Gaming Performance

We slapped the GeForce GTX 580 in for the first batch of gaming benchmarks. When running Battlefield: Bad Company 2 at 1920x1200, the Asrock A75M-ITX armed with the A8-3850 delivered similar performance to motherboards using high-end processors such as the Core i7-2600K and Phenom II X6 1100T. Moreover, it was a fraction faster than the Z68M-ITX/HT and Core i3-2120 configuration.

The Asrock A75M-ITX was slightly slower when using the A6-3650, but there's little shame in dipping 7fps to an average of 82fps. Again, by comparison, the Core i7-2600K was only 9fps faster.

Far Cry 2 shook things up as the Intel parts clearly dominated our graph. While the A8-3850 managed to match the Phenom II X6 1100T, it was still 19% (20 frames) slower than the Core i3-2120.

That gap was largely closed in Dirt 3. The Core i3 and A8 series chips were separated by a paltry 3fps.

At 1280x800, we remove limitations imposed by the GPU and allow the CPUs to stretch their legs. As a result, the Core i3 galloped ahead of the Fusion machines, faring 11% better in BC2 than the A8-3850.

Reducing the resolution didn't change Far Cry 2's results as the i3 still outpaced the A8-3850 by 26%.

When testing Dirt 3 at 1280x800, Intel's budget chip secured a 9% lead over the A75/A8-3850 combo.