Getting a New CPU and Board Soon

[Lil Frier]

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16819103680
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16813131366

The above is my current CPU, unlocked to a quad-core, along with the board below it. Given I've had the pair for over 4 years, it's about time to upgrade. I wanted to ask a few brief questions to help in the decision-making process, so any input is appreciated.

1. I'm leaning towards the FX-6300, but after looking at the higher-clocked FX-4350, I am wondering if the higher-clocked, 4-module is better than the 6-module.

2. Is there a big difference in the FX-8320 and the FX-8350? It looks like it's just 500 MHz for $40, is that worth it if I go above the $120 mark of the first two options?

3. What's a good option for an FX-series board? I haven't looked around too much at them, though I tend to lean ASUS on that (if it's a factor).

4. Is it better to buy now, or is there any chance a Kaveri APU would be worthwhile to wait for? I don't know if a Steamroller APU would/could keep up with a proper FX Vishera CPU or not.

So you know what's up, I'm not concerned too much about the price gaps at this stage, just kind of the 6300/4350 and 8320/8350 comparisons, to cut it down to choosing between a price point later. That, and I wanted to know what was expected from Kaveri/Steamroller, given that we're not supposed to see an FX CPU from that line.

Oh, and right now, I don't use the PC for much. I've played games almost exclusively on Xbox for over a decade now, but I decided I wanted to use this Steam Winter Sale as an excuse to get into some PC gaming more (beyond the CS:GO I occasionally touch, along with some other, lighter games). I expect it'll be mid-range games (if that makes sense, nothing new like BF4 or Ghosts), but I imagine it will be mostly a media PC still (browsing and watching TV episodes).

So again, any input is appreciated, and I'll chip in any needed information, of course.

 

[JDG1980]

Do you have a Micro Center in your area? They've got the FX-8350 discounted to $149.99, and the FX-6300 slashed to $89.99. Only until this Friday, though, and you have to pick it up locally.

 

[Lil Frier]

The closest would be about 2 hours away, so no. That, and if I got a new CPU before the new year, it'd likely be as a Christmas present from my dad, who wouldn't care about a $30 difference, considering it would mean probably $50+ in gas (in the case of the FX-6300).

My main thing here is trying to determine if I should go 4350/8300 on the low-end or 8320/8350 on the high end, then if there is a reason to wait for Kaveri benchmarks before making a decision.

 

[AtenRa]

but I imagine it will be mostly a media PC still (browsing and watching TV episodes).

So again, any input is appreciated, and I'll chip in any needed information, of course.

Since you dont need more than 4 Cores/Threads for the games you will play and since the FM2+ is the better choice, wait for Kaveri or if you really need to buy now,

Get the ASROCK FM2A88X-ITX with Athlon 750K (i assume you have a discrete GPU). Next year upgrade to Kaveri.

If you dont want a Mini-iTX board, get the ASUS A88XM-Plus.

Kaveri will have the highest single thread performance from an AMD CPU so far. FM2+ has more features than AM3+ and the combination of the two especially with mini-itx will get you way less power consumption than FX + AM3+.
Also, with an APU Kaveri you will get hUMA and HSA that will raise the performance in lots of applications, even higher than FX 8 core CPUs.

 

[Lil Frier]

Well, the situation is that I have a 5850, and my dad has one as well. He recently bought a 290X, and said I could have his 5850 to CrossFire with mine, if I want it. It'll mostly be for watching stuff, but I want to play games as well, so getting some GPU-less Richland isn't an ideal move. I would get an FX as a Christmas present, so not much of a reason to get something both dated and an APU. My options are either FX or Kaveri, I just wasn't sure what was expected of Kaveri for gaming.

 

[VirtualLarry]

Well, the situation is that I have a 5850, and my dad has one as well. He recently bought a 290X, and said I could have his 5850 to CrossFire with mine, if I want it. It'll mostly be for watching stuff, but I want to play games as well, so getting some GPU-less Richland isn't an ideal move. I would get an FX as a Christmas present, so not much of a reason to get something both dated and an APU. My options are either FX or Kaveri, I just wasn't sure what was expected of Kaveri for gaming.

I guess I don't get it. If you already have a 5850, then what's the issue with getting a GPU-less Richland or Trinity APU, on an A88X mobo? It's not like you would be able to crossfire an APU with a 5850. Just won't work,

 

[AtenRa]

You can CF with FM2+ and Kaveri, ASUS A88X-Plus has two PCI-e x16 ports and CF support.

But, i would sell those two HD5850 and get a new GCN card.

Edit: Just to add that Kaveri will have PCI-e Gen 3.0

 

[AtenRa]

It's not like you would be able to crossfire an APU with a 5850. Just won't work,

Why not ??
Ahh sorry, you mean Hybrid.

 

[ShintaiDK]

Why do you want to buy a brand new FX series setup for gaming? You want an i5.

