Looking for thoughts/feedback on planned i5 build

[Naked Snake]

Hello, I'm hoping for some feedback on my planned upgrade from a Core 2 Duo. I'm reusing some parts so I definitely want to keep those and I'm replacing the CPU, RAM, motherboard, and CPU cooler. My primary reason for upgrading is to improve performance in games. The prices I'm listing are Canadian from Canada Computers, they usually have good prices and I can pick up in person to save on shipping.

Already purchased:

PSU: Antec EarthWatts EA-650 GREEN 650W ATX12V v2.3 SLI Ready CrossFire Certified 80 PLUS BRONZE

Case: Corsair Obsidian Series 650D

Graphics card: EVGA SuperClocked 01G-P3-1563-AR GeForce GTX 560 Ti (Fermi) 1GB 256-bit GDDR5 PCI Express 2.0 x16


Planned purchases:

CPU: Intel i5 3570k

Motherboard: GIGABYTE GA-Z77X-UD5H LGA 1155 Intel Z77 $195

Memory: G.SKILL Ripjaws X Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) $55

CPU cooler: COOLER MASTER Hyper 212 EVO $36

Thermal compound: ARCTIC COOLING MX-2 Thermal Compound $5


Monitor resolution: 1920x1200

Overclocking: Possibly (maybe to 4GHz?)

OS: Windows 7 Home Premium 64-bit


Some of the reasoning behind my picks... Motherboard because it seems to have good features, is cheaper than Asus, and I've been pleased with my current Gigabyte board. Memory because it's affordable and has great ratings on Newegg, 1600MHz because there doesn't seem to be much gaming performance boost from anything faster. CPU cooler because it's cheap and has good reviews, was looking at the Noctua D14 but it's twice the price, SO BIG, and ugly colors. Thermal compound cause it's a little cheaper than Arctic Silver with good performance reviews. For the CPU I've been going back and forth between i5 2500k and 3570k, currently strongly leaning toward the 3570k. 2500k is still $210-230 here. Any feedback/thoughts would be greatly appreciated, thanks!

 

[happyboy]

Well, if you can return the 560Ti please do. If not, it's all good. Reasoning is because you won't be able to achieve 50-60fps on the 1080p screen of yours. If 30-40 fps is ok with you then by all means keep the 560Ti. I suggest getting a 79xx series and you are set. Maybe even go for 78xx series if you are on a budget. As for the CPU, I think that the 2500k is still the best bang for your buck in terms for gaming and doing almost anything. That's definitely a nice case you got there, but for that money I would have picked up something along the lines like a NZXT 810 because you will have a lot more room for watercooling in the future. But then again that's my opinion.

 

[Naked Snake]

I bought the video card in September so it's not going back. With my Core 2 Duo I've been getting decent performance in games, usually at least 40 and for less demanding games I can often get 60. I believe my old CPU is really bottlenecking my performance so it's time to upgrade. The 2500k hasn't been cheap here in Canada, best I've ever seen is $210. If it was a lot cheaper than Ivy Bridge is expected to be then I'd give it some more serious consideration. Yeah, I really like the case. I'd recommend it to anyone who's thinking about getting one. Thanks for your thoughts.

 

[happyboy]

I bought the video card in September so it's not going back. With my Core 2 Duo I've been getting decent performance in games, usually at least 40 and for less demanding games I can often get 60. I believe my old CPU is really bottlenecking my performance so it's time to upgrade. Yeah, I really like the case. I'd recommend it to anyone who's thinking about getting one. Thanks for your thoughts.

Well it also depends on the games you play too. If you play Diablo and Starcraft for example, you would probably get quite high fps because those games aren't as GPU intensive. However, if you play BF3 or Crysis for example, you will get no where near that 50 fps mark (Ultra). Well it really also depends what games you will actually play. A Core 2 Duo is actually quite superb in my opinion. I use to own a i3 2120, and it is probaly the best CPU Intel every made for the cheap.

 

[Naked Snake]

I've been playing all kinds of different games. Dead Island, Skyrim, Kingdoms of Amalur, Arkham City, Mass Effect trilogy, Rage, Borderlands, Just Cause 2, Saboteur, and so on. When I built my current system with the Core 2 Duo I had no intention of getting into PC gaming, and when I bought the 560 ti I had no intention of upgrading my CPU, so maybe I'd have bought a better video card back in September if I knew I'd be upgrading the CPU too. 560 is still supposed to be pretty good on modern CPUs though, I think. I don't HAVE to have 60fps but I'd like a stable framerate, stable 40 would be good enough for me.

