Advice needed: Upgrade CPU

Wahzy

Wahzy

Wahzy

Associate
Joined
17 Apr 2012
Posts
438
Hi all.

I was looking at this bundle:
http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=BU-149-OE&groupid=43&catid=2512

I realise it's no longer on offer but it still seems good value. I also plan on getting an Intel 330 120GB SSD.

I currently have (previously bought from OC):
FS-178-OE "Primo 6200i" Intel Core i5 2300 2.80GHz DDR3 Sandybridge
System

SW-127-MS Windows 7 Home Premium 64 bit OEM
GX-144-OK OcUK GeForce GT 430 1024MB GDDR3
XX-049-XX No SSD Upgrade
CP-363-IN Intel Core i5-2300 2.80GHz (Sandybridge) Socket LGA1155
Processor - Retail with FREE TrackMania 2 Canyon PC Game
CD-099-LG OcUK 22x DVD±RW SATA ReWriter (Black) - OEM
HD-364-WD Western Digital Caviar Blue 500GB SATA 6Gb/s 16MB Cache -
OEM (WD5000AAKX)
CA-160-CM Cooler Master Elite 335 Case - Black
MB-355-GI Gigabyte H61M-S2V Intel H61 (Socket 1155) DDR3 Motherboard
CA-055-OC OCZ ZS Series 550W '80 Plus Bronze' Power Supply
MY-094-KS Kingston HyperX Genesis Grey 8GB (2x4GB) DDR3 PC3-12800C9
1600MHz Dual Channel Kit (KHX1600C9D3X2K2/8GX)

Now if I buy the above bundle will that fit my current case? The cooler looks huge. I don't usually touch motherboards but as this is plug and play I thought I'd have a go. My PSU should cope with the extra load as well?

Now since I bought that system I've added a Geforce 560ti card.

Any advice is greatly appreciated. The only gaming I do on the PC is Flight Sim X.

Thanks,
Alex.
 
Hi Alex,

Yes the cooler should fit, you may find you don't have much room left once it is fitted, but you can still get the side panel on.

There won't be much of an additional load, will be about the same, if not slightly less as the Ivy is more efficient at 77w over 95w. 500w for a single card setup will be fine.

You should get a nice performance boost when you change over, but you could think about upgrading to an SSD at some point in the future, that would help also.

You could try selling your old bits to make some of the money back :)
 
Last edited:
When you say SD do you mean SSD?

I am looking at the Intel 330 120GB actually.

Now the biggest question is how easy is this to fit? I've experience of swapping graphics cards, hard drives, RAM, etc in the past but never a motherboard and cooler.

As Jeremy Clarkson often says, "How hard can it be?"

Alex.
 
Can't be hard I can do it.

You may need a 3.5 to 2.5 " adapter for the drive to be installed I don't know if your current case has a SSD mount.

Screw it in to your drive cage, sata to board and a power connection from your psu and your done!
 
Thanks a lot but the 'how hard can it be' relates to fitting a new motherboard. The Intel SSDs come with an adaptor I think actually.
 
Most drive bays have the fittings for ssd's now if not there are ones you can buy as its been said it literally 4 screws and then fit it.
 
I wouldnt bother tbh.

Looking at your system at 4 core 4 thread 3ghz your limiting component isnt your cpu but your graphics card which you arnt looking at changing.

Save your money and drop a gtx670 or 7950 into your current rig first id also look at an ssd too
 
Last edited:
FSX depends on CPU speed more than GPU. That's why I was looking at getting an OC CPU.

I only bought the 560TI last year ;)
 
I'm with you on the SSD. Any you recommend in particular that are easy to set up and don't need any of these firmware updates? I was looking at Intel 330.
 
If I bought a new GPU then my processor would be the next bottleneck :(

Maybe I should just get the SSD for now and look at a more extensive upgrade later in the year.
 
For the price of the bundle you are looking at, I would get this.

YOUR BASKET
1 x Intel Core i5-3570K 3.40GHz (Ivybridge) Socket LGA1155 Processor (77W) - OEM £179.99
1 x Gigabyte Z77-D3H Intel Z77 (Socket 1155) DDR3 Motherboard £89.99
1 x Corsair Carbide 300R Mid Tower Case - Black £64.99
1 x Thermalright HR-02 Macho CPU Cooler (Socket 775 / 1155 / 1156 / 1366) £39.98
Total : £389.05 (includes shipping : £11.75).



Reuse your ram and sell of the 2300, H61 and case to recoup some money.
It is not difficult to change mobo`s. Have a look at the videos in the link and use your mobo manual. You can`t go wrong.

http://www.bing.com/videos/search?q...776&first=0&qpvt=newegg+build+tutorial+videos
 
before joining this forum i had never fitted a cpu or anything close to building a pc.

Trust me its very very easy, its nerve racking but you have all the help and expertise you could ever need to do it on this forum, not to mention the countless videos on youtube!

basically, everything fits in one place and in one way, if it isnt fitting then it aint right.

if you can build lego, you can build a pc.

oc'ing is also very easy with ivybridge
 
Wahzy said:
Do you overclock in the BIOS?
Click to expand...

Yes.

Fitting the Cpu is easy. As already mentioned, follow the instructions that come with the Cpu. And everything you need to know about installing the mobo will be in the manual. And watch the videos, in the link I gave you, these will help you. And if for some reason you get stuck or are uncertain about something, well, you know where we are.
 
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