Another build

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Another build (upgrade)

Hi Everyone,

I was here a while back because I wanted a budget gaming PC. Well I now run a pretty successful review website and myself and my writers have been getting a lot of PC games, so I want to get the best experience possible. My Pc only really handles the higher end games in low.

I am using the a10 6800k AMd APU. As this was cheap and all that I needed.
I also have a F2a85X-D3H Gigabyte motherboard (but hoping to keep that)

What route should I go, get a better graphics card? Get a better Processor and graphics card?

No budget at the moment, just want to get some idea's.

Want to play at max settings with no lag, with some video editing.

Many thanks everybody.
 
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The APUs aren't for high end gaming. The built in GPU is only good really for 720p gaming or lowered settings at 1080p. One option is to put in a card for dual graphics, this is the cheapest boost.

For higher settings (without changing the board/CPU) your best bet is to get a reasonable cooler and overclock the CPU, and get a 7870 LE -- this would give max settings in most FPS type games at 1080p.
 
The APUs aren't for high end gaming. The built in GPU is only good really for 720p gaming or lowered settings at 1080p. One option is to put in a card for dual graphics, this is the cheapest boost.

For higher settings (without changing the board/CPU) your best bet is to get a reasonable cooler and overclock the CPU, and get a 7870 LE -- this would give max settings in most FPS type games at 1080p.

So how well would the 7870 LE perform if I disabled the onboard APU graphics? (without overclocking)
 
You wouldn't be using the onboard graphics if you used a 7870 LE (they can't work together). The thing is the APU is a budget processor so it'd benefit from an overclock with a higher end card, as higher settings tend to push the CPU harder as well as the graphics card. It can perform ok with a discrete card, e.g. this review:

http://hexus.net/tech/reviews/cpu/56657-amd-a10-6800k-32nm-richland/?page=8

Yeah, that's why I said previously that I would disable the onboard.

So If I got the 7870, would it be easy to upgrade in future if I needed a better CPU (i5 or i7)?
 
Yes, if you think you'll upgrade the cpu/board at some point you can get any card. The 7870 LE (it's basically a cheaper 7950) is about as high as I'd go with the APU, but you could put in a 7970 or GTX 770 if you wanted to.
 
So, what`s the site you reviewing for?

A website I started. Not successful enough that you would have heard of it. But successful enough for me that I don't need to buy games anymore (just have to do a hell of a lot of writing!)

I don't know the rules of this site well enough to place a link here.


Yes, if you think you'll upgrade the cpu/board at some point you can get any card. The 7870 LE (it's basically a cheaper 7950) is about as high as I'd go with the APU, but you could put in a 7970 or GTX 770 if you wanted to.

So If we just forgot the APU all together, what would you recommend for CPU and GPU?
 
A website I started. Not successful enough that you would have heard of it. But successful enough for me that I don't need to buy games anymore (just have to do a hell of a lot of writing!)

I don't know the rules of this site well enough to place a link here.




So If we just forgot the APU all together, what would you recommend for CPU and GPU?

You can link to review sites.

i5 1155/50 and a 7870LE.
 
Switching out the board and CPU is a bit drastic, but if you want all games at max settings, you'll have to. As you see in that review, some games like Bioshock Infinite will run at max on the APU with a decent card.
 
Switching out the board and CPU is a bit drastic, but if you want all games at max settings, you'll have to. As you see in that review, some games like Bioshock Infinite will run at max on the APU with a decent card.

I want to slightly future proof it a little as well. Thanks for your help so far.
 
What PSU are you using?

You have 2 options it seems, add a gfx card to your current rig, or a full upgrade.

Your A10/mobo should be quite sellable, so you could factor that into the price.
 
What PSU are you using?

You have 2 options it seems, add a gfx card to your current rig, or a full upgrade.

Your A10/mobo should be quite sellable, so you could factor that into the price.


XFX Pro 450W Core Edition '80 Plus Bronze' Power Supply

What is the problem with my current mobo?
 
There is nothing wrong with your mobo, but you mention changing processor, to upgrade your CPU you would need to change your mobo for one with a different cpu socket.
 
From what I understand that PSU should just about be ok for a 7870LE, but I'd rather the more knowledgeable members confirm this.
 
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