Should i upgrade?

Toms88

Toms88

Toms88

Associate
Joined
21 May 2011
Posts
150
Location
Addlestone, Surrey
Hi all


I used to be quite up to date with the latest PC components but for the last few years ive not been too bothered and i feel quite out of touch with the current technologies.

Here is my current PC spec.

ASUSTech P5KC Mobo
Intel Core2 Duo E6750 @ 2.66Ghz(2 CPUs) ~2.7Ghz
2GB RAM (make unknown)
ATI Radeon HD 2900XT
500GB SATA HDD

I find some games my gf plays (Sims 3) ends up running quite slow after a while. I dont play a LOT of games but it would be nice to know that i can go out and by the latest games knowing they will run.

Im guessing im probably so far out of date now il need to consider an entire new setup.

Would can you recommend? I dont want to spend much more than £180 on a new Mobo and Processor and about £160 on graphics. £100 on ram. Already got a decent case and screens etc I would like the option for triple display output as i have 2 screens for the pc and also switch to my TV via my home theatre amp.


Thanks for any advice!
 
Has a look at GPU's an gonna suggest this:

http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=GX-113-MS&groupid=701&catid=56&subcat=

Use the extra cash you save from the ram to buy this. Its on offer this week, MSI are great, I own a twin frozR ii card and the cooling is excellant. Support eyefinity so will be able to dual monitor and best of all you might even be able to flash the card to a 6970, thread of how to do this is here:

http://forums.overclockers.co.uk/showthread.php?t=18221844

This will total about 360 but should give you a solid build for all your needs for a few years to come.
 
180+160+100=£440:D

Here's an option:

Intel Core i5-2500K 3.30GHz (Sandybridge) Socket LGA1155 Processor £164.99

OcUK GeForce GTX 560 1024MB GDDR5 PCI-Express Graphics Card £143.99

MSI P67A-C45 Intel P67 (Socket 1155) DDR3 Motherboard - (Sandybridge) ** B3 REVISION ** £89.98

OCZ Platinum 4GB (2x2GB) DDR3 PC3-10666C7 1333MHz Dual Channel Kit (OCZ3P1333LV4GK) £27.95

Total : £438.30 (includes shipping : £9.50)



One of the best CPUs out at the moment with unlocked multipliers combined wih a P67 board makes overclocking a peice of cake:)

Motherboard is won't allow CF/SLI but as your not a hardcore gamer that won't be a problem.
 
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XFX ATI Radeon HD 5870 1024MB GDDR5 PCI-Express Graphics Card with FREE Stalker Call of Pripyat PC Game Voucher XFX ATI Radeon HD 5870 1024MB GDDR5 PCI-Express Graphics Card with FREE Stalker Call of Pripyat PC Game Voucher £124.99
(£149.99) £124.99
(£149.99)
Corsair A50 High-Performance CPU Cooler (Socket AM2/AM3/LGA775/LGA1155/LGA1156/LGA1366) Corsair A50 High-Performance CPU Cooler (Socket AM2/AM3/LGA775/LGA1155/LGA1156/LGA1366) £19.99
(£23.99) £19.99
(£23.99)
Sub Total : £144.98
Shipping cost assumes delivery to UK Mainland with:
DPD Next Day Parcel
(This can be changed during checkout) Shipping : £9.50
VAT is being charged at 20.00% VAT : £30.90
Total : £185.38

buy thoes two for now and just oc your cpu to about 3.4ghz

whilst you save a bit more for an i5 2500k build or wait for the new bulldozer
 
sk82jack - not sure if the gpu is powerful enough for modern games, also does that card support dual monitors?
Also I love my i52500k but for someone who admts they hardly ever game, is it really worth spending that sort of money on a cpu?

Pohly - Actually liking your idea, good GPU that supports eyefinity and Toms88 requirements are only to be able to play modern games if he wants so I think yours is a good options, depends on how future proof he wants his whole system.
 
a giant fox said:
sk82jack - not sure if the gpu is powerful enough for modern games, also does that card support dual monitors?
Also I love my i52500k but for someone who admts they hardly ever game, is it really worth spending that sort of money on a cpu?
Click to expand...

560 looks more than capable to me :p

It also has two dual link DVI and a mini HDMI 1.4a so should be able to run multiple screens.

Surely your question applies more to the graphics card as the CPU will affect the performance of the whole PC a lot more than the effect of a good graphics card.
 
sk82jack said:
560 looks more than capable to me :p

It also has two dual link DVI and a mini HDMI 1.4a so should be able to run multiple screens.

Surely your question applies more to the graphics card as the CPU will affect the performance of the whole PC a lot more than the effect of a good graphics card.
Click to expand...

Single Nvidia cards can only run 2 screens at a time.

ATI cards with Eyefinity can run 3 as long as 1 is connected with DisplayPort or an adapter from the DisplayPort connection.
 
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Can you give us an idea of what you use the system for mostly? You mentioned that you want gaming performance but that is largely achieved through the gpu. When we know the purpose of the machine it's easier to divide the budget to parts accordingly.

Mr fox, I seem to recall stulid mentioning that it's the frozr III that can be flashed not the frozr II. If you own the card and have performed the mod then I apologise, just when i read your post something in the back of my mind said it was wrong.

I have seen that xfx 5870 going for £150 at a number of retailers and it is much cheaper than other models. This automatically made me think WHY? Having done a lil research apparently there have been a number of issues with that card so could be one to avoid (I fully expect someone to jump in and say there one is working fine!). It was enough for me to NOT recommend it and suggest a 5850 which is cheaper and OC it to close to 5870 spec.

