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Assistance needed with upgrade

Krazen

Lurker
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Joined
Feb 13, 2007
Messages
103
My old i5 3570K system seems to have died so I am looking into upgrading. There seem to be a couple of options with intel processors and motherboards. I haven't built a PC in years and I was wondering what advice you would have for my upgrade. Do these parts make sense or is there a better alternative? Thanks for any help.

1) What will you be doing with this PC? Gaming mostly
2) What's your budget? $800
3) Which country do you live in? U.S. Maryland with a Microcenter nearby
4) What exact parts do you need for that budget? CPU, RAM, Processor, Possible Power supply.
5) If reusing any parts, what parts will you be reusing? I plan on reusing my Samsung 256GB SSD, Asus GTX960, Case, and possibly Antec Earthwatts 500w EA-500d power supply
6) Will you be overclocking? No
7) What is the max resolution of your monitor? What size is it? 32" 2560 x 1440
8) When do you plan on building/buying the PC? ASAP
9) What features do you need in a motherboard? RAID? Crossfire or SLI support? eSATA? Onboard video (as a backup or main GPU)? Decent onboard audio would be nice. other than that nothing out of the ordinary
10) Do you already have a legit and reusable/transferable OS key/license? If yes, what OS? Is it 32bit or 64bit? I already have WIndows 10 Pro 64bit.

My rough start is:

Microcenter has the CPU/Mobo combo for $374.98

PC Hound Part List

CPU: Intel Intel Core i5-8600K ($276.87 @ Amazon)
Motherboard: ASUS Prime Z370-A Prime Z370-A ($176.98 @ Newegg)
Memory: G.SKILL 16GB (2 x 8GB) Aegis ($185.99 @ Newegg)
Video Card: ASUS GeForce GTX 960 STRIX-GTX960-DC2OC-4GD5 ($0 - Owned)
Power Supply: Antec 500W EarthWatts EA-500D Green ($0 - Owned)
Storage: SAMSUNG 256GB 850 PRO MZ-7KE256BW ($0 - Owned)
Case: Diablotek EVO CPA-6170 ($0 - Owned)
Total: $639.84
Price may include shipping, rebates, promotions, and tax
Generated by PC Hound
 
The i5-8600k supports DDR4-2666 RAM, so I'd get that instead of the listed 2400. It's probably a minor performance difference, but the cost difference should also be small.

"k" CPUs don't come with a heatsink, so you'll need to pick up one of those as well. A quality, basic 120mm air-cooled tower (e.g., Noctua, Thermalright) is more than sufficient.

No idea what you're playing, but I'd be surprised if that GTX-960 wasn't holding you back some at 1440p. Any way to swing an upgrade here, such as to a 1070ti or 1080?
 
My old i5 3570K system seems to have died so I am looking into upgrading. There seem to be a couple of options with intel processors and motherboards. I haven't built a PC in years and I was wondering what advice you would have for my upgrade. Do these parts make sense or is there a better alternative? Thanks for any help.

1) What will you be doing with this PC? Gaming mostly
2) What's your budget? $800
3) Which country do you live in? U.S. Maryland with a Microcenter nearby
4) What exact parts do you need for that budget? CPU, RAM, Processor, Possible Power supply.
5) If reusing any parts, what parts will you be reusing? I plan on reusing my Samsung 256GB SSD, Asus GTX960, Case, and possibly Antec Earthwatts 500w EA-500d power supply
6) Will you be overclocking? No
7) What is the max resolution of your monitor? What size is it? 32" 2560 x 1440
8) When do you plan on building/buying the PC? ASAP
9) What features do you need in a motherboard? RAID? Crossfire or SLI support? eSATA? Onboard video (as a backup or main GPU)? Decent onboard audio would be nice. other than that nothing out of the ordinary
10) Do you already have a legit and reusable/transferable OS key/license? If yes, what OS? Is it 32bit or 64bit? I already have WIndows 10 Pro 64bit.

My rough start is:

Microcenter has the CPU/Mobo combo for $374.98

PC Hound Part List

CPU: Intel Intel Core i5-8600K ($276.87 @ Amazon)
Motherboard: ASUS Prime Z370-A Prime Z370-A ($176.98 @ Newegg)
Memory: G.SKILL 16GB (2 x 8GB) Aegis ($185.99 @ Newegg)
Video Card: ASUS GeForce GTX 960 STRIX-GTX960-DC2OC-4GD5 ($0 - Owned)
Power Supply: Antec 500W EarthWatts EA-500D Green ($0 - Owned)
Storage: SAMSUNG 256GB 850 PRO MZ-7KE256BW ($0 - Owned)
Case: Diablotek EVO CPA-6170 ($0 - Owned)
Total: $639.84
Price may include shipping, rebates, promotions, and tax
Generated by PC Hound

As mentioned above move to 2666 or better yet 3000.

I'd personally put some money into a better power supply like a Corsair RMX, Seasonic Gold or EVGA Gold.

Otherwise looks good.

May also want to get a Noctua cooler or Cooler Master EVO If you're on a conservative budget.
 
Thanks a lot for the advice. Here is a new list with your suggestions.

I don't have the budget for a new video card right now. Hopefully I can pick one up in a couple of months.



PC Hound Part List

CPU: Intel Intel Core i5-8600K ($276.87 @ Amazon)
Motherboard: ASUS Prime Z370-A Prime Z370-A ($176.98 @ Newegg)
Memory: CORSAIR 16GB (2 x 8GB) Vengeance LPX ($204.99 @ Amazon)
Video Card: ASUS GeForce GTX 960 STRIX-GTX960-DC2OC-4GD5 ($0 - Owned)
Power Supply: SeaSonic 850W FOCUS Plus 850 Gold SSR-850FX ($84.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: SAMSUNG 256GB 850 PRO MZ-7KE256BW ($0 - Owned)
Case: Diablotek EVO CPA-6170 ($0 - Owned)
CPU Cooler: COOLER MASTER Hyper 212 EVO RR-212E-20PK-R2 ($29.59 @ Amazon)
Total: $773.42
Price may include shipping, rebates, promotions, and tax
Generated by PC Hound
 
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