Best upgrades for my system, looking for under 500USD, but I can go higher.

PixelKid · Jun 3, 2014

Okay, so a while ago my uncle gave me his old desktop so I could have a computer of my own. I've been using it for about a year. I turned 14 about two months ago, and since summer is coming up, I want to get a summer job. I'm planning on trying to upgrade what I can. Mainly the processor and graphics card, but I suppose if I have to, the motherboard. My motherboard is a GIGABYTE GA-B75M-D3V [VGA DVI HDMI] SATA 6Gb/s USB3 {2 DDR3 Slots Max 1333MHz}, and my processor is an Intel Core i5-3550 3.3GHz, 3.7GHz Turbo Boost (Quad Core), and my graphics card is an AMD Radeon 7850 2GB, 600 watts for power supply. This'll be my first time ever trying to upgrade a computer. Thanks for the help!
(Case is an NZXT Guardian Blue in case that's needed.)
EDIT I was thinking of an NVIDIA card, and an intel i7 as well.
EDIT2 I also have 8gb of ram.

BlasterX · Jun 3, 2014

Keep the motherboard and CPU. They are still very good for gaming. The graphics card is also very good for high settings @ 40 - 60 FPS. If you want the most power of your 500$, you can get an Nvidia GTX 780 on that price.
What is your RAM capacity? If 4GB, then add another equal CAS & MHz 4GB DDR3 RAM stick, and if 8GB, you're fine.
You could also buy an SSD if your computer hasn't, like 150$ for a Samsung 256GB SSD for the OS, Apps and games.

So my breakdown:
IF NO 8GB RAM: 40$ 4GB 1330MHz RAM, 330$ Nvidia GTX 770/ 380$ AMD R9 290 & save the rest
IF NO NO SSD AND/OR 8GB RAM: 150$ Samsung EVO 256GB SSD, 330$ Nvidia GTX 770/ 300$ AMD R9 280X and 40$ 4GB 1333MHz RAM.
ELSE: Nvidia GTX 780

Hope this helps.

EDIT: No, you can't get an i7 and a fast card like GTX 760/770/780 at the same time at 500$. Non-K i7 costs 300$, which leaves 200$ only for a GTX 660, which is even less powerful than your current card. Then, an i7 does not make game performance much better. An i7 is just an hyper-threaded i5 with slightly faster clocks and same power draw.

PixelKid · Jun 3, 2014

BlasterX :

Keep the motherboard and CPU. They are still very good for gaming. The graphics card is also very good for high settings @ 40 - 60 FPS. If you want the most power of your 500$, you can get an Nvidia GTX 780 on that price.
What is your RAM capacity? If 4GB, then add another equal CAS & MHz 4GB DDR3 RAM stick, and if 8GB, you're fine.
You could also buy an SSD if your computer hasn't, like 150$ for a Samsung 256GB SSD for the OS, Apps and games.

So my breakdown:
IF NO 8GB RAM: 40$ 4GB 1330MHz RAM, 330$ Nvidia GTX 770/ 380$ AMD R9 290 & save the rest
IF NO NO SSD AND/OR 8GB RAM: 150$ Samsung EVO 256GB SSD, 330$ Nvidia GTX 770/ 300$ AMD R9 280X and 40$ 4GB 1333MHz RAM.
ELSE: Nvidia GTX 780

Hope this helps.

EDIT: No, you can't get an i7 and a fast card like GTX 760/770/780 at the same time at 500$. Non-K i7 costs 300$, which leaves 200$ only for a GTX 660, which is even less powerful than your current card. Then, an i7 does not make game performance much better. An i7 is just an hyper-threaded i5 with slightly faster clocks and same power draw.

Yeah, I assumed I couldn't get both for 500$, but like I said, I can go over. The i7 would be my last thing to get. I mainly want it for video rendering.

RCguitarist · Jun 3, 2014

PixelKid :

BlasterX :

Yeah, I assumed I couldn't get both for 500$, but like I said, I can go over. The i7 would be my last thing to get. I mainly want it for video rendering.

Just get a 770 for now, then save for a 97 generation motherboard and a broadwell i7.

BlasterX · Jun 5, 2014

Yeah, a GTX 770 would probably the most worthy thing to upgrade at a time where new generations are coming in a few months.

RazerZ · Jun 5, 2014

Get the R9 290X, for $480 it offers performance around or better than a GTX 780ti. After that I would upgrade to the 4670k or the next generation i5 equivalent.

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

Video Card: XFX Radeon R9 290X 4GB Double Dissipation Video Card ($479.99 @ Newegg)
Total: $479.99
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2014-06-05 22:32 EDT-0400)

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Best upgrades for my system, looking for under 500USD, but I can go higher.

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