Maintain 120fps in BF3

[Eureka]

So, I've caught the 120fps bug and so I want to achieve that. I want to know what I should do in order to upgrade my system to produce 120fps mostly consistently in Battlefield 3.

1) Upgrade CPU (to 4770K, 3930K, etc), upgrade GPU to a GTX 770, run lower BF3 settings

2) Upgrade GPUs to 670 SLI/680 SLI/690 and power supply now that they're cheap, run i5-3570k at 4.6 GHz

What would be a better option to achieve it?

 

[Sleepingforest]

In single player, SLI should be enough. In multiplayer, you're going to need an i7 as well, probably overclocked a bit.

 

[BTRY B 529th FA BN]

Option #1 New CPU & GPU

.. but don't forget you are going to need to swap out motherboards for the 1150 socket 4770K

 

[Eureka]

Looks like it's the way to go then. I was planning to do a mITX system in the future anyway, looks like I'm going down that path.

 

[Sleepingforest]

An mITX system will definitely be unable to power 120Hz in BF3 while BF3 is relevant, because mITX doesn't allow for multi-GPU (or you'll have to go with an ultra-premium 690 or 7990).

 

[Eureka]

An mITX system will definitely be unable to power 120Hz in BF3 while BF3 is relevant, because mITX doesn't allow for multi-GPU (or you'll have to go with an ultra-premium 690 or 7990).

That's probably the idea. 690s are dropping in price now as it is. I can probably source them for the same price as 770 SLI now.

 

[Sleepingforest]

I see the 690s going for around $800 on Ebay... and two 770 for $400 each will definitely be faster (unless the SLI is messed up).

 

[Eureka]

I see the 690s going for around $800 on Ebay... and two 770 for $400 each will definitely be faster (unless the SLI is messed up).

Would you still not recommend a 690 over a 770 SLI?

 

[Sleepingforest]

The 690 will run cooler and require less space. The 770 SLI will be stronger by a significant amount. Take your pick--do you care more about rig size or frame rate?

 

[mfenn]

A GTX 690 will do what you want, and is your only reasonable choice if you want an ITX machine (7990 is too damn hot). For a bigger box, GTX 770 SLI, 7970 CFX, GTX 680 SLI are all reasonable options.

 

[Eureka]

What about a 780 or 770 in conjunction with an i7? Would a single 780 still not be enough to handle 120fps in BF3? With my 7950 I'm hitting 120 FPS at medium settings in smaller maps (but with occasional drops to around 80 FPS). Is this GPU bottleneck or CPU bottleneck?

I think no matter what, I'm eventually going to go mITX so unless something drastic happens, I should look for a single card solution.

 

[mfenn]

What about a 780 or 770 in conjunction with an i7? Would a single 780 still not be enough to handle 120fps in BF3? With my 7950 I'm hitting 120 FPS at medium settings in smaller maps (but with occasional drops to around 80 FPS). Is this GPU bottleneck or CPU bottleneck?

A single GPU is going to do it only if you are OK with lowering the settings. Even a Titan cannot do 120 FPS average with everything jacked up.

The numbers in this chart are from a timedemo, so they are GPU limited. I think it goes without saying that multiplayer on large maps is extremely CPU intensive. You'll need an overclocked i7 to get 120 FPS with no drops.