Upgrade Help Mobo Bundle or GPU

Twoflower

Twoflower

Twoflower

Associate
Joined
25 Feb 2016
Posts
13
Location
Diss UK
Hi to all Overclockers.

I seem to have spent a few days and a lot of hours searching for this answer but there is a wealth of info out there and I am behind the times somewhat now with PCs.

My current system is as follows:

GA-X58a-UDR3 mobo
Core i7 960 (no OC)
2 x GTX 660 TI in SLI (1 x EVGA, 1 x Gigabyte)
8GB (2x4GB) DDR3 1600 CL9 (Kingston Blu)
Standard HDs, no SSDs
775W Toughpower XT PSU


I have approx £450 for an upgrade but cannot decide on which way to go. This would be for a predominantly gaming setup. I do use my PC for Photoshop, Dreamweaver, Illustrator type stuff but am more focused on the gaming element.

a) Just replace the 2 GTX 660 TIs with one GTX 980 TI

b) Keep the GPUs and upgrade my mobo, CPU and RAM

The ability to OC is also confusing me slightly. I seem to read that the Intel CPUs need the K suffix for this but also read if not overclocking these are too pricey?

Obviously choice 'a' does not require much help, it's a simple swap and I am assuming the i7 960 won't bottleneck the 980 Ti?

Choice 'b' is more complicated as I do not have a good enough understanding of current CPUs. But am sure for around my budget there should be a more future proof upgrade and I'll worry about the GPU at a later date. Im thinking that an ASUS mobo, i5 6600K Skylake and 16GB RAM should be in budget then pop the 2 660s back in the setup.

So basically would like to know anyone's thoughts on which way round to upgrade?

Thanks guys.

Jas.
 
Last edited:
Well its definitely on my to-do but this effects load times yes? So a mobo that has the slot for it is great but thats a future concern.

Very interested in which would be the better upgrade route.
 
The SSD can be SATA, no fancy slot required. And yes, affects load times. But load times for everything! All reads and writes to and from the operating system and games, not to mention applications such as Word and Photoshop, etc - the difference is tangible.
 
Twoflower said:
Well its definitely on my to-do but this effects load times yes? So a mobo that has the slot for it is great but thats a future concern.

Very interested in which would be the better upgrade route.
Click to expand...

You don't need a dedicated motherboard slot for a SSD. Even a SSD connected via a normal SATA cable will give you a huge speed boost over HDD.

Load times are the main reason for SSD, but it makes everything snappier. All versions of Windows have a nasty habit of thrashing HDDs for indexing, cache etc. Whilst this activity is still going to happen with a SSD you A) won't hear it and B) it all happens so much faster so you don't notice - your whole system will appear snappier.

A SSD is the single best way to breathe some new life into a system upgrade.

So Asus Z170 + 6600K + 16GB DDR4 + 250GB SSD would be my upgrade suggestion.
 
Ok, so you recommend this route over simply replacing the GPU for now?

Definitely difficult to decide. The 980 Ti would give a big boost to gaming. But the other route brings me more up to date with the rig itself.

Thanks for your input. Some more head scratching to do.
 
Twoflower said:
Ok, so you recommend this route over simply replacing the GPU for now?

Definitely difficult to decide. The 980 Ti would give a big boost to gaming. But the other route brings me more up to date with the rig itself.

Thanks for your input. Some more head scratching to do.
Click to expand...

With Nvidia's new Pascal GPUs due to launch soon (rumour is June), might be worth holding off on any GPU purchase.

Why not put a SSD in for now and see how much life that breathes into your system? I think you'll be pleasantly surprised.
 
Well Cern, thanks very much. And to Ryan0r too for your input. Really helpful.

I'm going to go the mobo, ssd, i5 upgrade route.

Now pulling my hair out over which ones. i5 6600K is a given. SSD I can source easily. 2x8GB DDR4 is a minefield. Unsure of what speed to go for. And just when I thought I saw a nice z170 from Gigabyte I find the Maximus VIII Hero. I expect it will be a small amount of compromise until all parts fit the budget.

