25-30 fps in all games regardless of ultra or low settings.

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xxnekrosisxx

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All newer games/some older games run at about 25-30 fps in some area's of the game. The witcher 2 in all major towns, crysis looking at a lot of trees etc. If I set everything to low it doesn't change a thing and I would just like to know if there's anything I can do about it. I have a GTX 470 with a Corsair 600W and an amd A4-3420 running at 2.8GHZ
 
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If he has less than 200$ or about that for mobo+cpu, the amd side is a good option, there's also the i3 and b75 for a budget cpu and motherboard, like i said it's all a matter of what you can pay.
There's plenty of good options, according to the op budget, which nobody knows.
Lets see what he can afford, and then, someone will probably guide him to the best.
@ the op see here for some benchmark cpu, really intensive, like the bf3 mp : http://www.pcgameshardware.de/screenshots/original/2012/12/BF3-Test-Multiplayer-CPU-Benches-720p.png
This might help you checking if it's worth certain cpu or not.
CPU bottleneck, id trash your current cpu and motherboard and go for 1155

the fx6300 will be an upgrade but it still kinds sucks as a gaming cpu, the cores that it does have are somewhat weak ones.. you'd even be better of with a 955be if you can find one and you MUST go the amd route.

Id go for an i3/i5/1155 build save your duckets

I would def not buy a whole new amd cpu and mobo, they just do not represent much a value (anymore)
 

trogdor796

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This.
 


I don't know what you mean, that's a laptop motherboard, you need a desktop motherboard, see the one that i listed, if you want another cpu/mobo, tell the budget for it.
As for the FX-6300, it is a decent cpu, overall it's better than the i3, if he can get an i5, by all means, the i5 is a better choice in long terms.
It's a question of the budget.
 

hapkido

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There are a couple more powerful CPUs available for your socket. They aren't optimal gaming chips, but it would be cheaper than buying a new motherboard.

Both the a8-3870k and athlon ii x4 251k have 4 cores at 3Ghz, larger l1 and l2 cache, and an unlocked multiplier. They should be quite a bit more powerful than what you have at $90 each.

http://www.cpubenchmark.net/socketType.html#id13

I'm not sure what the difference between them is, but I suspect the athlon is the a8 with the gpu disabled, so I'd go with the a8 if I had to choose right now without researching. I think four cores at 3Ghz (going from two cores at 2.8Ghz) should alleviate most of your CPU bottleneck, but you could also pick up an aftermarket cooler and overclock the chip.

If you are going to buy a new motherboard, get an Ivy Bridge i5. Anything less would kind of be a more expensive sidegrade over the options I presented.
 

xxnekrosisxx

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That is not a laptop mobo, don't let the name of the website fool you.

I am wondering what you mean by a 3.4 ghz quad core or 3.5 6 core not being enough for "gaming". My current rig runs everything at ultra at 30 fps most of the time, the only time it dips below that is when there is more then 5 character scripts on screen at the same time in some games.

I figured if I get the 6 core AMD CPU with a compatible motherboard it will easily bump games like the witcher 2 up to 50-60 fps without ubersampling on. Why would I need anything more then 3.5 ghz 6 core for gaming? What game could possibly NEED more then that to go faster then 30, which is all I'm asking for.
 

hapkido

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My suggestion without having more information from you, is either upgrade to a quad core CPU that will fit your current socket, or jump up to an Ivy Bridge i5 if you plan on replacing the motherboard. I don't see a lot of reasoning behind buying a new motherboard to put in an old Phenom II x4. They're for people that already have an AM3 motherboard and a crappy CPU that want decent performance upgrade without spending a lot of money.

A new motherboard with a fx-6300 for $130 actually looks like a decent buy, but it's still going to be slower in games than a new i5 since i5s are faster clock per clock and core per core and most games aren't going to utilize more than four threads. I think after you account for the difference in motherboard costs (entry-level AMD motherboards are a little more expensive), I don't see a lot of reason to pick a new AMD processor unless you're looking at the FX-4300 versus an i3 (i.e almost four true cores versus a suped up dual core).

If all you're looking for is to alleviate your CPU bottleneck, moving from two cores to four at a slightly higher clock rate should do that. Look at my previous post for two suggestions.
 


The thing is the FX-6300 doesn't bottleneck the 470 gtx, it's a good cpu for it's price, i usually recommend the i5 over the fx series, but if he cannot afford it, the FX-6300 is a good solution, it's better than any phenom x4 cpus or amds apus, those don't even have l3 cache.
So you're fine with FX-6300 if you cannot afford the i5.
I checked it again, it doesn't say what motherboard it is, but you need a new one, you can find a good one within 70-80$.
 

xxnekrosisxx

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Oh yeah, yeah, I know I need a new motherboard, I was just curious as to know if I could get that fx-6300 into this piece of *** HP that I got on a low budget. I'm gonna get a new motherboard and the FX-6300 if I can afford it. How much worse is it then the Phenom X4-965. I might not be able to spare the extra 35 dollars on my Red Lobster budget. Thanks:)
 

hapkido

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And he has to buy a new motherboard to buy a 5 year old CPU...

