Upgrade or new for Gaming?

R

reckless

n00b
Joined
Mar 30, 2005
Messages
13
I currently have an Asus P8Z68-V-PRO mb with 4 gb ram and a core i3-2100 which came out of my htpc. I want to build this computer up for a gaming rig but not sure if it is worthwhile keeping the mb and getting a better cpu? I plan on getting a gtx 770 and I have 8 gb of ram to put in it. If it is worthwhile then I will just get a decent cpu to put in this.

Thanks for your comments
 
What are the brand and model of both the RAM you currently have and the RAM you're planning to use?

Are you against going with a used Sandy Bridge or Ivy Bridge quad-core?

What are the rest of the specs of your system?
 
G.skill ripjaws on both sets.
I am not against a used SB or IB quad core if I could find the right deal.

I have a Define R4 case, Corsair VX550 P/S, no video card as I am using on board video, 1 kingston 120 gb SSD, 6 HDDs (Tosh 3 TB, Hitachi 2 TB, 2 x WD 1 TB, WD 1.5 TB, WD 2 TB)

Forgot to mention that the Z68-V PRO is not an Rev3, it is an original rev
 
Last edited:
The Gen.1 Z68-V PRO changes the equation.

Please answer the rest of the sticky questions. Be more specific on the RAM speed, the model number of the SSD, and the age of the PSU.
 
What is your budget?

My advice would be to nab a 2500k/2600k in addition to the new GPU. Spend a few more dollars and buy a used 780 for ~$400. OC the CPU and you'll be playing everything max @ 1080p.

A used SB will run you $150-$200.

A new Mobo/CPU is going to be significantly more expensive depending on the quality of Mobo you select. For comparison my recent upgrade (CPU/Mobo) cost $360, $199 for the 4770k and $150 for the Mobo (+tax). You are not going to find a 4770k for under $250 right now either.

Unless you, like me, love to buy hardware I would stick with the CPU upgrade only. Look for a good OC'er
 
1) What will you be doing with this PC? Gaming? Photoshop? Web browsing? etc
Mainly web/email. Gaming-BF4
2) What's your budget? Are tax and shipping included?
$1000 CDN before tx
3) Which country do you live in? If the U.S, please tell us the state and city if possible.
Canada
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.
CPU, Mobo(if needed), Graphics Card, P/S (if needed), CPU Cooler, Case Fans
5) If reusing any parts, what parts will you be reusing? Please be especially specific about the power supply. List make and model.
Hard Drives (KINGSTON SV300S37A120G SSD, WDC WD20EARS, WDC WD15EADS, Hitachi HDS723020BLA642, TOSHIBA DT01ACA300, WDC WD1002FAEX x 2)
Corsair CMPSU VX-550 (couple years old, not sure)
ASUS P8Z68-V PRO (non Gen 3) BIOS-3606 (latest)
Define R4 Case w/stock 140mm fans x 2
6) Will you be overclocking?
heavy
7) What is the max resolution of your monitor? What size is it?
27" ASUS VG278HE 1920x1080
8) When do you plan on building/buying the PC?
ASAP
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, SATA 6GB/s (8+), eSATA
10) Do you already have a legit and reusable/transferable OS key/license? If so, what OS? Is it 32bit or 64bit?
Yes, WIN 7 64BIT OEM

I have found a Core i5 3570K for $199, would this be good to put in and O/C?
I was thinking of a Swiftech H220 cooler too and adding some Noctua fans to the case also
ASUS GeForce GTX770-DC2OC-2GD5 (GTX 770 1110MHZ 2GB 7010MHZ GDDR5 DVI HDMI PCI-E Video Card)
I am getting G.SKILL Ripjaws X F3-12800CL9D-8GBXL also.

I hope this helps.
Thanks
 
Last edited:
reckless said:
I have found a Core i5 3570K for $199, would this be good to put in and O/C?
Click to expand...
Yup.
reckless said:
I was thinking of a Swiftech H220 cooler too and adding some Noctua fans to the case also
Click to expand...
I would go with the Corsair H110 or H100 (whichever is cheapest) due to Corsair's better customer support.
reckless said:
ASUS GeForce GTX770-DC2OC-2GD5 (GTX 770 1110MHZ 2GB 7010MHZ GDDR5 DVI HDMI PCI-E Video Card)
Click to expand...
Any chance that you can wait for the R9 280X or R9 290 to come back in stock at their MSRP pricing? I ask because both of those AMD cards outperform the GTX 770 in BF4.
reckless said:
I am getting G.SKILL Ripjaws X F3-12800CL9D-8GBXL also.
Click to expand...
Unless that's the cheapest 8GB DDR3 1600 set of RAM you've seen, I wouldn't bother with it.
 
Well I got it for $69, why is this no good?
I've read that the amd cards are louder and run hotter, maybe not so?
Thanks
 
Skillz said:
The run within' their thermal range and some coolers are louder than other coolers.
Click to expand...

True, but I would absolutely avoid the reference coolers on the R9 AMD Series.

Reviews are starting to pop up for the newly released AIB 290 series cards and it looks like they are offering significantly cooler operating temps and lower noise levels.

No reason to go reference now.
 
Doesn't matter what the "operating" temperatures are. The only significance is the noise level.

The best RAM for your processor/motherboard would be the cheapest set of DDR3 1600 @ 1.5v (or less) that you can find.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top