[Logan]Cant decide what to upgrade on my current PC system

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Hi Logan I was wondering if you could help me out with my dilemma with my current PC system.

  • Power Supply Unit-800w Tagan Fully Modular PSU,
    • Motherboard-AsRock P55 Pro/USB3,
    • GPU-XFX AMD HD Radeon 5870/Arctic GPU cooler,
    • Ram-2X4GB DDR3 GEIL 1866 Memory,
    • CPU-Intel i3 530 running at 4.00Ghz (stable),
    • CPUCooler-Tranquillo Rev 2,
    • HD'S-(sata)Samsung 750GB/500GB.

I know I need to replace one of my hard drives as its no longer marking bad sectors on the hard drive.

So my only option left is too every so often do a low level format.

Aside from this I use my PC for pretty much everything you could think of, more or less bar CAD work.

Video editing, sound editing, graphics, 3d modelling, creating game mods, website design&coding, general coding, writing literature, reviews, etc.

I know with all the textures I handle on a regular basis, trying to edit them all at once depending on ram being specified to be used. I will need a bigger ram upgrade in the future.

You may have noticed I'm running a 2x4GB DDR3 setup, this is down to a faulty ram module which shot my fourth ram slot. Luckily for me this wasn't fatal to my motherboard.

In terms of cooling and my housing for my PC, I use an Antec nine hundred v1 case.

Not the best case in the world but with the right tweaks does just fine.

So now you know the details, I was wondering if you could please shed some insight on the best upgrade path for my PC system.

I don't tend to use big monitors, I'm currently using a 19 inch tft widescreen monitor.

Resolution is 1140x900 also I was easily put off by the premiums that ensued since the 1155 socket from Intel for unlocked CPU's. And as I've a strong tendancy too overclock like crazy, the price point put me off upgrading to 1155 so far.

I've been waiting for prices to drop and where I don't mind being behind in terms of the CPU line in terms of the sockets from Intel, I'm seeking to get the best performance and usage for my needs.

I'm not your average user by any stretch of the imagination, probably far too picky in some people's minds.

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First thing that pops into my head is a new mobo. Fix what is broken now and then, the next thing that popped into my head, fast ram. 

I saw that you were working with CAD and maybe a fast AMD GPU upgrade or crossfire down the road? This would help with any programs that could utilize the gpu for rendering.

 

Just my 2 cents!

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Move this to Build a PC; not a question for the staff.

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moved

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I said I don't work with CAD and I've no need to replace the mobo unless upgrading the CPU.

Here's a wild idea instead of I don't know moving lengthy questions in forums when this was specifically written for Logan to answer.

Because I've heard all the generic answers in the book, leave it where it was until answered or for at least twenty four hours. You must just of skipped through the entire thread clearly or you would of known I don't use CAD.

Aside from this I use my PC for pretty much everything you could think of, more or less bar CAD work.

Did you just look at the specs? I am looking to upgrade within my means and usage.

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Side note I'm upgrading my hard drives when I can get a good deal.:)

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Not put you down or anything, but your basically just asking for upgrade advice on a general scale. There are plenty of people here who can help you with that other than logan and staff. Some of which might post into the forum if they feel they could add to it.

Anyway, my question is: What is your means? What is your budget to upgrade?

Given your setup and your faulty motherboard and use, I would say a new CPU and motherboard would do you the most good. Upgrading to an I5 or even moving to AMD 8350 8core processor will improve your coding, video/sound editing a great deal. Ofcourse getting a new motherboard will need to acommpany this.

Next I would recommend moving up to 16gb of ram if you are tracking your RAM usage and are getting close to full. You could also create a ram drive and move windows temp files to it for improved performance.

Lastly would be the GPU upgrade which would greatly help your 3d modelling, and gaming, I consider this upgrade last on the list given your overall use and probably bottle neck.

Get a new HDD if you need to, otherwise just backup the important files and wait for it to die.

Again, all this depends on your budget.

####### ABOUT THE MOD

This really should have been a seperate posting, and I probably would have recommended this mod to pistol who seems to be in charge of the gaming stuff. But either way, this section of your post would have gotten a lot more attention in a seperate post because it isnt directly related to the first 70% of your post.

And I would post that to the inbox forum and make it a general question of "would you guys be willing to take a look at game mods in your beergamesbeer section?" and then follow it up with your details about your mod.

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Get a damn cpu and motherboard. It would also be nice if you could tell us a budget, scanning through your wall of text, it appears there is none specified as of yet.

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You're correct no budget is specified as I tend to just agree on what I intend to get.

Then save up and buy it and with regards to the mod, I can move that chunk to another thread no problem.

Also I'm not made of money so I can't just go out next day and get everything, I am screwed to the slow upgrade process.><

And the motherboard isn't faulty unless you're referring to one dead ram slot, it all still works fine and plus I prefer dual channel ram regardless.

