$800 AMD Gaming PC

[samotage]

Hi Guy's.

This is my first time building so I hope I have everything.

Approximate Purchase Date: Mid-April

Budget Range: $800USD

System Usage from Most to Least Important: Dedicated Gaming, Multitasking, Video Editing,

Parts Not Required: Mouse, MotherBoard, Case, HDD, CD Drive

Preferred Website(s) for Parts: Amazon.com, or pbtech.co.nz

Country: New Zealand

Parts Preferences: AMD CPU's,

Overclocking: Maybe

SLI or Crossfire: Yes

Monitor Resolution: 1920x1080, 1920x1200)

Additional Comments: Needs to be able to run games on Ultra or at least High on Game's like Skyrim, Starcraft II, TF2, Guild War's, WoW ect.

Part's Already Bought: MotherBoard (GA-970a-D3 AM3+), HDD (Seagate 1TB), Case, (Cooler Master Storm Scout), DVD/CD Drive.

The list I put together:

CPU- AMD FX-6100 $149.99 USD

GPU- EVGA GTX 560Ti $229.99 USD

PSU- Cooler Master Silent Pro Gold 600w $217 NZD

RAM- Corsair Vengeance $55.45 USD

Okay how does that look does it need any changes?

 

[azeem40]

I would not get the FX 6100.
http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/gaming-fx-pentium-apu-benchmark,3120-10.html
Get the 960T. It is much better performance.

 

[g-unit1111]

I would not get the FX 6100.
http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/gaming-fx-pentium-apu-benchmark,3120-10.html
Get the 960T. It is much better performance.

I just wouldn't go AMD right now period when the $70 Pentium G620 far outperforms the $250 FX-8150.

OP: If there's a store you buy from knowing the local availability would help to suggest better parts and have the prices match your currency, it's tough to build based around what's in the US as it could drastically affect what's available in New Zealand.

 

[azeem40]

When someone specifies a certain part, I don't go against their word. I know the G620 is better.

 

[samotage]

I just wouldn't go AMD right now period when the $70 Pentium G620 far outperforms the $250 FX-8150.

OP: If there's a store you buy from knowing the local availability would help to suggest better parts and have the prices match your currency, it's tough to build based around what's in the US as it could drastically affect what's available in New Zealand.

Yes I understand. Since we are 'far' away from 'major' countries we don't get as many part's as we should. It's sad really. Like how my favourite computer store ONLY sell's AMD's new BullDozer's but sell's ALL of Intel's new and old CPU's. The part's I listed are part's you can get both in the U.S. and here in N.Z.

 

[of the way]

I just wouldn't go AMD right now period when the $70 Pentium G620 far outperforms the $250 FX-8150.

Isn't that only for gaming? For multi-tasking and video editing I thought the 6100 or 960T were better. I still don't understand why most games don't make better use of threading.

 

[samotage]

Isn't that only for gaming? For multi-tasking and video editing I thought the 6100 or 960T were better. I still don't understand why most games don't make better use of threading.

Agreed! My current First Generation i5 430 can't even handle BASIC multitasking before dying after an hour of use :/ I have seen that the FX-4100 Gives better Game Performance than a FX-6100? Is it true?

 

[azeem40]

Dual Core isn't very good at multitasking. The G620 is superior and is good at multitasking.

 

[sadams04]

PSU- Cooler Master Silent Pro Gold 600w $217 NZD

Not bad overall. I would also recommend the 960T if you can find it. Would also make sure to swap the Cooler Master PSU out for one from Antec, Corsair, XFX or Seasonic (Cooler Master is OK at best). If you want to run multiple GPUs (SLI or Crossfire : Yes), then look for one around 750w. That would leave plenty of headroom for a second 560 Ti down the road.

I too would sway you toward an Intel build if you didn't already own the AM3+ motherboard. You will be fine with this AMD rig. Even more so with an overclock which the AMD processor will need to get you close to the Ultra / High settings you are after. Be sure to add an aftermarket CPU cooler to your parts list. It is a requirement for overclocking... Here in the states the Hyper 212 Evo or Hyper 212+ are often recommended for their good price-to-performance ratio.

 

[g-unit1111]

When someone specifies a certain part, I don't go against their word. I know the G620 is better.

I usually try not to either but I just won't recommend going AMD right now when any Sandy Bridge CPU will far outperform the highest end AMD CPUs. Things *could* change with the next generation of AMD CPUs but that remains to be seen.

If the motherboard has already been acquired that's one thing - I'd definitely go with the 960T or the 970T as they've been proven to be better performers than the FX-6100 and the FX-8150 have been.

