gaming system CPU and video recommendations

Building a new computer system mainly for gaming but also streaming HD if needed. I want to run newer games on the highest setting such as BF3. I was looking at the AMD CPU AMD FX-6100 6 Core AM3+ Processor since it has 14mb cache and costs around $120 I notice the FM1 are around the same price but only 4mb cache. As far as video no clue. Although cost is not an problem I don't want to spend $400 on a video card only to have it outdate in 2 years. I was hoping to spend less than $200 for the video card any suggestions on the card or the CPU? I have been using AMD for a long time now and would like to continue to do so.


Thanks,

Jacads

Quote from Jacads : I don't want to spend $400 on a video card only to have it outdate in 2 years.

that's the problem with ANY gaming computer - your not going to be able to avoid it..

might want to list your budget, intended games to play, and what screen resolution / detail settings you want to play them on

fm1 is meant more for low-powered HTPC/similar systems, AM3+ is the current "performance" socket from AMD

Recommended reading to get you started:
Best Gaming CPUs For The Money: August 2012 [tomshardware.com]
Best Graphics Cards For The Money: September 2012 [tomshardware.com]

In 2 years all current cards will be outdated but that doesn't mean they are obsolete. I would still be plugging along on my 5 year old 8800GTS 512 if it didn't burn out.

Quote from Jacads : Although cost is not an problem I don't want to spend $400 on a video card only to have it outdate in 2 years. I was hoping to spend less than $200 for the video card any suggestions on the card or the CPU?

Am I reading this right? The cost is not a problem as long as the video card is less than $200 and outperform those $400 cards after 2 years? I failed to see the logic in this.

For BF3 a $135 Radeon 6870 from the SD frontpage deal will work nicely. $185 Radeon 7850 or $210 7870 are both better choices.

A quick little ATI search on Amazon for Radeon cards [amazon.com] that would be suitable for gaming.

also might want to post what res you play at. you need less power for lower res. be prepared to spend about 300ish for your GPU to max out BF3

Don't prepare yourself to spend $300 on a GPU as suggested by dayv. $200 is a good price point for price/performance ratio. Spending more than that, you really won't notice the difference unless you already have a crazy setup and reallllllly feel the need to play at higher resolutions than 1080p. But honestly the difference between using a $200 card and a $300 won't be noticeable while playing games.

As for an AMD CPU, the FX CPUs are great if you use multi-threaded applications, but most games don't benefit from the extra 2 or 4 cores. You're much better off with a 3rd-gen core-i Intel processor at the same price point. You'll get less cores, but the higher clock rate will benefit you more for most games and other applications.

Since Intel processors will likely get you better performance per dollar than AMD, is there any other reason you would choose AMD? Other than performance, today's processor are pretty similar. Maybe electricity usage, but I think Intel's core-i series are generally lower than the FX's (although that probably also depends a lot on each particular processor).

As for the video card, I just searched for prices on the 7870 a few minutes ago, and it looks like they're around $200-$215 on sale. I would say spend up to an extra $10 for one with better cooling (2 fans = better for overclocking, and will run cooler and quieter). If you want to go a little cheaper, the 7850 will do the trick.

Any technology is replaced over time. If you spent $300 on the Radeon HD 4870 (single GPU) in mid-2008, it would be on par with the $120 HD 7750 in 2012. If you spent $230 on the Core i7-920, it would be on par with the $120 i3-3220 in 2012. In both cases, your components would use more power than the newer and cheaper components. But if you focus on these facts, you'll miss the greater point which is that if you make a few good investments, your system will definitely last for an enjoyable three or four years while gracefully declining. An i3-3220 + HD 7750 system would be regarded as a quality modern low-power budget system. If your older system lasted four years to reach that performance point, you should regard it as an achievement rather than a disappointment. Spend the $450-500 now and regard the 50% devaluing over four years as the cost of your enjoyment.

If cost is not a concern, then you're doing it wrong. Intel far exceeds AMD these days as far as CPUs go, and Nvidia is the BF3 performance leader. I'd say go with a i5-3570k with a GTX 660 or GTX 660 Ti. Plus you get the Nvidia specific goodies such PhysX for games that support it, and ambient occlusion via driver.

Everything gets outdated sooner or later, but there's an upper end of sorts... 60 fps has been the holy grail for a while, and cards that are at that point with highest settings in most games now will definitely be the ones to get.

If you want to stick with AMD, then get the 7870 but still go with an Intel CPU of some sort.

for video cards, wait for a slickdeal in the $150 range. This is the sweet spot in performance/price. This way you can buy anotehr $150 card in 3 years which will be 2x-3x as good as the $500 card today.

Quote from DWad : Don't prepare yourself to spend $300 on a GPU as suggested by dayv. $200 is a good price point for price/performance ratio. Spending more than that, you really won't notice the difference unless you already have a crazy setup and reallllllly feel the need to play at higher resolutions than 1080p. But honestly the difference between using a $200 card and a $300 won't be noticeable while playing games. As for an AMD CPU, the FX CPUs are great if you use multi-threaded applications, but most games don't benefit from the extra 2 or 4 cores. You're much better off with a 3rd-gen core-i Intel processor at the same price point. You'll get less cores, but the higher clock rate will benefit you more for most games and other applications. Since Intel processors will likely get you better performance per dollar than AMD, is there any other reason you would choose AMD? Other than performance, today's processor are pretty similar. Maybe electricity usage, but I think Intel's core-i series are generally lower than the FX's (although that probably also depends a lot on each particular processor). As for the video card, I just searched for prices on the 7870 a few minutes ago, and it looks like they're around $200-$215 on sale. I would say spend up to an extra $10 for one with better cooling (2 fans = better for overclocking, and will run cooler and quieter). If you want to go a little cheaper, the 7850 will do the trick.

I agree, Intel is the clear leader in performance and has been for 4-5 years. They are slightly more expensive but performance more than makes up for it. an i5 would be a good processor to get. It will more than play the game you want and give room for growth in the future. Gaming is mostly GPU intensive so you don't need the top of the line processor. The links posted above are a good place to look for benchmarks. Get a firm project budget and work from there