1. #1

    Which is better for gaming: i3-2100+GTX 650Ti or i5 2310 + GTX 550 Ti?

    Based on my budget, those are my two options (I've read multiple times that AMD CPUs are subpar). I need to buy a CPU, GPU, Mobo, and PSU for no more $400 including taxes and before mail in rebates. Both of the cards are EVGA 2GB versions. The i5 combination would put me back $250 before taxes, whereas the i3 combination would be $326 before taxes, but that includes the mobo, so I would only need to buy a PSU afterwards. Would the i3 or the GTX 550 Ti be a bottleneck for my machine? According to gaming benchmarks, the 550 Ti gets about half the FPS as the GTX 650 Ti, but would the jump to i5 be worth the drop/make up for it? Games I wanna play include Borderlands 2, Skyrim, Arkham City/Asylum, Assassin's Creed 3, and a bunch of other stuff.

    (sorry if this is a nobrainer question, but I'm still new to components)
    Last edited by MCMXCIX; 2012-11-23 at 08:01 AM.

    Quote Originally Posted by momirmaster View Post
    Although I believe that We never killed osama and OBAMA just used it as propaganda to win a election cause Osama's was probably dead for years I Usually am not gullible.

  2. #2
    Deleted
    Out of those 2, the i3 + 650ti would be the better choice.

    Altho i might also give a look at this set

    PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

    CPU: AMD FX-4300 3.8GHz Quad-Core Processor ($119.99 @ NCIX US)
    Motherboard: ASRock 970 Extreme3 ATX AM3+ Motherboard ($69.99 @ Newegg)
    Video Card: Gigabyte Radeon HD 7850 2GB Video Card ($159.99 @ Newegg)
    Power Supply: XFX ProSeries 450W 80 PLUS Bronze Certified ATX12V / EPS12V Power Supply ($42.99 @ NCIX US)
    Total: $392.96
    (Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
    (Generated by PCPartPicker 2012-11-23 04:25 EST-0500)

    I think the AMD cpu is on par with the intel one. Not quite sure, but i dont think you will notice a difference in the games you listed. Seeing as most games you have listed are gpu heavy. And the 7850 is a lot better than the 650ti.
    Last edited by mmoc24391763c2; 2012-11-23 at 09:28 AM.

  3. #3
    Quote Originally Posted by Zeara View Post
    Out of those 2, the i3 + 650ti would be the better choice.

    Altho i might also give a look at this set

    PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

    CPU: AMD FX-4300 3.8GHz Quad-Core Processor ($119.99 @ NCIX US)
    Motherboard: ASRock 970 Extreme3 ATX AM3+ Motherboard ($69.99 @ Newegg)
    Video Card: Gigabyte Radeon HD 7850 2GB Video Card ($159.99 @ Newegg)
    Power Supply: XFX ProSeries 450W 80 PLUS Bronze Certified ATX12V / EPS12V Power Supply ($42.99 @ NCIX US)
    Total: $392.96
    (Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
    (Generated by PCPartPicker 2012-11-23 04:25 EST-0500)
    Thanks to a really great deal, I got a i3 3225 from Tigerdirect for only $65. So right now I'm trying to make the best mobo/psu/gpu combo for $330 or less. Pretty much looking between 7850 and GTX 650 Ti now. I've heard lots of pros and cons about each, so I'm gonna wait until Black Friday is in full swing instead of just being 2 hours in, and hope one of them gets reduced.

    Quote Originally Posted by momirmaster View Post
    Although I believe that We never killed osama and OBAMA just used it as propaganda to win a election cause Osama's was probably dead for years I Usually am not gullible.

  4. #4
    What form-factor is your case?

    mATX or ATX?


    Something like this perhaps:

    PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

    Motherboard: ASRock H77M Micro ATX LGA1155 Motherboard ($59.99 @ Newegg)
    Video Card: Gigabyte Radeon HD 7850 2GB Video Card ($159.99 @ Newegg)
    Power Supply: Antec Basiq Plus 550W 80 PLUS Certified ATX12V Power Supply ($60.99 @ SuperBiiz)
    Total: $280.97 (using 30 dollars of Mail in Rebates)
    (Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
    (Generated by PCPartPicker 2012-11-23 04:40 EST-0500)

  5. #5
    Quote Originally Posted by Butler Log View Post
    What form-factor is your case?

    mATX or ATX?


