A8-3850 APU: Dual Graphics or Dedicated Graphics?

[jchords]

Hello, I'm building an all around computer with some focus on gaming. I was wondering whether pairing my AMD A8-3850 APU with a Radeon HD 6670 1GB GDDR5 so I can run dual graphics, or just buy a Nvidia GeForce GT 650 ti 1GB GDDR5 to run with my APU. Which would give better performance?
Thanks~

 

[fancarolina]

I have an A8-3850 paired with a 6670 in dual graphics mode. I would advise against it. The GT650 will give you better performance. Remember Dual Graphics mode only applies to DX 10 & 11 titles. So that limits its usefulness. Most of the time in Windows I'm relegated to the APU graphics while in DX9 games I'm just using the 6670, very rarely do you get to use both together. Even then they are weak when it comes to 1080 performance I've had to drop down to 720 with mid to low graphics settings to get playable frame rates.

If you are going to choose an AMD Radeon card I would advise a midrange 7750 or 7770. The 7000 series are far more efficient then the 6000 series cards.

 

[jchords]

Thanks! I've been hearing people say that I should pair my CPU with the 6670, and it looks like its not worth it.

 

[twelve25]

650 Ti by a mile! 6670+dual graphics wouldn't even keep up with a Radeon 7750 or a GTX 650 non-Ti.

If you don't already have the components, I probably wouldn't get an A8 if you are planning on adding a stand alone graphics card.

 

[fancarolina]

I agree with twelve25 I would go with one of the newer generation A10 FM2 based AMD chips.

 

[twelve25]

I would just get an fx-6300. No sense paying the same for a quad core A10 if you aren't going to make use of the GPU portion.

 

[fancarolina]

I would just get an fx-6300. No sense paying the same for a quad core A10 if you aren't going to make use of the GPU portion.

I compleatly agree the six core chip you suggest makes the most sense. Only reason I can think of in wanting the A10 would be if your discrete card ever fails or you want to move it to another system you've got something to fall back on. Additionally the A10 might be able to be used in Dual Graphics mode with one of the newer 7000 series cards however I have not researched that possibility.