Upgrading pc with minimal budget

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Inet0

Reputable
May 22, 2015
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Hello. I'm planning to upgrade my PC since it's 2011 build and it's performance doesn't satisfy me anymore. I'm doing CryEngine projects and some enthusiastic PC games modding.

CPU Intel Core i5 2500 @ 3.30GHz
GPU NVIDIA GeForce GTX 960 OC 2GB
motherboard: ASUSTeK Computer INC. P8P67 LE (Doesn't support ddr4 ram)
RAM: 8,00GB Dual-Channel DDR3 @ 802MHz (10-10-10-28)
550W power supply unit
Storage: 1TB HDD and I already ordered new SSD (Kingston HyperX Savage 480GB SATA3 2.5'' 7mm Read:Write (560/530MB/s))

I might be getting windows 10 on new SSD so it gotta increase performance, but that's not everything what I want to do.

What I would like to upgrade:
I'm planning to get gtx1060 with 6GB vram and more faster ram because mine is a bit strugling at specific tasks and fallout4. But I need more adviced what would be good to choose for good upgrade because CPU and motherboard are pretty old too. I would like to spend maximum 400euros on upgrade :ange:

Thank you all for help! :)
 
Solution
geofelt
Do some testing to see how sensitive your apps are to cpu and gpu.

Here is a backhanded way:
Run your apps, but Limit your cpu,
in windows power management, limit the maximum cpu% to something like 70%.
Go to control panel/power options/change plan settings/change advanced power settings/processor power management/maximum processor state/
This will simulate what a lack of cpu power will do.
Conversely what a 30% improvement in core speed might do.
You should also experiment with removing one core. You can do this in the windows msconfig boot advanced options option.
You will need to reboot for the change to take effect. Set the number of processors to less than you have.
This will tell you how sensitive your apps are to the...
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Inet0

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May 22, 2015
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It's not bottlenecking, but I cannot maintain 60fps/1080p and it's hard to work with complext 3D environment because of lack of vram.
 
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Justiceinacan

Justiceinacan

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Jul 19, 2016
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First thing's first, what's the quality of that PSU. Before changing to a lot of new parts, you should verify that there is the right amount of wattage and the PSU has good quality to safely withstand whatever new parts you throw at it.

I personally would spend it all on a new motherboard, CPU, and RAM. Something like an i5 6500, LGA1151 motherboard of decent quality that fits your needs, and new DDR4 RAM if you don't overclock.
'
To find out if this is the right upgrade, the easy way is to open Windows task manager and check your CPU and RAM usage. I'm pretty sure your CPU is on the lower end of the fallout 4 spec requirements.
 
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ryguybuddy

ryguybuddy

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Jul 3, 2016
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I would get a GTX 1060 then.

Later down the line I would get a Kaby Lake i5 when they come out with a new motherboard.
 
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geofelt

geofelt

Titan
Oct 9, 2006
54,295
4,145
174,240
Do some testing to see how sensitive your apps are to cpu and gpu.

Here is a backhanded way:
Run your apps, but Limit your cpu,
in windows power management, limit the maximum cpu% to something like 70%.
Go to control panel/power options/change plan settings/change advanced power settings/processor power management/maximum processor state/
This will simulate what a lack of cpu power will do.
Conversely what a 30% improvement in core speed might do.
You should also experiment with removing one core. You can do this in the windows msconfig boot advanced options option.
You will need to reboot for the change to take effect. Set the number of processors to less than you have.
This will tell you how sensitive your apps are to the benefits of many cores.

On the graphics side, Run YOUR games, but lower your resolution and eye candy.
If your FPS increases, it indicates that your cpu is strong enough to drive a better graphics configuration.
If your FPS stays the same, you are likely more cpu limited.

I suspect you have a somewhat balanced system between cpu and gpu.

You will be very pleased with changing to a ssd.

I would not jump to windows 10 unless you have a compelling reason. There is no important performance improvement.
I see too many issues. I do not like the heavy instrumentation, reporting on everything you do. I also do not like that windows 10 will update whenever it wants, and you can't shut it off unless you get the more expensive pro version.

You will find it easiest to simply replace the GTX960 with a stronger card like the GTX1060. The psu requirements are identical.

If you need to change out the cpu, you could simply use a i5-2600K and plan on overclocking it.
That would be a reasonable boost. You should find one on ebay .
You could buy a 2 x 8gb ddr3 ram kit and keep your old ram for spare.
Ram speed for intel does not matter much. Nor, for that matter does ddr3 vs ddr4. Capacity will be more beneficial, the more the better.

Otherwise I would bypass the non overclocked skylake i5 and 17 processors in favor of the overclockable "K" versions and a z170 motherboard. The small price differential is very much worth it for the big performance boost. A I5-6600K, z170 motherboard and 16gb of ddr4 ram should be ok with your 400 euro budget
 
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