Thanks All.
 
The Maximus VIII Hero might be overkill. Have a look at the Asus Z170 Pro Gaming which gets good reviews, has a similar gaming focus and features but will save you £50. Should be more than enough for a 6600k system and will allow you to overclock.

As for DDR4, the 2400 and 2666 modules seem to be in the sweet spot of price / performance. You won't see any tangible extra speed with the 3000 and 3200+ modules.

The money saved you can invest in a good cooler so you can overclock (you'll need one anyway, the 6600k doesn't come supplied with a cooler).
 
Ok, so getting quite excited now. Couple more questions if you have some more patience...

Sandisk 240GB SSD Plus SATA 6GB/s comes in at 54 pounds, any good?

Any advantage of Asus Z170 Pro Gaming over MSI Z170A Pro Gaming? Only ask as theres a nice bundle for the 6600K and MSI here on Overclockers.

Otherwise will use the Arctic Freezer 7 Pro Rev 2 CPU Cooler for cooling. And go for HyperX Fury DDR4 2x8GB 2400.

If the MSI is a good board and with the bundle deal I can bring it all in for exactly 450.
 
The MSI Z170A Pro Gaming looks to have very similar specs to the Asus Z170 Pro Gaming. You'll find people here who'll recommend both brands, you can't go wrong with either. That looks like a good value bundle.

The Sandisk should be fine. Perhaps have a look at the Samsung 250GB 850 Evo. It's a tenner more, but I've used the 500GB version of that in two builds now and they've been very fast and reliable. Also, you get the Samsung Magician software which allows you to clone your old HDD without needing to reinstall Windows (Sandisk may offer something similar of course).

HyperX DDR4 2400 looks a good choice. There's also Corsair Vengeance 2400 at a similar price (I've used that in a recent build with the 6600k with good results).

Not sure about the Arctic cooler and how much potential it has for overclocking, perhaps ask in the cooling forum. I used the Noctua NH-L9i in the 6600k build I did, it keeps everything very cool at normal usage and mild overclocking, but the intention wasn't for heavy overclocking which would likely need something beefier.
 
Ok, well thanks time again. Really grateful for the help. Found a bundle here which is pre-oc'd. All in with delivery 465. Includes:

Gigabyte GA-Z170XP-SLI
i5 6600K
Team Group Elite DDR4 2400 2x8GB
Alpenföhn Brocken 2 CPU Cooler

I will just have to wait a couple of weeks and then I'll grab the Samsung 250GB 850 Evo. I do like the sound of the Magician software.

Will be purchasing this on Monday I think so if there are any problems or reasons not to go for the above then let me know, it will be appreciated.

Thanks again.

Jas.
 
Is an i5 really much of an upgrade, yes the cores will be faster but you lose out on hyper threading. If you're going to go for a new cpu id stay with an i7. If I were you I'd be overclocking your current cpu and then look in to an ssd and a new gpu.

If you are on the x58 platform you could even pick up a cheap 6 core Xeon processor if your motherboards bios supports it.
 
wildman_33 said:
Is an i5 really much of an upgrade, yes the cores will be faster but you lose out on hyper threading. If you're going to go for a new cpu id stay with an i7. If I were you I'd be overclocking your current cpu and then look in to an ssd and a new gpu.

If you are on the x58 platform you could even pick up a cheap 6 core Xeon processor if your motherboards bios supports it.
Click to expand...

The i7 960 is a 1366 socket isn't it? I would have a look in the CPU section, many people in there have been dropping ex-server 6 core xeons into their X58 boards.

In your budget I would look for a 6 core xeon, grab an SSD and keep the rest of my money for AMDs polaris cards or Nvidias Pascal cards.
 
wildman_33 said:
Is an i5 really much of an upgrade, yes the cores will be faster but you lose out on hyper threading. If you're going to go for a new cpu id stay with an i7. If I were you I'd be overclocking your current cpu and then look in to an ssd and a new gpu.

