Partial upgrade advice - Gaming

edd1e · 23 Jun 2010 at 11:04

I currently have an 'OK' spec PC but is not currently used for gaming at all. It is a year old now, see below:

C2D E8400 @ 3.3ghz
MSI P35 Neo-F
4GB Corsair DDR2 800mhz.
OCZ Stealth 600Watt PSU
500Gb Seagate SATA
24" HP Monitor @ 1080p
Vista 64bit Ultimate

I'm looking to simply make this spec able to play modern games @ 1920x1080 (COD:MW2/New MOH/BF:BC2 etc)

I'm planning on purchasing the following:

PowerColor ATI 5870 1GB
Coolermaster CM690 Dominator - Black
Another 24" monitor for dual desktop (I will not be running games across both monitors)
Windows 7 64bit
Seagate 500GB SATA
Blu-Ray Drive - SATA

I know the CPU/memory will be a slight bottle neck for this card. I just want to know if this will still handle modern games at 1920x1080.

Is the 5870 worth the extra £70 over the 5850 with this spec CPU / memory?

Many thanks for the help guys!

95thrifles · 23 Jun 2010 at 11:13

There'll still be very few instances where cpu etc will bottleneck, I wouldnt worry about it, whether the 5870 is worth the premium over the 5850 only you can decide, it depends on your available cash really, lol

mp260767 · 23 Jun 2010 at 11:16

i'd go with the 5850, unless you plan to upgrade the system in the immediate future.

whats the idea with getting another seagate 500gb ?

Redmint · 23 Jun 2010 at 11:23

mp260767 said:
i'd go with the 5850, unless you plan to upgrade the system in the immediate future.

Agree with this, rest of your upgrades sound fine. Even before you overclock the 5850 it should fly through any games out atm.

ExRayTed · 23 Jun 2010 at 12:04

I would also consider a PSU upgrade too.

Evil-I · 23 Jun 2010 at 12:10

ExRayTed said:
I would also consider a PSU upgrade too.

No need, 600w is ample for what he's suggesting.

E-I

MoRT489 · 23 Jun 2010 at 12:23

Having tried both 5850 and 5870 at 1680*1050 I chose the 5870. CPU will only be a bottleneck for games that use 4 cores like BC2 but the E8400 is fast enough that you shouldnt really be noticeably limited. As said, PSU is fine.

If your mobo is good for OCing consider getting a decide CP cooler and OCing ur 8400 to 4GHz.

xBLiNG · 23 Jun 2010 at 12:30

Personally I would get the 5850 and use the ~£70 saved to get a second hand Q6600 and a cooler to OC.

Other than that everything looks good to me.

NathWraith · 23 Jun 2010 at 12:36

xBLiNG said:
Personally I would get the 5850 and use the ~£70 saved to get a second hand Q6600 and a cooler to OC.

Other than that everything looks good to me.

This.