Is it really worth an intel upgrade if i already have a 990fx

[carrotbro]

First I would like to start off by saying hello. This is my first time posting here so if it appears like i dont know what im doing...i dont. lol

my current system is:

mobo: gigabyte 990fx ud3

cpu: amd fx 6100

cpu cooler: h80 with 120mm cougars in push pull

ram: gskill sniper ddr3 1866 but board reads it as 1600

gpu: gigabyte 6850 hd

psu: ocz 750 watts

case: coolermaster elite 430 (full of fans) cm mach 1.8, gelid, skinny scythe, generic blue led...all are 120mm

hds: 500 gig caviar blue (data) velociraptor 74 gig (os)

os: win 7 64 bit

display: asus 23" 1080p and hp 2009m


My gaming experience has been very lackluster as of late due to performance sadness. lol I do most of my pc upgrades during tax time. Last year i did a pretty big

upgrade including motherboard and cpu. What I really want to know is if i should do a complete over haul already and build an intel system. Money isnt a total issue but i

suppose is at the same time. I kind of want a 2560x1440 monitor and the gtx 690 seems pretty awesome ad i have mixed feelings on running multiple gpus. More of a

lack of faith in my abilities.

All comments and any help are welcome. I want to order in a couple days and have been straining my brain for many

 

[jthill909]

You could save some money and go with an 8350. It's neck and neck with the 3570k in gaming and just about the same as some the higher end Intel's with high-threaded applications. Then you can overclock it and it'll be even better.

Also, I'd wait for the "Titan" from Nvidia instead of getting a 690. It's suppose to come out this month and have more performance than a 690 while being a single gpu card! That's crazy.

 

[computernewb]

for gaming you need a better graphics card. the 6850 is kind of on the low end.

get like a gtx 670 and overclock your cpu. you'll notice a huge improvement

 

[ohyouknow]

Ok so what are you planning to do right here right now. If you get a 2560 monitor now you definitely won't be able to game comfortably at that resolution without purchasing a top tier card or x2 of those. And at those resolutions it is always a GPU bottleneck.

Also, what games are you playing that you feel you are lacking? Skyrim?

Either way you are going to spend money on a new GPU if the 6850 is not cutting it for you. I would suggest you pick up the best vid card you can afford and game with that in addition to oc'ing your cpu.

If that is still not enough. Upgrade the platform. At least you will use a GPU that you can use down the road. Also, intel is releasing a new processor relatively soon so if you intend to do a platform switch do it then.

 

[carrotbro]

A graphics card is def needed. If I stick with the amd build I would probably

upgrade my cpu to the 8350 because might as well. I plan on getting a ssd and a

data drive with more storage. I just dont know if I want to do a total over haul.

On the other hand if i do a complete over haul i still have my amd system to see

what the next round of cpus does. I would also have a pretty competitive intel build

that should last awhile.

 

[carrotbro]

I just bought the thq bundle of steam over the holidays as it was a great deal and

couldnt pass it up. Believe it or not this was the first time i heard of metro 2033 :/ lol.

It also came with dawn of war II. I want to be ready for Crysis 3, Deadspace 3,

Heart of the Swarm. I have a pretty extensive game library and just want more out

my gaming experience in general.

 

[ohyouknow]

Get a boss GPU then go from there. 7970~670

 

[carrotbro]

i kind of really want the gtx 690 lol

 

[computernewb]

seems like money isnt a problem for you. go for the 690 then. but you probably need to get the 8350 if not an intel i5-i7 to avoid a bottleneck.

 

[carrotbro]

From what I have read...do you think the bottleneck would be as bad at 2560x1440??

On the 8350 fx of course.

 

[amirp]

in my opinion, the logical thing to do would be to not upgrade everything at once, upgrade the GPU now because that is your weakest point for gaming and will result in the most noticeable improvements, and play some of your games.

Then spring for the 8350 fx if you need to or go for an entire platform change to intel if you think you need to while you keep the GPU you bought initially

 

[carrotbro]

Thank you amirp. That is sound logic.

 

[Kamen_BG]

Or uhh when you buy that GTX 690, or the upcoming Nvidia Titan, overclock your current CPU, then wait for AMD Streamroller and buy the best AMD that's compatable with your board. It should be significantly faster than the FX 8350.

