What do I upgrade next?

sergiup · 22 Feb 2017 at 15:32

Pretty simple question really..
Current spec:
Asus X99-S
i7-6800K@4GHz (Noctua NH-D15)
4x8GB 2400MHz
Sapphire R9 290X VaporX Tri-X
750GB Crucial MX300 (system drive)
960GB Sandisk Ultra II (games etc)
2x LG 1080p monitors (some cheap 22" £100 IPS model)

Aside from work, I tend to play BF1, BF4, Overwatch, Diablo III, etc - a fairly random mix - but I've no pro-gamer expectations (nor skills).

My first gut reaction would be to upgrade the monitors - either to a single 4K display or a 1440p monitor (27"?). I have no idea how much losing real estate from 2x1080p to a single 1440 would bother me, most likely not a lot. With going 4K, the problem is I don't think the 290X would keep up - can you easily enough just play in 1080p/1440p and let the monitor handle upscaling / resizing? Or is that a bad idea?

gary996 · 22 Feb 2017 at 15:57

What you have is perfectly fine. Wait to see what Vega brings to the table.
Also with the 1080Ti coming soon I think you could get a good deal on a 1080 as for Monitor a nice 30"+ widescreen would be nice

sergiup · 22 Feb 2017 at 16:16

Oh I know it's perfectly fine, I just have the usual little upgrade devil on my shoulder, tempting me

Everything's still running absolutely fine (including BF1), so I'll most likely sit and wait a while.

Habakkuk · 22 Feb 2017 at 17:46

Keyboard and mouse aren't listed - I'd recommend upgrading them to match the rest of your high-end computer.

spook2575 · 22 Feb 2017 at 22:26

You need some RGB!

Otherwise if you upgrade your graphics card, then may also want to consider a new monitor (or vice versa). Wait till the 1080Ti is released to see prices or if you want to wait a bit longer until Vega is released.

sergiup · 2 Mar 2017 at 14:01

Hahah, thanks Habakkuk... Here you go:
Q-Pad MK-80 (waiting on the Das Keyboard 5Q to ship)
Logitech MX518 and a G700s (flipping between the two, still not sure which I prefer)

spook2575 - I think that would make most sense, might as well wait for Vega now.

Dwaindibbly · 4 Mar 2017 at 17:52

I think a monitor upgrade would do you nicely. I went from a 22" 1080p to 27" 1440 and really appreciated the larger screen / higher resolution

Poneros · 4 Mar 2017 at 22:54

What work do you do? I'm kinda in the same spot as you. Take a look at BenQ BL3201PT, I had the 1440p one and it was great (gave it away), got a 29'' LG now, 21:9 instead, pretty cool too. If I were to change it again, I'd probably go either 25'' 1440p to downsize, or simply go even bigger and get the LG B6 (not sure how bad of an idea that would be for a daily monitor considering it's OLED). And of course, wait for Vega.

Habakkuk · 5 Mar 2017 at 16:29

Nothing leaps out - this is a well-rounded build.

You should upgrade if you find something you like.

sergiup · 6 Mar 2017 at 15:09

Poneros - I'm a network / sys admin by trade, so terminals, web interfaces, etc. Nothing that requires high colour accuracy; but decent detail, screen real estate and clarity are good things for my eyes.

Tuxxey · 7 Mar 2017 at 05:43

sergiup said:
Poneros - I'm a network / sys admin by trade, so terminals, web interfaces, etc. Nothing that requires high colour accuracy; but decent detail, screen real estate and clarity are good things for my eyes.

Might be worth considering changing from your two 1080p monitors for a single 1440p monitor, running two applications side-by-side @ 1440p is very similar to running two monitors, it takes up a lot less desk space and I personally prefer it compared to 2/3 1080p screens.