What should I upgrade!

[snips86x]

I'm expecting a nice wad of money over the coming weeks and not really sure what to upgrade. I also game on a single 24" 1080p monitor which I am not looking to replace.

Spec

• Case: Parvum S2 Red & Black
• M/B: Asus V Gene
• CPU: 2500k @ 4.5ghz
• CPU Cooler: Corsair H100i
• RAM: 8GB Patriot Black Mamba
• OS SSD: 128gb OCZ Vertex 4
• Games SSD: 250 Samsung 840
• Mouse: Corsair M60
• KB: Logitech G510
• Headset: Creative Soundblaster Tactic Wraith 3D Wireless

As for Crossfire, I'm not really interested if the recommendation is to upgrade to an i7 to support the dual cards, I'd prefer to keep my i5 and go with a single card.

What do you think I would benefit most from? 290x? 780/780Ti - not really sure I want the premium yet thought?! However, since I have a HD 7970 custom backplate, maybe another HD7970 would be a good idea.

I'd be happy to spend up to £400 if required, less is better

 

[The Only Beardy]

tbh, short of getting a new CPU and therefore MOBO,

YOUR BASKET
1 x Asus Radeon R9 290 DirectCU II OC 4096MB GDDR5 PCI-Express Graphics Card - Red £341.99
Total : £351.59 (includes shipping : £8.00).



This is all I can think of... keyboard and mouse are solid, you have a two SSD's everything seems tickety boo...

this GPU is nice matches the scheme, and depending on your PSU, if you fancied upgrading the CPU & MOBO in a year or so... you could CF the GPU

 

[The Only Beardy]

unless you wanted to go custom loop...

 

[snips86x]

tbh, short of getting a new CPU and therefore MOBO,

YOUR BASKET
1 x Asus Radeon R9 290 DirectCU II OC 4096MB GDDR5 PCI-Express Graphics Card - Red £341.99
Total : £351.59 (includes shipping : £8.00).



This is all I can think of... keyboard and mouse are solid, you have a two SSD's everything seems tickety boo...

this GPU is nice matches the scheme, and depending on your PSU, if you fancied upgrading the CPU & MOBO in a year or so... you could CF the GPU

Very nice - shame I've just got a new custom backplate for my 7970 Not sure what to do now!

unless you wanted to go custom loop...

hmmm....not sure I'm feeling that brave - my H100i is going a fantastic job right now!

 

[The Only Beardy]

be REALLY brave and go acrylic loop it would look awesome with the acrylic of the parvum

 

[snips86x]

be REALLY brave and go acrylic loop it would look awesome with the acrylic of the parvum

That is a good idea and would look mint, but I would never forgive myself if something went wrong - neither would my wife.

I could get another HD7970 and do a custom loop with crossfire?

ok, spec me a custom loop for consideration, not sure if I'll do it though.

 

[The Only Beardy]

YOUR BASKET
1 x XSPC D5 Photon 170 Reservoir/Pump Combo £129.95
2 x EK Water Blocks EK-FC7970/R9 280X - Nickel CSQ £82.99 (£165.98)
1 x EK Water Blocks EK-Supremacy - Nickel £52.99
2 x XSPC EX240 Crossflow Radiator £44.99 (£89.98)
2 x Corsair SP120 Quiet Series High Pressure Low Noise - Dual Pack (CO-9050006-WW) £22.00 (£44.00)
1 x EK-FC Bridge DUAL Serial CSQ Plexi £18.98
2 x Mayhems Pastel - Red Coolant 1L £14.99 (£29.98)
3 x Monsoon 13/10mm (OD 1/2) Rotary 45° - Red £6.95 (£20.85)
2 x Monsoon 13/10mm (OD 1/2) Rotary 90° - Red £6.49 (£12.98)
1 x Primochill Primoflex Advanced Tubing 13/10 - Clear £5.99
5 x Monsoon 13/10mm (ID 3/8 OD 1/2) Free Center Compression Fitting - Red £5.29 (£26.45)
Total : £607.73 (includes shipping : £8.00).



to be honest, I've never done a custom loop myself, but I've read enough articles and watched enough tutorials to feel confident enough to do one when i get a bit of spare cash like yourself

This is a loop for a CF setup... I didn't bother going with another backplate cos itl be sat between the two 7970's pretty sure you'll be able to get these two radiators in, but I am sure someone will tell you if you cant

 

[snips86x]

Nice attempt, but more than I wanted to spend!

 

[The Only Beardy]

YOUR BASKET
1 x XSPC D5 Photon 170 Reservoir/Pump Combo £129.95
2 x EK Water Blocks EK-FC7970/R9 280X - Acetal + Nickel CSQ £79.99 (£159.98)
1 x EK Water Blocks EK-Supremacy - Acetal £49.99
2 x XSPC EX240 Crossflow Radiator £44.99 (£89.98)
2 x Corsair SP120 Quiet Series High Pressure Low Noise - Dual Pack (CO-9050006-WW) £22.00 (£44.00)
2 x Aqua Computer Double Protect Ultra 1l - Red £8.99 (£17.98)
2 x EK Water Blocks EK-CSQ Adapter 90° G1/4 Black £7.99 (£15.98)
1 x Primochill Primoflex Advanced Tubing 13/10 - Clear £5.99
8 x EK Water Blocks EK-CSQ Fitting 10/13mm G1/4 - Black £2.99 (£23.92)
Total : £547.34 (includes shipping : £8.00).



