Go up to i5 or stick with i3?

[Moonpie2]

So my pc is acting weird.
It keeps dying and I cannot for the life of me find the problem.
So since I've had it around 2 years it might be time to start swapping out the components anyway, gonna start with the cheapest ones then work my way up.

I currently have an i3 540, but I'm wondering if an i5 (3450 or 3470) is gonna be THAT much better, or should I just pop another i3 back into it?

Cheers

 

[Moonpie2]

I've tried everything I can think of.
Uninstalling and reinstalling drivers.
Fresh install of windows.
Running Memtest and Prime95 type stuff.
I'm really at a loose end !!

Oh well, these things happen

So you think get a cheap i3 again and maybe overclock it a little?

 

[Moonpie2]

Thanx for the large reply !!

Like I say, every test I've done tells me that my hardware is fine.
Yet a fresh windows installation didn't solve the problem.

I'm going to treat myself to some nice memory first and run the PC for a week and see how things go. If the dying keeps happening, then I'll go for a new CPU.

I think I might just go for an i5. That should keep me going for another year or so before I start getting jealous of all the new CPUs

 

[Moonpie2]

It's a weird way of dying. Not really pointing to the GFX card.

It tends to happen when listening to MP3s (but not exclusively).
So I'll be listening to something.... anything...... then suddenly and without warning, the MP3 will start to play about 20 times slower, it's actually kinda spooky.

Then over the course of about a minute, the super slow sound will gradually fade to silence and all the time this is happening absolutely nothing is responsive.