Bang for my bucks

[LOL_Wut_Axel]

If it helps, I wasn't really planning on OCing, unless it was something as simple as going into the BIOS. I'd rather be stable than fast.

If you want to be completely stable you can make an 825/1650/4000MHz OC on the GTX 460 using MSI Afterburner.

 

[mfenn]

If it helps, I wasn't really planning on OCing, unless it was something as simple as going into the BIOS. I'd rather be stable than fast.

Well, overclocking with EVGA Precision, MSI Afterburner, etc. is pretty easy. Like any OC, it isn't 100% guaranteed to be stable, but most people have good results.

IMHO the build I suggested is a bit better value (even disregarding rebates, but seriously $35 for 5 minutes work, just do it). It will probably give you good performance in BF3 with no tinkering whatsoever. I say probably because benches aren't out yet, so we don't know for sure. At least no benches that I saw, somebody post a link if you've got 'em. The absolute safest thing to do would be to wait until mid-October or so so that you don't need to guess.

So there, I guess you have at least two different opinions now. :awe:

 

[LOL_Wut_Axel]

Well, overclocking with EVGA Precision, MSI Afterburner, etc. is pretty easy. Like any OC, it isn't 100% guaranteed to be stable, but most people have good results.

IMHO the build I suggested is a bit better value (even disregarding rebates, but seriously $35 for 5 minutes work, just do it). It will probably give you good performance in BF3 with no tinkering whatsoever. I say probably because benches aren't out yet, so we don't know for sure. At least no benches that I saw, somebody post a link if you've got 'em. The absolute safest thing to do would be to wait until mid-October or so so that you don't need to guess.

So there, I guess you have at least two different opinions now. :awe:

Come on, man. Drop the BS. The GTX 560 Ti you linked is $235 and $200 AR and the GTX 460 I linked is $170 and $140 AR. That's a huge difference, and the GTX 560 Ti is only somewhat faster. Mine is better value.

As far as OCs go, the ones I posted are pretty much guaranteed for both cards using reference cooling and PCB.

 

[fffblackmage]

^I would say it's more than "only somewhat faster."

The GTX460 has better bang for the buck, with the prices provided in the previous post, but I'd go with the GTX560 Ti, if budget permits. I think you'll be needing the best you can afford to get as close as possible to playable high settings in BF3.

I'd also stick with plain vanilla ram. I don't see the point of spending $10 more for insignificantly faster ram. If OP wants to spend more on ram, he's probably better off getting 8GB of ram instead.
$35 - G.SKILL NS 4GB 2x2GB DDR3-1333

I kinda want to suggest getting a single stick of 4GB ram, but I don't know how that would affect gaming performance.

 

[LOL_Wut_Axel]

^I would say it's more than "only somewhat faster."

The GTX460 has better bang for the buck, with the prices provided in the previous post, but I'd go with the GTX560 Ti, if budget permits. I think you'll be needing the best you can afford to get as close as possible to playable high settings in BF3.

I'd also stick with plain vanilla ram. I don't see the point of spending $10 more for insignificantly faster ram. If OP wants to spend more on ram, he's probably better off getting 8GB of ram instead.
$35 - G.SKILL NS 4GB 2x2GB DDR3-1333

I kinda want to suggest getting a single stick of 4GB ram, but I don't know how that would affect gaming performance.

Maybe you should read the thread and the arguments made therein. The GTX 460 was a horribly crippled card in terms of clock speeds when it came out. NVIDIA clocked it extremely low so as not to capitalize on the GTX 470s market share. Obviously, it didn't end as well as they wanted: tons of manufacturers were giving free boosts in clock speeds to the card, and others were giving them big 20% OCs on the Core and Shaders for prices slightly higher than MSRP. All on reference models. Meanwhile, others like MSI made solutions with 3rd party PCBs and coolers.

Then came the GTX 560 Ti, a card that has the exact same architecture except for one extra GPU cluster being enabled (which gave it more CUDA Cores and TUs) along with some tweaks for higher clock speeds and lower power consumption. Clock-for-clock, a GTX 560 Ti is only 10% faster than the GTX 460, and running a GTX 460 at stock speeds is doing it no justice. The GTX 560 is a GTX 460 with a refreshed architecture and higher reference clock speeds. It OCs a bit more and consumes a bit less power.

With the 460 and 560 Ti both at safe OCs on stock voltage, the 560 Ti will be around 15% faster. It also costs 35% more.

Another thing: with the newest drivers the GTX 560 Ti is only around 5% faster than the Radeon HD 6870. That alone should raise a red flag.

Finally, I was mentioning the faster RAM mostly because it's higher quality and for future-proofing. It's only $10 more expensive. And the fact that you're recommending running RAM in single-channel mode kinda diminishes your credibility.

Read this:
http://www.hexus.net/content/item.php?item=28691&page=1

 

[fffblackmage]

^I didn't recommend single-channel ram? The link I posted is for two sticks of 2GB, but I see where you got confused. My apologies for not being more clear.

You can argue all you want about the graphics cards, but faster will always come with a price premium.

 

[mfenn]

IMHO the build I suggested is a bit better value

Come on, man. Drop the BS. The GTX 560 Ti you linked is $235 and $200 AR and the GTX 460 I linked is $170 and $140 AR. That's a huge difference, and the GTX 560 Ti is only somewhat faster. Mine is better value.

No BS when you consider the overall build. :awe: Now, if you want to suggest pairing the GTX 460 that you suggested with the CPU/mobo combo that I suggested, then that would sound good to me.

 

[LOL_Wut_Axel]

No BS when you consider the overall build. :awe: Now, if you want to suggest pairing the GTX 460 that you suggested with the CPU/mobo combo that I suggested, then that would sound good to me.

We have reached an agreement. ()

 

[LOL_Wut_Axel]

OP:

Core i3 2100 + Gigabyte GA-Z68A-D3-B3: $220
G.Skill 4GB DDR3 1333MHz: $35
EVGA GTX 460 1GB: $160; $140 AR

Total: $415; $395 AR

 

[mfenn]

OP:

Core i3 2100 + Gigabyte GA-Z68A-D3-B3: $220
G.Skill 4GB DDR3 1333MHz: $35
EVGA GTX 460 1GB: $160; $140 AR

Total: $415; $395 AR

:thumbsup: Comes a hell of a lot closer to his original budget than I thought was possible.

 

[LOL_Wut_Axel]

:thumbsup: Comes a hell of a lot closer to his original budget than I thought was possible.

Pretty impressive that you can get these parts for a new platform+new GPU for such a low price. It'll serve him great for gaming and anything else he may want to do.

 

[Modeps]

Will a 500W PSU be OK?

 

[fffblackmage]

Yes.

 

[Modeps]

Hm. Looks like LOL was banned.