Should i buy a whole new system?

LunaticDan · 30 Jan 2010 at 22:09

Hi guys,

I've recently gotten a pay rise on my job so i can afford to buy a long awaited upgrade. Money is not such a problem but i'd say if i was going to buy my budget would be around 700. I've already decided what system i would buy if i did i just need advice.

My current system specs are:

CPU: Intel Core 2 Duo E5200
RAM: 4GB DDR2 PC2-5300
GPU: XFX GeForce 8800 GTS 320MB
CASE: Antec 300
PSU: 600W Generic PSU
HDD: 500GB Maxtor HDD IDE
FANS: 3x120MM Extra LED case fans
CPUFAN: Akasa CPU Cooler
MOBO: Gigabyte G31M-S2L
DVD: Generic DVD-RW IDE

The specs i've decided on getting are:

CPU: Intel i5 750
RAM: 4GB DDR3 PC3-10600
GPU: XFX Radeon HD 4870 1024MB
CASE: Fractal Design Black Pearl
PSU: OCZ StealthStream 600W PSU
HDD: 1TB Samsung EcoGreen F2 SATAII
FANS: 3x140MM FractalDesign case fans
CPUFAN: Arctic Cooling Freezer 7 Pro rev 2
MOBO: Gigabyte GA-H55M-S2H
DVD: Samsung DVD-RW SATAII

I am happy with these specs and the price i can buy them for, do you think i should go ahead and order this new system, or simply upgrade the GPU and HDD on this system? I'm quite partial to big upgrades that's why i'm looking at buying a whole new system.

Input is appreciated,
Thanks

stulid · 30 Jan 2010 at 22:16

Samsung F3 is more performance orrientated.

ATI 5770 is worth the extra bit of cash

stulid · 30 Jan 2010 at 22:19

And a P55 based motherboard could offer better features and performance for similar costs

LunaticDan · 30 Jan 2010 at 22:19

stulid said:
Samsung F3 is more performance orrientated.

ATI 5770 is worth the extra bit of cash

The 5770 is less performing in most games than a 4870, i've reviews tons of benchmarks and the games i play on perform better with a 4870, i'm happy with the specs i've chosen, just would like advice on whether to go through with it

CAT-THE-FIFTH · 30 Jan 2010 at 22:21

The F2 is a 5400RPM drive suited more for storage purposes. The Samsung F3 is a 7200RPM drive and is much faster.

Also this the best HD4870 1GB card out there IMHO:

http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=GX-204-SP

The Vapor X cooler is excellent and for £100 the card is excellent value for money.

CAT-THE-FIFTH · 30 Jan 2010 at 22:29

In the existing system if the E5200 was overclocked to between 3GHZ to 3.5GHZ it would be enough for most current games. An HD4870 1GB would be a big improvement over the 8800GTS 320GB although it would be better to replace the generic PSU with something better.

As long as the IDE drive is a 7200RPM model with at least 8MB cache it should still do the job.