AMD FX vs Intel for gaming - 2015 Edition

[Aniallation]

So many of you know Faceman's infamous quote regarding the choice of AMD FX CPUs vs respectively priced i3/i5 for gaming. Personally I thought the quote was always a bit too big to digest, and that the information seems to be getting a bit dated, so thought I'd make a "newer" version, with some newer AAA titles for gaming performance comparison, and overall less spoilers and paragraphs, and of course put it into it's own thread.
 
Also trying to use basic spoilers so it's more "break-proof" whenever they change something on the forums and spoilers go to shit.
 

_________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

 

 
Of course, it still all boils down to: People think they are getting a good deal when they buy an FX for gaming, and they are not.
 
Simple conclusions - Why Intel i3/i5 are better for gaming then competing AMD FX:
 
- Generally better gaming performance (see below)
- Lower power consumption
- Lower heat output, heat output that the stock cooler can actually handle, eliminating the need for an aftermarket cooler for a quiet PC
- Upgradability: Buy an i3 now and upgrade to a massively more powerful i7 later while keeping the same motherboard. Buy an FX8 now, and be stuck with it until next mobo upgrade
- Greater motherboard selection, no need for fancy VRMs (see below)
- More modern technologies: PCIe 3.0, native USB 3.0/3.1, on-die integrated graphics (in case of GPU failure, can keep using your PC), etc
 
- Better IPC: Every MHz does more with Intel.
 
More cores does not mean better, if you can't use all of them. Intel cores are not twice as powerful as FX cores (given at stock), but if you can only use half of the cores on your FX then what's the point of having so many?

 

And before people think it, there is no bias here, I am an AMD CPU user. I don't regret my purchase because I did it back in the day when AMD was still highly competitive with Intel's first-gen Core-i CPUs, but here today, I'm just giving cold hard facts.
 
Gaming performance

Grand Theft Auto V
 

 
FX6 and FX8 fall between i3 and i5
 
The Witcher 3
 

 
FX6 and FX8 fall behind respective i3 and i5
 
Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare
 

 
A game optimized pretty darn well for multi-threaded CPUs, still can't see the FX8 pull away from i5
 
Batman Arkham Knight
 

 
Even the top-of-the-line FX 9590 can't catch up to i3
 
Metal Gear Solid V: Ground Zeroes
 

 
Lowest-end i3 can compete with FX, but even a 0.4GHz higher model and Intel starts to pull away
 
Project CARS
 

 
Once again FX6 and FX8 falling behind respective i3 and i5

 

Far Cry 4

 

 

I'm sure you can see the pattern here
 

If you note in some of these benchmarks, sometimes FX4 is actually ahead of FX6, because it is running at a higher frequency on each of the cores. These are examples of poor multi-threaded optimization in games. Many AAA titles still can't use more then 4 cores, so 4 FX cores at 3.8GHz is better then 6 FX cores at 3.5GHz.
 
VRMs - what are they and why are they important:
 

When talking about AM3+ boards you'll often hear the term VRMs. These are Voltage Regulation Modules, they are what turn the PSU's 12V into the ~1.4V (FX) your CPU will take. So the higher the power draw of your CPU, the more work the VRMs have to do. On Intel boards this isn't a big deal because at stock speeds you won't see more then 88W of CPU TDP, but you can't trust these same VRMs with the 125W FX chips. Overloading motherboard VRMs can actually lead to them burning out, causing a dead motherboard and possibly a fire hazard.
 
Read more about VRMs: http://www.overclock.net/a/about-vrms-mosfets-motherboard-safety-with-high-tdp-processors

 
Price:
(This is where the text comes in so get your English and math comprehension skills ready)
 

 

People think that FX is cheaper, and therefore is better for the money, and they'd be willing to make that sacrifice in performance for a bit of sacrifice in cost, but in reality, the difference is negligible. Take a look at these comparisons. Again this continues on the fact that you'll want a board with good VRMs for reliability on AM3+, while it's pretty much whatever with locked Intel chips. For this reason we'll be comparing using probably the best "cheap" AM3+ board, the Gigabyte GA-970A-UD3P, with it's 8+2 phase VRMs, compared to a budget Intel H97 board.
 
