Gaming PC looking for best upgrade for my buck. Budget around $300-500

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AQuebman

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Jan 6, 2012
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Current Build:
CPU: Intel Core i7-4770 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor
Motherboard: ASRock Z87M Extreme4 Micro ATX LGA1150 Motherboard
Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws X Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1866 Memory
Storage: Samsung 840 EVO 250GB 2.5" Solid State Disk
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive
Video Card: Gigabyte GeForce GTX 780 3GB Video Card
Case: Zalman Z12 ATX Mid Tower Case
Power Supply: Corsair CX 750W 80+ Bronze Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply
Optical Drive: LG WH14NS40 Blu-Ray/DVD/CD Writer
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium SP1 (OEM) (64-bit)

Hello community,

My current build I have listed above. I have around $300-500 to spend on an upgrade and I thought I would throw it out to the community of much more knowledgeable people what would be the best bang for my buck. I am initially leaning towards upgrading the GTX 780 with a newer videocard. I use this PC for gaming almost exclusively and just want to keep it relatively modern as funds will allow. Any advice you can offer would be greatly appreciated.
 
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SonnyNXiong

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Aug 6, 2017
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i would suggest upgrading to a new motherboard that supports dd4 and new ram that is dd4 and a new cpu that fits in a new motherboard that has ddr4 support. Having ddr4 makes your gaming experience all the more better since ddr4 is so much faster than ddr3. Though if you would like suggestions on items i wouldnt mind listing unless you already had ideas on what you want to buy.
 
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AQuebman

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Jan 6, 2012
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I don't have ideas on what I want to buy the issue I have is that I only really have like $500 max to spend at the moment which probably takes me out of the market of such a massive overhaul.
 
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SonnyNXiong

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Aug 6, 2017
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How much Ram are you looking for? 4gb,, 8gb, or 16gb?
 
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SonnyNXiong

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do you still have your Windows 7 key still or know of a way to obtain it? you will need it when you get a new motherboard.
 
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feelinfroggy777

feelinfroggy777

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Dec 13, 2016
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You don't need a CPU upgrade and you don't need DDR4 RAM. DDR4 RAM does not make much of a difference. You can just add and additional 8gb of DDR3 and you will be fine for RAM

For your setup you need a new GPU. But the problem is that the GPU market is crazy right now due to crypto mining. If I were you I would look at getting a 1070 or higher, but you wont find that in your price range.

Now is the worst time to upgrade a GPU. I would hold off and save my cash and see if GPU prices drop in a few months.
 
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theyeti87

theyeti87

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Sep 15, 2012
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Your CPU is still VERY capable in today's games. The GTX 780 should be your next upgrade, as well as possibly adding more RAM. Unfortunately, the prices for both of those things are quite high because of their current demand. I can't suggest that a newer CPU/mobo/RAM will give you any noticeable performance gains in gaming.
 
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AQuebman

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Jan 6, 2012
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Okay for future knowledge because I don't think prices are coming back down anytime soon what would be the recommended GPU upgrade in today's market for the price your going to pay?
 
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theyeti87

theyeti87

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Sep 15, 2012
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What's your monitor's resolution / refresh rate?
 
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why_wolf

why_wolf

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Aug 28, 2015
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other than a GPU upgrade (with prices the way they are I'm not going to recommend doing so) I'd say the only real thing you can do that won't blow through your whole budget would be to just get more RAM and go to 16 GB. It won't be life changing or anything like that but it's nice to have.

Other than that I'd say just keep saving money till you have enough to do a total overhaul.
 
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AQuebman

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Well disappointingly it sounds like my only two options are wait and hope the Video Card Market recedes or save up for a complete rebuild which isn't going to be possible in my situation. Im pretty sure my monitor is 1920 x 1080 resolution. I don't know the refresh rate off hand without being at home in front of it. I can upgrade the ram but that doesn't sound like it's going to make a big difference going from 8 to 16 so I may just save my money and wait. Thanks for all who responded I appreciate the help.
 
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