Upgrade core of pc/new video card- $600

J

jkmetal

Limp Gawd
Joined
Mar 28, 2007
Messages
290
Hi. My current system is in my sig. Now onto the questions

1) What will you be doing with this PC? Gaming? Photoshop? Web browsing? etc
Games of all kinds, web use, movies, tv (I have a tv tuner), basically my center hub for work, entertainment and communication.
2) What's your budget? Are tax and shipping included?
$650. Shipping and tax will have to be included.
3) Which country do you live in? If the U.S, please tell us the state and city if possible.
Central New Jersey, United States.
4) What exact parts do you need for that budget? CPU, RAM, case, etc. The word "Everything" is not a valid answer. Please list out all the parts you'll need.
Motherboard, CPU, Ram, PSU, case fan as well as a new cpu cooler
5) If reusing any parts, what parts will you be reusing? Please be especially specific about the power supply. List make and model.
I will be reusing my case, which I repainted last summer, my keyboard, my mouse, my harddrive, my soundcard, dvd drive and video card.
I have 10 years old speakers that will be making the jump with me as well.
6) Will you be overclocking?
I use the evga percision tool to overclocked my graphics card and would like to continue to use a similar on the fly overclocking solution for my new gfx card. I am not interested in overclocking my cpu though.
7) What is the max resolution of your monitor? What size is it?
I use two monitors. My dell 2412m is a 24 inch monitor with a max resolution for 1900x1200. My dell p991 is a 19 inch crt monitor with a max resolution of 1600x1200. I do not use them at the same time.
8) When do you plan on building/buying the PC?
After I get my tax returns, end of junel/july of this year.
9) What features do you need in a motherboard? RAID? Firewire? Crossfire or SLI support? USB 3.0? SATA 6Gb/s? eSATA? Onboard video (as a backup or main GPU)? UEFI? etc.
Usb 3.0 and SATA 6Gbs for future proofing. I have no interest in crossfire or sli.
10) Do you already have a legit and reusable/transferable OS key/license? If yes, what OS? Is it 32bit or 64bit?
Yes, I have Windows 7 Professional 64 bit.

My upgrade path has been to set the foundation for my pc with a solid cpu/motherboard and upgrade my videocard later. If there are far better cards coming within the next 6 months, or if I would be better suited to waiting until 2014 after the next generation consoles have been released, I'm wiling to just upgrade the core of my pc for now. I did that when I owned an amd x2 processor (added an 8800gts later) and with my current system. (added gtx 460 later).
 
Last edited:
jkmetal said:
my antec bp550 plus (purchased new this summer).
Click to expand...
Unfortunately you may have to replace that PSU considering how low quality it is. It's cheap for an unfortunate reason. Luckily there are quite a few good quality PSUs for under $100.
jkmetal said:
8) When do you plan on building/buying the PC?
After I get my tax returns, end of april/early may of this year..
Click to expand...
In that case you're planning this build too early. Our hardware recommendations tends to change monthly and sometimes even weekly. In addition, Intel is supposedly planning on releasing their new Haswell CPUs in June/July 2013. So In other words, the setup we recommend to you today would be outdated by the time you buy if there's solid info about Haswell by then.

Considering that you're not planning on buying until May anyway, I'd just wait the extra month or two for Intel's Haswell CPU release. Might as well get the latest CPU and mobo if it's only a month or two away from release.
 
Danny Bui said:
Unfortunately you may have to replace that PSU considering how low quality it is. It's cheap for an unfortunate reason. Luckily there are quite a few good quality PSUs for under $100.

In that case you're planning this build too early. Our hardware recommendations tends to change monthly and sometimes even weekly. In addition, Intel is supposedly planning on releasing their new Haswell CPUs in June/July 2013. So In other words, the setup we recommend to you today would be outdated by the time you buy if there's solid info about Haswell by then.

Considering that you're not planning on buying until May anyway, I'd just wait the extra month or two for Intel's Haswell CPU release. Might as well get the latest CPU and mobo if it's only a month or two away from release.
Click to expand...