FX-6300 vs i3

 
PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant
 
CPU: AMD FX-6300 3.5GHz 6-Core Processor  ($96.88 @ OutletPC) 
Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-970A-UD3P ATX AM3+ Motherboard  ($79.98 @ OutletPC) 
Total: $176.86
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2015-07-05 19:59 EDT-0400
 

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant
 
CPU: Intel Core i3-4160 3.6GHz Dual-Core Processor  ($108.95 @ SuperBiiz) 
Motherboard: ASRock H97M Anniversary Micro ATX LGA1150 Motherboard  ($64.89 @ OutletPC) 
Total: $173.84
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2015-07-05 20:01 EDT-0400


 
$3 cheaper for the i3, and keep in mind as we proved above, the i3s are more then capable of competing with FX8 and even FX9 chips, only in the worst case scenario being around the same as FX6. On top of that, the benefits of Intel as listed above.
 
FX-8320 vs i5

 
PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant
 
CPU: AMD FX-8320 3.5GHz 8-Core Processor  ($134.99 @ Amazon) 
Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-970A-UD3P ATX AM3+ Motherboard  ($79.98 @ OutletPC) 
Total: $214.97
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2015-07-05 20:03 EDT-0400
 
PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant
 
CPU: Intel Core i5-4460 3.2GHz Quad-Core Processor  ($166.95 @ SuperBiiz) 
Motherboard: ASRock H97M Anniversary Micro ATX LGA1150 Motherboard  ($64.89 @ OutletPC) 
Total: $231.84
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2015-07-05 20:04 EDT-0400
 

 
$17 more for the i5, for much higher performance and pretty much zero bottleneck with any single GPU in any game, as opposed to the struggling FX...
 
Cooler
 
Do note that these builds are NOT with an aftermarket cooler. While the stock Intel coolers are fine for their accompanying chips, the coolers bundled with 125W FX chips aren't really up to the job, and can become VERY loud under load. If you want a quiet PC you'll want to invest in an aftermarket cooler. The cheapest one worth buying to quiet down an FX chip is the Zalman CNPS5X, which is $17. 
 
http://pcpartpicker.com/part/zalman-cpu-cooler-cnps5xperforma
 
This eliminates the price gap between the FX8 and i5, and makes the i3 choice $20 cheaper then the FX6 choice.
 
But what if I don't live in the USA?
 

 
Canada
 

 
PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant
 
CPU: AMD FX-6300 3.5GHz 6-Core Processor  ($122.99 @ NCIX) 
Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-970A-UD3P ATX AM3+ Motherboard  ($109.75 @ Vuugo) 
Total: $232.74
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2015-07-05 20:12 EDT-0400
 

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant
 
CPU: Intel Core i3-4160 3.6GHz Dual-Core Processor  ($136.50 @ shopRBC) 
Motherboard: ASRock H97M Anniversary Micro ATX LGA1150 Motherboard  ($93.98 @ Newegg Canada) 
Total: $230.48
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2015-07-05 20:12 EDT-0400
 
 
 
PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant
 
CPU: AMD FX-8320 3.5GHz 8-Core Processor  ($169.75 @ Vuugo) 
Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-970A-UD3P ATX AM3+ Motherboard  ($109.75 @ Vuugo) 
Total: $279.50
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2015-07-05 20:35 EDT-0400
 
PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant
 
CPU: Intel Core i5-4440 3.1GHz Quad-Core Processor  ($225.00 @ Vuugo) 
Motherboard: MSI H81M-E34 Micro ATX LGA1150 Motherboard  ($66.00 @ Vuugo) 
Total: $291.00
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2015-07-05 20:14 EDT-0400

 
UK
 

 
PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant
 
CPU: AMD FX-6300 3.5GHz 6-Core Processor  (£79.19 @ Aria PC) 
Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-970A-UD3P ATX AM3+ Motherboard  (£64.54 @ More Computers) 
Total: £143.73
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2015-07-06 01:14 BST+0100
 

