does upgrading i-860/p55 with gtx970 make sense?

jamesqong · Jan 24, 2015

Hello,
I have an computer that i build back in 2009 with a lynnfield i7 860 running on a p55 motherboard. I am looking to extend its life a bit by upgrading graphics cards. Do I have any hope of running WQHD(2560x1440) if I upgrade to a GTX970 or will the old processor bottleneck too much? Can I even upgrade from PCIE 2.0 to a 3.0 graphics card?

Also, can the p55 take 2x8 GB for ram?

Joseph DeGarmo · Jan 24, 2015

The GTX 970 will create a CPU bottleneck situation in some games. A GTX 770 or 960 is pretty much more reasonable for your build.

coozie7 · Jan 24, 2015

In all likelyhood the CPU/GPU will be fairly evenly balanced because with such a high planned resolution the workload (and potential holdups) shifts towards the GPU, the CPU workload doesn't go up very much with a increase in screen resolution but, obviously the GPU workload increases dramatically.
At that res I wouldn't use anything less than a 4Gb GTX770 or R9 290, the GTX960 is just too slow and its 2Gb of memory isn't anywhere enough for gaming at that res.
So:
No, the CPU won't bottleneck too much but look into overclocking it, the Coolermaster Hyper 212 Evo is a decent, effective and low cost part suitable for moderate overclocking ventures.
Yes, the GTX970 should run perfectly in a PCI-E 2.0 slot but be aware there MAY be an issue, to reduce the risk, you should update the motherboard BIOS to the latest available before making the switch.
Consult the manual or tell us the exact model number of the MB.

jamesqong · Feb 8, 2015

coozie7 :

In all likelyhood the CPU/GPU will be fairly evenly balanced because with such a high planned resolution the workload (and potential holdups) shifts towards the GPU, the CPU workload doesn't go up very much with a increase in screen resolution but, obviously the GPU workload increases dramatically.
At that res I wouldn't use anything less than a 4Gb GTX770 or R9 290, the GTX960 is just too slow and its 2Gb of memory isn't anywhere enough for gaming at that res.
So:
No, the CPU won't bottleneck too much but look into overclocking it, the Coolermaster Hyper 212 Evo is a decent, effective and low cost part suitable for moderate overclocking ventures.
Yes, the GTX970 should run perfectly in a PCI-E 2.0 slot but be aware there MAY be an issue, to reduce the risk, you should update the motherboard BIOS to the latest available before making the switch.
Consult the manual or tell us the exact model number of the MB.

I have completed this upgrade and see no bottlenecking. I did end up with a fullhd monitor instead of wqhd. everything runs great on max settings.

coozie7 · Feb 8, 2015

Long time no hear, mate.

Glad you've got things sorted out and you're happy with the upgrades.
Enjoy.

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