Motherboard Upgrade - 970 or 990?

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Phewmite

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Mar 24, 2010
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I'm looking to upgrade my motherboard and processor, this is my first real build so I'm a little unsteady with the motherboard. I am using this as a gaming computer (playing mostly BF4) but am also on a tight budget.

I am debating between the MSI 970 Gaming AM3+ with a FX-8320 or a Gigabyte GA-970A-UD3P, but a lot of chatter I'm reading online is the 970 is dated. Would I be better off spending more to get a 990 motherboard and save on the processor with a FX-6300 for future upgradability or stick with the 970?

I currently have a MSI R9 270 Gaming video card and have no plans at all to crossfire.
 
Solution
Dark Lord of Tech
Here is a great brand new 970 release that has a 6+2 power design , and supports dual cards.

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

Motherboard: MSI 970 GAMING ATX AM3+ Motherboard ($89.99 @ Newegg)
Total: $89.99
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2014-08-01 10:44 EDT-0400


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nostall

nostall

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Nov 28, 2012
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If that is all your budget will allow, then the 990X or 990FX chipset is much better, and the 6300 processor is one of AMD's best.
If your budget is a little bigger, consider an itel i5 and an appropriate mobo (you'll need to do a little research to see what fits your budget and needs best).
Keep in mind, a mobo and cpu upgrade will require a complete reinstall of Windows.
 
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Phewmite

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Mar 24, 2010
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I'm trying to keep things as close to $400 as possible. I've always had intel before, but looking at prices so far that is an immediate additional $200 for CPU and Mobo.

What I have read the 990 is good if you are going for overclocking and multi-card setups which I really have no plans to do. I just don't want to get something that is not going to be upgradable in the future.
 
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