 

[jtenorj]

Save a few bucks and get the fx8320. Same number of modules/cores/threads, same newer architecture, and same unlocked multiplier as fx8350, but costs about 40 bucks less. Your H80 should be able to push both processors to about the same overclock. Someone posted in another thread that new nvidia cards aren't due until the 4th quarter(Oct. - Dec.). Consider 2 hd7970 and overclock them. Faster than any other option(if your mobo can run sli and/or crossfire). If you care about physx in the metro titles and a few others, you may be better off with nvidia. if not, go amd(better price/performance).

 

[babernet_1]

You are at a unique point that you are really going to have to wait a month or so then start updating things.

First of all, to drive a beautiful 2560 X 1440 display you are simply going to have to SLI or CF a couple fast cards or get the Titan which is due out the end of this month. If the Titan meets the gossip about it, get it. Otherwise DO NOT get a 690, it only has 2GB effective memory for the master chip is overwritten by the slave chip so the memory doesn't add. At 2560 X 1440, you need more than 2GB video memory and a 690 cannot give it to you.

Next up is the Steamroller. Sit tight for another month or two and you can see if it is good. If so, pick it up. Otherwise you can go with a I5-3570 or I7-3770 to future proof a bit. If you can wait until June, pick up a shiny new Intel Haswell.

 

[Guest]

have you thought about a second 6850, they are super cheap on Ebay second hand, worth the spend to increase performance whilst you wait for Steamroller and new nVidia and AMD cards.

That is what i would do right now with your system xFire a second 6850 for a few bucks, OC the 6100 and sit tight with that!

 

[chase3567]

I upgraded from 6100 to 8350 and it was a nice performance jump. You could wait, you could upgrade
CPU and crossfire 6850. If it was me I would upgrade CPU and grab a 7970.

 

[jtenorj]

Don't know why I didn't think to mention this before, but the next gen of amd cards is supposed to come out this month(I think). They will start with the mid range performance cards(8850, 8870), but the 8870 is supposed to perform better than a hd7970 for cheaper(250-300). As for frame buffer size, 1GB is generally enough for 1080p, 2GB is alright for 2560x1600 or 2560x1440, and 3GB is desirable for a 3x1080p eyefinity or 3d surround setup.

 

[xenot7]

The perfect GPU when money isn't a problem:
http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=GX-302-AS

You should upgrade your CPU to an FX 8350 or wait for steamroller or just wait for Haswell if you want an intel option

 

[babernet_1]

Don't know why I didn't think to mention this before, but the next gen of amd cards is supposed to come out this month(I think). They will start with the mid range performance cards(8850, 8870), but the 8870 is supposed to perform better than a hd7970 for cheaper(250-300). As for frame buffer size, 1GB is generally enough for 1080p, 2GB is alright for 2560x1600 or 2560x1440, and 3GB is desirable for a 3x1080p eyefinity or 3d surround setup.

Latest word is the Nvidia 780 and AMD 8870 have been put off to the end of the year. However, Nvidia's Titan is still looking good. Looks like AMD is going to be taking a beating for the remainder of the year. Any AMD fans out there still?

 

[carrotbro]

Wow. Thanks everyone for the support. I find myself just as torn tonight as i have

for the past many nights on what to do. My brain is on overload from reading review

after review and forum after forum. Im not the most comfortable with xfire so that

is why im so hesitant. That was however my intentions last year as I bought a

second gigabyte windforce 6850. In an overclocking gone terribly wrong (trying to

get my ram clocked to 1866) I pulled my cmos battery and dropped it on the back of

the second card while the pc was on. I suppose that was a 200 dollar lesson

learned. Maybe that is why im so spiteful towards xfire lol . I also am an

impatient man and I want it now . I just want the best performance really

without completely breaking the bank. I came up with a potential Intel build that

came in around $2500 not including the monitor but including the gtx 690 (not sure

if i still wanna go that route yet). Clearly going with amd would be far more cost

effective for my current situation. I finally got my cpu overclocked the other night

many failed attempts through out the year . I still think i probably did something

wrong. I ran prime95 for about an hour at 4.4 and 1.425 voltage and it got in the

high 70s on cpu and high 80s on nb so i quit. Then i set bios back to optimized

default. I didnt drop any workers which I had in the past and i did and lost

windows aero instantly. I didnt this time. I was doing the large fft. I probably

should get comfortable with this build. There is something so gamer soul satisfying

when you can max everything out and it looks so beautiful and seemless.


Again though guys thanks for the input and support