looking to upgrade my pc for better gaming performance , 200$ budget , what should i go for ( CPU , RAM , Graphics Card)

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roudyhage

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Jan 5, 2015
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i'm trying to figure out what to upgrade in my pc to get better performance in gaming , my budget is 200 $ and these are my specs :
CPU : intel pentium dual core E5400 2.7GHz
RAM: 3gb DDR2
Graphic Card : Nvidia GeFroce 7100/ nForce 630i
Os : windows 7 64-bit

If you need to know anything else just ask me !!
Thanks
 
Solution
Math Geek
here is a good option for cpu/mobo/ram combo

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: AMD Athlon X4 860K 3.7GHz Quad-Core Processor ($79.98 @ OutletPC)
Motherboard: ASRock FM2A88X PRO3+ ATX FM2+ Motherboard ($72.55 @ Newegg)
Memory: Crucial Ballistix Tactical 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($69.99 @ Newegg)
Total: $222.52
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2015-01-07 19:19 EST-0500

you need new ram as well since the newer cpu uses ddr3 not ddr2. combine this with the gpu/psu and you will have a fine gaming system. you could save about $30 with only 4gb of ram but 8gb is the...
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Math Geek

Math Geek

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don't know what your power supply is (it is probably very old and low power) but you can either get a new gpu/psu or a new cpu/mobo/ram upgrade. either one is needed but depending on how long it would be before you upgraded the other parts, the gpu would give you more gaming impact in the short term.

really the whole thing needs to be rebuilt, which i am sure you know :) , but the gpu/psu first would get you started as you save for the cpu/mobo/ram
 
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Math Geek

Math Geek

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just under $200 for a good gpu and decent psu. won't be able to upgrade the gpu with this power supply but it will work as is.

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

Video Card: XFX Radeon R9 270X 2GB Double Dissipation Video Card ($149.99 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: EVGA 500W 80+ Certified ATX Power Supply ($24.99 @ Newegg)
Total: $174.98
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2015-01-06 23:44 EST-0500

or if you can swing a little extra this is a much better psu that will allow for lots of upgrades later and is much better quality.

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

Video Card: XFX Radeon R9 270X 2GB Double Dissipation Video Card ($149.99 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: SeaSonic 620W 80+ Bronze Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply ($54.99 @ Amazon)
Total: $204.98
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2015-01-06 23:46 EST-0500

2 good options around the $200 mark but the second one has the rebate that will require $230 up front.
 
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Math Geek

Math Geek

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here is a good option for cpu/mobo/ram combo

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: AMD Athlon X4 860K 3.7GHz Quad-Core Processor ($79.98 @ OutletPC)
Motherboard: ASRock FM2A88X PRO3+ ATX FM2+ Motherboard ($72.55 @ Newegg)
Memory: Crucial Ballistix Tactical 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($69.99 @ Newegg)
Total: $222.52
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2015-01-07 19:19 EST-0500

you need new ram as well since the newer cpu uses ddr3 not ddr2. combine this with the gpu/psu and you will have a fine gaming system. you could save about $30 with only 4gb of ram but 8gb is the recommended amount for a newer system.
 
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Jonathan42

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first, if I wasn't changing my Mobo, I would upgrade my RAM. 3 is an odd number leading me to believe you have a a 1 and a 2 GB chip. Find out the max and don't worry if it is 800 or 1000 because both realistically perform almost the same in real world tests.

Second, I would clean up my system as much as possible. One or two registry / memory hogs are worth a few hundred dollars in tech upgrades if they are removed. Lighten the load and remember, swapping mobos usually means a new windows install so get out all your program disks...

I would inquire about more details on your current system before making other suggestions. What mobo you have, what power supply you have, etc.
 
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lordmogul

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I would recommend upgrading GPU first.
Your CPU might be old to, but in most cases a new graphics card would be a more noticable upgrade in games. (running with a low end integrated chip from 2007 is not what i would call "gaming capable")
Also any PCI-Express Card will fit and work in any PCI-Express Slot (there may be some weird exceptions, but these are very rare)

But a CPU upgrade should be following soon, your E5400 is from the Core 2 linage.
These might be decent chips, but today they fall way behind more modern CPUs (an heavily OCed Core 2 Quad is weaker in many games than a recent i3)

Also consider upgrading the RAM, 3 GB DDR2 is almost nothing nowadays. If you can find it, upgrade to 4-6 GB (I know how hard it is to find 2 GB or even 4GB DDR2 modules) (NOTE: When using more than 4 GB you will need a 64-bit OS)

TL;DR
Get a new GPU first. The other things later.
 
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