First, not be rude about the PSU, but I honestly see no reason that it needs to be replaced unless that specific model has a history of catastrophic failure. I believe antec is a quality brand, as my previous psu was an antec as well. (Antec earthwatts 500. Used it for 5 years. Still works, but now its just a backup.) The extra $100 will lop off $100 from the rest of the upgrade, and I'm not convinced. I know that Hardopc favors certain brands/models but I'm not running a no name psu from Ibuypower either.

Thank you for the information on the newer line up of intel cpus. I'll do some reading about them.
 
jkmetal said:
First, not be rude about the PSU, but I honestly see no reason that it needs to be replaced unless that specific model has a history of catastrophic failure. I believe antec is a quality brand, as my previous psu was an antec as well. (Antec earthwatts 500. Used it for 5 years. Still works, but now its just a backup.) The extra $100 will lop off $100 from the rest of the upgrade, and I'm not convinced. I know that Hardopc favors certain brands/models but I'm not running a no name psu from Ibuypower either..
Click to expand...
Antec can sell good PSUs. However not all of their PSUs are good quality. The Basiq line is one of those not-so-good PSUs as the ripple control on those PSUs are fairly high. Not to mention the internal quality. In fact, unless your Earthwatts 500 was defective somehow, I would actually use that over the Basiq as the Earthwatts 500 (either the Delta made ones or the Seasonic made ones) would still be better than that Basiq.

Nor is this Antec hate either. Note the PSUs in my sig for my gaming rig and server. While I can see where you're going with the cost, honestly considering your usage, if you were buying today, the recommended CPU and mobo for you would have only cost you under $300.
 
Danny Bui said:
Antec can sell good PSUs. However not all of their PSUs are good quality. The Basiq line is one of those not-so-good PSUs as the ripple control on those PSUs are fairly high. Not to mention the internal quality.

In fact, unless your Earthwatts 500 was defective somehow, I would actually use that over the Basiq as the Earthwatts 500 (either the Delta made ones or the Seasonic made ones) would still be better than that Basiq.

Nor is this Antec hate either. Note the PSU in my sig for my gaming rig.
Click to expand...

My old earthwatts is still around and still works.I wanted a modular psu so I went with something new. The earthwatts is also fairly old (5 years old), which isn't a plus.

I'm just not willing to drop the $100 plus (i looked at a lot of the recommended psus, and without sales or dubious rebates, they are all over $100) at this moment.
 
jkmetal said:
My old earthwatts is still around and still works.I wanted a modular psu so I went with something new. The earthwatts is also fairly old (5 years old), which isn't a plus.
Click to expand...
Fairly old but actually of better quality than the Basiq line.
jkmetal said:
I'm just not willing to drop the $100 plus (i looked at a lot of the recommended psus, and without sales or dubious rebates, they are all over $100) at this moment.
Click to expand...
I was talking about these PSUs when I said under $100:
$50 - Corsair CX500 500W PSU
$80 - SeaSonic M12II 520 Bronze 520W Modular PSU
$90 - Corsair 650TX V2 650W PSU
$90 - Seasonic G Series SSR-550RM 550W Modular PSU

Also, you caught my post before my ninja edit. Read it again for the last bit.
 
As an Amazon Associate, HardForum may earn from qualifying purchases.
Danny Bui said:
Fairly old but actually of better quality than the Basiq line.

I was talking about these PSUs when I said under $100:
$50 - Corsair CX500 500W PSU
$80 - SeaSonic M12II 520 Bronze 520W Modular PSU
$90 - Corsair 650TX V2 650W PSU
$90 - Seasonic G Series SSR-550RM 550W Modular PSU

Also, you caught my post before my ninja edit. Read it again for the last bit.
Click to expand...

Ah I read it just now. Hmmm $300. I wonder what kind of pricing tiers intel will have for haswell.

How long do PSU's last?

I'll give these psu's a look-see, thanks.

Just by curiosity, nvidia doesn't have any plans for a new line of midrange cards do they? The gtx 660 isn't enough of an upgrade and a 660ti would put me way over budget.
 
