PC upgrade path

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Martynas LT

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Feb 8, 2016
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Hello all. I have been building new pc a while ( i'm a bit short on money so I upgrade one item after another when I have spare money ) and now I need help to decide what upgrade path I should take.

My PC specs:

PSU seasonic s12-II 620w

CPU i5-4690k

MOBO MSI H81m-e33 ( had asrock z97 pro 4 but it stopped working after fresh component reinstall and I somehow bended few pins and guarantee was removed. So this mobo is just a replacement for now )

CPU cooler STOCK ( not going to buy z97 mobo for a while so it will do the job for now, when mobo will be switched will buy evo 212 cooler )

HDD seagate baracuda 1TB 7200 rpm 64MB cache ( thinking about adding 128GB ssd as I really need that 1TB storage )

PC CASE a crappy box with no fans installed ( planning to grab antec GX300 )

GPU gainward gtx 770 2GB ( planning to change to gtx 970/1060 3GB or if money lets me to 1060 6GB which is almost 100 € more expensive then 3GB version here)

So can someone help me to decide what to buy first and what last?
PC is mainly used for gaming, internet browsing and watching movies.

In my opinion I should buy 1. GPU 2. PC CASE 3. SSD 4. MOBO 5. CPU cooler.

What do you guys think?
 
Solution
Ne0Wolf7


As for the SSD, you're right, no performance increase, just DRASTIC load time differences. Instead of loading windows in thirty seconds, you get it in five. I suppose it is more of a bells and whistles item now that you mention it.
I think you made a solid CPU...
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Bobbytr

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EDIT: before first thing, install a fan or two so you don't fry your components that are passively cooled (chipset etc) unless your CPU cooler cools them anyways
First thing first, get an SSD (either a 128Gb or a 64Gb will be fine) to store your OS and a few important files.
Second get a new GPU, as it will make a bigger difference than being able to overclock your CPU in games
Then MOBO, so you can overclock at all
Then cooler, so you can overclock better
 
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Ne0Wolf7

Ne0Wolf7

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Jun 23, 2016
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In order of significance, I'd recommend:
SSD- Everything becomes much faster that way, but you'll certainly want much more than 128 GB (unless you want to buy like three of them). This is because the OS alone is abut 60 GB, and as games become more awesome, they approach that mark as well. I have an OS and 2 games (plus apps like google chrome, skype, GPU controller) on a 256 GB SSD and have used up half of it. 256 is minimal if you play two or three games, but I recommend 500 for anything more.
Next, the GPU. It will usually have the biggest effect on your games. The 6 GB is really better if you're going for 4K or future proofing (VR), so if you can choke up the extra cash now, it will save some later on.

Now the paths diverge

Next, for new gen stuff, I'd go for the mobo and CPU at the same time. When AMD releases Zen, its likely that the pricing will become more competitive in the high end spectrum of new gen I7s and FXs (note you'll need new RAM if you go for new gen) Now, this is more expensive than the other option.

If you don't like that, get case fans and a cooler and motherboard and OC the $#%! out of that thing. It's K series, that's what it's made for. OCing gives you CPU a lot more life, but not something to worry about right away, because that's still a good one. That means if you want to draw it out, you can get the mobo first and the cooler later. If you stick with haswell you wont need a new CPU (it would call for new motherboard again, new RAM, new cooler, practically a whole new rig, so I think it's best to get the overclocking going when your CPU begins to lag behind).

Now the paths come together.

Now you can get an awesome looking windowed case with a whole lot of fans. It has no direct impact on the performance, which is why I put it last, but can help get some more out of a overclock with better ventilation. Windows are just plain awesome.
 
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Martynas LT

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As for SSD I put it at 3rd place as I really don't need it asap because it doesn't improve game performance only loading times unless I'm wrong? And also ssd suffers from files being deleted and reinstalled. Unless I'm wrong again. I have like 10 games atm and they all take 400 GB of space or more? So I won't go for large ssd because I don't have budget for that. I want SSD for fast internet/windows browsing.
For CPU I really not going to change it so I will only swap mobo for z97 series for OC ( well that's why I bought K series CPU ).
Only big concern is for when to get pc case. Will it make big difference for temps and noise reduction or not. If I will buy case I will probably add more fans so it will have 2 front 2 top 1 rear.
 
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Ne0Wolf7

Ne0Wolf7

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As for the SSD, you're right, no performance increase, just DRASTIC load time differences. Instead of loading windows in thirty seconds, you get it in five. I suppose it is more of a bells and whistles item now that you mention it.
I think you made a solid CPU choice, so no real need to change it any time soon at all.
Now for the big concern- what kind of ventilation does your current box have? If it has fan slots in the front and back/ top, it will be fine until you can get a nicer one. Noise reduction really is about your fans, however some of the higher end cases have rubber mounts to reduce vibration noise (which i get a lot of when the fans start to spin a lot, which is not too often). Another thing about the case- one of the things that make a nice case really nice is radiation support. When buying it, think future- May you upgrade to water cooling? Will you ever want more drive bays for a RAID configuration? Perhaps you'll like a blue ray optical drive later on?
 
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Martynas LT

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I don't really look forward so far to adding more ssd's and hdd's for raid but I believe gx300 has enough slots http://www.guru3d.com/news-story/antec-gx300-budget-costs-59-euro.html
Don't know if it has rubber mounts need to search for indepth review for that. And no I'm not going to upgrade to water cooling any time soon. Also I don't even care if it's windowed because i keep pc away from eyes because I have 1 year 3 months old son who really likes to do what he shouldn't do lol. And for curret case as i said it's crappy box with no fans installed with only one fan slot in the back. I keep case open for ventilation.
 
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Ne0Wolf7

Ne0Wolf7

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I think the other case, the GX300, is better.
Although it does not come with a speed controller, for the future, its best. It has better cooling (2 vs 1 intake) which also leaves room for at least one 240 mm radiator (I know it was said that there will probably be no water cooling, buts its much more efficient than air cooling. When it comes to OCing, if you ever need more that the Hyper 212 Evo can give, an 240 mm AIO is a good idea), which makes for better air and water cooling.
To improve airflow, the dive bays can be removed. You can then get 5.25 to 2.5 or 25 adapters to put your drives in the OD bay, which there are three of (and SSDs can be Velcro taped else ware).
 
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