Looking to Upgrade

[Fenning]

Hello all!

I am running into a major issue with running Arma on my current system. The most frames I can possibly get are around 20, but that is on a lucky day with a good server (multiplayer).

I used to play on a Intel laptop but made the decision to switch to a AMD desktop that my Uncle had just sitting around. My friend mailed me a free MOBO (not the current one) and processor (current) so I put together this from what my uncle had lying around.

My Current system specs are:

OS: Windows 10
Mobo: ASUS A88XM-A
Processor: AMD A10-5800K Quad-Core 3.8Mhz
Graphics: Radeon R7 265 with 2GB DDR5
Memory: 12GB

I understand Arma 3 HATES AMD systems, which is why I am making the smarter decision to move to Intel.

So this is what I would like to get eventually:

Mobo: MSI Z97 GAMING 5 LGA 1150
Processor: Intel i7-4790K Devil's Canyon Quad-Core 4.0GHz LGA1150
Graphics: ASUS GeForce GTX 970
Memory: G.SKILL Ripjaws X Series 8GB (2x4GB) x2
Cooling: CORSAIR Hydro Series H110i GT Water Cooler
Power: CORSAIR RM Series RM850
Storage: (I already have a 1TB HardDrive) SAMSUNG 850 EVO 250GB
Case: Corsair Obsidian Series 450D Black ATX Mid Tower Gaming (I travel a bit)

So, reason for this post. I want help with CPU. I do want to end up recording some of the ops we do (from a medical point of view since there are not many) which is why I went with a i7, but, would I be okay going down to a i5? Say a i5-4960K? The build I have is currently sitting at $1,800 before taxes/shipping. That is a lot.

I plan on getting things in intervals, such as mobo/processor/memory first with my current system/case and slowly getting other parts as I go.

Any help or input would be amazingly helpful. My Uncle swears by AMD systems and says mine should be running at 60fps... Bullshit, need other input.

Thanks in advance for the help.

[CPT (Ret) Richardson]

Arma is processor intensive so stick with the I7 especially if your intention is recording which is also processor intensive depending on the program used. Shadow play allegedly uses your gpu but I haven't tried recording with shadow play yet. I'd wait till Black Friday/cyber Monday to see if any of your parts are on sale. I saved at least 20% on my rig buying during that time.

[1LT (Ret) Aston]

That is an extremely similar system to mine, and slightly better at that. You shouldn't have any issues running Arma on high with decent frames.

[Rainer]

This is my current build: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/wsgBBm (do note that W8.1 and a monitor are in that price)

I have a 780 ti SC edition, which is no longer available, so i placed a 970 in there. I'd recommend a 980 ti for sure, as it is a monster card. I'm actually unsure if it would fit into a 450D. I'd need to research that. The 970 should.

Overall your build is great. I prefer the Gaming 7 because I like the BIOS switch, the added PWM phases with Hi-C caps, the 8 USB 3.0 ports (versus 4), and the 8 SATA ports (which if you have a modular case like mine with hot swaps and you like to RAID a lot, it's awesome). However if you don't practice heavy OC, Gaming 5 is fine. Also, I am still on fan cooling, the Hyper 212 EVO has been in any build i've had for the past 5 years and has never failed me. I'd also consider more RAM. 8 Gigs is a rather small amount honestly, especially if you run a lot of background processes.

I was on a GIGABYTE board for the longest and I upgraded up to the Z97X a few months back because I managed to break my USB 3.0 headers and didn't feel like trying to weld new ones in. Meh.

TL;DR - great build, consider more RAM, stay i7

[Fenning]

I have under memory that I will be getting 2 sets for a total of 16 gigs. That I think would be enough.

[Rainer]

Didn't notice the x2 after the parenthesis. 16 is a great amount. I'm going up to 32 next month b/c I have a lot of background and my virtual machines and KVM eat RAM.
I'm not sure if it's best to split down like that. In the long run, if you want to upgrade, it's going to cost you more...

[1LT (Ret) Aston]

I'd also recommend getting a HDD along with your SSD if you plan on recording. You'll run out of space VERY quickly with the large file sizes you have to deal with.

[Rainer]

Indeed he said 1 TB, but I agree you need more. I have a 3 TB drive with a 2 TB external. I barley keep docs on my 3 TB because fucking windows needs reinstalling every 2 minutes, so my external is about 70% full. However I record like mad on my drive and fill it with my steam library. My SSD is 40% full from windows and small downloads, while my HDD is already at almost 1 TB from recording and about 30 triple A games. Heck, GTA V is almost 1/10 of your HDD.
For my VMs and tools I run three 1 TB drives at RAID 1, hence my love of hotswaps.

[Bingham]

Very sexy build fenning. I would also recommend the I7 but then again a i5 will get the job done as well. And the recommendation of a 980 is also a solid one because it's a beast of a card. Don't get me wrong the 970 is extremely nice as well.

[Carr]

I used this website http://www.logicalincrements.com to help me make some decisions. I use the gigabyte Z97 black edition mobo and really like it. I have the I5-4690k Devils canyon and msi GTX 970 and it does great but I don't record. Also I use the Rosewill Thor V2 case. It's a full tower but it has lots of room, great air movement and comes with 4 fans (I put two on exhaust and two on intake). And I use a cryorig H7 cooler and I'm never above 50-53 degrees.

Minus a few not so great servers I run very high-ultra at 40-60'ish frames on multiplayer.

[Fenning]

Thanks for the informaton guys. Yeah I would agree with you on needing to increase storage.

Again, thanks for the info.