Upgrading My PC.

BeadyRoller

BeadyRoller

BeadyRoller

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21 Apr 2013
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1,536
Hi! I have come to the decision that my PC could do with a little upgrade as I fancy treating myself :D

My rig at the moment is:

GPU: AMD 7970
CPU: Intel Core i5-3570K 3.40GHz
RAM: Kingston HyperX Genesis Grey 8GB (2x4GB) DDR3 PC3-12800C9 1600MHz
PSU: 550W XFX Pro Core Edition 80PLUS Bronze Power SupplY
Motherboard: GIGABYTE GA-Z77-D3H Intel Z77
Case: Xigmatek Asgard Pro Gaming Case - Black
HDD: 1TB Seagate Barracuda ST1000DM003 3.5" SATA III Hard Drive
SSD: 128GB Samsung EVO
Windows 7

So yeah, that's what I'm playing on at the moment, I'd say the most stand out thing would be to get a nicer case, go for an i7, a better GPU?

Will a 550w PSU support a GTX 980 for example? and would it be a good idea to get a water cooler if I wanted to overclock? (I don't know how to but it's something I'm looking in to in the future)

I'm not great at all the tech malarkey, that's why I'm leaving it in your hands, what would you all suggest I upgrade?

It is for gaming by the way.

Cheers.
 
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Is this just for gaming? What res? Id look to get a ssd and gtx 970. Edit: see you have a ssd lol could get a bigger one?
 
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It will be for just 1920x1080 mate and gaming yes. I could potentially get a bigger SSD but was thinking more of the lines of adding a 2TB hybrid SSHD as it's cheaper and faster than the HDD I have at the moment.
 
I've decided that I will probably keep my i5 as I only use my PC for gaming so is there really any benefit I'll see from upgrading to a i7? I might just overclock my i5 and get a CPU cooler?

I think I'll be getting a new motherboard as my current one doesn't support SLI and I'm not sure my PSU is quite strong enough for any upgrades I may want to make in the future.

I want a new case as my current one is bad for cable management and airflow so I was thinking along the lines of these:

https://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=MB-504-GI

https://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=CA-153-NX

https://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=CA-013-SF&tool=3

https://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=HS-001-RT

What do we think?
 
Would it be good enough for SLI in the future though or a 980ti? I may just hold on to the 7970 for a little while and get the other parts upgraded as I can't afford to upgrade it all.
 
BeadyRoller said:
I've decided that I will probably keep my i5 as I only use my PC for gaming so is there really any benefit I'll see from upgrading to a i7? I might just overclock my i5 and get a CPU cooler?

I think I'll be getting a new motherboard as my current one doesn't support SLI and I'm not sure my PSU is quite strong enough for any upgrades I may want to make in the future.

I want a new case as my current one is bad for cable management and airflow so I was thinking along the lines of these:

https://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=MB-504-GI
Click to expand...

Thats a z97 motherboard you linked. You need z77. Id keep the cpu and overclock it to 4.2 to 4.5 if air cooler can handle it. my old i5 3570k did 4.2 on 1.1volts and 1.22 volts for 4.5ghz. But i had corsair h100i cooler. But one of my cpu cores would run 8-10c higher then the rest which is why i didn't overclock it past 4.5ghz

If i kept my z77 motherboard and was looking to upgrade to I7. i prob would have got a used sandybridge i7 2600k cpu that works on z77. And they sell a lot cheaper then 3770k
 
Why would I need a Z77? Not to clued up on this stuff mate haha. I think I'm gonna get a new PSU and motherboard to futre proof any upgrades I may want. I'll keep my CPU and GPU for now, I'll just over clock them if I can get a decent cooler. Any you suggest?
 
BeadyRoller said:
Why would I need a Z77? Not to clued up on this stuff mate haha. I think I'm gonna get a new PSU and motherboard to futre proof any upgrades I may want. I'll keep my CPU and GPU for now, I'll just over clock them if I can get a decent cooler. Any you suggest?
Click to expand...

The processor you have right now and are planning on keeping will not work on a Z97 motherboard.
 
BeadyRoller said:
I've decided that I will probably keep my i5 as I only use my PC for gaming so is there really any benefit I'll see from upgrading to a i7? I might just overclock my i5 and get a CPU cooler?

I think I'll be getting a new motherboard as my current one doesn't support SLI and I'm not sure my PSU is quite strong enough for any upgrades I may want to make in the future.

I want a new case as my current one is bad for cable management and airflow so I was thinking along the lines of these:

https://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=MB-504-GI

https://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=CA-153-NX

https://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=CA-013-SF&tool=3

https://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=HS-001-RT

What do we think?
Click to expand...

Your current XFX 550W psu will be fine with any single gpu. So you could go with a 980 ti for example without any problem.

The Z97 Motherboard as already mentioned is not compatible with your i5 3570K as it is a different socket. The i5 3570K uses LGA1155 whereas the Z97 board is on LGA1150.

