Best CPU/GPU combo for Skyrim

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rejsx123

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Dec 26, 2013
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Hi all, I'm currently looking to buy a new gaming pc for around £600. I'll be using it mainly for games like Skyrim, so I'm aware that I'll need a decent CPU in addition to a good graphics card. With that in mind, I've narrowed it down to 3 options but as I'm new to all this, I don't know which one will play the games better so I'd appreciate it if you guys could help me decide.

1)
Case - Galaxy Evo Gaming Case USB3 3x Red/Blue LED Switchable Fans
Motherboard - Gigabyte H81M-S2PV
CPU Type - Intel I5 4th Generation Haswell
CPU Model - Intel Core I5 4440 3.1ghz 6mb Cache 4th Gen Haswell
CPU Socket - Intel 1150
CPU Clock Speed - 3.1 Ghz
CPU Max Turbo Clock Speed - 3.1 Ghz
Memory - 8gb crucial ballistix DDR3 1600mhz Performance Ram
Hard Drive Size - 1tb Western Digital WD10EZEX Sata 6Gb/s 64mb Cache 7200rpm
Optical Drive - Samsung 24x SH-224DB/BEBE Sata DVD Writer
Graphics Card - AMD Radeon R9 270X 2gb GDDR5 with HDMI, DVI-D, DVI-I, Display Port
PSU - Corsair CX600 80 Plus Bronze 600w Power Supply
Operating System - Windows 8.1 64bit With License / Disc Installed

2)
Case - Vantage Blue Gaming Case with LED Fans
Motherboard - Gigabyte 78LMT-USB3 Rev 5.0 Black Edition
CPU Type - AMD FX Six Core
CPU Model - AMD FX 6300 3.5ghz Six Core 14mb Cache
CPU Socket - AMD AM3 / AM3+
CPU Clock Speed - 3.5 Ghz
CPU Max Turbo Clock Speed - 4.1 Ghz
Memory - 8gb crucial ballistix DDR3 1600mhz Performance Ram
Hard Drive Size - 1tb Western Digital WD10EZEX Sata 6Gb/s 64mb Cache 7200rpm
Optical Drive - Samsung 24x SH-224DB/BEBE Sata DVD Writer
Graphics Card - AMD Radeon R9 280X 3gb GDDR5 with HDMI, DVI-D, DVI-I, Display Port
PSU - Corsair CX600 80 Plus Bronze 600w Power Supply
Operating System - Windows 8.1 64bit With License / Disc Installed

3)
Case Built In - Vantage Blue Gaming Case with LED Fans
Motherboard - Gigabyte 78LMT-USB3 Rev 5.0 Black Edition
CPU Type - AMD FX Eight Core
CPU Model - AMD FX 8350 4.0ghz Eight Core 16mb Cache
CPU Socket - AMD AM3 / AM3+
CPU Clock Speed - 4.0 Ghz
CPU Max Turbo Clock Speed - 4.2 Ghz
Memory - 8gb crucial ballistix DDR3 1600mhz Performance Ram
Hard Drive Size - 1tb Western Digital WD10EZEX Sata 6Gb/s 64mb Cache 7200rpm
Optical Drive - Samsung 24x SH-224DB/BEBE Sata DVD Writer
Graphics Card - AMD Radeon R9 270X 2gb GDDR5 with HDMI, DVI-D, DVI-I, Display Port
PSU - Corsair CX600 80 Plus Bronze 600w Power Supply
Operating System - Windows 8.1 64bit With License / Disc Installed

As you can see, each build has a different CPU and the six core one has a better graphics card. If you could leave any advice on which to go for, it would be much appreciated. Thanks, Ryan.
 
Solution
maddogfargo
Skyrim will only use a few (maybe 2?) CPU cores. So it will benefit more from Intel's better per-core performance rather than AMD's more cores approach. A nicely overclocked i3 will run it just fine.

However, bear in mind this applies if all you plan to play is Skyrim or other games that don't use more cores. Modern/Multi-core optimized titles like Crysis 3, Arma 2, Metro 2033 and others will do as well, sometimes better, on an AMD platform. So system choice depends heavily on the games you plan to play and how many cores they can use.
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rejsx123

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Dec 26, 2013
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10,510
Yeah I thought that the intel one was the best also. How we'll do you think it would be able to run the game? I'd only be able to play at 1920x1080 as that's what my monitor can display so do you think I'd be able to get good fps on high/ultra settings?

 
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maddogfargo

maddogfargo

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Nov 28, 2006
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Skyrim will only use a few (maybe 2?) CPU cores. So it will benefit more from Intel's better per-core performance rather than AMD's more cores approach. A nicely overclocked i3 will run it just fine.

However, bear in mind this applies if all you plan to play is Skyrim or other games that don't use more cores. Modern/Multi-core optimized titles like Crysis 3, Arma 2, Metro 2033 and others will do as well, sometimes better, on an AMD platform. So system choice depends heavily on the games you plan to play and how many cores they can use.
 
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Solution
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KillerGamer

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Dec 4, 2013
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System 1 is the best according to me. However, I don't recommend buying a 4th gen Haswell card. In stead, go for an Ivy Bridge as Haswell cards have been reported to be highly inefficient and are not up to the mark. I'd get an Intel Core i5 3570k which retails for nearly the same as the 4440, but has the ability to overclock as it comes unlocked (OCing ability would mean that the card is less likely to be out dated soon). The choice of the GPU seems good as it will benefit from Mantle. However, I don't recommend going for an AMD processor due to their poor per core performance and lower efficiency. Hope this helped. Cheers!
 
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R

rejsx123

Honorable
Dec 26, 2013
6
0
10,510
Thanks for all the replies. I was leaning towards the intel one and this has confirmed it for me. I was aware of some of these problems with the haswell CPUs but I am buying these pre built and my choice of intel processor was limited to haswell ones only. I'll only be using the pc for RPGs like skyrim as I'll play fps games on my playstation
 
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K

KillerGamer

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Dec 4, 2013
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Then go for it! Hope you have fun with your new build. Also, don't forget to vote the answer which solved your query as 'the best answer' as it may help people encountering with the same or similar issue. Cheers!
 
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