Knocked £50 going for slightly less premium fittings and fluid

 

[snips86x]

You can take the fans out too, I have some which will be ok for now!

 

[wazza300]

don't upgrade anything imo

maybe a 2600k/2700k if you really must or plan on xfire otherwise it'll be fine till newer tech comes out,haswell refresh/or skylake ect

 

[snips86x]

don't upgrade anything imo

maybe a 2600k/2700k if you really must or plan on xfire otherwise it'll be fine till newer tech comes out,haswell refresh/or skylake ect

In all honesty, I think you are right!

I've not really had any issues and I'm only thinking about it due to the money which I'm getting. I do need a bigger HDD, so a 2/3TB maybe on the table and to complete my new build, I'm considering 2x4gb Patriot Viper Venom RAM:

YOUR BASKET
1 x Western Digital Caviar Black 3TB SATA 6Gb/s 64MB Cache - OEM (WD3003FZEX) HDD £149.99
2 x Patriot Viper 3 "Venom Red" 4GB DDR3 PC3-17200C11 2133MHz Single Module (P34G211UR) £37.99 (£75.98)
Total : £235.57 (includes shipping : £8.00).



...then maybe anothe graphics card if I can find one which matches! 2700k may well come later and not even sure I want to go Intel refresh either.

 

[dacads]

Just because you're getting paid doesn't mean you have to splash out.. if you're happy with performance I would leave it be

 

[wazza300]

you can xfire any 7970,or a 7950

 

[snips86x]

Just because you're getting paid doesn't mean you have to splash out.. if you're happy with performance I would leave it be

I know, but there are things I would still like to change. Crossfire 7970, 2700k, red RAM modules to match my build & a bigger HDD. It's not all about performance

you can xfire any 7970,or a 7950

I know but in the interest of protecting my own sanity, it needs to be an identical model

 

[Avenged7Fold]

You can drop the D5 combo for the EK 4.0 pump and a tube reservoir of your choice, wont hurt performance and save you a fair chunk of cash. Radiators i would dump for the EK Pe ones too, they are comparable to XSPC's AX range of radiators.

Acrylic tubing is actually very easy, it has a surprising amount of leeway if you attach the fittings to rotary fittings. EK hd are just as cheap as standard compression fittings and tubing, if not cheaper, as you wont need rotary compression's for tight clean bends. Dont worry about them not being secure, sometimes they have a tighter grip on the tubing than compression's with rubber tubing. Out of the three acrylic fittings i have tried, i liked EK hd the best, as they are discrete, cheap and secure with their double extra thick O-ring design sealing the fluid inside the loop. Primochill fittings were a bit disappointing, seemed to bulky for my tastes and just compressed a single O-ring using the screw on compression part. The tubing fit snugly (not as snugly as the EK hd) but left a few marks on the crystal clear acrylic when screwing the 'compression' part down.

Acrylic seems daunting but it really is not any harder than rubber tubing if you plan the route right. All you need for tools is a £2 hacksaw, sand paper and a £15 heat gun.

 

[snips86x]

I don't claim to know all about watercooling, but how does this look for a single card set with possible expansion to crossfire later?

YOUR BASKET
1 x EK Water Blocks EK-FC7970/R9 280X - Nickel CSQ £82.99
1 x EK DCP 4.0 Pump (12v) £39.98
1 x EK-RES X3 150 Reservoir £39.98
2 x XSPC EX240 120mm Radiator - Black £37.99 (£75.98)
1 x EK-Supreme LTX - Nickel CSQ Intel CPU Waterblock £32.99
4 x Corsair SP120 Quiet Series High Pressure Low Noise - Dual Pack (CO-9050006-WW) £22 (£88.00)
2 x Aqua Computer Double Protect Ultra 1l - Red £8.99 (£17.98)
2 x Bitspower G 1/4" Matte Black 45 Degree IG 1/4" Adapter - Black Matte Finish £6.98 (£13.96)
8 x Bitspower Premium G1/4" Black Matte High Flow 7/16" ID (5/8" OD) Compression Fitting £6.98 (£55.84)
4 x Bitspower G 1/4" 90 Degree IG 1/4" Adapter - Matte Black £6.98 (£27.92)
2 x Primochill Primoflex Advanced Tubing 13/10 - White £5.99 (£11.98)
Total : £497.24 (includes shipping : £8.00).

 

[Avenged7Fold]

Looks good except would swap EK coolant for Mayhems or koolance and would definitely spend an extra 20 to go from an entry level block to a top end block like the EK Supremacy.

Any particular reason you went Bitspower?

Could save yourself a small fortune by going for EKwb fittings.

 

[snips86x]

Looks good except would swap EK coolant for Mayhems or koolance and would definitely spend an extra 20 to go from an entry level block to a top end block like the EK Supremacy.

Any particular reason you went Bitspower?

Could save yourself a small fortune by going for EKwb fittings.

I just went with what I found, I have no idea which is better quality! In this instance, I was looking at matt black fittings as the coolant is red. I think it may look nasty with a totally red loop!