Need upgrade help!

[Galilei]

Alright, buddies. Heres the deal.

I want to upgrade my PC within a budget and get the BEST boost of performance i can. My budgest is strict 450-500 dollars, can go a little higher, but try to keep it within budget.

Specs:
Processor: Intel(R) Pentium(R) CPU G850 @ 2.90GHz (2 CPUs)
Memory: 4096MB RAM
GPU: Geforce GTX 460 v2
Power Supply: Antec 450W
MB: MSI h61m-p20 (g3)
Windows 8 Pro

WoW is starting to slow down a bit, used to be able to run WoW at ultra with 60-80 FPS. Now i have to run it at high at around 40-60 fps. I'm assuming something is slowing it down a bit, maybe it's getting old, not sure. I use this computer for mainly WoW and any WoW related programs (Vent, mumble, addons, etc". I run it with 2 screens.

So with my budget, i'm trusting you guys to give me some options that are affordable and can actually fit in my PC. Also, i WILL be upgrading over time. I don't really make enough to be able to just go out and buy it all in one go. So i'm going to gradually build it up. If there is an option outside of my budget, but you REALLY think it'll be a strong upgrade, feel free to mention it.

Thank you!

[vesseblah]

Are you willing or able to overclock the processor? How about putting BIOS patch on the motherboard?

There are some possible easy options for upgrading available with that motherboard you have, all the way up to i7-3770. All that needs is BIOS version 1.5 or higher on the board.

[Galilei]

Prefer to stay away from overclocking. Not really too brilliant with it, i feel uneasy about what the result may be.

[vesseblah]

Prefer to stay away from overclocking. Not really too brilliant with it, i feel uneasy about what the result may be.

Then you can plug in any processor up to i7-3770 as long as the motherboard BIOS is up to date, start from checking out which one it ships with in case you need to update it or not. 3770 is not what I'd recommend btw, but it's an option if you want to.

BIOS version number should be easily available in there somewhere, probably on the very first screen where you enter (pressing DEL while booting).

[Galilei]

Is that the only upgrade i should be looking for? And you said that's not what you recommend, then what DO you recommend?

[Killora]

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: Intel Core i5-3470 3.2GHz Quad-Core Processor ($184.99 @ Newegg)
Video Card: Sapphire Radeon HD 7870 XT 2GB Video Card ($248.98 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: XFX 550W 80 PLUS Bronze Certified ATX12V / EPS12V Power Supply ($54.99 @ NCIX US)
Total: $488.96
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2013-05-22 04:56 EDT-0400)

this should do. i wanted to put in 8gb ram, but that took you $40 over budget. I'm not sure on the quality of your PSU so with the 7870xt i just included a new one.

CPU will work on your motherboard with a bios update.

while 4gb of ram should be enough, i'd recommend upgrading to 8gb ram. Something like this should do. Though if you aren't willing to go slightly over budget, i'd stick with 4gb for now and upgrade later. Though i'm not sure how much ram Windows 8 uses in itself, so 4gb might be enough for now.

edit: if you could give the model number of your PSU that'd be great. If it's any good you could probably drop the PSU and grab the ram and be under budget. Though if it's a Vp-450 like i think it is, it's not going to work.

[vesseblah]

You should get new graphics card, processor and RAM, but you can keep motherboard and PSU. And best of all is you don't need to reinstall windows either. Something like...


PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: Intel Core i5-3350P 3.1GHz Quad-Core Processor ($178.99 @ NCIX US)
Memory: Kingston Blu Red Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($48.96 @ NCIX US)
Video Card: PowerColor Radeon HD 7870 XT 2GB Video Card ($219.99 @ NCIX US)
Total: $447.94
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2013-05-22 05:12 EDT-0400)

That is assuming your PSU is good enough, as mentioned above.

[Galilei]

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: Intel Core i5-3470 3.2GHz Quad-Core Processor ($184.99 @ Newegg)
Video Card: Sapphire Radeon HD 7870 XT 2GB Video Card ($248.98 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: XFX 550W 80 PLUS Bronze Certified ATX12V / EPS12V Power Supply ($54.99 @ NCIX US)
Total: $488.96
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2013-05-22 04:56 EDT-0400)

this should do. i wanted to put in 8gb ram, but that took you $40 over budget. I'm not sure on the quality of your PSU so with the 7870xt i just included a new one.