If you are on the x58 platform you could even pick up a cheap 6 core Xeon processor if your motherboards bios supports it.
Click to expand...

Oh me oh my. I had no idea about the hyper threading. Simpleton that I am, I've been popping the CPUs into cpuboss and seeing the ratings. Came away with the conclusion that any 6th Gen i5 would far outstrip my 1st Gen 960 for gaming.

All started when I found a 980 Ti new for 436 quid, albeit a Galax branded card.

Overclocking my current 960 would still require a cooling upgrade? Current fan came with the CPU. In truth a good clean and re-paste would not go amiss anyway.

Food for thought. I could do the cooling upgrade and the 980 Ti for around the same cost with the SSD to follow. But then will the prices for GPUs change much once the latest Pascal comes out?

Sleep on it so I will.

Thanks for the input.
 
Sleep on it sounds a good plan.

Personally I still think you should just add a SSD before doing anything else and see what sort of a boost that gives your current system. Then take things from there. The SSD would still be an essential part of any system should you choose a fuller upgrade later.

The 6600k will give you a only marginal boost over your i7-960 in current game titles and the lack of hyperthreading is something to consider.

I don't think jumping for a 980Ti makes much sense with new offerings soon to come from AMD and Nvidia. Prices of the current GPUs won't change that much (unless the Pound takes a total hammering in the months to come) but you'll likely get more bang for your buck if you wait. Two GTX 660s in SLI isn't that shabby.
 
DazQ87 said:
The i7 960 is a 1366 socket isn't it? I would have a look in the CPU section, many people in there have been dropping ex-server 6 core xeons into their X58 boards.

In your budget I would look for a 6 core xeon, grab an SSD and keep the rest of my money for AMDs polaris cards or Nvidias Pascal cards.
Click to expand...

Just had a quick look into this. It seems about the best Xeon is the x5690 for x58. They seem to work fine and give performance close to 4xxxK (didnt note down the exact CPU). Auction on eBay for this is already at 170. Step down to the x6570 and looking at around 85 quid.

I just don't know. Quite torn between a very upgradable upgrade (so to speak) and squeezing what I can out of the current system. If I upgrade to Z170 and i5 then in the future it will still be very upgradable, no? Also, my wait for Polaris or Pascal is simply hoping the current cards come down in price rather than getting the new ones.

On balance I think the Xeon, although a good upgrade, will just cost money and fairly soon I'll want to change again. Maybe... arghh.

Lots of different opinions here which is great. I'll keep researching and giving it more thought.

Thanks.
 
Cern said:
Sleep on it sounds a good plan.

Personally I still think you should just add a SSD before doing anything else and see what sort of a boost that gives your current system. Then take things from there. The SSD would still be an essential part of any system should you choose a fuller upgrade later.

The 6600k will give you a only marginal boost over your i7-960 in current game titles and the lack of hyperthreading is something to consider.

I don't think jumping for a 980Ti makes much sense with new offerings soon to come from AMD and Nvidia. Prices of the current GPUs won't change that much (unless the Pound takes a total hammering in the months to come) but you'll likely get more bang for your buck if you wait. Two GTX 660s in SLI isn't that shabby.
Click to expand...

Its clear to me that an SSD is a must. Never really thought about it as load times dont bother me in the slightest. But seems everyone is raving about them and there has to be good reason for that. In game, the SSD will not make Lara Crofts hair look any nicer though.

And yep, 2 660 Tis are pretty good. Still don't have Lara's hair the way I want but they are very capable cards.

I think waiting for price drops (possibly) on GPUs is the best idea so far. Still undecided about upgrades. Knowing now the i5 6600K wont be much of an improvement (which was a shock to me) I'm no closer to a decision. Perhaps a Z170 with i7 bundle but have a feeling that will be out of budget for now.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top Bottom