Upgrade path suggestions? ($350 budget)

Toggle sidebar Toggle sidebar
R

RealIsh

Reputable
Nov 24, 2015
14
0
4,510
Hi everyone, was hoping to get some recommendations on what to upgrade next on my gaming pc...I would like to upgrade the cooler first, but maybe the upgrade to a 980 might be more of a performance upgrade?

Was considering another 970 for SLI but im not sure if ill need to upgrade my EVGA SuperNova 750w power supply to make it happen...

My overall benchmark scores are high enough for me to be content with, save my physics scores which seem to be quite a bit on the low end...even with a 4.2Ghz overclock on my i5...

Case: NZXT h440 (White)
Mobo: MSI Krait Z97S
CPU: i5 4690K
Cooler: Evo 212
Ram: 8gb HyperX DDR3
GPU: MSI 970 Golden Edition
Storage: All SSD (x6)
PSU: EVGA SuperNova 750w
 
Solution
Beezy


physics on the CPU? For rendering? an FX 8 core gets a really high physics score because of its raw compute power (favors logical units over fpus, known with...
Sort by date Sort by votes
N3rdR4ge

N3rdR4ge

Distinguished
Jun 16, 2014
4,202
2
18,965
well cpu and ram upgrade would be pointless upgrades for gaming performance.

if you can sell the 970 i'd really recommend going for the 980 ti. the standard 980 won't be a big enough boost for the loss you'll take from selling the 970. also, your psu will thank you for not going sli, though a 750w would be sufficient for two 970. the problem with two 970 or a standard 980 is you arent increasing your vram, making those upgrades not much of an improvement on future proofing.
 
Upvote 0 Downvote
Beezy

Beezy

Dignified
Nov 4, 2013
4,038
0
15,960
Other than the GPU, you don't need an upgrade. In fact, you dont even have to update that. Are you having issues? If not, just save it for a rainy day. New CPU's are stagnant tick tock increases from Intel, and AMD Zen will come out sometime after Q2 of 2016. Not saying you should go AMD, per se, but it will turn the heat up on Intel and we are most likely to see a worthwhile CPU from them to compete/ stay ahead.

I would hold of on any upgrades, personally.
 
Upvote 0 Downvote
R

RealIsh

Reputable
Nov 24, 2015
14
0
4,510


Never having had to configure a PC with SLI, im not exactly sure if the stability is all there...also the 3.5gb of ram seems like it might not be optimal for a few titles coming out this upcoming year or the next. Are you using 980ti at the moment? What make/model would you recommend to ideally be going for while on a budget?
 
Upvote 0 Downvote
R

RealIsh

Reputable
Nov 24, 2015
14
0
4,510


My physics scores are not optimal...borderline low, was wanting to see if anything would help improve that
 
Upvote 0 Downvote
Beezy

Beezy

Dignified
Nov 4, 2013
4,038
0
15,960


physics on the CPU? For rendering? an FX 8 core gets a really high physics score because of its raw compute power (favors logical units over fpus, known with FX), but it does not make it better for gaming. Why does the physics score concern you?
 
Upvote 0 Downvote
Solution
R

RealIsh

Reputable
Nov 24, 2015
14
0
4,510


I have run into this issue in a few games where any time I have PhysX (low medium OR high settings) enabled, it takes very few particles to completely obliterate my framerate, all of my 3DMark scores are rather high for my build, but my PhysX scores are extremely low for my build/oc (considering identical systems - 4690k and 970 combo) not sure what is causing this since the 970 is what I have the PhysX rendering routed to...but this is a whole nother topic of discussion....
 
Upvote 0 Downvote
Beezy

Beezy

Dignified
Nov 4, 2013
4,038
0
15,960
Physx is def a gpu thing, some features get offloaded to the cpu but well ignore that. Why not just disable physx?

I would make sure your gpu drivers are up to date, and look around for settings you could possibly tweak? Im team red so mostly unable to help, sorry guy
 
Upvote 0 Downvote
You must log in or register to reply here.

TRENDING THREADS

Latest posts

Moderators online

Share this page

COMPANY
RESOURCES
FOLLOW
Top Bottom