Upgrades to play modern games

converting1

converting1

converting1

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Joined
22 May 2013
Posts
24
Current specs:

GTX 550ti (i'd like to keep this as I got recently)
8gb DDR3 1333mhz RAM
AMD Phenom II X4 840 Processor 3.2ghz processor
500gb 7200RPM
A cheap ASRock motherboard (can't remember which will update when I'm home)


How can I upgrade it to play modern games at high specs? Can I stick to AMD or do I have to go to intel?
 
If you had a decent motherboard i'd say you could. Maybe throw a 6300 in, you'd need a board with good cooler for a 8320.

That being said the 6300 isn't a vast improvement on the 840 you already have.

I know you bought it recently but the GPU is really the key to gaming upgrades. Upgrading your CPU now won't give you any/much gaming improvement.
 
here is my motherboard:

AsRock N68C-GS FX Motherboard (Socket AM3+, NVIDIA GeForce 7025, DDR3, S-ATA 300, Micro ATX, ASRock XFast USB and XFast LAN)

I never thought my cpu would be a problem. When I play dota or csgo, highest or lowest settings is the same fps so I figured it's the cpu.
 
converting1 said:
I never thought my cpu would be a problem. When I play dota or csgo, highest or lowest settings is the same fps so I figured it's the cpu.
Click to expand...

In that case it is DOTA 2, like most MMO's are CPU heavy games, that would benefit from a CPU upgrade.

In (non-MMO) other gaming terms the CPU is still decent. :)

Though i'd really suggest a motherboard and CPU upgrade.

What sort of budget do you have for this?
 
Well, could get this which would be a good upgrade, but no overclocking:

YOUR BASKET
1 x Intel Core i5-4690 3.50GHz (Haswell) Socket LGA1150 Processor - Retail £155.99
1 x Gigabyte H81M-D2V Intel H81 (Socket 1150) DDR3 Micro ATX Motherboard £40.99
Total : £206.58 (includes shipping : £8.00).




Or stretch and get:

YOUR BASKET
1 x Intel Core i5-4690K 3.50GHz (Devil's Canyon) Socket LGA1150 Processor - Retail £173.99
1 x Gigabyte Z97P-D3 Intel Z97 (Socket 1150) DDR3 ATX Motherboard £68.99
Total : £252.58 (includes shipping : £8.00).



Overclockable. You'd need an aftermarket cooler though.

When you ever upgrade GPU, you'll have to bear in mind the limitations of the Corsair 430W, as it's not really 430W on the 12v rail/s (for the CPU and GPU). It's about 336W if I remember correctly, assuming it's one of their 430W models I'm familiar with.
 
Unless you could afford a complete platform upgrade (cpu, motherboard, better ram, GPU and PSU) I would say that your weakest point is the GPU. The 550Ti is a low end card and is coming on for three years old now. I think your best bet for a decent improvement would be a up to date graphics card such as a 280X and probably a decent psu. The Corsair CX430 is a terrible psu and as Danny75 said, could have as little as 336w on the all important 12v rail. The latest version still only has 384w on the 12v rail.
 
Could I ask the difference I'd get from buying the best AMD cpu for my motherboard rather than going for intel? It is cheaper obviously to go for the AMD choice, but is intel *that* much better?
 
The AMD option is cheaper, although you would need an ATX size case, as there is no matx AM3+ 900 series boards as far as i am aware.

YOUR BASKET
1 x AMD Piledriver FX-8 Eight Core 8320 Black Edition 3.50GHz (Socket AM3+) Processor - Retail £107.99
1 x Asus M5A97 EVO R2.0 AMD 970 (Socket AM3+) DDR3 Motherboard £74.99
1 x Raijintek Themis Direct Contact CPU Cooler £19.99
Total : £212.57 (includes shipping : £8.00).







YOUR BASKET
1 x Intel Core i5-4690K 3.50GHz (Devil's Canyon) Socket LGA1150 Processor - OEM £167.99
1 x Gigabyte Z97P-D3 Intel Z97 (Socket 1150) DDR3 ATX Motherboard £68.99
1 x Raijintek Themis Direct Contact CPU Cooler £19.99
Total : £266.57 (includes shipping : £8.00).

 
converting1 said:
Could I ask the difference I'd get from buying the best AMD cpu for my motherboard rather than going for intel? It is cheaper obviously to go for the AMD choice, but is intel *that* much better?
Click to expand...

The thing is your motherboard is terrible and even though it has 95w FX series cpu's on the support list there is no way i would stick one in it. That board has no cooling at all for the vrms, a lack of power phases, only a 4 pin cpu power plug and a chipset that is ancient. It would need replacing even if you stayed with AMD. If you are not going to change the gpu as well then you will not see anywhere near as much of improvement as you expect and would be better off keeping things as they are until you can afford a complete upgrade. To get a big performance boost you need to replace the lot including the psu, especially if it's the older version.
 
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