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Need Advice On Part

K

Kusanhagi

Weaksauce
Joined
Apr 8, 2006
Messages
115
I am currently running a Q6600, 4GB RAM, RAID0, Radeon 5770 (1GB) for my rig.

No game has really pushed my system, I am happy running at 60fps.

I am going to spend about $500 to $600 on either a Core i7 processor, motherboard and RAM (all priced and fit in budget) and use the existing video card, OR, I am going to buy an nVidia GTX 580 video card.

Now, will the Core i7 setup affect my gaming to such an extent that I notice it even if I don't upgrade the video card, or will the new video card extend the life of my machine a couple more years?

Any thoughts?

Oh, games I play, Call of Duty: Black Ops, World of Warcraft, Crysis, Portal.
Games I plan on playing: Max Payne 3, next Call of Duty, Portal 2.

Thanks in advance to those who take the time to help me out.
 
what resolution are you gaming at?
what is the Q6600 OC'd to?

if your Q6600 is at 3.0 - 3.2GHZ its still a strong Proc to run with.
 
The Core i7 route isn't exactly a good idea at the moment since it does not provide a large enough performance increase over current Core i5 750/760 CPUs to justify the costs. Not to mention that Intel's Sandy Bridge CPUs are due out in January 5th. They're suppose to be faster than current Core i7 CPUs while at the same price point as the Core i5 750/760 CPUs.

Now whether or not a GPU upgrade is a good plan depends on the answers to following questions:
1) What's the max resolution of your monitor?
2) What PSU do you have?
3) Is that Q6600 OC'd to 3.Ghz?
 
I am running at the following:

Q6600 @ 3.0GHz

Monitor for gaming 1920x1080

PSU is a Corsair 650 Watt.

I am using air cooling so I don't overclock higher than 3.0. I stay well below 60 degrees currently.
 
Another question, since I am not going to go the i7 route... Would I be better off with a GTX580 or just add another 5770 in Crossfire? Difference in price is staggering, and as I said earlier, I don't need 200fps.

Just really good gaming performance. I can save the money I dont spend on the GTX580 towards a sandy processor. Would the dual 5770's be better on that setup?

Thanks agian for the responses, they are very helpfull.

+
 
WoW doesnt support crossfire/SLI what so ever. I am a WoW junkie so I always go with a Single GPU because having x2 for WoW isnt worth it since the second card wont get used. You can sell your current 5770 for around 110 and buy a single card.

Singe card suggestions: 470GTX, 570, 6870, 5870
 
Last edited:
Kusanhagi said:
Another question, since I am not going to go the i7 route... Would I be better off with a GTX580 or just add another 5770 in Crossfire? Difference in price is staggering, and as I said earlier, I don't need 200fps.

Just really good gaming performance. I can save the money I dont spend on the GTX580 towards a sandy processor. Would the dual 5770's be better on that setup?

Thanks agian for the responses, they are very helpfull.
Click to expand...

Well Crossfire is definitely out as 4LC4PON3 pointed out. His GPU recommendations are spot on.
 
Well, I can't thank you enough for the advice. I'd like to impose just a short time longer with the following question...

Should I invest in a GTX460, 470, 480 or 580?

Any of them are better than the 5770 from my research, but does anyone have an opinion on bang for buck? Do I go all out and invest in the 580 or do I save for my eventual processor and MB upgrade by buying something in the 400 series? And which?

Inquiring minds want to know.

It's always nice to know this site and forums are around with the multitude of helpful people. Thanks again for the previous advice and this new advice in advance.
 
Go with either the HD 6870 or the GTX 470. I believe that your processor will bottleneck the performance of the GTX 480/580.
 
Thanks again for all your help. I believe I will go with the 470 because I am more comfortable historicaly with the nVidia drivers and how to tweak them.

Great advice and help here guys, thanks again.
 
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