what would you upgrade to on a budget

heavymetal2000

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Oct 28, 2012
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Ok so I'm creating this thread to discuss my current gpu versus possible upgrades on a budget abd whether there worth it or not.

Rig
Asrock 970 extreme am3+ board
Amd phenom II x4 965 be cpu
Gigabyte 7850 oc édition
2x 4gb sticks Gskill ripjaw 1600 ram
Antec 620w high current gamer psu
Cooler Master HAF 912 case.
Psu is bottom mounted.

My question. I will be oclocking my cpu to ~4ghz and will be playing games majorily. Currently my 7850 only has one hdmi port and I've had some recent issues with some games stuttering in intense action.

Mainly metro 2033 and skyrim on occasion also.

I'm not sure if the o'clock will solve this but I'm debating on upgrading my gpu. How well does the 7850 perform these days considering it's age? Should it be able to handle games on max at 1080p? (just got a 1080p monitor ordered. Was using a TV prior to buying it)

If i were to upgrade is there a ~200$ card that will outperform my old one?

Prefer to stay with an HD card but if the Nvidia card clearly out works it at equal value I'd consider it.

Gpu Needs for me would be.
Ability to run games like metro, skyrim(modded), fallout, SC2 on max settings at 1080p with x4 aa at least.

Also would like one if I do upgrade that supports dual monitors with two hdmi ports so the TV can still be hooked up fir movies.

Mainly looking to upgrade to single better gpu as crossfire with another 7850 would mean a psu upgrade also which is out of my budget.


 
Solution
I have a Phenom II X4 980 BE @ 4.1 Ghz and until recently it was paired with an HD 7850 2GB at the maximum you can overclock it through the Catalyst Control Center (1050/1450). Do you have your HD 7850 overclocked? I know mine performed much better with with those settings vs. the stock 900/1200. An HD 7870 would not be worth the money. If you can't afford a least an R9 280 or GTX 760 (and at most an R9 280X or GTX 770) I wouldn't bother. I'd also not bother with less than a 3GB card if you're modding Skyrim.
Your processor at speeds of 4GHz would support up to a 760 without bottleneck, and that is what I would recommend.
A 760 would give nearly 35-40% increased performance over a 7850 depending on which model you purchase.
http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/MSI/GTX_760_HAWK/26.html

Anything more than that and would would need a new CPU.
New graphics would give you the best performance increase right now, where CPUs would give the best overall plan (Upgrade to a 4690k and a stronger card down the line)
 

heavymetal2000

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Definitely a nice card but it's 300+$ anywhere in Canada I can find it. Won't spend that much tbh. Would a 7870 be a decent upgrade? I'm just looking to get my gpu more on par with my over clocked cpu.

As for upgrading my cpu. It's out of budget atm also and AMD till I die :p
 

rmark45matsu

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I would look into getting an r9 270x, it's the amd equivalent of the gtx 760. It's also what gpu I have, it runs everything I throw at it on ultra with 60+ fps, with a few exceptions. I have the windforce 4 gb edition (4gb is overkill but I plan to cfx down the line, only get the 2 gb version unless you plan on doing the same).
 

jeffredo

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I have a Phenom II X4 980 BE @ 4.1 Ghz and until recently it was paired with an HD 7850 2GB at the maximum you can overclock it through the Catalyst Control Center (1050/1450). Do you have your HD 7850 overclocked? I know mine performed much better with with those settings vs. the stock 900/1200. An HD 7870 would not be worth the money. If you can't afford a least an R9 280 or GTX 760 (and at most an R9 280X or GTX 770) I wouldn't bother. I'd also not bother with less than a 3GB card if you're modding Skyrim.
 
Solution

heavymetal2000

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Yeh i checked it out and it looks like 300$ or more to get anything much better then my current one. I totally forgot to look into the overclocking on my GPU lol.

Just turned it up to 1050/1400. Just waiting on my EVO 212 to come in so ican get my CPU up to ~4Ghz and I think I'll stick with that for a bit longer until i save enough to build a new system and sell my older one for a couple hundred maybe.

My Skyrim is modded to the nuts and even at stock settings on gpu/cpu with the game at full gfx with just aa turned down a bit it runs great just the occasional quick studder in major action so i'd imagine it'll be better once there both overclocked.

Thx much guys.