Planning Upgrade, Few Questions

The Mad One

The Mad One

The Mad One

Associate
Joined
24 Jan 2003
Posts
681
Location
Staffordshire, UK
Hi guys I've currently got this rig and I'm looking to upgrade:

Asus A8N-SLi Premium
AMD Opteron 170 @ 2.5GHz
Corsair 2GB DDR XMS4000PT TwinX
Connect3D ATI Radeon X1900XT-X 512MB GDDR3

I'd like to upgrade to 4gb ram but at the same time I guess I should do the mobo and cpu to benefit from DDR2 and a faster processor. I'd also like to do the graphics card but I'm planning to upgrade in 2 phases so I'll either do the graphics or motherboard first. Its mainly for gaming but I would like to future proof it as much as possible, my current rig has lasted me 2 years with most games set to high I'm pretty impressed.

I'm currently going through the whole dual core vs quad core debate in my head atm but I'm edging towards quad core for future proofing reasons. I'm planning on getting something around:

Asus P5Q-E
Intel Core 2 Quad Pro Q6600
OCZ 4GB (2x2GB) PC2-8500C5

Then for graphics:
EVGA GeForce GTX 280 1024MB OR
Powercolor ATI Radeon HD 4870 X2 2048MB (If it lowers more towards £300)

Firstly looking at my current setup, which would give a bigger benefit upgrading the motherboard first or the graphics card?

Secondly I bought the Corsair HX 520W a couple of months ago since my Hiper went poof if I don't upgrade this would I have a power problem with either of my graphics card choices?

I'm not looking to overclock the graphics card but I'll probably overclock the Q6600 up to around 3ghz if that's the one I decide to go with.

Any other suggestions will be appreciated.
 
Agreed, graphics but dont get the 280GTX, especially not much over £200.

The 4870 can be had for a fair bit below £200 (both 512MB and 1GB versions) or close to it for the Gainward ATI Radeon HD 4870 "Golden Sample" and is close to (some times outperforming the GTX at high res with AA). So id either get that or up the money for the 4870X2.
 
Last edited:
ACESHIGH said:
Agreed, graphics but dont get the 280GTX, especially not much over £200.

The 4870 can be had for a fair bit below £200 (both 512MB and 1GB versions) or close to it for the Gainward ATI Radeon HD 4870 "Golden Sample" and is close to (some times outperforming the GTX at high res with AA). So id either get that or up the money for the 4870X2.
Click to expand...

The 512mb or the 1gb version? I was hoping to move away from ati as my current motherboard doesn't allow 2 ati pci express cards to run at the same time (i.e. just for more then 2 monitor outputs), no idea why I guess cause its a nvidia nforce chipset. I guess a new intel based chipset would resolve this. The 4870 range does look good though.

What about my power based question?
 
The Mad One said:
The 512mb or the 1gb version? I was hoping to move away from ati as my current motherboard doesn't allow 2 ati pci express cards to run at the same time (i.e. just for more then 2 monitor outputs), no idea why I guess cause its a nvidia nforce chipset. I guess a new intel based chipset would resolve this. The 4870 range does look good though.

What about my power based question?
Click to expand...

The ATI cards handle high res very well and the 1GB card is only a few % faster than the 512MB version. So if playing at less than 1900x res the 512MB will be fine. however the 1GB version is priced very well on OcUK and so may be worth a look depending on your res.

Corsair HX 520W is a very good psu. You could run most any core 2 or quad and the 4870 plus sundry without a worry.
 
After a couple days of deliberation I have decided to get the following:

Asus P5Q-E
Intel E8500
OCZ 4GB (2x2GB) PC2-8500C5
Sapphire ATI Radeon HD 4870X2

Which will be installed along the following:
Corsair HX 520W
Creative X-Fi Elite Pro
Pioneer 106s Slot DVD-Rom
Samsung SATA SH-S182 DVD-RW
WD Raptor 74GB
Maxtor MaXLine Plus II 250GB IDE
Western Digital Caviar 250GB SATA

As above I'm extremely concerned that my current PSU may not be enough to handle the 4870x2, I know Aces said it should be ok (thanks btw) but I'd like more people to put my doubts to rest about this? My budget is already stretched passed it limit so I can't afford a PSU upgrade right now.
 
Nice choice of components. I find the Corsair PSUs to be extremely good, but I think 520W is very close, especially since you have the 4870X2. I would be inclined to err on the side of caution unfortunately.

Anyone with a 4870X2, what PSU are you running out of interest?
 
*Bump*

I've been having second thoughts about the graphics card. I've always been someone who buys hardware for longevity rather then current statistics. Now since I'm running 19" therefore gaming at 1280x1024 I release that the 4780 X2 will not give me a bigger advantage then current single gpu cards at this resolution.

My question is as games evolve and get more demanding and complex will the 4780 X2 gain an advantage over say the 280 GTX at this resolution?


Secondly I've still been trying to find out whether my power supply would actually take an 4780 X2. Does any know whether power supply calculators like this one are accurate? I've put in as much as my system as possible (it doesn't list the 4870 X2 so I put 2 4870's in crossfire down) and it comes out with 502 watts. Can I trust that?
 
Last edited:
If you plan to o.c as well so invest abit more on PSU like 700W or good 850W, it will be more head room for o.c and not tax your PSU to much. I run my 4870X2, MAximus Formula, Q9450 with 850W Antac Quattro. If money no object gor for 1000W and not to worry latter upgrade.
Cheers
 
Isnt the 4870x2 a waste of time at that Rez? Why spend that much more on the GPU and upgrading the PSU etc when a GTX260 will give the same FPS. or at least an FPS that is so high you aint gonna know the difference...

The reviews I have read say that yes, the 4870x2 is a beast, but its only viable if you are using 1900x1200 +++ rez
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top Bottom