Phenom II X4 965BE w/ R9 280

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jasten13

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I'd like to upgrade my HD 5770 to something more robust, and the R9 280 seems like an excellent option in the sub-$200 range. However, I'm wondering if I would be bottlenecking the card with my current CPU and could get away with a slightly older, less expensive card. Or if I should go with a GeForce instead; I've been reading and it seems like the Maxwell architecture is excellent. Keep in mind that I generally do not play AAA titles until several years after their release. Ideally, the card would keep me running for the next ~2-4 years until I upgrade the entire system (most likely to an Intel; this has been an interesting run on an AMD but I don't have the patience to OC my CPU, which seems to be an AMD specialty).

Current specs:
Phenom II X4 965 BE
GA 970a-ds3p
HD 5770
Corsair 8GB 1600MHz 1.5V DDR3 RAM (recently upgraded from an early 1.8V DDR3 set -- yikes)
I forget what my PSU is; I think it's a 750W Rosewill (it's also on my upgrade list)

Thank you!
 
Solution
Undying89
280 is a good choice. It will last you longer than 285 or 960. Also, bottleneck will depend on the games you'll be playing. At stock 3.4ghz PII will bottleneck in Arma, Planetiside or MMO's, not badly though.

You can do one thing : Overclock it to 3.7-3.8ghz, it will help greatly.
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Undying89

Undying89

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280 is a good choice. It will last you longer than 285 or 960. Also, bottleneck will depend on the games you'll be playing. At stock 3.4ghz PII will bottleneck in Arma, Planetiside or MMO's, not badly though.

You can do one thing : Overclock it to 3.7-3.8ghz, it will help greatly.
 
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Alpha3031

Alpha3031

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Yes, I agree, the 280 would be the best out there in terms of price/performance (unless you're willing to shell out an extra 20 to get a R9 290?). You shouldn't really worry about bottlenecks, unless the system is very mismatched (think pentium and GTX 970) because you just need to fiddle with the game settings. I'd also suggest a staggered upgrade path, so you upgrade the GPU now, and CPU/MB/RAM next cycle, and back to GPU the cycle after that, because that should keep the cost lower.
 
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jasten13

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I use a CoolerMaster Hyper 212 EVO. I used the stock cooler for several years, and it was ... sub-par. Not sure which PSU it is -- I've moved several times in the past few years and can't find the box -- but I used to run a CrossFire'd pair of 5770s, so it could at least keep up with that..
 
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Embra

Embra

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^ +1 :)

 
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LucoTF

LucoTF

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If it's a Rosewill CAPSTONE then it's one of the best PSUs on the market, no need to upgrade. If it's a HIVE then it's an ok PSU, not the worst out there. if it's any other rosewill then I'm not so sure.

Regardless, with a 750w PSU and a 212 EVO you're all set to OC than phenom, I wouldn't bother upgrading to an FX at this stage. Best to get all the juice out of your current CPU that you can, then switch to intel later. You mentioned you're a couple years behind on big budget titles so you should be fine :)
 
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