As an Amazon Associate, HardForum may earn from qualifying purchases.
jkmetal said:
Ah I read it just now. Hmmm $300. I wonder what kind of pricing tiers intel will have for haswell.
Click to expand...
Intel generally releases CPUs at or around the price range of their older CPUs while keeping the pricing of the older CPUs as is to drive sales of the new CPUs. That's been Intel's strategy since the Core 2 Duo days at the least.
jkmetal said:
How long do PSU's last?
Click to expand...
Too many variables to account for to give a definitive answer to that. With that said, if it's a low quality PSU, it's generally not a good idea to keep it running for long. If it's a good quality PSU, just run it until A) it starts exhibiting issues or B) it no longer meets your power needs, or C) you want something modular/flashier.
jkmetal said:
Just by curiosity, nvidia doesn't have any plans for a new line of midrange cards do they?
Click to expand...
Well Nvidia has to release a new generation of higher-end GPUs first before they do a mid-range release. i.e the 780 series. That's generally what Nvidia does. AFAIK, there's no concrete release date for the GTX 780 series.
jkmetal said:
The gtx 660 isn't enough of an upgrade and a 660ti would put me way over budget.
Click to expand...
Huh? There are games out now that will easily use close to 2GB of VRAM. So your 768MB of VRAM right now is pretty limiting these days for high-end games. At least from a smooth gameplay standpoint. Not to mention that a 40% to 45% increase in performance is a pretty justifiable upgrade IMO:
http://www.anandtech.com/bench/Product/660?vs=542
 
So intel is going to lower the prices of their older hardware too much... Lovely.

I read this http://www.hardwaresecrets.com/article/Why-99-Percent-of-Power-Supply-Reviews-Are-Wrong/410/4 article about psus and will be going for another modular psu in the future. Probably the sea sonic you mentioned. The space inside my case is limited.

I've noticed my gtx 460 being a limiting factor more and more over the few years i've owned it. I still think its a decent but it is slow.
(edit, looked at the charts, wow, that s a BIG difference. I take back the "just 45%" comment.

Then again... I forget what AA even looks like. (lol) I should try to look at ati cards as well but after four nvidia cards I think I've been brainwashed. Plus I like physx.

Thanks for the benchmarks, I'm reading it right now.

Not to open up a can of worms here, but how are amd's current offerings?
 
Last edited:
jkmetal said:
So intel is going to lower the prices of their older hardware too much... Lovely.
Click to expand...
Just to be clear: Intel generally doesn't lower the prices of their older CPUs when they release new replacement CPU platforms. ANy price drop you see for older Intels generally takes place several months after or sales prices. Even then you would be better off going with the new platform.

jkmetal said:
I read this http://www.hardwaresecrets.com/article/Why-99-Percent-of-Power-Supply-Reviews-Are-Wrong/410/4 article about psus and will be going for another modular psu in the future. Probably the sea sonic you mentioned. The space inside my case is limited.
Click to expand...
Yup solid article and that Seasonic 550W would be my main recommendation as well.
jkmetal said:
I've noticed my gtx 460 being a limiting factor more and more over the few years i've owned it. I still think its a decent but it is slow.
(edit, looked at the charts, wow, that s a BIG difference. I take back the "just 45%" comment.
Click to expand...
Yeah now you see what I mean :)

jkmetal said:
Not to open up a can of worms here, but how are amd's current offerings?
Click to expand...
If we're talking GPUs, in the first half of 2012, AMD was pretty shitty when it comes to driver releases. But in the latter half of 2012, they've been relatively consistent and reliable. With that said, last I heard AMD video card card performance didn't feel as smooth as Nvidia despite higher FPS in some cases. In regards to drivers, HardOCP recently did an article on that:
http://www.hardocp.com/article/2013/02/18/2012_amd_video_card_driver_performance_review/

But smoothness issue and driver issues taken out, AMD GPUs tend to be the better bang for the buck choices and cheaper too.

If we're talking CPUs, for gaming, AMD loses to Intel. It's only with heavily multi-threaded applications and usage scenarios (i.e Virtualization, video/3D/audio rendering) where AMD starts to catch up or even outright defeats Intel. Even then that performance lead isn't that much and is tempered by the fact that AMD FX CPUs generally uses significantly more power and run hotter than their Intel counterparts. Considering your case choice and its already so-so cooling, AMD is not a good idea.
 
