Back to PC from Console

Use to do a little PC gaming long ago went to console now I'm back. The new consoles do not appeal to me right now. This will be my first computer build I will have the help of two friends who have built their own computers in the past couple of years. I've watched a ton of youtube videos on budget builds and every time I decide on a component I find something that is supposedly better so I'm asking for your assistance in breaking it down for me.

Looking to build an inexpensive rig 500 US dollars and under to play BF4, BF3, CSGO, Wolfenstein, Watchdogs DayZ and newer games on mid high settings for 60-70 fps. is this doable? I've already purchased a hard drive, optical drive, and case NZXT Source 210 just looking for advice on the guts. I do not want to overclock any of the parts at this time until I know what the hell I am doing. AMD cpu is my only stipulation. For CPU GPU Motherboard and ram looking to spend under 300 total but am willing to spend a little more for a better setup. 

I've looked into APU systems using either the A8-6600k ($100) or A10-6800k ($130) this appeals to me for the cost saving factor or not buying a GPU from the get go. My concern is if the performance is there to meet my expectations to run BF4 at 60fps is it possible with 1866 or higher ram? Or is it better to do a standard CPU and GPU combo and get better performance?

If I went CPU GPU route I've looked at the Fx-6300 or 760k paired with some r7 260x gpu. This option being twice as much as a APU. Would this setup yield better performance than an APU setup? Is this the setup to go with for the results I want?   

I haven't looked into the nvidia products and would consider them if the performance was better for the dollar amount. 

So those are my questions for you guys, your help is appreciated thanks.

Heres my picker link also:

http://pcpartpicker.com/p/7HKCD3

 

BF4 runs at 30fps @720p on APU's and thats single player not MP.

Something like this will get you running high to ultra (depending on the game) @1080p 60fps http://pcpartpicker.com/p/7jQ8jX

 

I wouldn't expect anything higher than medium settings at this price point, especially for newer titles(like watchdogs).

A CPU + dGPU will outperform an APU by a large margin, even if the dedicated graphics card is a low-mid range card.  APUs are alright for low budget machines or entry level machines, but a CPU + GPU combo will be much, much better.  CPU+GPU combos often have a much better price-performance ratio as well.

Since the parts you've picked have already taken up about $200, $300 causes us to be quite limited with our options.

The 760k is an optimal pick, as it's cheap and performs well in budget gaming builds.  I've paired it with an R7 265, which is pretty much a rebranded HD 7850.  The R7 265 provides a lot more performance than the 260x, but it's not that much more.

http://pcpartpicker.com/p/PrCsmG

If you really want to stick to your budget, there are ways of lowering the price, but of course that will come with a performance loss as well.

http://pcpartpicker.com/p/WN7c4D

If you can, try to reach for 8GB of RAM.  4GB can get you by, but not for long.

R7 265 and Athlon 760k seems like a solid choice for my price point how long will these parts be usable with new titles before they need to be upgraded again 2-3 years? Would it be wiser to up my budget to accommodate a better CPU and GPU combo to get a longer use time out of them?

8GB of RAM is what my plan was forgot to mention that. 

In 2-3 years, I believe the CPU will be lacking more than the GPU.  Something like an FX-6300 or FX-8320 would last a lot longer.  However, this means that the build must be AM3+ and that requires a more expensive motherboard.

http://pcpartpicker.com/p/W7FF4D

Another option is to go with an Intel i5(probably non-K since low budget).  Intel i5s are very powerful as well.  They are about as powerful as AMD's 8 core FX-8350.  However, as you can probably guess, Intel is indeed a bit pricy.

http://pcpartpicker.com/p/M2GsmG

Just scored a gigabyte R9 270 2Gb for a decent price. Was wondering if the 760k would still be a good match for the R9 270? Or am I going to have to step up my cpu?

That gpu and cpu combo will be fine.

^yep, should perform nicely.