MSI B75MA-P45 Micro ATX LGA1155 Motherboard ($64.94 @ Amazon)
Memory: Crucial Ballistix Sport 4GB (1 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($33.49 @ Amazon)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($62.99 @ Amazon)
Video Card: Sapphire Radeon HD 7850 2GB Video Card ($153.98 @ Newegg)
Case: Rosewill Challenger-U3 ATX Mid Tower Case ($49.99 @ Amazon)
Power Supply: SeaSonic 450W 80 PLUS Gold Certified ATX12V / EPS12V Power Supply ($63.74 @ Amazon)
Total: $607.11
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2013-09-03 15:37 EDT-0400)

i3-3220 :

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: Intel Core i3-3220 3.3GHz Dual-Core Processor ($118.99 @ Amazon)
Motherboard: MSI B75MA-P45 Micro ATX LGA1155 Motherboard ($64.94 @ Amazon)
Memory: Crucial Ballistix Sport 4GB (1 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($33.49 @ Amazon)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($62.99 @ Amazon)
Video Card: MSI Radeon HD 7950 3GB Video Card ($179.99 @ Newegg)
Case: Rosewill Challenger-U3 ATX Mid Tower Case ($49.99 @ Amazon)
Power Supply: SeaSonic 450W 80 PLUS Gold Certified ATX12V / EPS12V Power Supply ($63.74 @ Amazon)
Total: $574.13
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2013-09-03 15:45 EDT-0400)

kawininjazx · Sep 3, 2013

Definitely get the i5, get 8GB of RAM, and get a better quality power supply, at least 550w.

potatofarms · Sep 3, 2013

kawininjazx :

Do you think this one would be good enough?
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817151094&nm_mc=AFC-C8Junction&cm_mmc=AFC-C8Junction-_-na-_-na-_-na&cm_sp=&AID=10446076&PID=3938566&SID=

or this:
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00918MEZG/?tag=pcpapi-20

AMDRadeonHD · Sep 3, 2013

This is a much, much, much better choice for $600, trust me! It won't let you down: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/1zCtm

odiervr · Sep 3, 2013

Toms says: http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/gaming-cpu-review-overclock,3106-3.html

Which has the FX 6300 for $119 the best CPU at that price.

Bottom line: any of these CPU's (i5, i3, or the 6300) will do great. The real determination will be the GPU. More money on the GPU = more FPS & detail.

I vote for the quad core for longevity.

AMDRadeonHD · Sep 3, 2013

THIS!!! http://pcpartpicker.com/p/1zCtm

potatofarms · Sep 3, 2013

odiervr :

I agree that for most games the determining factor would be the GPU. The thing that I'm worried about, though, is Guild Wars 2 being very CPU intensive. So I guess what I'm wondering is would the i3-3220 or FX-6300 handle Guild Wars 2 well, or would it be better to upgrade the CPU while downgrading on the GPU a bit since Guild Wars 2 is CPU intensive. If not, the FX-6300 would be a better choice than the i3-3220?

AMDRadeonHD :

Is the FX-6300 better than the i3-3220?

AMDRadeonHD · Sep 3, 2013

potatofarms :

AMD's stock cooler is good enough when not overclocking, if you're planning to overclock later, save up some money for a later upgrade to an aftermarket cooler, like Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO. You won't regret if you bought that gaming computer from PCPartPicker that I have gave the link to you.

odiervr · Sep 3, 2013

Spud Farmer,

1. pcpartpicker before you buy. It'll help you shop some
2. I have not played GW2, but tom's says: http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/guild-wars-2-performance-benchmark,3268.html
TL,DR
3. above link is Tom's Hardware: "Guild Wars 2: Your Graphics Card And CPU Performance Guide"
4. If the answer exists, it is above.
5. Bottom line: The 6300 will do a great job. You will be very happy. That said, the more you spend the better your computer will perform.

Good Luck !!

potatofarms · Sep 3, 2013

AMDRadeonHD :

potatofarms :

AMD's stock cooler is good enough when not overclocking, if you're planning to overclock later, save up some money for a later upgrade to an aftermarket cooler, like Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO. You won't regret if you bought that gaming computer from PCPartPicker that I have gave the link to you.

Do you think I should wait for the HD 9000 series to be announced? I heard that they're going to announce those sometime this month and release them next month.

potatofarms · Sep 3, 2013

odiervr :

Yeah, I used PCPartPicker for the lists in my post at the bottom. The site helps a lot! And the more responses I get in this thread, the more I am leaning towards the FX-6300. Since I'm not planning on overclocking, would the FX-6350 be better?

RazerZ · Sep 3, 2013

potatofarms :

odiervr :

Yeah, I used PCPartPicker for the lists in my post at the bottom. The site helps a lot! And the more responses I get in this thread, the more I am leaning towards the FX-6300. Since I'm not planning on overclocking, would the FX-6350 be better?

