Upgrade time. i7 or i5 and new GPU?

Fordie00 · 23 Dec 2010 at 08:08

I would like to spend up to £450 (excluding a second 260)

I use it for Gaming. L4D 1&2, COD, Crysis etc... big steam collection

I'm using a Samsung 22" 3D Monitor @ 1680x1050 (with Nvidia glasses)

My system as it stands:
Antec 900
Patriot PS-100 64GB SSD
Seagate 1TB HD
OCZ ModXtreme-pro 700W PSU
Asus M3N78-EM Mobo
AMD Phenom II 920 2.8Ghz @ 3.2Ghz
8GB DDR2 800Mhz GEIL RAM
Thermaltake V1 CPU cooler
GTX 260 216core

I can get hold of a second GTX260 216 for £50 off a friend.... worth it?

Looking @:
i7 950, Asus P6X58D-E & 6GB Corsair 1600 in Triple channel - keeping the rest of my system.
Unless i5 is worth a shout with new GPU?

I have built 100s of PCs so it won't be an issue building it. No OS needed.

Not a great deal of knowledge with overclocking but will do at some point.

Thoughts overall??

RJC · 23 Dec 2010 at 08:31

Sandy bridge comes out Jan 9th it might be worth holding off for that if your in no rush.

pooley · 23 Dec 2010 at 08:47

I'd wait and see what sandy bridge has to offer before upgrading.

hybrid572 · 23 Dec 2010 at 09:39

Get the second GTX 260 and SLI them.

As others have said, you should wait until Jan at least to upgrade your CPU, but I don't really think you need to. I'd just get the 260 from your friend.

RJC · 23 Dec 2010 at 10:14

Problem is his current motherboard only has one PCI-E slot.

hybrid572 · 23 Dec 2010 at 10:40

Damn. I'd still probably get the graphics card and wait on Sandy Bridge, £50 is a cracking price for a 260.

Cookeh · 23 Dec 2010 at 10:49

I wouldn't bother going down i7 or SB just yet.

You've still got a very capable system, that with a GPU upgrade will see you maxing settings on decent frame rates in pretty much all your games.

Something like a HD6950 would see a massive improvement:

http://www.anandtech.com/bench/Product/170?vs=162 (please note, can't find the benchmarks for a HD6950 against a GTX260, so used a HD5870, which is slightly less powerful).

http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=GX-027-HS&groupid=701&catid=56&subcat=1752

Fordie00 · 23 Dec 2010 at 12:38

Im bored of having an old CPU and mobo. I could go AMD 6 core? But sli works better with Intel? Want to get my hands on DDR3 aswell!

Fordie00 · 23 Dec 2010 at 14:27

I want to stick with Nvidia as I have the 3D monitor and glasses.
I would keept the CPU for longer if I could find a mobo with Sli what supports the Phenom II 920 (am2+) but from what I can see its like rocking horse poo!!

Fordie00 · 23 Dec 2010 at 20:30

Right, I have just managed to get an Asus Crosshair II Formula £60 or M4N82 Deluxe from work for £50. Both will take my CPU and hopefully allow me to OC a bit more. Which one is better? And Is it worth upgrading my RAM from 800mhz to 1066mhz? Will I see a difference?

ScottMC7000 · 23 Dec 2010 at 21:01

Fordie00 said:
Right, I have just managed to get an Asus Crosshair II Formula £60 or M4N82 Deluxe from work for £50. Both will take my CPU and hopefully allow me to OC a bit more. Which one is better? And Is it worth upgrading my RAM from 800mhz to 1066mhz? Will I see a difference?

No, you probably wouldn't see much of a difference. What it would mean is that the interconnectivity in transfer speed would be slightly more optimised between the RAM and the CPU providing the motherboard supports it. Thats the general analysis.

You would see more of an effect in CPU speed of processing if you were to change from one CPU to another. If you are overclocking then the relationship between memory speed and the CPU becomes a factor as they are interconnected. Instability will occur with the memory if it is pushed beyond the specification stated and will likely result in the Blue Screen Of Death.

Cookeh · 23 Dec 2010 at 21:13

Crosshair II is a much better board, designed for multiple gpu's and overclocking your chip as far as possible.