I fully expect stulid to drop in and help. Although I think he too will ask for a more definate purpose for the rig and what parts you intend to reuse. I look forward to hearing more and see what the members suggest.
 
honosuseri said:
I have seen that xfx 5870 going for £150 at a number of retailers and it is much cheaper than other models. This automatically made me think WHY? Having done a lil research apparently there have been a number of issues with that card so could be one to avoid (I fully expect someone to jump in and say there one is working fine!). It was enough for me to NOT recommend it and suggest a 5850 which is cheaper and OC it to close to 5870 spec.
.
Click to expand...

really i never knew that. yeah as he said go for the 5850 then (great cards ) or spend a bit more on a 6950
 
If i recall correctly it was compatibility issues with that xfx card, although you will see plenty of faulty ones being sold off on flea bay.

When I build machines for clients I like to know exactly what the rig is used for. This let's me spec a "well rounded" system then opt for a gpu later within the budget. You can make minor alterations if a certain gpu justifies a little more from the budget.

Gpu's are tricky, once you know the base of the build i.e wether SLI is possible or only xfire etc it's "easier" to make a choice. The radeon 5 series still holds out well against the 6 series with current games. Although as games start to utilise the tech in the current gen cards better that gap will widen. Is 3D gaming an interest? Then nvidia makes more sense. Or if he has multiple monitors then eyefinity is alluring so we are back to AMD.

Another point is that no psu has been specified. We need to know what it is to ensure it is powerful enough for the gpu and if indeed it has the connectors as some cards dont supply the adapters.
 
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Thanks for so much advice all! Didn't expect so many replies so quickly :D


To answer a few questions -

My current PSU is a Corsair HX520W Modular. Possibly a mistake at the time, wish I'd gotten the model up.

When I play pc games it's usually real time strategies like Red Alert or Flight Sims and Driving sims as I have the G25 Wheel and Saitek x52.

I guess these games can be both demanding on the CPU and GPU?

3 monitor outputs is a must. All 1080p as well as I have two 24" desktop screens and a 40" Sony bravia connected to the home theatre amp. As long as it can display that I'm happy. ( the two desktops will run as extended display and the Sony will only be for when I wan a use the pc in bed or for movies as a single display.

So other than occasional gaming it's used for a lot of music, quite frequently for high def movies and recording and mixing guitar tracks.

I do have one spanner to through in the works however....my room gets and stays very hot pretty much all summer 24/7 with an amp, 40" sony, pc, 2 desktop displays, virgin box, xbox and ps3!! My current ATI card sounds like a jet taking off any time I play a game and it still runs quite hot. The case is a cooler master not sure which model but it's covered in ventilation and large fans...quite loud though!
 
honosuseri said:
Mr fox, I seem to recall stulid mentioning that it's the frozr III that can be flashed not the frozr II. If you own the card and have performed the mod then I apologise, just when i read your post something in the back of my mind said it was wrong.
Click to expand...

My apologies I think it was the next step up msi card I was thinking of, had a look round and techpowers batch couldn't flash, not sure if anyone has flashed them, which is a shame as its great card

http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/MSI/HD_6950_Twin_Frozr_II/32.html

Hey Tom

i'm still going to suggest an ATI card due to eyefinity, not quite sure which one yet, was going to suggest:

http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=GX-255-AS&groupid=701&catid=56&subcat=1752

But not sure with the other compoents you have if your current PSU would handle it all

Is your max budget 440?
 
a giant fox said:
My apologies I think it was the next step up msi card I was thinking of, had a look round and techpowers batch couldn't flash, not sure if anyone has flashed them, which is a shame as its great card

http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/MSI/HD_6950_Twin_Frozr_II/32.html

Hey Tom

i'm still going to suggest an ATI card due to eyefinity, not quite sure which one yet, was going to suggest:

http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=GX-255-AS&groupid=701&catid=56&subcat=1752

Cool, I've always been a fan of Ati anyway :)

Well how much do you think I could sell the 540w on here for? If I could get £45 for it then I can afford to put some more into a new psu?


But not sure with the other compoents you have if your current PSU would handle it all

Is your max budget 440?
Click to expand...
 
Had a quick look on offers on the next step down cards and for gpu gonna suggest:

http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=GX-126-MS&groupid=701&catid=56&subcat=1866

As u can tell i'm a fan of MSI and their excellant components, this card gives very good performance but only draws around 306 watt under heavy load with furmark:

http://www.anandtech.com/bench/Product/290

Thats my 2 cents and personnaly looking at the previous quotes this GPU with the rest of the components that sk82jack suggests:

sk82jack said:
180+160+100=£440:D

Here's an option:

Intel Core i5-2500K 3.30GHz (Sandybridge) Socket LGA1155 Processor £164.99

OcUK GeForce GTX 560 1024MB GDDR5 PCI-Express Graphics Card £143.99

MSI P67A-C45 Intel P67 (Socket 1155) DDR3 Motherboard - (Sandybridge) ** B3 REVISION ** £89.98

OCZ Platinum 4GB (2x2GB) DDR3 PC3-10666C7 1333MHz Dual Channel Kit (OCZ3P1333LV4GK) £27.95

Total : £438.30 (includes shipping : £9.50)


.
Click to expand...

I think that is an excellant build for your needs, cpu is great (I own one), the RAM will be more then enough, you should have to change other components and keep your PSU and looking at benchs, you should have no issues playing latest games at decent setting

And all for 440 :p
 
as said earlier by surveyor though you can only connect two screens to one nvidia card. well, you can have 3 but one of the screens will be a duplicate of another one. if this is OK for you then proceed lol

if you want each monitor with a different image then get an amd card such as the 5850 but to use eyefinity you will need to use the displayport connection. if one of your monitors has a displayport input its all gravy but if not you'll need a displayport to HDMI/DVI adapter, I think it needs to be an active adapter too, but correct me if I'm wrong :)
 
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