Upgrade PC? Or sell it and buy a new one (for gaming)

joshuachanhz

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Nov 30, 2015
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4,510
Hey guys,

Just bought a new PC a month ago.
Things aren't running smoothly in terms of graphics. (Sometimes the games crash as well).
Was wondering if I should upgrade parts (which parts? graphics card only?) or just sell it and buy a new one.
Please do help! Thanks!

Josh
 
Solution
MR is Malaysian Ringgit, correct?

CPU: Well I obviously prefer the RM5,910 build with the i5-6600K over the i5-6400. The 6400 is not overclockable (missing K designation).

SSD: Since you're going for a Z170 board, which I think is a great idea, you might as well get the M.2 version of the Samsung 850 EVO. It'll fit directly on the motherboard and it's the same price.

PSU: The power supply needs an upgrade in quality. The Corsair VS is listed as tier 4 (http://www.tomshardware.com/forum/id-2547993/psu-tier-list.html) and you should ideally get a tier 1 or 2 PSU. Personally I only buy EVGA G2 or P2 power supplies, but I don't know if they are easily available to you or prohibitively expensive in your region.

CPU cooler /...
You didn't supply any information to go on.

Where do you live? US?
Is this a pre-built computer? If so, what is the mfg/model? If it was built for you then what are the full specs?

Addendum: What games are you trying to play? What resolution and FPS are you trying to achieve? What is your budget if you need to upgrade or built another computer?
 

joshuachanhz

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Nov 30, 2015
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Hey buddy,

Yeah. I'm gonna post what my specs are when I get home from work.
I stay in Malaysia.
Currently the games I'm trying to play is Witcher 3 in Ultra. Thats about it. Will post in about 3 hours when I get home.
Thanks!
 

joshuachanhz

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Nov 30, 2015
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Alright so here goes,

Specs:
CPU - Intel(R) Core(TM) i5-4460 @3.20GHz
Installed memory (RAM) - 8.00GB
GPU - Intel(R) HD Graphics 4600 / NVIDIA GeForce GT 730 (There's two, and as you can see, I can't differentiate)
OS - Windows 8


I'm thinking about upgrading the GPU to an ASUS GTX 970 Strix.
Should I upgrade my processor to an i7 as well? Thoughts & advice?
Much appreciated! Thanks!

Josh

 
I'm not sure what resolution that you're playing at, but I'm going to assume it's 1080p. I think the GTX 970 would be a huge upgrade and a great investment for you. Btw, Witcher 3 does indeed have an ultra settings, but there is actually a higher setting inside the INI file called "Uber". Google it, if you're interested in exploring it. By the way, you have one discreet GPU: The Geforce GT 730. The HD 4600 is simply the integrated graphics in the i5 CPU.

Anyway, get the GTX 970 if you're only trying to play 1080p at 60 Hz. If you're aiming for 1440p and/or 144 Hz, then consider buying a GTX 980 Ti. As for the possibility of upgrading to a i7 CPU, I would suggest that you buy the GTX 970 first and see what performance you get out of it. I will say that games such as Fallout 4 really do tax an i5 CPU; I've saw a performance review that said a 6600K was getting utilized between 40% - 70% on Fallout 4. But an i7-4790K is US$300. That's a lot of money and perhaps it's worth putting aside for a future purchase of a i7-6700k and Z170 motherboard. Another possibility for the future is that you purchase the i7-4790K and see the i5 to recoup half the cost. But like I said, I would hold off on the i7 upgrade and just get the GTX 970. I previously had the MSI GTX 970 4G Gaming card and loved it. I'm sure the Asus card will be good as well.

* Addendum: Very important point I forgot to mention. Please verify that you have a tier 1 or 2 power supply that has enough wattage for a GTX 970. If you need to buy a new power supply then I recommend that you get no less than 650 watts, so that you have the option of upgrading to a single GTX 980 Ti in the future. My power supply of choice is the EVGA G2 or P2 650/850/1300 options. I'm currently using the EVGA G2 850 and the EVGA G2 1300. But I live in the US where these things tend to be less expensive. Good luck.

*** power requirements for graphics cards ***
http://www.realhardtechx.com/index_archivos/Page362.htm

*** PSU tier list ***
http://www.tomshardware.com/forum/id-2547993/psu-tier-list.html
 

joshuachanhz

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Nov 30, 2015
7
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4,510
Thanks alot buddy. This really helps.
But I've actually decided to sell of my current PC (which is less than 2 months old) and build a new one from scratch.
What should i be looking at apart from -

Processor
GPU
PSU
RAM

Appreciate the help mate!
 
MR is Malaysian Ringgit, correct?

CPU: Well I obviously prefer the RM5,910 build with the i5-6600K over the i5-6400. The 6400 is not overclockable (missing K designation).

SSD: Since you're going for a Z170 board, which I think is a great idea, you might as well get the M.2 version of the Samsung 850 EVO. It'll fit directly on the motherboard and it's the same price.

PSU: The power supply needs an upgrade in quality. The Corsair VS is listed as tier 4 (http://www.tomshardware.com/forum/id-2547993/psu-tier-list.html) and you should ideally get a tier 1 or 2 PSU. Personally I only buy EVGA G2 or P2 power supplies, but I don't know if they are easily available to you or prohibitively expensive in your region.

CPU cooler / memory: I've heard good things about the Cryorig H7 Cooler, but I've never personally installed one. The memory in the build looks really tall with those heat sinks. I'd be concerned with getting memory that tall with that huge cooler, as I would think there would be clearance problems, but clearly the builder didn't have a problem. I'm a novice builder, but I wouldn't want memory that tall with an air CPU cooler.

GPU: I love the graphics card you've chosen. You can't go wrong with an EVGA SSC or FTW card. I would stay away from the SC cards (SSC is perfect though) because of overclocking issue with the insufficient CPU backplate / heatpipe issue. You can google it if you're interested to know more, but it's not an issue with the card you've chosen.

Monitor: For the cost of that monitor, you could instead get the ASUS VG248QE. It is 144 Hz vs your monitor 60 Hz. Also, it's brightness is 350 cd/m2 vs your's 250 cd/m2.

Recommendation: If I were you, I'd start a brand new message thread in the "Systems" forum. Post the country that you live, What you'll mainly be using the system for (e.g. gaming), and the budget that you're working with. If would also be helpful if you can list the website that you'd prefer to purchase components from. I know you prefer to purchase pre-built, but it's hard for me to know if it's a good deal for you, since I'm not familiar with the currency and the prices of components in your region. I think you should create a new thread to get an idea if the MR5,902 is a good deal. Even though the MR to USD conversion is simple, it also depends what components cost in your part of the world. You could list a budget range if you prefer. As you may know, we commonly use PC Part Picker to configure systems for fellow users in the community. Once you start the thread, then post the link at this bottom of this thread, so we know where to find it. People usually post responses to those inquiry pretty quickly.
 
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