Upgrading my system, need help!

perpy

perpy

perpy

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Hey, I am looking to upgrade a prebuilt hp system, it has 6gb of ram, an i5 [email protected] processer, and a gt220 graphics card. I am looking to get a new case, new psu and new graphics card. However it has been recommended that I overclock my system so would have to get a new mobo where my bios isnt locked? Anyways I have about £400 to play around with and am basically looking for the best upgrades i can get for my money so i can play most games in full fairly easily, up for any suggestions offered!
Thanks a lot
Perpy.
 
Hi,
Overclocking your CPU would see an increased performance in games but it would also run hotter meaning you would need to buy a new cooler for your system. At the moment your money would be best spent on a new PSU and graphics card.
Couple of questions.
Does your 6Gb of RAM come in 3 x 2Gb Sticks?
What resolution does your monitor support?

Just as an idea without knowing those i'd have a look at something like this:

XFX ATI Radeon 6950 2048MB GDDR5 PCI-Express Graphics Card £189.98

Gigabyte GA-P55-USB3 Intel P55 (Socket 1156) DDR3 Motherboard £85.99

Antec TruePower New Modular 750W Power Supply - With FREE 3D Mark 2011 Advance £84.98

Coolermaster Elite 430 Windowed Case - Black £38.80

Total :

£412.36

The graphics card can be flashed so it runs like a 6970 if you need more power from it.
 
My screen is resolution is 1920x1080, the ram i have comes in 3 sticks of 2gb at 667 MHz (DDR3 1333). Also what do you make of this http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=BU-005-CM i really like the case and looks like a good psu. Furthermore I heard somewhere if you get a new motherboard you have to get a new OS licence? That could be total BS haha but thought I read it somewhere.
 
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i have that exact same case and psu for my i5 2500k and gtx460 build (built 2 weeks ago), the psu comes with 5 year warranty aswell, and i was watching a review of it on a youtube video and they said something that the mean time between breakdowns for this psu is 11 years which sounds very good i think.

This PSU is not modular if thats something you are looking for, but the HAF 912 has got some good cable management so its not been an issue for me so far,

The case as you buy it comes with 1 red led 200m at front and 1 120mm exhaust at rear.
 
Windows upgrade rules are a bit of a pain. it allows your to make a certain number of hardware changes before it triggers a reactivation.
I think its a motherboard and 3 other changes. but i can't remember.
The case you have there is a good one, I have one in my 2nd rig. The PSU is ok, but I'd go for the antec over it. If you ignore the motherboard above then you have a lot more to spend on a case, which is all down to personal preference. Personally I'm a big fan of: Coolermaster CM-690 II Advanced Dominator Case - Black which would be in your budget if you ignore the motherboard. But case is a personal choice.
 
If I dont overclock my processor, how well will I be able to play top end games on full eg crysis etc? If its very beneficial I could spend 450 and get a new fan or heatsink for the processor.
 
If your copy of windows is OEM, then it's tied to the motherboard it was first installed / activated on upgrading the motherboard would require a new license.

Retail allows you to change systems without problems belongs you uninstall from the original pc.
 
Ye it is OEM unfortunately, so I guess that means another 80ish for windows 7. Well I have about £450 to play around with so I will see what people suggest on what to upgrade for that money. Thanks a lot for the help so far.
 
@ 1920x1080 i wouldn't of thought runnign your CPU at stock would stop you from running games at max. Crysis has a mind of its own though. Crysis 2 would run fine though :)
As your PC is a HP - then your license will be OEM, so liek RJC said it sounds like you'd need a new copy of windows. so a new motherboard would mean your shopping list would need to add windows, motherboard & CPU cooler.
And at that point your close to buying a whole new system in which case your might as well upgrade your CPU anyway!
 
Ye I will stick to a new case, psu and graphics card then. So what gpu gives you the best bang for its bucks as they say, that wont be bottlenecked by my processor.
 
GX series don't get brilliant reviews and have been known to have issues with ripples - basically the amount of amps and power to the 12v rail changes and fluctuates a lot, something which can reduce the life of those components significantly.

If you like the HAF912 Plus, then you could get this set-up:

XFX ATI Radeon HD 5870 1024MB GDDR5 PCI-Express Graphics Card £199.99
(£166.66) £199.99
(£166.66)
Gigabyte GA-P55-USB3 Intel P55 (Socket 1156) DDR3 Motherboard £85.99
(£71.66) £85.99
(£71.66)
XFX Pro 650W Core Edition Power Supply £65.99
(£54.99) £65.99
(£54.99)
Coolermaster HAF 912 Plus Case - Black £59.99
(£49.99) £59.99
(£49.99)
Sub Total : £343.30
Shipping cost assumes delivery to UK Mainland with:
DPD Next Day Parcel
(This can be changed during checkout) Shipping : £11.75
VAT is being charged at 20.00% VAT : £71.01
Total : £426.06

It's just in budget if you use the discount code on the HD5870 :)
 
Sorry, missed the update on the mobo.

Much cheaper than your budget, but it's a very good graphics card (still one of the best on the market and you've got a fully modular PSU - again, one of the best around; you also have the full size version of the 912 Plus you liked :)


YOUR BASKET
1 x Asus GeForce GTX 480 1536MB GDDR5 PCI-Express Graphics Card with Far Cry 2 £191.99
1 x XFX 750W Black Edition Modular Power Supply £92.99
1 x Coolermaster HAF 922 Case - Black £80.99
Total : £382.46 (includes shipping : £13.75).
 
Would the larger case benefit me really? I suppose makes upgrading it in the future much better which is always a bonus
 
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perpy said:
I think that case is too large now i have seen its dimensions would the smaller version still be able to easily house everything?
As this just a quick upgrade and im looking to buy a totally new system in a years time I will probably go for

http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=GX-222-AS

http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=BU-005-CM

Will I need anything else if I was to buy these right now?
And thanks for everyones comments they are all helpful!
Click to expand...

Cookeh said:
GX series don't get brilliant reviews and have been known to have issues with ripples - basically the amount of amps and power to the 12v rail changes and fluctuates a lot, something which can reduce the life of those components significantly.
Click to expand...
;)

Go for XFX I linked to and get the HAF912 Plus if you like it :)

Or, if that's too expensive, go for the non-modular version.
 
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