need advice on upgrades for gaming desktop.

crimewave

Reputable
Oct 13, 2014
3
0
4,510
hey, my current build is around 3-4 years old
i have:
i5 3550 @ 3.3Ghz
asrock z77 extreme4-m
palit gtx 670 (got this early last year)
some cheap 2x4gb ddr3 sticks
and a 1tb HDD.
and a 700w psu
I have a budget of around $1.5k but i could go a bit higher.
oh and my case is the coolermaster stormtrooper black with window.
I'd like to be able to play most games near ultra
 
Solution
That is still a good build, but first of all you can upgrade your GPU to GTX 970 or 980. Also CPU could be changed to something like i7 4790K (Haswell), but your CPU is still good for gaming. Also I suggest you to add an SSD to speed up your build, go with the Samsung 840 EVO 120GB for ex.

niko24

Honorable
Jan 1, 2014
180
0
10,760
That is still a good build, but first of all you can upgrade your GPU to GTX 970 or 980. Also CPU could be changed to something like i7 4790K (Haswell), but your CPU is still good for gaming. Also I suggest you to add an SSD to speed up your build, go with the Samsung 840 EVO 120GB for ex.
 
Solution

niko24

Honorable
Jan 1, 2014
180
0
10,760


You will need another mobo too. Honestly it's better for you to change only video card because the CPU is still good enough for most modern games. Btw what is resolution you play with? If its' 1920x1080 then I think you will be fine with GTX 970 and your current CPU for the next 1-2 years for sure.

And if you still got a feeling that you need to upgrade CPU and you dont want to change socket you can buy i7 3770/K, but I dont think that this would be the right choice because for gaming i5 are still good enough in 90% of scenarios.

 
It's really fine as-is. You could upgrade the GPU; that's the first thing that usually falls behind cutting-edge. Although really anything that would give you a noticeable improvement is going to run you $400+, so I don't even know if that's worth it.

I'd just leave it the way it is and circle back in a year or so. An SSD will help it "feel" faster with loading times, but isn't really essential for gaming.
 

crimewave

Reputable
Oct 13, 2014
3
0
4,510
sweet. thanks guys. I'll most likely pick up an ssd and maybe if i feel like it a 970. any recommendations on an SSD? if i get one id like it to have a large amount of space like 500gb or so.