 

[Lil Frier]

Why do you want to buy a brand new FX series setup for gaming? You want an i5.

Because I don't want to spend $225+ on an Intel CPU.

 

[Lil Frier]

But, i would sell those two HD5850 and get a new GCN card.

I suppose the reason for that would be that I don't know the second-hand market value of a 5850, so I don't know what I'd get out of them. Just a quick eBay search of completed listings had my reference Sapphire 5850 selling for $150-170, but it also failed to net a single bid at $100 in a more-recent auction.

 

[Lil Frier]

I guess I don't get it. If you already have a 5850, then what's the issue with getting a GPU-less Richland or Trinity APU, on an A88X mobo? It's not like you would be able to crossfire an APU with a 5850. Just won't work,

Well, I would have to come back with asking why I'd want to get a Trinity APU when Kaveri's about to release and the money wouldn't necessarily be an issue. I'd also wonder why I'd want a Trinity APU over an FX-6300. I suppose I wouldn't be totally-opposed to a 760K Richland CPU, but I again come to why I'd pick it over a 4300/4350/6300. It's cheaper, but the issue here really isn't about cutting corners for cost.

 

[Headfoot]

The point is that Kaveri is going to be the best CPU of the bunch but its not out yet. So if you get 760k it holds you over until Kaveri comes out. Alternatively you could just wait for Kaveri. All mid range games and most high end games with certain exceptions need single threaded performance over everything else. Kaveri has more single threaded performance, rumored to be up to 30% better. That's also why people suggest you go Intel, because their single threaded performance is vastly superior right now.

It's cheaper, but the issue here really isn't about cutting corners for cost.

If you don't want to cut corners for cost, get an i5 4670k

 

[frozentundra123456]

The point is that Kaveri is going to be the best CPU of the bunch but its not out yet. So if you get 760k it holds you over until Kaveri comes out. Alternatively you could just wait for Kaveri. All mid range games and most high end games with certain exceptions need single threaded performance over everything else. Kaveri has more single threaded performance, rumored to be up to 30% better. That's also why people suggest you go Intel, because their single threaded performance is vastly superior right now.


If you don't want to cut corners for cost, get an i5 4670k

No one really knows what the performance of Kaveri will be. Unless one wants to game on the igp, I am not sure Kaveri is worth waiting for. I suppose one could wait to see if AMD has finally worked out asymmetric crossfire so you could get some benefit from the igp when using a discrete card, but that is an unknown as well. Additionally, it will be on a new process, so no one knows how it will overclock. There are also fantastic deals on the FX6300 now.

 

[Lil Frier]

The point is that Kaveri is going to be the best CPU of the bunch but its not out yet. So if you get 760k it holds you over until Kaveri comes out. Alternatively you could just wait for Kaveri. All mid range games and most high end games with certain exceptions need single threaded performance over everything else. Kaveri has more single threaded performance, rumored to be up to 30% better. That's also why people suggest you go Intel, because their single threaded performance is vastly superior right now.


If you don't want to cut corners for cost, get an i5 4670k

You misunderstand me. What I was saying is that money is not a factor in getting an FX-6300, so cutting back to a sans-GPU Richland chip isn't necessary to save money. That doesn't mean I have unlimited funds, just that I'm not trying to budget myself, with the FX-6300 stretching it or anything. I have no desire to spend $225 on a CPU.

That said, the idea of going Richland, then Kaveri, isn't tantalizing at all. If I was to go with something now, I'd be waiting a couple of years before getting something new, at the least. The 550 BE I have right now has been fine for me since 2009--I'm not one who cares to swap parts out frequently, since I don't primarily game on my PC right now (as to whether that changes long-term, we will see).

 

[Lil Frier]

No one really knows what the performance of Kaveri will be. Unless one wants to game on the igp, I am not sure Kaveri is worth waiting for. I suppose one could wait to see if AMD has finally worked out asymmetric crossfire so you could get some benefit from the igp when using a discrete card, but that is an unknown as well. Additionally, it will be on a new process, so no one knows how it will overclock. There are also fantastic deals on the FX6300 now.

Agreed, but with what I am doing now, I don't see a way waiting really hurts me. It's not like my CPU just died or I am having issues with performance at the moment, so waiting a month for an announcement (maybe 2-3 for benchmarks, not sure) isn't the biggest concern for me, especially if it results in lower prices for the Piledriver line.

One thing that concerns me a bit is that in talking to some folks elsewhere, the talk was that a low-end Haswell processor like the i3-4130 or the i3-4330 has superior single-thread performance, and that it will be much better for gaming, particularly if I don't mess with highly-threaded software.

Looking around didn't give me a whole lot of great comparisons for the Haswell i3s and Piledriver FX series, so does anyone have any information I can read on this? Considering that the FX-6300 and i3-4330 are priced right in-line with each other, if the i3 has significantly better performance, would it be better than an FX-6300, even if I was willing to read up on overclocking and try it out?