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant
 
CPU: Intel Core i3-4160 3.6GHz Dual-Core Processor  (£84.53 @ Ebuyer) 
Motherboard: ASRock H97M Anniversary Micro ATX LGA1150 Motherboard  (£69.47 @ Amazon UK) 
Total: £154.00
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2015-07-06 01:14 BST+0100
 
 
 

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant
 
CPU: AMD FX-8320 3.5GHz 8-Core Processor  (£108.13 @ CCL Computers) 
Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-970A-UD3P ATX AM3+ Motherboard  (£64.54 @ More Computers) 
Total: £172.67
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2015-07-06 01:15 BST+0100
 

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant
 
CPU: Intel Core i5-4440 3.1GHz Quad-Core Processor  (£137.36 @ Ebuyer) 
Motherboard: MSI H81M-E34 Micro ATX LGA1150 Motherboard  (£34.68 @ CCL Computers) 
Total: £172.04
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2015-07-06 01:15 BST+0100
 

 

Kangaroo Land
 

 
PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant
 
CPU: AMD FX-6300 3.5GHz 6-Core Processor  ($145.00 @ CPL Online) 
Motherboard: MSI 970 GAMING ATX AM3+ Motherboard  ($145.00 @ CPL Online) 
Total: $290.00
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2015-07-06 10:25 AEST+1000
 

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant
 
CPU: Intel Core i3-4160 3.6GHz Dual-Core Processor  ($152.00 @ CPL Online) 
Motherboard: ASRock H97M Anniversary Micro ATX LGA1150 Motherboard  ($99.00 @ IJK) 
Total: $251.00
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2015-07-06 10:26 AEST+1000
 
 
 
 

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant
 
CPU: AMD FX-8320 3.5GHz 8-Core Processor  ($205.00 @ CPL Online) 
Motherboard: MSI 970 GAMING ATX AM3+ Motherboard  ($145.00 @ CPL Online) 
Total: $350.00
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2015-07-06 10:25 AEST+1000
 

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant
 
CPU: Intel Core i5-4460 3.2GHz Quad-Core Processor  ($246.00 @ Centre Com) 
Motherboard: ASRock H97M Anniversary Micro ATX LGA1150 Motherboard  ($99.00 @ IJK) 
Total: $345.00
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2015-07-06 10:26 AEST+1000
 

​Deutschland
 

 
PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant
 
CPU: AMD FX-6300 3.5GHz 6-Core Processor  (€99.90 @ Caseking) 
Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-970A-UD3P ATX AM3+ Motherboard  (€85.09 @ Amazon Deutschland) 
Total: €184.99
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2015-07-06 02:23 CEST+0200
 

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant
 
CPU: Intel Core i3-4160 3.6GHz Dual-Core Processor  (€119.95 @ Amazon Deutschland) 
Motherboard: ASRock H97M Anniversary Micro ATX LGA1150 Motherboard  (€76.89 @ Amazon Deutschland) 
Total: €196.84
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2015-07-06 02:23 CEST+0200
 
 
 

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant
 
CPU: AMD FX-8320 3.5GHz 8-Core Processor  (€139.90 @ Caseking) 
Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-970A-UD3P ATX AM3+ Motherboard  (€85.09 @ Amazon Deutschland) 
Total: €224.99
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2015-07-06 02:23 CEST+0200
 

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant
 
CPU: Intel Core i5-4440 3.1GHz Quad-Core Processor  (€189.90 @ Caseking) 
Motherboard: MSI H81M-E34 Micro ATX LGA1150 Motherboard  (€56.18 @ Amazon Deutschland) 
Total: €246.08
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2015-07-06 02:23 CEST+0200
 

 

(more to be added)
 
Around the world the price differences do change and often the gap grows but there is never a point where the Intel option is "overpriced" compared to Intel, considering the performance you get.
 


 

 

s/o to @Faceman for the original post which can be found here: http://linustechtips.com/main/topic/290735-processor-choice/page-2#entry3947895, my mom for the delicious noodles that powered me through writing this and my clock for letting me know just how much of my life I wasted for the benefit of your knowledge.

