Performance: Which combo would be better for gaming?

[ecksit]

Hello everyone,

Just curious as to what combo would achieve better performance for gaming, a better cpu and cheaper vid card, or cheaper cpu and better video card?

Both of which have 4gb of DDR2 1066, and a mid range motherboard

1. Intel q9400 + MSI GTS 250 (512mb)

or

2. AMD Phenom II X3 720BE + EVGA GTX 260 (896mb)

I'm aware the Phenom 720BE is very capable at overclocking, so I'm swaying a bit more towards this. I'm not looking to overclock anything ridiculous, only on stock fan.

Thanks!

 

[alyarb]

option 2. you really should consider a little bit better cooling though, even something very cheap and simple will go a long way in making the system faster and quieter. a $20 heatsink will allow you to run 3 cores or 4 above 3.6 GHz with no ill effects or high fan RPMs.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/...x?Item=N82E16835103064

I suggest you get a native-AM3 system with SB710 so you can support future CPUs and unlock the fourth core on your Phenom II X3.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/...16813128392&Tpk=ma770t

be aware you'll need DDR3 memory for this board. also, a 1GB Radeon 4870 will be faster and cheaper than a GTX 260.

 

[ecksit]

a 4870?? really?

 

[alyarb]

the 4870 has faster memory and more of it. it performs similarly to the more expensive GTX 260-216. The plain jane GTX 260 only has 192 shaders and it will be a touch slower than a 4870, on top of costing you more.

 

[ecksit]

I really didn't know that, I haven't checked out ATI at all lately because i've only been hearing things about nvidia.

Will definitely check it out. Thanks.

What about the 4890? Its only a little bit more.

 

[alyarb]

it's faster, just not really $50 faster. If you really want something quick that will last, I would wait about a week or two. The new generation of radeons are coming out and I think the 5850 would be right up your alley. it's faster than any single-GPU card that is out right now and is very power efficient.

what size/resolution monitor do you play on and what games are we talking about here? If you want to be specific about which GPU is "right" for you, it's best to be as specific as possible about what you play and what you expect, as there is no undisputed king of the GPUs. Each GPU excels and slacks in different regards by a small, varying percentage.

 

[ecksit]

22 inch, 1680 x 1050

I want to play current games. And of course games like crysis, gta, bioshock etc with the fps being fast enough to enjoy the game

 

[alyarb]

if crysis is important to you, i would say the 4890 is just barely enough to run the game with high settings/high filters at that resolution. launch pricing of the radeon 5800's may be a little prohibitive, but if not, i would strongly urge a radeon 5850 because it will allow you a much smoother crysis experience. if the cards are too expensive, they will have at least caused a slight drop in the 4890.

 

[SonnyDaze]

Well you really want to look for a happy medium or else you will end up with a bottleneck on one end or the other.

I have a Q9400(@ 3.5) and a 4890 1GB running a 23" 1920x1080 monitor and get good frame rates in FSX flight sim (average around 65fps with medium graphics settings). FSX is a graphics hog too btw.

As far as the platform goes, if this is a new build I would go the AMD route if it's a budget issue. No sense in buying into a dead end platform. You could get some good performance from the X3 720 with a slight oc.

 

[betasub]

Originally posted by: ecksit
I really didn't know that, I haven't checked out ATI at all lately because i've only been hearing things about nvidia.

I guess a massive advertising budget is what it takes. Check out the Anandtech main site (you may have heard of it?) for graphics card info and reviews.

 

[philosofool]

Option 2, for sure. However, I agree with everyone here that ATI is going to get you much more for the dollar than nVidia right now. You should look into the solutions people are suggesting.

In general, for gaming a new $150 processor is almost always enough to get you over 30fps stable if you have enough video card, but there's almost no limit to what some developer or other will find to throw at your video subsystem. The X3 720, happens, IMO, to offer $150+ performance at significantly below that price. It's the best bang for the buck out there.