Need Upgrade Advice

[everydaygamer]

So thinking of doing some upgrading to my PC and need some advice.

Motherboard : Alienware 046MHW
Processor: Intel(R) Core(TM) i5-2300 CPU @ 2.80GHz
Video Card: NVIDIA GeForce GTX 670
Memory: 8.00GB Dual-Channel DDR3 @ 798MHz

So i'm planning to get a gtx 970 and I'm wondering which brand I should go for when getting one. I also plan to double my memory and wondering what the best ram for gaming is. Also should I look into upgrading my processor or is it fine for right now?

[Biggles Worth]

So thinking of doing some upgrading to my PC and need some advice.

Processor: Intel(R) Core(TM) i5-2300 CPU @ 2.80GHz
Video Card: NVIDIA GeForce GTX 670
Memory: 8.2 GB

So i'm planning to get a gtx 970 and I'm wondering which brand I should go for when getting one. I also plan to double my memory and wondering what the best ram for gaming is. Also should I look into upgrading my processor or is it fine for right now?

What motherboard are you using?

[everydaygamer]

What motherboard are you using?

OK according to third party software it is an Alienware 046MHW.

[Deleted]

So what games are you playing? 670 is still decent card, i would rather change cpu which means mobo too since its crap anyway

[everydaygamer]

So what games are you playing? 670 is still decent card, i would rather change cpu which means mobo too since its crap anyway

It's mainly for new releases like Witcher 3 and Arkham Knight.

[Deleted]

For the ram you don't need more for gaming. You got 2x4 gb @ 1600mhz which is plenty, unless you got 2 games open and a bunch of other applications and chrome tabs at the same time. Do you find yourself running out of ram? If not then its a waste of money, its like having gtx970 and playing solitaire only .

About the cpu/mobo: The go to cpu atm for gaming is the i5 4690k with the top end being the i7 4790k if you can make use of it (much multitasking, video rendering etc). Mobo will depend where you are located and what budget you got in general. So if you give us a budget for those we can go from there.

Another thing you might not have considered. With the new gpu you might need a new power supply as well. Usually the ones at pre-builds are of low quality, ie they are supposedly 600w rated but they are really 450w only. If you could open your pc case and have a look and give us the exact model would be great to check it out.

[everydaygamer]

Not worried about budget right now, personally would prefer not to get a new processor just because there would be alot of unscrewing involved (plus I've never done it before lol) but if you think it's necessary Then I will definitely look into one the 2 you mentioned. I do use alot of ram sometimes it really does depend on what I'm doing at the time but ram isn't too expensive so I figure I might as well upgrade as long as I'm opening up the system.

As for the power supply, Not sure what the model is. It's a bit of a pain to get at but I'm thinking I should replace it anyways so any recommendations you can give me on power supplies would be great. I went from a gtx 460 to gtx 670 so not sure what kind of jump in power there would be going up to the 970.

[Lathais]

If you had the 2500K you'd be ok with an overclock, but really, CPU/Motherboard is going to be your best gain. the 670 is still a good GPU, I think it's around the same performance as an AMD R9 280x. A 970 would be an upgrade but I am not sure it would be worth it unless you play above 1080p.

If budget is not an issue I would recommend a new case, so less fiddling with changing things out, CPU, Motherboard and PSU. You can just move everything else over. Case is optional if you don't mind pulling the motherboard out of your current case and replacing it.

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i5-4690K 3.5GHz Quad-Core Processor ($229.99 @ SuperBiiz)
CPU Cooler: be quiet! PURE ROCK 87.0 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler ($24.90 @ Newegg)
Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-Z97X-Gaming 5 ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($95.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Case: Fractal Design Define R5 (Black) ATX Mid Tower Case ($107.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Power Supply: XFX XTR 550W 80+ Gold Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply ($96.98 @ Newegg)
Total: $555.85
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2015-06-09 17:13 EDT-0400

[everydaygamer]

Maybe I'll just bite the bullet and build a pc. I'll just have to do some research on what to buy.

[Lathais]

Maybe I'll just bite the bullet and build a pc. I'll just have to do some research on what to buy.

Just fill out the sticky post in this forums and we'll help you out.