Possible upgrade ideas

marti996

marti996

marti996

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Joined
19 Nov 2014
Posts
136
Location
Southampton
Thinking on an upgrade just that it's been about two going on three years since I last spent serious money, and I'm lacking ideas and not up to scratch with the current market on what I should focus on.

My current setup is

AMD Phenom ii 965 @3.8ghz
ASUS M5A99X EVO
HD Radeon 6870 x2
16GB RAM DDR3 1333mhz
500GB HDD
120GB SSD


I've had my cards for nearly three years, it's the first time I'd gone with ATI and I feel I've got my use out of them. So I'm thinking of switching back to nvidia and looking to spend £200-300 on a card, the last time I had a nvidia card was the GTX 260 so I'm very much out the loop. Suggestions?


The biggest upheaval is that I'm thinking instead of getting an updated amd cpu I'd go for an intel setup with an i7, looking at maybe £300 with a mobo also. Thing is I've never had an intel setup before so I'd appreciate advice:D


Reckon I could probably do with faster ram, DDR3 still what I should be looking at?

Suggestions and some feedback I'd really appreciate:confused:
 
I like your ideas.

I can help out. Nvidia GPU wise, you're looking at a GTX 970 (a long way from a 260, right?). They start around the £250 mark. The galaxys and EVGAs would be my pick around £270.

As for the CPU upgrade you either need to shift your expectations or your budget. A decent i7 4790k bundle (with a uD3H BK) comes in around £390. This board would be a good option as you get £32.50 cash back from gigabyte and a 5 year (3 year free upgrade) warranty. So that's around £60 over what you intended.

You could go for the i5 4690k instead which will be nearer £250 (with a Z97X SLI, and gigabyte will give you £25 ish cash back on that). The issue is the 4790k performs much better in SLI than the 4690k does (for some reason). So if you are thinking of SLI you should go with the i7.

I guess that depends on your monitor though. 970 SLI ismassive overkill for 1080p, 144hz and possibly single screen 1440p (even at 144hz, ROG Swift).

As for RAM, I wouldn't bother upgrading. Yes your current RAM is slow but it shouldn't matter too much.

Thoughts?

EDIT: If you wanted a really cheap upgrade just throw a 8320 at it (£120). Not as good as the 4690k/4790k but for a lot less money. Just get good enough cooling to clock the hell out of it.
 
Hi Marti, welcome to the forum.

I'm going to assume main purpose is gaming, as it sounds like it. Please correct if I'm wrong.


marti996 said:
I've had my cards for nearly three years, it's the first time I'd gone with ATI and I feel I've got my use out of them. So I'm thinking of switching back to nvidia and looking to spend £200-300 on a card, the last time I had a nvidia card was the GTX 260 so I'm very much out the loop. Suggestions?
Click to expand...


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Total : £309.59 (includes shipping : £8.00).





marti996 said:
The biggest upheaval is that I'm thinking instead of getting an updated amd cpu I'd go for an intel setup with an i7, looking at maybe £300 with a mobo also. Thing is I've never had an intel setup before so I'd appreciate advice:D
Click to expand...

At £300 your options are an i5-4690K + good motherboard (which is perfectly fine for gaming), or a non-overclocking i7 with a budget motherboard. Have to spend more for i7-4790K + good motherboard. Check out the Bundles offers too, under product Categories.

Or, a cheaper GTX 970 + i7-4790K mobo bundle would round the total off nearer to £600.


marti996 said:
Reckon I could probably do with faster ram, DDR3 still what I should be looking at?
Click to expand...

For a Z97 socket build, yes, DDR3. 2133-2400MHz is a sweet spot. Faster if you like but now and then 2666MHz will refuse to run at stated speed depending on the IMC of the CPU (and any overclock on the latter) and you'll have to set manual speed/timings.

What PSU do you have now? Not just the make and wattage but the model, if you know it.

And check that the GPU you end up buying will fit in your case.

Hope this helps.
 
Doomedspeed said:
I can help out. Nvidia GPU wise, you're looking at a GTX 970 (a long way from a 260, right?). They start around the £250 mark. The galaxys and EVGAs would be my pick around £270.

As for the CPU upgrade you either need to shift your expectations or your budget. A decent i7 4790k bundle (with a uD3H BK) comes in around £390. This board would be a good option as you get £32.50 cash back from gigabyte and a 5 year (3 year free upgrade) warranty. So that's around £60 over what you intended.
Click to expand...

Thanks for the feedback guys I really appreciate it.

In terms of GPU I'm thinking of just the lone card and not SLI I've got a LG IPS234v monitor. I'm interested in the GTX 970

With regard to CPU and mobo I can move on my budget and would be willing to do so, the particular bundle you mention I like the sound of.

Also I did forget to specify it would be for gaming. I've got an XFX 750w PSU which is fairly new, although I can't remember the specific model. Would that still be able to handle an upgrade? I've got a Coolermaster HAFX so a bigger card should fit although I'll remember to check.

In conclusion what do you guys think I should look to upgrade first, in terms of priority in performance?
 
I'm currently leaning towards an i5 simply because I'm mainly focused on gaming performance and, given what I've read about the necessity of an i7, I'm questioning whether I should be after an i5 or an i7?

I'm not into editing or anything like that really, it's mainly gaming. Although I can afford an i7 I'm just wondering if it's necessary given my circumstances?

Cheers again guys
 
marti996 said:
Thanks for the feedback guys I really appreciate it.

In terms of GPU I'm thinking of just the lone card and not SLI I've got a LG IPS234v monitor. I'm interested in the GTX 970

With regard to CPU and mobo I can move on my budget and would be willing to do so, the particular bundle you mention I like the sound of.

Also I did forget to specify it would be for gaming. I've got an XFX 750w PSU which is fairly new, although I can't remember the specific model. Would that still be able to handle an upgrade? I've got a Coolermaster HAFX so a bigger card should fit although I'll remember to check.

In conclusion what do you guys think I should look to upgrade first, in terms of priority in performance?
Click to expand...

marti996 said:
I'm currently leaning towards an i5 simply because I'm mainly focused on gaming performance and, given what I've read about the necessity of an i7, I'm questioning whether I should be after an i5 or an i7?

I'm not into editing or anything like that really, it's mainly gaming. Although I can afford an i7 I'm just wondering if it's necessary given my circumstances?

Cheers again guys
Click to expand...

Your case and PSU are fine, both good units.

An i7 isn't really needed. You'll love the i5, as it will do all you want to and more (and you'll feel like you've saved money).

As stulid said, if you are doing it bit by bit, leave the GPU for last as the prices always flucuate..

The CPU + motherboard combo he specced would be my choice too..
 
I am looking at the i5 bundle that has been linked and I will probably go for it when I get paid next week. Thanks again for the feedback guys.
 
Alright then guys thanks all for the feedback it's been really helpful and brought me back up to speed with the world, really appreciate it.
 
Oh darn, okay then. I've got my eyes on the i5 4670k.

but in terms of a motherboard, other than it obviously being the required intel board, what should I be looking for when buying one?
 
Z97 if you want to overclock, ATX or mATX depending on case size, single GPU support or SLI etc.
 
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