Looking to upgrade my current computer

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Lunair

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Feb 4, 2016
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So I'm looking to upgrade my CPU and graphics card of my computer.

The current components I have:

CPU: AMD Phenom II X2 550
RAM: 4 GB DDR3
Motherboard: BIOSTAR Group A780L3L
GPU: ATI AMD Radeon HD 5450 1GB
PSU: Powerline VP-430W

The motherboard supports the following CPUs:


  • AMD Phenom™ II X4 Processor
    AMD Phenom™ II X3 Processor
    AMD Phenom™ II X2 Processor
    AMD Athlon™ II X4 Processor
    AMD Athlon™ II X3 Processor
    AMD Athlon™ II X2 Processor
    AMD Sempron™ Processor

With Maximum CPU TDP (Thermal Design Power) : 95Watt

So having this on mind I've been thinking about getting AMD Phenom II X4 960T. I'm not sure if the motherboard would support a CPU that requires more than 95Watt TDP.

As for the graphics card there are three I was thinking of getting:

GeForce GTX 560
Radeon HD 5850
Radeon R7 250

However, when it comes to GTX 560 and Radeon HD 5850 I'm not exactly sure whether my PSU will be able to support those two GPUs since it's only 430W, and I only have money to upgrade two components (For now I cannot buy a new motherboard, psu, hdd, etc)

So any advices on here what to do in terms of upgrading? Is it worth upgrading my current Phenom II X2 to Phenom II X4? Which graphics card would you recommend?

Thanks in advance for the help!
 
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Lunair

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Feb 4, 2016
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Mostly the computer will be used for University stuff as I'm studying IT (programming, web development, I might even have to do some graphics rendering too)

I'll also use it to play games from time to time (such as LoL, dota 2, borderlands 2, Skyrim etc) I'm not a huge gamer, as I'm not really interested in any of the new games. For me it's enough to play on medium details, with 30+ fps.

Also in case somebody asks about my resolution, it's quite low: 1366x768, and I currently have no plans to buy a new monitor as this satisfies my needs (for now).
 
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Lunair

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Feb 4, 2016
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Will my current PSU be able to handle those GPUs?
 
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spdragoo

spdragoo

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JohnBonhamsGhost

JohnBonhamsGhost

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yes, if you plan on buying new i would go either R7 or low 900 series. those older series cards are very commonly still priced ridiculously high when being sold as new.
but, if shopping for used you may find some crazy deals on older models. i've seen 2GB 7870s on amazon & ebay for ~$75.
 
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Lunair

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Feb 4, 2016
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Current prices of the GPUs I've been checking/considering:

5850: 63$
GTX 560 TI: 68$
6870: 57$
R7 250: 68$
GTX 750 TI: 137$

These are all the cheapest ones on my local marketplace site, where I'll most likely buy components (not sure if I'll buy from eBay, in case there are problems with the graphics I'll have a quite hard time handling it)

@JohnBonhamsGhost

I didn't see 7870s on amazon/ebay that go for 75$.

I should also probably mention that my budget for GPU is from 70 to 80$, since I'm not looking for a new one.
 
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JohnBonhamsGhost

JohnBonhamsGhost

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i wouldn't ever use ebay for hardware, but that's just my opinion. i have gotten some great deals on amazon though and they are very good about returns/refunds.

if you're in a hurry to get the new card i'd recommend the AMD 250, just because it's newer and still supported by AMD drivers-wise.

otherwise I would wait and shop around for a couple weeks and hope to find one of those crazy deals. when someone(on amazon at least) is posting a decent card for a great price they are scooped up fast so you should probably do a general GPU price check on there every few hours if you have the time.
 
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