Help me to upgrade my system :)

ALEXZ360 · 5 Oct 2012 at 12:02

hey everyone need some help deciding on what to buy to upgrade my current system

my current specs are:

Antec 300 Case
MSI P35 Neo-F Socket 775 MOBO
OCZ Stealth XStream 700W PSU
Intel Core 2 Quad Q6700 2.6GHz
4GB GEIL RAM
HIS 6950 Iceq Turbo X

looking for a new motherboard, ram and processor,

looking to spend around £350 maximum,

have come up with this myself:

Mobo - MSI Z77A-G43 Intel Z77 (Socket 1155) DDR3 Motherboard
Ram - GeIL Black Dragon 8GB (2x4GB) DDR3 PC3-12800C11 1600MHz Dual Channel Kit (GD38GB1600C11DC)
Processor - Intel Core i5-2500 3.30GHz (Sandybridge) Socket LGA1155 Processor

heard some bad things about msi boards but have never had any problems with my current board,

use my pc for gaming more than anything, so would like something that can handle BF3 and Borderlands 2 on a high setting, i know it is a lot to ask for £350 but any help would be great,

Thanks Alex

Mei · 5 Oct 2012 at 12:05

you can fit a k chip in that budget no?
cant comment on the board dont have one ><

NeverWinter · 5 Oct 2012 at 12:06

Intel Core i5-3570K 3.40GHz (Ivybridge) Socket LGA1155 Processor (77W) - Retail £184.99
Asus P8Z77-M Intel Z77 (Socket 1155) DDR3 Motherboard £89.99
GeIL Black Dragon 8GB (2x4GB) DDR3 PC3-12800C11 1600MHz Dual Channel Kit (GD38GB1600C11DC) £23.99

Basically, what I have gone for but with different memory.

310.37 inc del.

NeverWinter · 5 Oct 2012 at 12:07

for another £50 you can put a 60GB SSD in as an OS drive.

ALEXZ360 · 5 Oct 2012 at 14:59

Thanks neverwinter, I'll have a look and see what other people say and make my mind up

stulid · 5 Oct 2012 at 15:03

As you case can take a normal sized ATX board, keep the MSI or this one,

http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=MB-391-GI&groupid=701&catid=5&subcat=2261

Reviews.

Kitguru.
Hexus.
eteknix.
Madshrimps.
Windwithme.
tbreak.

NeverWinter · 5 Oct 2012 at 15:13

Yeah, I was just using mine as an example as I want to put the stuff in to my HTPC at some point.

ALEXZ360 · 5 Oct 2012 at 16:57

yeh i would rather have a ATX board over a Micro ATX board

ALEXZ360 · 6 Oct 2012 at 10:00

i5 and ram on offer, think OC is reading my mind

going to buy the processor and ram and then see if i can find the motherboard on offer

Idleman · 6 Oct 2012 at 10:08

ALEXZ360 said:
i5 and ram on offer, think OC is reading my mind

going to buy the processor and ram and then see if i can find the motherboard on offer

Don`t forget, the Cpu is only on offer today, tomorrow it will be back to normal price.

What mobo were you looking for, was it this one.

http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=MB-202-MS&groupid=701&catid=5&subcat=2261

ALEXZ360 · 6 Oct 2012 at 10:15

i know, im going to buy the processor and ram today while they are on offer, and i prefered the gigabyte one that Stulid recommended

Idleman · 6 Oct 2012 at 10:22

ALEXZ360 said:
i know, im going to buy the processor and ram today while they are on offer, and i prefered the gigabyte one that Stulid recommended

A good board. If when you connect your monitor to your Gpu and there is no graphics display, don`t panic. It just needs a bios update, F18, which you can download from the link.

http://uk.gigabyte.com/products/product-page.aspx?pid=4327#bios

ALEXZ360 · 6 Oct 2012 at 10:30

thanks idleman

like i said ill probably wait a bit until i buy the motherboard, as im in no rush to upgrade as im away at the moment

Marine-RX179 · 6 Oct 2012 at 10:37

Definitely go for the Gigabyte over that MSI G43, as that G43 board is voltage locked and would limit overclocking.

ALEXZ360 · 6 Oct 2012 at 10:50

thanks for the advice marine

Mei · 6 Oct 2012 at 10:51

a z77 voltage locked? thats lame ><

Marine-RX179 · 6 Oct 2012 at 11:29

Mei said:
a z77 voltage locked? thats lame ><

You have to bare in mind it is one of the cheapest of the cheap Z77 board though at just £70 ish.

To be fair, the review I've seen even with the locked voltage it can do the i5 3570K at 4.3-4.4GHz stable, but above that is out of question.