BEST Bulldozer for Gaming, or wait for Piledriver?

[the3holepuncher]

Ok, just threw a wall of text in the new build section, but my questions are likely best for here.
[Edit:]Primary games played at this point will be: Planetside2, League of Legends, Mechwarrior Online, Borderlands 2. Primary usage will be schoolwork/the gaming to unwind from work. No video editing, compiling, or anything too crazy, that I can think of.

1.Of the FX-xxxx bulldozer chips, which is the best suited for gaming.(I assume anything that can handle gaming can handle most other things I'll throw at it, since I have been getting by with an Athlon 64xduo for 5+ years now, for everything BUT the gaming) Not just price, but performance.(for instance, if the fx-6100 and fx-4170 are going to give the same framerates etc, and the only difference is one's cheaper and the other has a higher clock speed, I'm ok with that being said)

2.Is Piledriver really going to be so much better, for gaming performance/experience, that I should hold off and then drop an extra $100+ for a "new + better" chip. I understand that with this build, we're probably parcing between 60-70fps etc, so unless it's giving handies for head shots, I doubt this is what I'll be doing.

3. Is this ram good quality-wise(reliable, won't burn out, etc.), and good enough performance-wise to handle what I'll be throwing at it without bottlenecking? Everything I've seen says that 16gb is a waste right now, and this leaves me room to upgrade in the future, while saving money now.

Team Xtreem Dark Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Desktop Memory Model TXD38192M1600HC9DC-D (normally 38.99) FREE
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820313080

4.Is there a noticeable performance increase between the GTX-660 and GTX-660 ti to justify going FX-6100 build, so that I can drop an extra 70 dollars and get the Ti(and free borderlands 2 ? Is the GK104 better than the GK106, or are they essentially identical, and I should ditch them for a :

XFX Double D FX-795A-TDJC Radeon HD 7950 3GB 384-bit GDDR5 PCI Express 3.0 x16 HDCP Ready CrossFireX Support Video Card
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814150616
(with sleeping dogs, a game I've never even heard of), because AMD Graphics cards and CPU's have some weird voodoo that makes them work better together/stops nvidia's from working as well.



Already have a copy of Windows 7 H/P

ASUS Sabertooth 990FX AM3+ AMD 990FX SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 ATX AMD Motherboard with UEFI BIOS
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813131736

COOLER MASTER RC-692A-KKN5 Black Steel body / Plastic + Mesh bezel ATX Mid Tower Computer Case 89.99
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811119259

Rosewill HIVE Series HIVE-750 750W Continuous @40°C, 80 PLUS BRONZE Certified, Modular Design, Single +12V Rail, ATX12V v2.31/EPS12V 89.99
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817182133

ASUS DRW-24B1ST/BLK/B/AS Black SATA 24X DVD Burner - Bulk - OEM 19.99
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16827135204

COOLER MASTER Hyper 212 EVO RR-212E-20PK-R2 Continuous Direct Contact 120mm Sleeve CPU Cooler Compatible with latest Intel ... 34.99
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835103099

MSI N660 TF 2GD5 GeForce GTX 660 2GB 192-bit GDDR5 PCI Express 3.0 x16 HDCP Ready SLI Support Video Card 229.99
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814127702

**about 70-80$ on a 120gb SSD, such as a kingston SATA 3** 80.00

=========Main total (minus cpu and ram) = 583.94 + 50 for misc. stuff, such as fans, thermogrease, etc. = 595======

CORSAIR Vengeance 8GB (2 x 4GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Low Profile Desktop Memory Model CML8GX3M2A1600C9 38.99
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820233186

----OR

Team Xtreem Dark Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Desktop Memory Model TXD38192M1600HC9DC-D (normally 38.99) FREE
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820313080

Total build costs per CPU(with Xtreem dark RAM, +38.99 if using corsair lpvengeance)
(with Sabertooth990fx R2.0 + fx8120)945
(Sabertooth990fx + fx8120)925
(Sabertooth990fx + fx6100)887
(Sabertooth990fx + fx4170)905

 

[the3holepuncher]

A question I hadn't thought to add previously:

Is there a noticeable difference between the FX-4170 and FX-6100 in gaming? They are the same price on Newegg, and the FX6100 is actually cheaper, since it's in a combo with my chosen Mobo.

 

[sarinaide]

Wait for piledriver.

 

[ashishdna20]

Wait for piledriver.

+1

 

[sarinaide]

2 October is the official release so worldwide you are looking at all second generation BD chips being available by middle October latest.

 

[the3holepuncher]

Sweet....thought it was October 17th, not the 2nd.

Also, I didn't want to risk losing the deal, so I went ahead and got the Sabertooth 990fx(R1.0), since it saved me 40$ on memory, 20 since I didn't combo it.(but admittedly, the only viable combo was the fx6100, and found a few reviews while waiting for replies here that showed the fx4170 out performing it, enough so in games to make it worth the extra 20$, if that's the route I go.)


I think, saving a few bucks here and there, I can justify springing for the 660ti over the newer 660, since I did set a $1000 limit on myself for this. I might go over that, if I get an 8350, but I'd also be futureproofed, and could still get the 660, which is only a few fps slower than the ti from what I've seen in reviews.

 

[noob2222]

wait for pd, its around 1 month out

but as for 6100 vs 4100. If your overclocking, and running enough graphics, absolutely.

My tests on BF3 multiplayer with 6970 CF, the 4170 @ 4.7ghz ran 100% cpu usage on all 4 cores, pushed 80 fps and dipped down to high 40s. Not good imo for CF setups.

6100 style ran 2 cores at 100%, the other 4 at about 60-80%, 4.7 ghz also, pushed 120 fps max, average probably in the 90s, drops to high 60s in heavy action.

8100, 4.7 ghz cpu usage, 80-90% on 2 cores, 50-70% on the other 6, 120 fps most of the time, with a few dips in the mid 90s.

BTW, im hoping MW: O is worth it.

 

[the3holepuncher]

Isn't BF3 one of the few games that can use more than 4 cores though?(hence why all the benchmarks I see show FX holding their own in it against the Sandies and Ivies when they get trod on a bit on other game benchmarks)

It's my opinion that eventually all games/programs will be in the vein of BF3, where more cores can be utilized, since it will open the market up and improve playability for both Intel AND AMD chips, and then AMD will suddenly be really competitive again. Not saying that Intel is stopping programmers or anything, but that AMD sorta pulled a Da Vinci, and made something that was unable to be properly utilized, but if coding catches up to it, the architecture is there to support it, and suddenly they are on top again.(mind you, I'm in school for an eventual finance degree, not computer science, so I have no basis for this, since I lack a superior understanding of the limits on the actual tech and coding)


Also, MW:O, from what I've "heard", is quite worth it. If you like World of Tanks, and love mechs, then you'll be at home there. Or so I've "heard"

First rule of MW:O Beta is there IS NO MW:O Beta.
Second Rule of MW:O Beta.....

 

[sarinaide]

Codemaster F1 games have really good core scaling and multicore optimization, it is one of those games that a FX actually can beat a 3770K and overclocked higher.

 

[the3holepuncher]

Best answer selected by The3HolePuncher.

 

[the3holepuncher]

BTW, ended up going 4170. Reason? PD isn't out yet, but the time wasted waiting compared to performance likely gained seemed not worth it. But since SR is guaranteed on am3+, I can upgrade next year for the real performance gain, where it should be truly noticeable.

To be honest, I should probably have gone FX6100, but I've never overclocked(even though I basically have a build that would allow it, at least mildly)

 

[sarinaide]

The 4170 is a good chip, you will get ample performance until Steam Roller.