Trying to prepare for wow classic. Possible upgrades.

[EMHmarkone]

I'm trying to prepare for Wow classic in August and I'm thinking about upgrading some parts but not sure if it's worth it or if the 3 year old system I have now is good enough. I will not be overclocking. The thing is I also use this to record over the air HD programs so the computer needs to be fast enough to handle recording and playing the game at the same time. I really don't want to spend $300+ on new parts unless there is a significant improvement.

Hauppauge WinTV-dualHD (1595) WinTV-dualHD Dual Tuner USB


current specs:
Intel i5-4690 quad-core 3.5ghz cpu 4th gen
Asus H81M-E motherboard
Radeon RX 560 2GB video card (will be upgrading this anyway)
2x8GB G.Skill DDR3 1333mhz ram
Crucial 480GB SSD
500w Rosewill PSU
x2 4TB 7,200 rpm storage drives
27" Dell 1080p 75hz monitor

possible new parts:
AMD Ryzen 5 2600x 3.6ghz 6-core cpu
Asus PRIME B450M-A/CSM motherboard
2x8GB DDR4 3000mhz ram
aftermarket cpu cooler (stock cooler is too iffy for me)

cost: $345

[chazus]

I guess my first question is.. are you able to do that now? If so, there's really no reason to upgrade.

[EMHmarkone]

Actually I haven't played any pc games ever on this computer.

[Selah]

For WoW Classic? You'll be fine with what you have right there. WoW Classic could run on a phone these days.

[EMHmarkone]

I'm concerned about how it will perform in a 40 person raid and I want to pump up the graphics so it looks good.

[squidz0rz]

You could probably get by with just a graphics card upgrade. An RX 580 or GTX 1060 6GB would probably be fine if you don't want to spend a lot.

Either way, don't buy a Ryzen 2000 series CPU. The 3000 series is launching in 2 weeks and is a lot better for about the same price. The Ryzen 3600 is $199. The stock cooler is more than good enough for Warcraft.

[azkhane]

Idk in the states, but in Europe you can get a rx580 8gb(4gb versión at even less money, enought for WoW)at 140e or less, that is a insane boost to your system

[Villentretenmerth]

Dude, its Classic. Why would you want to upgrade? If Retail WoW runs Classic will run 10x better.

If you want to upgrade, wait for Zen 2.

[Kagthul]

For WoW Classic? You'll be fine with what you have right there. WoW Classic could run on a phone these days.

Classic runs in the modern client.

[EMHmarkone]

Thanks everyone. I'll be looking at getting a RX 580 since my monitor is Freesync but glad I don't have to buy anything else.

[Neuroticaine]

Classic runs in the modern client.

Which is probably even better for low-spec systems. Classic content doesn't have NEARLY the levels of seizure inducing particle effects on boss abilities that modern WoW does, and if Classic WoW can't perform on OP's current specs, something is horribly, horribly wrong.

[Fascinate]

WoW classic is so incredibly easy to run, my HTPC has an athlon 5350 which is a 25w cpu that can barely playback 1080p video and it plays classic on the 4 preset at 1080p with 30 fps. Id imagine even the integrated graphics on a haswell based intel cpu could hit 60 fps in most situations at 1080p.

[Th3Scourge]

You can run Classic WoW on a potato.

In fact, I think I still have the PC i played on during vanilla lying in the garage. Might have to set it up for the pure classic experience, CRT Monitor and all

[chazus]

You can run Classic WoW on a potato.

WoW Classic is not the same as the original WoW. You will not be able to run it on ~2002 hardware, most likely.

If anything, Classic will be more demanding, since it actually has 40m pve raids.

[Temp name]

You can run Classic WoW on a potato.

In fact, I think I still have the PC i played on during vanilla lying in the garage. Might have to set it up for the pure classic experience, CRT Monitor and all

Classic is running on legion software, not vanilla software. You won't be able to run it on 2004 hardware.. Well, at least not well

[Th3Scourge]

WoW Classic is not the same as the original WoW. You will not be able to run it on ~2002 hardware, most likely.

If anything, Classic will be more demanding, since it actually has 40m pve raids.

- - - Updated - - -

Classic is running on legion software, not vanilla software. You won't be able to run it on 2004 hardware.. Well, at least not well

Challenge Accepted

[moremana]

Thanks everyone. I'll be looking at getting a RX 580 since my monitor is Freesync but glad I don't have to buy anything else.

Just make sure you get a real 580. There are some no name brands selling RX570s flashed as 580s that are "on sale". Make sure you know what you're getting before you hit that buy button.

I would just stick with Asus, MSI, Sapphire, Gigabyte, XFX or Asrock. At least you will know your warranty will get honored if you need it.