I am realistic in my projects with regards to time and money, I know it will currently cost me around £280 to upgrade to 1155 Intel socket and a i5.

But I am still waiting for the prices to drop as there is another line from Intel on the way, I don't need the upgrades right now but I will do in the next 6-12 months.

I am replacing the bad hard drive regardless also I can't find a suitable afforable AMD ATI GPU upgrade unless its a 7990 as my 5870 still has the best pixal&texal rate compared to a 7750 or 7790.

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You hope you mean 7950 and 7970 I home. As as far as intel chips, it already did drop. The top i5 is the 4670k.

Take a look at the AMD 8350. It's cheaper and had 8 cores. Get an affordable motherboard that can still overclock like a asrock extreme4 (970 or 990 chipset depending on budget) and you can use the same ram.

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No I meant exactly what I said and I will look into the AMD CPU you mentioned.

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The 5870 and 7750 were not mentioned as options in this thread; they are both low performance, and not something I would recommend for your rig.

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as my 5870 still has the best pixal&texal rate compared to a 7750 or 7790.

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Nobody was telling you to get a 7750 or 7790, they're both terrible cards in overall performance when compared to a 7950 or 7970, which we have recommended.

 

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If anything you should probably upgrade your cpu and motherboard before you gpu. I'd go with the amd path due to it being cheaper and the same performance if not better.

http://uk.pcpartpicker.com/p/m155

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I know that I was just making a point that I've checked and so far the perfect all rounder for me unless some people disagree? Hence this thread was a 7990, the 7970 is okay but the pixel rate is only around 9% difference compared to my 5870 vs a 7990. And the 7950 pixel rate is only around 6% difference.

And if I ever decided to get a bigger monitor based on what I use my PC system for, a 7990 would be great but currently it is just not that affordable.

I know I am very picky.><

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And in response to mcwopppersnaggy at those prices I may as well just save up for the £280 Intel route.

But also I found the temp issues with both Sandy/Ivy bridge when it comes to overclocking will be an issue for me as I'm an OC addict.><

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If you are an OC addict then you should invest into a higher end motherboard. Honestly, your current system is low end, and older generation. The 7950 would put your old card to shame for $220 USD. The 8350 8 ($190)core processor will also demolish your older i3, and it overclocks extremely well too. The newest intel chips might not overclock as well as the older models, but they still out perform them on a lower overclock.

I got my i5-3570k to 4.6ghz on a asrock extreme4, the AMD 8350 gets many people up to 4.8 or 5ghz if you have the cooling and the right motherboard.

Honestly, if it was my money, I wouldnt even upgrade this system. All the parts are old enough and low power enough to just save up and do a new build. Keep the case, powersupply and ram, and just replace the core elements. This is what I would recommend if you are looking for something high performance on a budget:

http://uk.pcpartpicker.com/p/1xAgX

If you are planning on dropping massive money on a 7990 (total waste of money) I would say get the above for less money or get a build that will match like below. A 7990 would be bottlenecked to hell on your i3 anyway.

If you have more money I would still get the 8350 but upgrade the graphics card to a GTX 770 4gb or a GTX 780 if you really got money to spend on a 7990. The 780 is a beast and much cheaper. Nother is wrong with the 7970 either, its between the 7950 and the 770. Just depends on your money.

 

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I know the 7990 would not be best coupled with my overclocked i3, I think I will look into a 7950 or the 7970.

But I am still not sure about the CPU route but I've always been looking for an excuse to try out AMD CPU's.

I am so picky so sorry if I am annoying anyone, I'm still drawn to the Intel route but seeing as I've never tried AMD CPU's I may give them another look.

But with a new line of CPU's coming out from Intel, I will be looking to upgrade somewhere around that time.

So if anyone has any recommendations let me know, I would say I need at least 1-2gb of vram for a GPU regardless of Nvidia or ATI. And high pixel/texal rate will be a must to future proof if and when I get a bigger monitor. CPU wise an i5K or equiviliant as I will be overclocking my system regardless.

My current PSU is still up to scratch and very good for my needs, I can't see myself needing anymore power then a 800watt PSU. Hard drives I will be changing them soon.;)

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Have you been really looking at what the market is right now?

The new line of intel CPU's is already out.. atleast for the forseeable future.. Their new lineup the 1150 just came out a couple months ago.

GPU's are STARTING at 2gb vram now.. AMD GPUS start at 3gb vram. Pretty much all the new GPU's will have a higher texal rate and pixel rate, though pixel rate isnt as important as texal.

The next line up of CPU's wont be intel for atleast another year, but AMD's are coming out next month. It was just announced, so if you wanted to try them out, this could be a good time.

Also there are PLENTY of benchmarks you could look at to see what the gains are between intel and AMD processors.The i5 K's (3570k and 4670k) are both similar in performance to a amd 8350, but there are some differences in the results. the intels have superior individual cores, but the 8350 has 8 cores and can handle more threads.

When are you looking to upgrade? A couple months? six months? a year?