[,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,]

Gotta retest with DX12!

[STRMfrmXMN]

People should read this. Rub it in the face of the plebs on PCPP...

 

Also, tagging @Faceman

[Agent181]

Even though I have an fx processor I still recommend the i5's 

[Doge_Such_Wow]

i think most people in this forum know that AMD is shit

[STRMfrmXMN]

Gotta retest with DX12!

They'll still suck with that per-core performance though....

[STRMfrmXMN]

i think most people in this forum know that AMD is shit

*Minus the APUs which are great for the right person*

[Aniallation]

i think most people in this forum know that AMD is shit

*Minus the APUs which are great for the right person*

 

And 860K > G3258 for AAA

[,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,]

They'll still suck with that per-core performance though....

 

Yeah but the extra performance will somewhat revive the lineup against intel.

[Agent181]

i think most people in this forum know that AMD is shit

their hardware is outdated, the hardware was great for their time which was 5..6.. wait has it been 7 years on the same cpu's?  gpu's they are great

 

*Minus the APUs which are great for the right person*

^that

[Aniallation]

.

Still in the process of editing.

 

Please snip that quote. I don't want the thread to be a mess. Thanks

[Interfectorem]

People should read this. Rub it in the face of the plebs on PCPP...

I'm a plebeian?

[STRMfrmXMN]

Yeah but the extra performance will somewhat revive the lineup against intel.

Lol, I doubt it.... If an i3 is trumping their very best CPU in most multi-threaded games then AMD is not doing well... I'm willing to bet that it'll just bring it back up to "8350 is about on par with a low-end i5" territory again.

[Sam Z Man]

Still in the process of editing.

 

Please snip that quote. I don't want the thread to be a mess. Thanks

Oh dear lord didn't see how bloody long it was.

[Guest Kloaked]

Gotta retest with DX12!

 

It's not going to matter because not every game is going to be ported to DX12.

[STRMfrmXMN]

I'm a plebeian?

Most of them are AMD fanboys HARDCORE and don't understand WTF bottlenecking actually is. I saw one guy who had an FX 6350 and a 980ti and he said "my 6350 never saw 100% usage" and I basically just facewalled.... Like yes, that is a bottleneck...

[STRMfrmXMN]

And 860K > G3258 for AAA

Depends. AAA games that support dual cores the G3258 trumps.

[Agent181]

I'm a plebeian?

no your not, we know whats good and bad 

[Agent181]

Most of them are AMD fanboys HARDCORE and don't understand WTF bottlenecking actually is. I saw one guy who had a 6350 and a 980ti and he said "my 6350 never saw 100% usage" and I basically just facewalled.... Like yes, that is a bottleneck...

you forgot to mention that just about everyone there is reaaaaaaaaally young..... saw a build once with x99 that could ran anything and over 5k for an 8 year old that played minecraft......

[Sam Z Man]

Most of them are AMD fanboys HARDCORE and don't understand WTF bottlenecking actually is. I saw one guy who had a 6350 and a 980ti and he said "my 6350 never saw 100% usage" and I basically just facewalled.... Like yes, that is a bottleneck...

Yea I kind of what to tag them, but it will just go in one ear and out the other.

[STRMfrmXMN]

you forgot to mention that just about everyone there is reaaaaaaaaally young..... saw a build once with x99 that could ran anything and over 5k for an 8 year old that played minecraft......

Damn.... the people there are just not that bright in general though.... I got all the thumbs down on that site for every constructive commend of criticism I made on there....

[MageTank]

@Faceman

 

 

 

 

[STRMfrmXMN]

@Faceman

 

snips chips and acid trips

Nah, Faceman is still my Facebuddy, though Aniallation is my friend in PSU stuff.

[Aniallation]

Depends. AAA games that support dual cores the G3258 trumps.

Not really. Even if it does support dual-cores in many of them the G3258 stutters a lot more then the 860K

[Majestic]

Depends. AAA games that support dual cores the G3258 trumps.

 

Which is all games but 1.