Can I run it well? (Mostly GC games.)

[LatencyZero]

AMD 8350 @ 4.5ghz, 8GB DDR RAM, Nvidia/Asus Mars 760X2 Dual GPU on Windows 8.1.

The games I want to run are on the Gamecube for the most part although there are a few games I'd like to play from the Wii catalog... Mostly just Brawl.

[yl-smash]

Most AMD cpu's struggle with Dolphin due to their poor single thread performance, plus Dolphin can only use two cores. Dolphin relies mostly on cpu. It would be a lot easier if you posted which games you'd like to play. Wii games aren't necessarily more demanding than GC games as well. Brawl will be fine though, as it's a pretty lightweight game. Use the latest dev build. Also note Dolphin can't use SLI/Xfire.

[LatencyZero]

Most AMD cpu's struggle with Dolphin due to their poor single thread performance, plus Dolphin can only use two cores.  Dolphin relies mostly on cpu.  It would be a lot easier if you posted which games you'd like to play.  Wii games aren't necessarily more demanding than GC games as well.  Brawl will be fine though, as it's a pretty lightweight game.  Use the latest dev build.  Also note Dolphin can't use SLI/Xfire.

Uhhh...

Starfox Assault.
Need for Speed Underground 2.
Brawl and Melee.
Mario Kart, any on GC or Wii whichever is faster.
Wind Waker.
Metroid Prime series on either Wii or GC, whichever is faster.

Basically, my gamelist is determined by what will run under 3D vision...

I get the feeling that my GPU and CPU will let me down pretty badly, no SLI means I'm missing half of gfx ram and processing power and the fact that Dolphin can't use all my cores means I'm running a crippled system. Is there any tweak guides or optimization guides handy?

[mbc07]

Your GPU will be fine, you just need a better CPU, especially for Metroid Prime and Mario Kart Wii in multiplayer mode (unlikely most -- if not all -- PC games, Dolphin relies a lot more on CPU power than GPU power). Also, as far as I remember, Need for Speed Underground 1/2 has some graphical glitches with its reflexions, but it's playable...

[LatencyZero]

Your GPU will be fine, you just need a better CPU, especially for Metroid Prime and Mario Kart Wii in multiplayer mode (unlikely most -- if not all -- PC games, Dolphin relies a lot more on CPU power than GPU power). Also, as far as I remember, Need for Speed Underground 1/2 has some graphical glitches with its reflexions, but it's playable...

My upgrade path doesn't go down the Intel road, I can't afford their parts. =/ I got my M/B and CPU for 300 dollars new.

[AnyOldName3]

In Dolphin, Intel parts have nearly twice the performance per dollar of AMD ones. In most other software, they're reasonably close to equivalent. AMD's current parts are just that much slower than Intel ones at the same clock speed.

[admin89]

While it's true that an i3 4130 @ 3.4GHz run Dolphin faster than FX 8350 @ 4.5GHz , FX 8350 @ 4.5GHz should be fast enough for most games

[KHg8m3r]

Just make sure you're using the latest dev build for the best performance.

[DeeKay]

I've got a AMD Phenom II X4 955. I ran Starfox Assault, Melee, Wind Waker, and Metroid Prime at full speed most of the time. Considering your CPU is better than mine, I think you should be fine.