Is it worth my while to upgrade?

simonhutchin322 · 5 Feb 2010 at 19:14

Gigabyte GA-P35-DS3L Intel P35 (Socket 775) PCI-Express DDR2 Motherboard
Intel Core 2 Quad Q6600 "Energy Efficient SLACR 95W Edition" 2.40GHz (1066FSB) - Retail
2xGeIL 2GB (2x1GB) DDR2 PC2-6400C4 800MHz Ultra Low Latency Dual Channel (GX22GB6400UDC)
Corsair HX 520W ATX Modular SLI Compliant Power Supply (CMPSU-520HXUK)
SAPPHIRE ATI RADEON HD 4890 VAPO 1GB

Im an avid gamer, and use my pc on a daily basis. If it is worth my while upgrading what would you guys recommend?

Thanks

Robert1986 · 5 Feb 2010 at 19:23

Can you play games at a good setting and fps? If you can, then no need to upgrade.

Only thing that looks like a worthy upgrade is the gpu. If you want to upgrade to an i5/i7 you will also have to buy a new motherboard and probably new ram.

simonhutchin322 · 5 Feb 2010 at 19:32

I can run most games at 1680by1050 medium/high settings and get stable fps. Any decent bundles about for cpu and ram ? also if i was to do that id be after a case also, nothing massive i hate huge cases :S

Robert1986 · 5 Feb 2010 at 19:36

simonhutchin322 said:
I can run most games at 1680by1050 medium/high settings and get stable fps. Any decent bundles about for cpu and ram ? also if i was to do that id be after a case also, nothing massive i hate huge cases :S

Whats your budget?

simonhutchin322 · 5 Feb 2010 at 19:38

£200-£300 i guess, if i can do it without spending a fortune

Robert1986 · 5 Feb 2010 at 19:43

simonhutchin322 said:
£200-£300 i guess, if i can do it without spending a fortune

if thats all you can spend, then just get a 5850. Can't do much with that if you want a cpu,ram,mb and a case that is good enough for todays games. Increase your budget to 300-400 then you can get really good parts.

simonhutchin322 · 5 Feb 2010 at 19:44

what would £300-£400 get me to get up to par?

CAT-THE-FIFTH · 5 Feb 2010 at 19:51

simonhutchin322 said:
Gigabyte GA-P35-DS3L Intel P35 (Socket 775) PCI-Express DDR2 Motherboard
Intel Core 2 Quad Q6600 "Energy Efficient SLACR 95W Edition" 2.40GHz (1066FSB) - Retail
2xGeIL 2GB (2x1GB) DDR2 PC2-6400C4 800MHz Ultra Low Latency Dual Channel (GX22GB6400UDC)
Corsair HX 520W ATX Modular SLI Compliant Power Supply (CMPSU-520HXUK)
SAPPHIRE ATI RADEON HD 4890 VAPO 1GB

Im an avid gamer, and use my pc on a daily basis. If it is worth my while upgrading what would you guys recommend?

Thanks

I would get an aftermarket cooler an overclock the Q6600. Most will get between 3GHZ and 3.6GHZ.

Also try overclocking the HD4890 as many have hit nearly 1GHZ on the core and since your HD4890 has the Vapor X cooler it should be easier to do so!

simonhutchin322 · 5 Feb 2010 at 20:04

sounds like a good idea, recommend any programs regarding overclocking the graphics card ? or just use the overdrive in the control center?

CAT-THE-FIFTH · 5 Feb 2010 at 20:15

I would try ATI Tool and ATI Tray Tools.

I would also ATI Tool and a few runs of the Crysis or Crysis Benchmark Tool to test for stability. Furmark is another option but has damaged some HD4870 graphics cards in the past as the VRMs overheated.

simonhutchin322 · 5 Feb 2010 at 21:40

out of interest if i wanted to play at 1920x1080 at high settings what price range would i be looking at ?

CAT-THE-FIFTH · 5 Feb 2010 at 21:47

simonhutchin322 said:
out of interest if i wanted to play at 1920x1080 at high settings what price range would i be looking at ?

http://www.hardocp.com/article/2009/10/05/xfx_radeon_hd_4890_extreme_review/3