No. A 6300 can OC to a 6350's speed easily.

potatofarms · Sep 3, 2013

RazerZ :

potatofarms :

No. A 6300 can OC to a 6350's speed easily.

Alright, thanks.

RazerZ · Sep 3, 2013

For $50 more you got a build that can play games maxed easily, uses quality parts, and looks awesome! Here's the build I would recommend:

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: AMD FX-6300 3.5GHz 6-Core Processor ($117.98 @ Outlet PC)
CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler ($29.99 @ Microcenter)
Motherboard: ASRock 990FX Extreme3 ATX AM3+/AM3 Motherboard ($119.98 @ Outlet PC)
Memory: Patriot Viper 3 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($54.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Seagate Barracuda 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($59.98 @ Outlet PC)
Video Card: MSI Radeon HD 7950 3GB Video Card ($179.99 @ Newegg)
Case: Thermaltake VL800P1W2N (Black/Red) ATX Mid Tower Case ($39.99 @ Amazon)
Power Supply: OCZ Fatal1ty 550W 80 PLUS Certified ATX12V / EPS12V Power Supply ($29.99 @ Newegg)
Optical Drive: LG GH24NS95 DVD/CD Writer ($15.99 @ Microcenter)
Total: $648.88
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2013-09-03 17:04 EDT-0400)

potatofarms · Sep 3, 2013

RazerZ :

That's actually pretty similar to the one that I just put together based on the replies in this thread.

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: AMD FX-6300 3.5GHz 6-Core Processor ($119.99 @ Newegg)
Motherboard: ASRock 970 Extreme3 R2.0 ATX AM3+ Motherboard ($92.55 @ Newegg)
Memory: Crucial Ballistix Sport 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($59.99 @ Newegg)
Video Card: HIS Radeon HD 7950 3GB Video Card ($218.98 @ Newegg)
Case: Thermaltake Commander MS-I ID ATX Mid Tower Case ($39.99 @ Amazon)
Power Supply: SeaSonic 450W 80 PLUS Gold Certified ATX12V / EPS12V Power Supply ($63.74 @ Amazon)
Total: $570.24
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2013-09-03 17:09 EDT-0400)

My only problem with it is whether or not the 450W power supply is enough or if I should bump it up to the 550W SeaSonic 80 Plus GOLD (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817151119)

RazerZ · Sep 3, 2013

potatofarms :

RazerZ :

That's actually pretty similar to the one that I just put together based on the replies in this thread.

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: AMD FX-6300 3.5GHz 6-Core Processor ($119.99 @ Newegg)
Motherboard: ASRock 970 Extreme3 R2.0 ATX AM3+ Motherboard ($92.55 @ Newegg)
Memory: Crucial Ballistix Sport 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($59.99 @ Newegg)
Video Card: HIS Radeon HD 7950 3GB Video Card ($218.98 @ Newegg)
Case: Thermaltake Commander MS-I ID ATX Mid Tower Case ($39.99 @ Amazon)
Power Supply: SeaSonic 450W 80 PLUS Gold Certified ATX12V / EPS12V Power Supply ($63.74 @ Amazon)
Total: $570.24
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2013-09-03 17:09 EDT-0400)

My only problem with it is whether or not the 450W power supply is enough or if I should bump it up to the 550W SeaSonic 80 Plus GOLD (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817151119)

Just go with my build, it is the best for the price. Your build doesn't include an HDD, CPU cooler, or an optical drive. Also Seasonic is one of my favorite PSU brands, but OCZ Fatal1ty series are pretty reliable too and are a steal for their price.

potatofarms · Sep 3, 2013

RazerZ :

potatofarms :

Just go with my build, it is the best for the price. Your build doesn't include an HDD, CPU cooler, or an optical drive. Also Seasonic is one of my favorite PSU brands, but OCZ Fatal1ty series are pretty reliable too and are a steal for their price.

Oh, I didn't even notice it was missing an HDD, haha. Thanks for pointing that out. I've never used any PSU other than Seasonic so I'm a bit nervous going for anything else, but I'll definitely look into the OCZ Fatal1ty. I've also never heard of them before. Thanks for your help though!

RazerZ · Sep 3, 2013

potatofarms :

RazerZ :

potatofarms :

Just go with my build, it is the best for the price. Your build doesn't include an HDD, CPU cooler, or an optical drive. Also Seasonic is one of my favorite PSU brands, but OCZ Fatal1ty series are pretty reliable too and are a steal for their price.

Oh, I didn't even notice it was missing an HDD, haha. Thanks for pointing that out. I've never used any PSU other than Seasonic so I'm a bit nervous going for anything else, but I'll definitely look into the OCZ Fatal1ty. I've also never heard of them before. Thanks for your help though!

No problem

Need help picking GPU and CPU for $600 gaming rig

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