Hello Wizards of Tom's Hardware. I have a question about upgrading/replacing my Alienware X51 (first time post)

Thrs956

Reputable
May 27, 2015
6
0
4,510
I have an Alienware X51 and was wondering if there was anyway I could get it to run GTA V with a some mods. If upgrading isn't going to help can I have a parts list that will run it. Thanks for the help.
 

Thrs956

Reputable
May 27, 2015
6
0
4,510
I want to run GTA V with mods so I either want to upgrade or replace it. Thing is if I replace it I was wondering if there was any way to not have to re-download my steam games because my internet is slow and it would take weeks to reinstall all of them. (also I was planning on getting a physical copy of GTA V)
sorry if I am being a complete idiot.
 

Thrs956

Reputable
May 27, 2015
6
0
4,510


so what's the price range going to be if I want to build a new rig
 

Thrs956

Reputable
May 27, 2015
6
0
4,510

First- 4th Generation Intel® Core™ i3 Processor
4th Generation Intel® Core™ i3 Processor
Windows 8.1
Windows 8.1
6GB Memory
6GB Memory
NVIDIA® GeForce® GTX 745 with 4GB DDR3
NVIDIA® GeForce® GTX 745 with 4GB DDR3
Equipped with 4th Gen Intel® Core™ i3 processor, Windows 8.1 and NVIDIA® GeForce® GTX 745 graphics card. (copy and pasted from website)

Second- 600-700 (can be adjusted if necessary)

Third- I don't want to keep the case
 
for that budget. your looking at maybe 180=200 for a new cpu (quad core) 320-345 on a new gpu gtx970/290x and maybe 75 on a new psu.(if your current 1 is under 450w)
6 gig of memory will be fine for now.

and you have about 100 left over for something like a fractal design define R4
 

-HH-

Dignified
HI, you can most likely put your RAM in too but I put some G.Skill on there just for saftey, I have a listed pretty much a full build without CPU including an SSD.

If you would like a more gaming performance focused build by ruling out a few bits and just going for an i5 I can do so but this is IMO the best choice for you!
PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-H97M-D3H Micro ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($78.95 @ OutletPC)
Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws X Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($59.98 @ OutletPC)
Storage: Samsung 850 EVO-Series 250GB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($97.99 @ Amazon)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($49.19 @ Amazon)
Video Card: MSI GeForce GTX 970 4GB Twin Frozr V Video Card ($339.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Case: Fractal Design Core 1300 MicroATX Mini Tower Case ($42.99 @ Directron)
Power Supply: XFX 550W 80+ Bronze Certified ATX Power Supply ($58.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Total: $728.08
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2015-05-28 06:12 EDT-0400
 

Thrs956

Reputable
May 27, 2015
6
0
4,510

Again I am planning on installing a hard copy of GTA V so does this come with a disk drive. Sorry if stupid question.

 
IMO, HEXiT's got you going the right direction. There is no reason to consider changing the motherboard so you can easily save $75 from -HH-'s list (which would also need a new OS for ~$100). I'd also say to run the ram in the 6GB configuration for now.
Change CPU, case, video card and PSU, you should be set. You can use your current hard drives and OS without any problems