Upgrade of a old desktop

[Soidoc]

Hello there,

I've had most of the parts in my desktop for the good part of 6 years and they are beginning to struggle with the newer titles, most recent it's Wildstar I'm having trouble with (Getting ~20fps at low settings) with 90% RAM usage and around 50-70% CPU usage, so it might be time to get some upgrades.

I'd like to be able to play most of the new games at high or max, at a decent fps. My budget is around 300-400$.

My current setup is:

• MSI G31TM-P35 motherboard
• Intel Core 2 Quad Processor Q6600 @2.40 GHz
• Noctua NH-D14 Heatsink
• AMD Radeon HD 7850 2GB
• 4 GB RAM
• Samsung 120GB SSD
• 1 TB HDD
• Corsair RM650 PSU
• Fractal Design Define Mini Case
• Monitor is 1680x1050 and I'm using Win7.

Upgrades I've been looking at:
Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws X Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1866
CPU: I don't really know which CPU I need for this, so I've a few suggestions:

• Intel i5-3350p 3.1GHz
• Intel Core i5-4670(K?) 3.4GHz
• AMD FX-8320 3.5GHz
• AMD FX-8350 4GHz

Motherboard: And some ASUS m-ATX motherboard to go with the right processor socket.

I don't know if I should just buy a extra GPU for crossfire (if there's room for it on the motherboard) or get a new CPU/RAM.
I can get a used Gigabyte HD 7950 3GB or Radeon 7970 XFX 3GB for around 180-250$.

[chazus]

Skip the 3350 and the AMD CPU's. Depending on your budget, you're either going to want an i3-4330 (And a B85, H81, or H87 board), or i5-4670K (And Z87 board).

I'd hold onto the GPU for now, and see how it does paired with the new CPU, then decide if you want to upgrade.

[Deleted]

You have the Noctua heatsink, so I'd look at upgrading to the 4670k and one of the incoming Z97-chipset motherboards. You'll probably also need to get some new thermal compound, so I'd consider getting Noctua's NH thermal compound.

[Soidoc]

Thanks,
I'll probably go with the i5-4670K and a Z87 board, as I don't need many of the new features of the Z97 board and I will not be upgrading my CPU again anytime soon.

As I was looking for a board (capable of 2 ways SLI, just to be on the safe side), I noticed the ASUS's ones is quite expensive and might be a overkill for me. Only reason for picking ASUS, is because I've seen it being recommended a couple of times over some other boards.
Which of these would be the best pick?: http://pcpartpicker.com/parts/mother...2,1000&sort=a8

One thing I noticed about the board and the CPU, was they don't mention they support the 1866MHz RAM, only 1333 and 1600MHz speeds and some OC'd speeds. Would it be better to go with 1600MHz RAM's instead?

[chazus]

I wouldn't worry about it. 1600 is fine. There's really no point these days for overclocking your ram, beyond bragging rights.

[Soidoc]

I wouldn't worry about it. 1600 is fine. There's really no point these days for overclocking your ram, beyond bragging rights.

Thanks, sorry for asking all these "simple" questions, but there sure is a lot to consider when upgrading..
The Ripjaws X RAM at 1600MHz (9-9-9-24) and 1866MHz (9-10-9-28) is almost at the same pricepoint (within a few dollars), so wouldn't it be better to get the 1866, when both of them is at CL9? Or should I consider some of the other series? I can't really seem to see the difference between all of them and which ones is best for my setup.

And about the board, any suggestion there? I was thinking about getting the Asus Z87M-Plus, which is getting decent reviews and is compatible with the heatsink.

[chazus]

If they're within a few bucks, it wouldn't hurt to get the 1866. My 'limit' is about a $10 difference. The performance difference between the two is effectively nil.

I'd have to check on what mATX boards are a good price, but any Asus/MSI/Asrock ought to do fine.