Looking for the Best Desktop Hardware Upgrade Suggestion - Thanks!

[ignit3e]

Hey All,

So I build this computer when I was in high school several years ago and lately I feel like it's under performing when I'm playing WoW or COD or a couple others so I was thinking of upgrading some parts. Besides getting a new MB and getting all new hardware I was just curious if anyone had any suggestions as to what would be give me the best performance boost with the MB that I have in terms of gaming. Id love to make a new rig but it'll have to wait til I'm out of school! Im sure I left some stuff out so id love to clarify anything for those that might have some ideas! I was thinking my memory might be outdated and maybe jumping to 8g would be good cause I bought my new card within the last year but taking recommendations! Please and thanks!

Currently:

CPU: Intel Core 2 Duo E8400 @ 3.00GHz
Memory: 4GIGs DDR2 PC6400
MB: Asus P5E-VM HDMI
Card: Radeon HD 5770

-ignite

[Uggorthaholy]

Hey All,

So I build this computer when I was in high school several years ago and lately I feel like it's under performing when I'm playing WoW or COD or a couple others so I was thinking of upgrading some parts. Besides getting a new MB and getting all new hardware I was just curious if anyone had any suggestions as to what would be give me the best performance boost with the MB that I have in terms of gaming. Id love to make a new rig but it'll have to wait til I'm out of school! Im sure I left some stuff out so id love to clarify anything for those that might have some ideas! I was thinking my memory might be outdated and maybe jumping to 8g would be good cause I bought my new card within the last year but taking recommendations! Please and thanks!

Currently:

CPU: Intel Core 2 Duo E8400 @ 3.00GHz
Memory: 4GIGs DDR2 PC6400
MB: Asus P5E-VM HDMI
Card: Radeon HD 5770

-ignite

In terms of that mobo - overclock the CPU. That's the biggest gain you will see.
The ram upgrade isn't going to impact FPS that much at all.
A GPU upgrade to something like
gpu – Twin Frozr GTX 560 Ti – $239.99
would do you nice, but would still be bottlenecked by your CPU.

Your biggest upgrade, in all honesty, is something along the lines of

mobo – Msi P67 without SLi/CF support – $89.99
cpu – Intel i5 2500K – $219.99
ram – G. Skill 1600 MHz Ripjaws 2X2GB – $32.99

[Deleted]

Your biggest upgrade, in all honesty, is something along the lines of

mobo – Msi P67 without SLi/CF support – $89.99
cpu – Intel i5 2500K – $219.99
ram – G. Skill 1600 MHz Ripjaws 2X2GB – $32.99

I agree with this. Your hardware is almost 3 generations behind and there is little point in trying to improve what you have. More RAM will do close to nothing, a new CPU would be a waste of money (if you can even find one that fits your socket and is actually a substantial improvement), a new GPU would just be bottle-necked by the CPU.

If you have the patience, you could wait until early 2012 to upgrade as by that time we will hopefully have both Ivy Bridge and Bulldozer on the market, as well as new GPUs from both Nvidia and AMD.

[ignit3e]

Hmm yea that's the general consensus Ive been getting on another forum too thanks alot! Ill probably just start with a new rig! Is all the hardware you suggested compatible ugg? Im sure it is but I wanna ask for clarification before I buy it and do some more research :] Also if I play games moderately you think the gpu I have is substantial for a while longer? Thanks!


Also in terms of overclocking my current CPU should I try to find a recommended amount on forums you think or do you have an idea of what I could rougly get away with. And that would be done in the bios right?

[Deleted]

Also if I play games moderately you think the gpu I have is substantial for a while longer?

It really depends on you. If you are fine with medium/low settings in modern games then yes. If you want to play them at high/ultra at 1080p with a constant 60 fps, then no.

[Uggorthaholy]

Hmm yea that's the general consensus Ive been getting on another forum too thanks alot! Ill probably just start with a new rig! Is all the hardware you suggested compatible ugg? Im sure it is but I wanna ask for clarification before I buy it and do some more research :] Also if I play games moderately you think the gpu I have is substantial for a while longer? Thanks!


Also in terms of overclocking my current CPU should I try to find a recommended amount on forums you think or do you have an idea of what I could rougly get away with. And that would be done in the bios right?

Yes, it's all compatible.
What Marest said about the GPU
For OC'ing, it's all dependent on your chip. You need to very closely monitor temps.

[ignit3e]

whats an unsafe temp so I can toggly it lower if need be? or does it vary from chip to chip

[Uggorthaholy]

whats an unsafe temp so I can toggly it lower if need be? or does it vary from chip to chip

It varies based on the processor.
Intel has the TJ Max of the CPU rated as 100°C, I would say anything over 70°C is too hot under load, because I like to play it safe.

[ignit3e]

hey was looking at cards and was thinking about the 550gtx : would that be noticably better than my radeon HD 5770? Hope someones still around thanks!

[Deleted]

It varies based on the processor.
Intel has the TJ Max of the CPU rated as 100°C, I would say anything over 70°C is too hot under load, because I like to play it safe.

Actually, the E8400 is rated for a TJ Max of 72.3°C. You can read more about the processor here: http://ark.intel.com/products/33910/...333-MHz-FSB%29

No, the GTX 550 ti and the R5770 are about the same in performance. There is about a +/- 1-2 fps difference in some games. If you want to replace the 5770 with a better card where you will really notice the difference, you need to upgrade to at least a GTX 570 or a R6970, which will both be severely bottle-necked by your CPU. As such, I wouldn't recommend a GPU upgrade.

Either you buy the parts uggorthaholy suggested, and upgrade to a Sandy Bridge CPU (like the i5 2500k), or you wait until new tech comes out (early 2012). In your situation, seeing as how your computer isn't horrible, I'd suggest to wait - but it really is up to you.

[Deleted]

I have a very similar PC to the OPs and in light of coming games like BF3 and SWTOR I've been considering upgrades as well.

The thing is, my individual components are fairly well balanced to each other. They're just dated, that's all. Sure, a Radeon HD 6870 would be able to hold be over until mind 2012 but is it really worth it?

In my opinion, no. A full new PC in early 2012 would probably serve you and me a lot better rather than upgrading now with limited success.

[ignit3e]

Actually, the E8400 is rated for a TJ Max of 72.3°C. You can read more about the processor here: http://ark.intel.com/products/33910/...333-MHz-FSB%29

No, the GTX 550 ti and the R5770 are about the same in performance. There is about a +/- 1-2 fps difference in some games. If you want to replace the 5770 with a better card where you will really notice the difference, you need to upgrade to at least a GTX 570 or a R6970, which will both be severely bottle-necked by your CPU. As such, I wouldn't recommend a GPU upgrade.

Either you buy the parts uggorthaholy suggested, and upgrade to a Sandy Bridge CPU (like the i5 2500k), or you wait until new tech comes out (early 2012). In your situation, seeing as how your computer isn't horrible, I'd suggest to wait - but it really is up to you.

Cool thanks for the feedback. I just purchased:

Intel Core i5-2500K
G.SKILL Ripjaws Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600
MSI P67S-C43 (B3) LGA 1155 Intel P67 SATA 6Gb/s ATX Intel Motherboard

just waiting for newegg to ship it out! Hoping to see a nice performance boost. Thanks alot for the feedback really appreciate it!