Danny Bui said:
Just to be clear: Intel generally doesn't lower the prices of their older CPUs when they release new replacement CPU platforms. ANy price drop you see for older Intels generally takes place several months after or sales prices. Even then you would be better off going with the new platform.

Yup solid article and that Seasonic 550W would be my main recommendation as well.

Yeah now you see what I mean :)


If we're talking GPUs, in the first half of 2012, AMD was pretty shitty when it comes to driver releases. But in the latter half of 2012, they've been relatively consistent and reliable. With that said, last I heard AMD video card card performance didn't feel as smooth as Nvidia despite higher FPS in some cases. In regards to drivers, HardOCP recently did an article on that:
http://www.hardocp.com/article/2013/02/18/2012_amd_video_card_driver_performance_review/

But smoothness issue and driver issues taken out, AMD GPUs tend to be the better bang for the buck choices and cheaper too.
Click to expand...

I'll try to stick with nvidia then, as I adore their drivers.

Danny Bui said:
If we're talking CPUs, for gaming, AMD loses to Intel. It's only with heavily multi-threaded applications and usage scenarios (i.e Virtualization, video/3D/audio rendering) where AMD starts to catch up or even outright defeats Intel. Even then that performance lead isn't that much and is tempered by the fact that AMD FX CPUs generally uses significantly more power and run hotter than their Intel counterparts. Considering your case choice and its already so-so cooling, AMD is not a good idea.
Click to expand...

Hmm, yeah I need my parts to run as cool as possible. Its one of the things I love about my gtx 460. Allows me to run my rig nice and quiet, which is a huge deal for me. I have fairly bad tinnitus and fan noise is right in the frequency that really bothers the hell out of me. Its a shame that amd has not been more competitive in recent years.
 
Last edited:
 
hossdaddy said:
give this a whirl;

AMD FX-4100 Zambezi 3.6GHz (3.8GHz Turbo) Socket AM3+ 95W Quad-Core $104.99 - $10 instant with code + free shipping (should overclock to approx 4.5ghz)


MSI 970A-G46 AM3+ AMD 970 SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 ATX $79.99 + free shipping

SeaSonic S12II 620 Bronze 620W ATX12V V2.3 / EPS 12V V2.91 80 PLUS BRONZE Certified Active PFC $74.99

Combo: EVGA SuperClocked 02G-P4-2662-KR GeForce GTX 660 2GB + G.SKILL Ripjaws X Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 Cas 8 $275.98 - $10 mir

COOLER MASTER Hyper 212 Plus RR-B10-212P-G1 "Heatpipe Direct Contact" Long Life Sleeve 120mm CPU Cooler $33.99 - $10 mir + free shipping

Total: $569.94 - $30 rebates

I agree with Danny-bui about the psu.
Click to expand...


Thank you for the response.

I've updated my orginal post.

I thought about my gaming/game purchasing habits, and I came to the conclusion that I usually buy big budget graphic intensive games 6-12 months after release. I also found that I play a lot of older/indie titles, all of which my gtx 460 handles very well.

So, I'm going to forgo this current generation of graphics cards and instead focus my upgrade on setting a rock solid quailty foundation for my pc that will last 3-4 years. I'll be ugrading to a gtx 760ti when that card is released. (maybe even a 780, if i can afford it at the time).

My budget will remain at $650, with a little leeway. I'm going to be in the market for an intel socket 1150 motherboard (i believe that is the correct number for haswell), a gold certified cosiar or seasonic psu, under 600watts and at least semi modular, at least 8, probably 16gig ram, two new case fans (must be quiet and move a amount of air, quality brand a must) and a cpu cooler with a emphasis on quiet operation.
 
Well since you can't buy the system until June/July anyway, just come back and bump up this thread for advice when June/July comes around. Like I said earlier, no point in recommending parts so far in advance.
 
Danny Bui said:
Well since you can't buy the system until June/July anyway, just come back and bump up this thread for advice when June/July comes around. Like I said earlier, no point in recommending parts so far in advance.
Click to expand...