    Something like this perhaps:

    PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

    Motherboard: ASRock H77M Micro ATX LGA1155 Motherboard ($59.99 @ Newegg)
    Video Card: Gigabyte Radeon HD 7850 2GB Video Card ($159.99 @ Newegg)
    Power Supply: Antec Basiq Plus 550W 80 PLUS Certified ATX12V Power Supply ($60.99 @ SuperBiiz)
    Total: $280.97 (using 30 dollars of Mail in Rebates)
    (Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
    (Generated by PCPartPicker 2012-11-23 04:40 EST-0500)
    It says it's compatible with both, actually. NZXT Source 210 Elite. Quick question though: is the extra $30 on the 7850 (since many people say rebates are unreliable) worth the lower quality motherboard?

    Quote Originally Posted by momirmaster View Post
    Although I believe that We never killed osama and OBAMA just used it as propaganda to win a election cause Osama's was probably dead for years I Usually am not gullible.

  6. #6
    The motherboard serves solely to connect your components to each other (in your price-bracket at least). Unless you need (or want) a specific feature, get the cheapest one with that feature that will do the job. The 7850 is a massive jump up in performance over the 550ti/650ti, it is almost on par with a GTX 580/660ti in some titles. The sub GTX 660/HD 7770 cards are not worth buying at all unless all you want to do is watch movies or you play on a tiny 720p/768p monitor (in which case a monitor upgrade would be a massive quality of life increase).
    Last edited by Butler to Baby Sloths; 2012-11-23 at 10:09 AM.

  7. #7
    Quote Originally Posted by MCMXCIX View Post
    Thanks to a really great deal, I got a i3 3225 from Tigerdirect for only $65. So right now I'm trying to make the best mobo/psu/gpu combo for $330 or less. Pretty much looking between 7850 and GTX 650 Ti now. I've heard lots of pros and cons about each, so I'm gonna wait until Black Friday is in full swing instead of just being 2 hours in, and hope one of them gets reduced.
    The i3-3225 has Intel HD 4000 which should allow you to play World of Warcraft. Its not enough for most modern games at more than 720p and lowest settings.

    The 7850 is better than the 650 Ti but its more expensive.

    Benchmarks: http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/A...rmance/20.html

  8. #8
    The i3-3225 has Intel HD 4000 which should allow you to play World of Warcraft.
    I doubt you will get very far into WoW with the integrated HD 4000 GPU unless you are playing with a tiny screen and very low settings.

  9. #9
    Quote Originally Posted by Butler Log View Post
    I doubt you will get very far into WoW with the integrated HD 4000 GPU unless you are playing with a tiny screen and very low settings.
    At lowest settings, it runs WoW fine at 1920x1080. It only struggles at ~20 FPS in 25m raids.

    I've been playing PTR on a even worse graphics card, 9600M GT. I can maintain a playable frame rate 20+, although I haven't been able to raid 25M yet.

  10. #10
    Damn, there was a 7850 on sale for $150 while I was asleep... and I couldn't care less about WoW performance, really. I've been trying my hardest to quit, and being able to play modern releases will help.

    ---------- Post added 2012-11-23 at 01:45 PM ----------

    Quote Originally Posted by Butler Log View Post
    The motherboard serves solely to connect your components to each other (in your price-bracket at least). Unless you need (or want) a specific feature, get the cheapest one with that feature that will do the job. The 7850 is a massive jump up in performance over the 550ti/650ti, it is almost on par with a GTX 580/660ti in some titles. The sub GTX 660/HD 7770 cards are not worth buying at all unless all you want to do is watch movies or you play on a tiny 720p/768p monitor (in which case a monitor upgrade would be a massive quality of life increase).
    I do actually play on a tiny monitor (1024x768) but I've been hoping to upgrade, so I'll go for the 7850.

    ---------- Post added 2012-11-23 at 02:32 PM ----------

    I ended up getting a cheaper PSU, http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16817152028 and a few dollars cheaper motherboard, http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16813157335 , and that way, I can get a 7870, http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16814102983. Now to look online to see if my parts are compatible...

    Quote Originally Posted by momirmaster View Post
    Although I believe that We never killed osama and OBAMA just used it as propaganda to win a election cause Osama's was probably dead for years I Usually am not gullible.

  11. #11
    Hmm the gtx 650ti actually performs almost equally to a 6950. You mostly like end into a CPU bottleneck story with an i3 for that card, especially in WoW. Also mention that the games are not taking advantage of HT.

    With my older Q9550 C1 which was performing in Cinebench 2.6 and in 3dmark vantage 9K, which is almost equal to an i3 with ht disabled, I was having a cpu bottleneck in swtor with a 6950 (which was unlocked to 6970).

    But it depends on games though. Some games I was having a bottleneck, some not. BF3 is very cpu friendly, while it's GPU intensive. But BF3 makes uses of HT though.

    In short words: it's rather a big guess to me.

    Well why won't you buy an i5 occassion for 100eur?

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