 

[happyboy]

You said that your "primary reason for upgrading is to improve performance in games". I highly doubt you will get that much of an increase in performance in games by changing your platform. Maybe you might experience a that tad bit of increase in performance. But in reality, the performance increase is so small, it is just not worth it to upgrade if don't swap out that 560Ti. You want performance increase in games. You got to get a better GPU especially because you are using a 1920x1200 resolution. Why not just upgrade your GPU and get a core 2 quad?

 

[Naked Snake]

Well I think my CPU is considered weak by today's gaming standards, an e8400 at 3.6GHz. It's like 5 years old now. I'm sure that it's my system's bottleneck. I JUST bought the GPU so I really don't want to upgrade that.

 

[Dangman]

Why not just upgrade your GPU and get a core 2 quad?

Because to get a C2Q at a reasonable price, you have to buy it used. Not to mention that socket 775 is pretty much dead. Some games will need a lot more CPU power than even a C2Q can provide.

So I'd recommend a new platform. CPU wise, I'd go with the i5 3570K as well. Thermal paste wise, go for the MX-4 as its newer and provides slightly better cooling.

 

[E4g1e]

You said that your "primary reason for upgrading is to improve performance in games". I highly doubt you will get that much of an increase in performance in games by changing your platform. Maybe you might experience a that tad bit of increase in performance. But in reality, the performance increase is so small, it is just not worth it to upgrade if don't swap out that 560Ti. You want performance increase in games. You got to get a better GPU especially because you are using a 1920x1200 resolution. Why not just upgrade your GPU and get a core 2 quad?

Only if the OP is willing to purchase used parts, especially in very poor condition. The current going prices of Core 2 Quads in even halfway decent shape are now too high to be cost effective.

 

[happyboy]

Well then, I would tell you to wait but not to get the IBs, but when the IBs drop, I suggest getting the i5 2500k or the 2600k if cheap. It should drop in price once the IBs are all released. Again, at that resolution you are playing on, I can only see that 560Ti struggle on high setting. Probably if you want playable framerates, low or medium would only be your option. I had a 6950 2GB and it struggled to play high settings on a 1024x1028 (don't know th exact resolution but something like that). I also switched from a i3 2120 to a i7-2600 and no there is no gain in gaming performance. Now once I dropped that 7950 into my system, the fps dramatically improved and the gaming experience went bonkers.

 

[Naked Snake]

Well then, I would tell you to wait, not to get the IBs, but when the IBs drop, I suggest getting the i5 2500k or the 2600k if cheap. It should drop in price once the IBs are all released.

I've been thinking long and hard about doing that, but I think if the 3570k comes out next week for around $220ish I'm just gonna go for it along with the other parts I listed above. I've been expecting to pay around that price and I'm running out of patience with all this waiting. If it wasn't for Ivy Bridge I would have gone with the 2500k several months ago.

 

[Dangman]

Well then, I would tell you to wait, not to get the IBs, but when the IBs drop, I suggest getting the i5 2500k or the 2600k if cheap. It should drop in price once the IBs are all released.

It probably won't: Intel generally keeps the prices of their older CPUs high and releases newer CPUs at a similar price in order to generate sales of the newer CPUs. Short of a MC deal or an extremely good loss-leader promotion, you won't see the SB CPUs drop that much in price.

 

[happyboy]

I've been thinking long and hard about doing that, but I think if the 3570k comes out next week for around $220ish I'm just gonna go for it along with the other parts I listed above. I've been expecting to pay around that price and I'm running out of patience with all this waiting. If it wasn't for Ivy Bridge I would have gone with the 2500k several months ago.

It probably won't: Intel generally keeps the prices of their older CPUs high and releases newer CPUs at a similar price in order to generate sales of the newer CPUs. Short of a MC deal or an extremely good loss-leader promotion, you won't see the SB CPUs drop that much in price.

Well, just be prepared to know that a huge performance gain will probably be out of the picture. However, if you are choosing that route, then a smart thing to do is just SLIing the 560Ti and then you will get some real performance gains in games for sure. But I suggest getting a 750W as the 560s are power suckers.

 

[bpizzle1]

Well, just be prepared to know that a huge performance gain will probably be out of the picture. However, if you are choosing that route, then a smart thing to do is just SLIing the 560Ti and then you will get some real performance gains in games for sure. But I suggest getting a 750W as the 560s are power suckers.

I would think a good quality 650w PSU should be enough for 2 560ti's unless you have like 10 HDDs, a million fans, and a massive OC on everything in your rig.