HD 6950 w/ Core i3 Bottleneck?

[iduhfuse]

Hey guys, I thought this out and I think the HD 6950 is the best possible card for my system. Any chance of getting a bottleneck between the HD 6950 and my core i3 @3.8ghz? -thanks

System specs:

Core i3 530 @2.93 (stock) OC @3.8ghz
Mushkin Enhanced DDR3 2GBx2 @ 1380mhz (oc)
Gigabyte H55M-UD2H mobo
Thermaltake 500watt psu with 43Amps combined on the 12V rails
HD 5770 Vapour-x OC

 

[jyjjy]

It really depends on a number of things; the specific game, what settings it is being run on and the resolution being used. In general though I would say an i3 at 3.8ghz isn't a reason to avoid a card like the HD6950 at 1080p or above.

 

[ilysaml]

But better upgrade to a quad core as most of the modern games are CPU intensive and requires more than 2 cores.

 

[iduhfuse]

oh woops of course, i run at 1600x900 no higher. ilysaml, I kind of doubt I need a quad-core because my core i3 @ 3.8ghz works its magic on every game I play. Not to mention I'm on a budget haha. I'm preparing for BF3 and Skyrim.

 

[shrkbay]

You'll be fine. Your i3 is well OCed and there won't be any bottleneck, but i think it's a waste to get such a powerful GPU for 16x9.

 

[iduhfuse]

well, I did think of getting an overclocked model cheaper than the HD 6950 and then overclocking that OC model even further? What do you think of that?

 

[jyjjy]

Yeah, for 1600x900 an HD6950 is of very question necessity no matter the processor. With a dual core an HD6870 is the definitely the most you should consider and even that is overkill IMO. I'd say an HD6850 or GTX 460 is about right for your situation.

 

[iduhfuse]

Does anyone have news on the new amd 7000series or gtx 600 series? If they don't come out before Christmas then I'll probably get my HD 6950 right away.

 

[jyjjy]

An HD6950 is a waste on your resolution. I would only get it if you plan on upgrading the monitor. As for the HD7000 series some rumors say early December for the mid-range models others say early 2012 for the whole series.

 

[mactronix]

Hey guys, I thought this out and I think the HD 6950 is the best possible card for my system. Any chance of getting a bottleneck between the HD 6950 and my core i3 @3.8ghz? -thanks

No

Mactronix

 

[bestlink101]

core i3 is actually pretty good, it is as powerfull as a amd phenom ii x4 due to better architecture and uses less power

 

[iduhfuse]

I think I'll settle on a HD 6870 right before november hits, unless any news changes my mind otherwise. -thanks for all the responses!

 

[shrkbay]

A week ago, i read an article saying the HD7000s will be out by christmas.

 

[sibela]

I have a similar situation. Core i3, and probably getting a Radeon 6950 1GB soon. I want to play at 1080p though, and also plan on upgrading next year to either i5 or i7 Sandy/Ivy bridge, depending on the price/performance ratio.

I've been told there shouldn't be a big, noticeable bottleneck, specially if you OC, so you'll be fine, and if you got the 6870 at the end, you can simply forget about any issues like these


@shrkbay: interesting, new HDs coming out soon? Did you see any details about their price or performance?

 

[jyjjy]

Supposedly the mid-range cards of the series might be out in early December(though I wouldn't count on it.) They will likely be similar in performance to the HD6950/70 with better power efficiency. Price is entirely unknown but I wouldn't count on them being a particularly superior value for the money than current cards at launch.