Seriously, either upgrade to a quad core that fits in your FM1 socket, or buy an Intel i5 mobo and CPU. There's no reason to go halfway and spend $160 buying something that's 3 generations old.
 

hapkido

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Phenom IIs were first released in December 2008. The FX-6300 just came out in October, and should be nearly as fast in total processing power as the cheapest i5 I could on newegg (i5-3350p), but it needs six cores to match the i5 and most games aren't going to efficiently use more than four cores.

From the few minutes I spent searching newegg, the fx-6300 is $40 cheaper than i5-3350p (both free shipping) but the cheapest 970 motherboard (from searching google and wikipedia, I don't think FX chips will run on 800 series motherboards, but I could be wrong about that) I could find is $17 more expensive (not including $7 shipping) than the cheapest b75 motherboard (free shipping). After shipping costs, you'd only save $16 getting the fx-6300 platform over getting the i5-3350p platform.

I couldn't find any specific benchmarks comparing the two processors, but you can see an i5-2400 -- which is in the same neighborhood as an i5-3350p -- beats an fx-6300 in nearly every benchmark and dominates in gaming:
http://www.anandtech.com/bench/Product/699?vs=363

Also, i5-3350p is one tier higher on Tom's best gaming CPU hierarchy chart:
http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/gaming-cpu-review-overclock,3106-5.html

Again, if you're buying a new motherboard, an Ivy Bridge i5 is a no-brainer. However, you can probably get away with upgrading to a faster CPU on your existing FM1 platform if all you're looking for is 30fps minimum.
 
The FX-6300 doesn't bottleneck the 470 gtx, or the 965 be, both are better than any FM2 or FM1 cpu, the FX-6300 is slightly better than the i3.
So if he's in a budget these are good option.
Like i said, of course the i5 will be better, i usually recommend the i5 and a h77 motherboard, but he might not afford it.
It's all a question of the op's budget, the main point is to get a decent cpu, which won't bottleneck the card, if he can save it for the i5, the better.
 

hapkido

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A good option is the i5. fx-6300 is a solution, but there are better options at that price range, therefore it is not a good option at all. Phenom II is a bad option, and completely defeats the purpose of upgrading. a8-3870k is an ok option at $90 since it saves him from having to spend $50-$70 on a new motherboard.
 
What other cpus at 130$ or at 90$ for the FX-6300 or 965 be are better(there's the i3, but not as cheap as the x4 and not as good as the fx-6300) ?
Like i said it's all a question of the op budget, i'd get a new board instead of the a8, it's not an upgrade, that cpu doesn't even have l3 cache.
The am3+ motherboards still have life, it might support the steamroller cpus.
For me the best option is a new platform, either am3+ or lga 1155, with the x4 965 be or fx-6300 on the am3+ side or the i3 or i5 on the lga 1155.
It's all up to the op, if he can afford the i5, the better, if he can't, there's other options.
 

hapkido

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First, going from two cores to four cores -- even if they're crappy a-series APUs -- will make a difference. Second, you're completely overlooking the motherboard costs. The cheapest 970 motherboards are $70 + $7 shipping. The cheapest b75 motherboard is $53 and free shipping.

So his options are --
$90 for a8-3870k
$140 for phenom ii x4 965 and 880g motherboard (95 for CPU and 45 for mobo)
$217 for fx-6300 and 970 motherboard (140 for CPU, 77 for mobo)
$233 for i5-3350p and b75 (180 for CPU, 53 for mobo)

Yes, for $50 additional the phenom will game better than the a8. But it's really old and is 80% more expensive from just staying on his current FM1 platform and upgrading the CPU. If you're going to go that far, you might as well spend an extra $93 and get a proper platform that will last for 3-4 years.

If you insist the that phenom -- a dead chip -- is in play, you have to also account for i3s for similar money.

The summary is if he's on a super-tight budget, just upgrade the CPU on his current platform. If his budget is a little more flexible, an i5 is the smart choice. Anything in between is wasting money in my opinion.
 
If he has less than 200$ or about that for mobo+cpu, the amd side is a good option, there's also the i3 and b75 for a budget cpu and motherboard, like i said it's all a matter of what you can pay.
There's plenty of good options, according to the op budget, which nobody knows.
Lets see what he can afford, and then, someone will probably guide him to the best.
@ the op see here for some benchmark cpu, really intensive, like the bf3 mp : http://www.pcgameshardware.de/screenshots/original/2012/12/BF3-Test-Multiplayer-CPU-Benches-720p.png
This might help you checking if it's worth certain cpu or not.
 
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