Right, thank you for the help.
 
Sigh.. [bump]. *Takes a seat*

I just can't lie to myself anymore. My gtx 460 is seriously holding back my gaming performance with my new monitor.

Tonight the demo for Trackmania 2: Stadium was released. I'm a huge fan of the track-mania series and by virtue of sheer stubbornness I'm actually ranked in the top ten in medals for my state. I love these games. I boot it up, and it looks like CRAP. Jaggies everywhere, frame-rates from 35-45, blurry textures from a distance.. ugh. Last weekend I brought battlefield 3, and yeah... performance was defiantly not up to par. I'm afraid to even think about crysis 3.

I feel like my pc is in dire need of an immediate gfx card upgrade. My budget is $300. I've been looking at a gtx 660 ti's, some reference but more factory overclocked and one 3gb card. I'm looking for a bit of future proofing as well, so a 3gb gtx 660ti would be great. I am not upgrading from my dell 2412m for a least 3 years.

The core upgrade will now happen much later, probably august. I'm looking at a new gfx card by the end of march.
 
Danny Bui said:
Does that $300 upgrade include that new PSU?
Click to expand...

I know you're really, really pushing that new psu, but I think I'm going to switch back to my earthwatts (which never gave me a problem) until april/may.
If it has to be included it will.
 
Last edited:
$220 - eVGA GeForce GTX 660 2GB PCI-E Video Card
$90 - Seasonic G Series SSR-550RM 550W Modular PSU
-----
$310 shipped.
 
As an Amazon Associate, HardForum may earn from qualifying purchases.
Danny Bui said:
$220 - eVGA GeForce GTX 660 2GB PCI-E Video Card
$90 - Seasonic G Series SSR-550RM 550W Modular PSU
-----
$310 shipped.
Click to expand...

Hmm, I've been really looking at an overclocked gtx 660ti 3gb.

I'm willing to spend the extra cash for it, which would bring me up to $400. I was going to sell my current psu and graphics card anyway.

http://www.amazon.com/Galaxy-GeForce-Express-Graphics-66NNH7DV6WXZ/dp/B008PFE4CW?tag=hardfocom-20

I know its more card than my cpu can handle, but i'm planning on keeping this card for 2 1/2, 3 years.

I'd spring for seasonic as well.
 
As an Amazon Associate, HardForum may earn from qualifying purchases.
I recommend going with a 7870 tahiti or 7950

The games it comes with and the cost of the gfx is more bang for the buck

I believe its more than enough for the u2412m monitor at 1920x1200 I believe?
 
jkmetal said:
Hmm, I've been really looking at an overclocked gtx 660ti 3gb.
Click to expand...
IMO, the GTX 660 TI 3GB barely worth it considering how close in price it is to the GTX 670 which can be found for around $360 to $370 these days.

Mister Celery said:
I recommend going with a 7870 tahiti or 7950

The games it comes with and the cost of the gfx is more bang for the buck

I believe its more than enough for the u2412m monitor at 1920x1200 I believe?
Click to expand...
While I agree that AMD certainly locked down the price to performance factor, the problem is their drivers and how they're still not as great as Nvidia's.
 
Mister Celery said:
I recommend going with a 7870 tahiti or 7950

The games it comes with and the cost of the gfx is more bang for the buck

I believe its more than enough for the u2412m monitor at 1920x1200 I believe?
Click to expand...

Yes, its a 1920x1200.

I'd think about it, but I have a huge backlog of games. I'm a bit of a nvidia fan, and I love their drivers. Plus I'd like to use physx one and a while.

However, I've been meaning to grab crysis 3... Ah, I'll just wait for sale i guess.
 
Danny Bui said:
IMO, the GTX 660 TI 3GB barely worth it considering how close in price it is to the GTX 670 which can be found for around $360 to $370 these days.


While I agree that AMD certainly locked down the price to performance factor, the problem is their drivers and how they're still not as great as Nvidia's.
Click to expand...

Hmmm, 2gb should be enough for my resolution, so maybe an overclocked 660ti ?. I'll check some prices...
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top