CPU- AMD FX-6100 $149.99 USD

GPU- EVGA GTX 560Ti $229.99 USD

PSU- Cooler Master Silent Pro Gold 600w $217 NZD

RAM- Corsair Vengeance $55.45 USD

Those are good choices to start with especially the EVGA 560TI. I would not get a Cooler Master Silent Pro though - go with a Corsair TX650 instead: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817139020

And watch the heat sinks on the Vengeance if you plan to get an after market cooler like a Hyper 212, this might be a better choice: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820148544

 

[DelroyMonjo]

g-unit is right about parts available locally. That PSU 600W Gold is not even available in the USA for some reason and that NZ price is about $180USD. Pretty pricey for a 600W PSU even though it's rated Gold.
I wouldn't get an AMD CPU for gaming either. Intel CPU's on LGA 1155 socket MB's are where gaming is.

 

[DelroyMonjo]

Missed all the multi-tasking posts. Yeah, the AMD's aparently do video rendering and such faster,

 

[samotage]

g-unit is right about parts available locally. That PSU 600W Gold is not even available in the USA for some reason and that NZ price is about $180USD. Pretty pricey for a 600W PSU even though it's rated Gold.
I wouldn't get an AMD CPU for gaming either. Intel CPU's on LGA 1155 socket MB's are where gaming is.

Yea :/ There are other PSU's but they were Thermaltake, Shaw ect. Corsair is great BUT in N.Z. they are very expensive!
Here's an example of a N.Z. priced Corsair PSU: http://www.pbtech.co.nz/index.php?z=p&p=PSUCOR0652&name=Corsair-650W-HX-650-ATX-Modular-PSU-7-Years-warran

 

[ceejay93]

AMD recently released the FX-6200 and the FX-4170, i would say the 4170 is worth a look at due to the higher clock speeds increasing OC'ing potential and slightly higher cache make it good bang for buck compared to the other FX CPU's


however id wait until some benchmarks appear since it only came out last week.

 

[hotthree]

Imo 7870 amd cards are coming soon...they perform on par with 580 for far less!

Sold! the 7850 I'd stay away from after readying several reviews.

 

[vitornob]

When someone specifies a certain part, I don't go against their word. I know the G620 is better.

But I think it's our 'duty' to always inform people, sometimes they're just misinformed.
And when I assemble a build for someone I always 'spend' the money as if were mine. And if were my money I wouldn't build an AMD cpu powered rig for games.

EDIT: Unless they already bought a motherboard or a piece of hardware that makes unable to build the assembled machine...or something like that

 

[azeem40]

Imo 7870 amd cards are coming soon...they perform on par with 580 for far less!

Sold! the 7850 I'd stay away from after readying several reviews.

They perform on par with the 570, not the 580.
AMD Radeon HD 7870 GHz Edition vs NVIDIA GeForce GTX 570 (1.25GB)
Battlefield 3 (2560×1600) 145%
Batman Arkham City (2560×1600) 133%
Civilization V (2560×1600 4xAA 8xAF) 160%
Crysis Warhead (2560×1600 4xAA 8xAF) 135%
Deus Ex HR (2560×1600) 125%
F1 2011 (2560×1600 8xAA 16xAF) 147%
Metro 2033 (2560×1600 4xAA 16xAF) 135%
Skyrim (2560×1600 8xAA 16xAF) 134%
Stalker COP (2560×1600 4xAA 16xAF) 147%
Total War: Shogun 2 (2560×1600) 153%

AMD Radeon HD 7850 Graphics Performance
AMD Radeon HD 7850 Graphics Performance
AMD Radeon HD 7850 vs NVIDIA GeForce GTX 560 Ti
Battlefield 3 (2560×1600) 122%
Batman Arkham City (2560×1600) 117%
Civilization V (2560×1600 4xAA 8xAF) 120%
Crysis Warhead (2560×1600 4xAA 8xAF) 124%
Deus Ex HR (2560×1600) 112%
F1 2011 (2560×1600 8xAA 16xAF) 128%
Metro 2033 (2560×1600 4xAA 16xAF) 121%
Skyrim (2560×1600 8xAA 16xAF) 146%
Stalker COP (2560×1600 4xAA 16xAF) 130%
Total War: Shogun 2 (2560×1600) 127%

 

[g-unit1111]

Imo 7870 amd cards are coming soon...they perform on par with 580 for far less!

Sold! the 7850 I'd stay away from after readying several reviews.

I'm heavily debating between the 7870 and 7950 but I have a hard time justifying the price of the 7950.

 

[azeem40]

For a card that performs better than the 580, how is its price not justified? I think it is over-justified.

 

[samotage]

I'm heavily debating between the 7870 and 7950 but I have a hard time justifying the price of the 7950.

I read a 'Review' on the 7870 is WELL over preform's a GTX 560Ti in ALL games. I think I might get a 7870 when it's officially released.

 

[azeem40]

http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/radeon-hd-7870-review-benchmark,3148.html