Component upgrade for gaming pc: GPU or CPU with limited budget

Krabban

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Jan 16, 2014
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I'm looking to upgrade either my GPU or CPU, but I would like some advice as to which would give the greater performance boost.

Current setup:

GPU: Radeon R9 270X 2GB
CPU: AMD FX-6300
MB: Gigabyte GA-970A-UD3P

So, what upgrade would give the biggest performance boost? My budget is around what the GTX 960 2GB costs, so naturally this is the card I am currently considering buying, but I have a few concerns:

1. Would this give rise to any bottlenecking regarding the CPU?
2. Is the performance boost so marginal that I should save up some more and buy a more expensive card?
3. Should I instead upgrade my CPU?

In short I am wondering what you guys think I should upgrade to get the optimal setup given my limited budget...
 
Solution
Your CPU is fine for now. Problem is your budget isn't allowing for enough of upgrade to GPU to make it worth it. 960 edges out 270x but not by much. If you could get a 290X it may be worth it.
If you want a boost in fps and graphical settings, get a GPU. A GTX 960 is relatively a small increase in my opinion but it will be fine for 1080p ultra settings most of the time. The AMD equivalent is the R9 280X. You could also try and overclock the cpu if you have a decent aftermarket cpu cooler.
 

Krabban

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Jan 16, 2014
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OK so basically I'd have to switch out both my gpu and cpu to get any noteworthy results? Getting an i5 would mean switching out my motherboard as well, isn't there an equivalent option from AMD?
 


You can keep your FX 6300 for now. Get a decent cpu cooler and you can overclock it to increase cpu performance.
 

Krabban

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Jan 16, 2014
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Thanks for the tip, but I've already done it. I've currently got it running at 4.3 GHz with an EVO 212
 

Krabban

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Jan 16, 2014
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Ok, I see. Well, then I will save up a bit more and get a heftier GPU upgrade, and in time upgrade my CPU as well. Thanks!