CPU will work on your motherboard with a bios update.

while 4gb of ram should be enough, i'd recommend upgrading to 8gb ram. Something like this should do. Though if you aren't willing to go slightly over budget, i'd stick with 4gb for now and upgrade later. Though i'm not sure how much ram Windows 8 uses in itself, so 4gb might be enough for now.

Ah, this is the kind of response i was looking for. I could definitely grab the 8GB of ram. The 450-500 was just what i was hoping for, i could go all the way to 600, but i definitely prefer not to. How much of an upgrade do you think this could bring? I'm also looking into recording/streaming some of my guilds kills on WoW. Any info on if this upgrade could handle such things?

edit: if you could give the model number of your PSU that'd be great. If it's any good you could probably drop the PSU and grab the ram and be under budget. Though if it's a Vp-450 like i think it is, it's not going to work.

Ah, now this was the kind of response i was looking for. I can definitely grab the ram, 40 bucks over won't really be too much of an indent. Do you know how much of an upgrade this will bring? Also, i was looking into recording/streaming some of my guilds boss kills on WoW. Any info on if this upgrade could handle such things?

[Killora]

Ah, now this was the kind of response i was looking for. I can definitely grab the ram, 40 bucks over won't really be too much of an indent. Do you know how much of an upgrade this will bring? Also, i was looking into recording/streaming some of my guilds boss kills on WoW. Any info on if this upgrade could handle such things?

It's iffy. I assume you mean in 25 man raids? You'd probably want, at least, an overclocked 3570k for that, depnding on quality. But seeing as your budget is $500, streaming capability will be very limited. You're free to try as you're not going to get much better than that (if any better) with that budget.

As far as the ram upgrade, extra RAM is more of a safety net to make sure you don't max out your ram, which is very possible with 4gb of ram with very much open in the background. You'd likely not really see a performance increase unless you're maxing out your 4gb you have now, but it would ensure you -never- have issues if you decide to have a bunch of browser windows/a stream or youtube video open in the background.

Performance increase should be significant from the CPU + GPU. Especially in 25 man raids/crowded areas.

[Galilei]

It's iffy. I assume you mean in 25 man raids? You'd probably want, at least, an overclocked 3570k for that, depnding on quality. But seeing as your budget is $500, streaming capability will be very limited. You're free to try as you're not going to get much better than that (if any better) with that budget.

As far as the ram upgrade, extra RAM is more of a safety net to make sure you don't max out your ram, which is very possible with 4gb of ram with very much open in the background. You'd likely not really see a performance increase unless you're maxing out your 4gb you have now, but it would ensure you -never- have issues if you decide to have a bunch of browser windows/a stream or youtube video open in the background.

Performance increase should be significant from the CPU + GPU. Especially in 25 man raids/crowded areas.

What about just basic recording? And i mean 10 mans. And yeah, this is actually what i may go for. What if i were to extend my budget to around 600-650? Are there any major upgrades that could come from increasing my budget?

[Killora]

What about just basic recording? And i mean 10 mans. And yeah, this is actually what i may go for. What if i were to extend my budget to around 600-650? Are there any major upgrades that could come from increasing my budget?

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: Intel Core i5-3570K 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor ($219.98 @ Outlet PC)
CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler ($29.99 @ Newegg)
Motherboard: ASRock Z77 Pro4 ATX LGA1155 Motherboard ($89.99 @ Amazon)
Memory: Patriot Signature 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($49.99 @ Newegg)
Video Card: Sapphire Radeon HD 7870 XT 2GB Video Card ($248.98 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: XFX 550W 80 PLUS Bronze Certified ATX12V / EPS12V Power Supply ($54.99 @ NCIX US)
Total: $693.92
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2013-05-22 05:29 EDT-0400)

Probably the minimum you're looking at for decent streaming/recording. Would also require overclocking the CPU. This would, guaranteed, run WoW 10 mans smoothly when recording/streaming once overclocked. I'm not 100% sure how well the 3470 would do in 10 man recording, but i can safely say this would work.