The Raijintek themis is a decent budget cooler.

The NZXT Source 340 is good for the money. There is also the Fractal Design Define S which looks nicer imo for an extra £10.


YOUR BASKET
1 x Fractal Design Define S Midi Tower Case - Black Window £69.95
Total : £79.55 (includes shipping : £8.00 Ex.VAT).



**You will need an external dvd drive with the Fractal Design S or the NZXT S340 as they don't have any 5.25 bays**.
 
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Thanks for the reply mate. Sure that PSU is ok? I keep reading different thing regarding what PSU is required so I'm a little confused.

What motherboard would you recommend and what hard drive? I would want something fast as it will be to put all my games on :)

That case looks great, definitely something to think about.
 
It depends on your budget but regardless OC the bejeebus out of that CPU if you haven't already. You should hit 4.5ghz without breaking a sweat. If I were you I'd flog the 7970 and put that cash towards the current budget. I'd buy a decent aftermarket cooler. The Hyper 212 Evo is a great budget air cooler but it looks like it will be a very snug fit in your case. The cooler requires 159mm of clearance, you case allows 160mm! If you want to sexy things up a bit have a look at all in one watercooling units. You will have zero clearance issues. Here's a couple of decent budget ones to get you started. Cooler Master Seidon 120V and the Antec Kúhler H2O 650. Just make sure its says Socket Compatibility: 1155.

The lions share of the budget I would throw at the GPU and get a GTX 970. You could expect up to 45% more performace according to the graph in the spoiler!

This setup will handle just about anything you can throw at it at 1080p for the foreseeable future. You won't need to change your motherboard or PSU and you should get a bit of change out of £300 taking into consideration selling your 7970 and getting about £50 for it.

perfrel_1920.gif
 
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BeadyRoller said:
I've decided that I will probably keep my i5 as I only use my PC for gaming so is there really any benefit I'll see from upgrading to a i7? I might just overclock my i5 and get a CPU cooler?

I think I'll be getting a new motherboard as my current one doesn't support SLI and I'm not sure my PSU is quite strong enough for any upgrades I may want to make in the future.

I want a new case as my current one is bad for cable management and airflow so I was thinking along the lines of these:

https://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=MB-504-GI

https://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=CA-153-NX

https://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=CA-013-SF&tool=3

https://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=HS-001-RT

What do we think?
Click to expand...

Nevermind the wrong socket on the motherboard that has already been pointed out, but as you've said yourself, this is a gaming machine. Here you've just spent £270 and not got 1 single FPS extra to show for it.
 
Brian18741 said:
It depends on your budget but regardless OC the bejeebus out of that CPU if you haven't already. You should hit 4.5ghz without breaking a sweat. If I were you I'd flog the 7970 and put that cash towards the current budget. I'd buy a decent aftermarket cooler. The Hyper 212 Evo is a great budget air cooler but it looks like it will be a very snug fit in your case. The cooler requires 159mm of clearance, you case allows 160mm! If you want to sexy things up a bit have a look at all in one watercooling units. You will have zero clearance issues. Here's a couple of decent budget ones to get you started. Cooler Master Seidon 120V and the Antec Kúhler H2O 650. Just make sure its says Socket Compatibility: 1155.

The lions share of the budget I would throw at the GPU and get a GTX 970. You could expect up to 45% more performace according to the graph in the spoiler!

This setup will handle just about anything you can throw at it at 1080p for the foreseeable future. You won't need to change your motherboard or PSU and you should get a bit of change out of £300 taking into consideration selling your 7970 and getting about £50 for it.

perfrel_1920.gif
Click to expand...

Thanks for the reply mate. Give me some things to think about definitely!

Got a couple questions.

1) Will my 550W PSU definitely be enough to handle a GTX 970 and me overclocking my i5?

2) Will the case I'm planning on getting (the NZXT one) have enough room to hold a large CPU cooler?

3) What motherboard would people recommend I get that is compatible with my i5?

4) Is the RAM I'm currently using ok or would you suggest anything better?

Cheers!
 
I'm assuming you would like to upgrade for a bit more performance and/or aesthetics rather than just throwing money away needlessly.

With that in mind, regarding 3) don't bother getting a new motherboard unless you are getting a new CPU also, you already have a decent one.

And 4) your RAM is also absolutely fine, changing it out will have hardly any noticable improvements and if you're new to overclocking or just after a decent boost it will also be fine.

Now onto the interesting stuff.

1) A GPU is certainly going to be your biggest performance increase, either a 970 or 980 should be fine with your PSU, which you choose is mostly dependent on how much you want to spend.

2) The NZXT S340? Yes it will fit basically all of the large CPU coolers, just double check dimensions before purchasing, and a non-stock cooler is a great start if you're looking to have a go at overclocking.
 
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