Unfortunately $40 outside of your budget, but theres nothing i can really shave, especially not if you want to record as 4gb ram is most likely going to cap out once recording/streaming. I seriously doubt your PSU can handle the 7870xt as none of antecs 450w PSU's that i can find have more than 1 6 pin, and the 7870 XT requires 2.

[vesseblah]

Probably the minimum you're looking at for decent streaming/recording. Would also require overclocking the CPU. This would, guaranteed, run WoW 10 mans smoothly when recording/streaming once overclocked.

Would go straight for i7-3770 instead and forget the motherboard and cpu heatsink since the OP didn't want to overclock. Will give much better results in streaming and at slightly lower cost.

[Galilei]

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: Intel Core i5-3570K 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor ($219.98 @ Outlet PC)
CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler ($29.99 @ Newegg)
Motherboard: ASRock Z77 Pro4 ATX LGA1155 Motherboard ($89.99 @ Amazon)
Memory: Patriot Signature 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($49.99 @ Newegg)
Video Card: Sapphire Radeon HD 7870 XT 2GB Video Card ($248.98 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: XFX 550W 80 PLUS Bronze Certified ATX12V / EPS12V Power Supply ($54.99 @ NCIX US)
Total: $693.92
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2013-05-22 05:29 EDT-0400)

Probably the minimum you're looking at for decent streaming/recording. Would also require overclocking the CPU. This would, guaranteed, run WoW 10 mans smoothly when recording/streaming once overclocked. I'm not 100% sure how well the 3470 would do in 10 man recording, but i can safely say this would work.

Unfortunately $40 outside of your budget, but theres nothing i can really shave, especially not if you want to record as 4gb ram is most likely going to cap out once recording/streaming. I seriously doubt your PSU can handle the 7870xt as none of antecs 450w PSU's that i can find have more than 1 6 pin, and the 7870 XT requires 2.

Hm, looks possible. If I'm going that high, i may just 100% wait to buy a new one full out. Do you know of any good cheap pre-built computers that come with no OS? Or is such thing non-existant?

[Killora]

Would go straight for i7-3770 instead and forget the motherboard and cpu heatsink since the OP didn't want to overclock. Will give much better results in streaming and at slightly lower cost.

I kinda doubt a 3770 would run nearly as well as an overclocked 3570k. Even when streaming. You're right if he's unwilling to overclock, but i did say it'd require him to OC. Theres really very little reason to not overclock. With easy to follow guides it's pretty brainless. As long as you watch temperatures and follow the guide theres very little that can go wrong.

@OP, i wouldn't recommend a pre-built. You have a perfectly good case and harddrive. Pre-builts are, usually, more expensive than building yourself. I'm also not sure of any pre-builts that don't include an OS, but i'm sure it's possible.

P.S. you'd have to re-install windows when installing a new motherboard, by the way. Not sure if that's an issue for you or not.

[Galilei]

I kinda doubt a 3770 would run nearly as well as an overclocked 3570k. Even when streaming. You're right if he's unwilling to overclock, but i did say it'd require him to OC. Theres really very little reason to not overclock. With easy to follow guides it's pretty brainless. As long as you watch temperatures and follow the guide theres very little that can go wrong.

@OP, i wouldn't recommend a pre-built. You have a perfectly good case and harddrive. Pre-builts are, usually, more expensive than building yourself. I'm also not sure of any pre-builts that don't include an OS, but i'm sure it's possible.

P.S. you'd have to re-install windows when installing a new motherboard, by the way. Not sure if that's an issue for you or not.

I built my current one a while ago under the supervision of my computer teacher. I no longer have contact with him so i'm a little unwary about building it on my own, and all the places around me charge 100-200 bucks just to build it. Just looking to buy a cheap and good computer. If OC is easy, then i'll do it, just don't want to purchase parts then have it ruined 'cause i destroyed something.

[Killora]

I built my current one a while ago under the supervision of my computer teacher. I no longer have contact with him so i'm a little unwary about building it on my own.

Theres some great guides out on the internet on how to build your PC. This one is a good one If that'd make you feel more comfortable.

[Galilei]

Theres some great guides out on the internet on how to build your PC. This one is a good one If that'd make you feel more comfortable.

I followed that video for a build for my brother. There were A LOT of parts that didn't sync up or were hard to find.