Cpu or GPU upgrade?

[ltrambo85]

Well Im looking to upgrade my current rig is as follows:
E6300 @2.8
3gb Corsair DDR2 800 XMS2
8800GT
Corsair 520HX PSU
Biostar MOBO

I am getting this mobo already has been ordered http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813188026

Now should I get another 8800GT or a E8400?
I do alot of gaming and multitasking so I wanna pick which would be a more efficient buy.

 

[Andrius]

In any case with multitaksing involved I'd go with a quadcore chip.

An 8800GT will offer performance increases in games.
An E8400 will offer small performance increases in everything else. Most things aren't CPU limited anyway (E8400@4.0GHz is a cakewalk).

You should also consider an E7200 (2530MHz, 3MB L2 Cache, 266MHz FSB, 9.5x multiplier).

 

[ltrambo85]

Well so what would you do? QUAD core is out of the question atm for me.
If you gamed would you get the E8400 or a additional 8800GT?

 

[robertito]

I'd get an E8400 and upgrade the GPU with either an HD 4870/50 or Nvidia 9900, whichever is best for the price, later.

 

[ltrambo85]

Ok 8400 it is. Completely off topic well sorta but I have Antec P180b with perfect wire management that I have put hours into. But now I wanna show off my internals do you guys know of another case with great cooling quiet and wire management all with a Side Window?

 

[Zenthar]

At what resolution are you gaming, SLI might not be that much of a gain, but going from E6300 @2.8GHz to E8400 @3GHz might not me that much of a gain either if the games you plan on playing are GPU limited...

Tell us a bit more.

BTW, for multi-tasking, quad is far from being required. People multi-tasked decently back in the single-core days, they just made sure they wouldn't run CPU intensive tasks all at once. With dual core you could easily run multiple office applications without any apparent degradation.

 

[ltrambo85]

Res is at 1440x900
I play alot of FPS and also EVE Online.
I plan on upgrading to a 24" sometime in the future.
Well what now chief?

 

[Andrius]

Well so what would you do? QUAD core is out of the question atm for me.
If you gamed would you get the E8400 or a additional 8800GT?

(Q6600 costs about the same as E8400). I'd get an E7200 (overclock it) now and put the $65 difference towards 2 GF9900s by the end of summer.

The RC-690 with windowed side panel is an option.
Or you could get a custom Antec P180b window sidepanel.
http://www.performance-pcs.com/catalog/index.php?main_page=product_info&products_id=22433

 

[Zenthar]

For 1440x900, SLI will be overkill in most games except the most demanding (ex: Crysis). But going 24" with native resolution of 1920x1200, that is a totally different league as even dual 8800GTS might start having a hard time with the same more demanding games.

If the 24" future is close, I would suggest going with SLI as most of the games you might be playing will be GPU bound at higher resolution.

The 8800GT is a G80 or G92 model and how much video RAM?

 

[Guest]

holy crap you all give terrible advice. You are hardly going to see a difference between the 6300 and 8400 get the video card where u will actually see a XX% increase in performance as opposed to 2-3% from upgrading processors. switching from a dual core to another dual core that is almost exactly the same is a very bad idea.

either go dual -> quad or get the video card. Andrius (wtf seriously)

either go dual -> quad or get the video card. Robertito

either go dual -> quad or get the video card.

 

[Oh Snap]

Well Im looking to upgrade my current rig is as follows:
E6300 @2.8
3gb Corsair DDR2 800 XMS2
8800GT
Corsair 520HX PSU
Biostar MOBO

I am getting this mobo already has been ordered http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813188026

Now should I get another 8800GT or a E8400?
I do alot of gaming and multitasking so I wanna pick which would be a more efficient buy.

For gaming, go with a 2nd 8800 GT. The dual core will perform just fine for games since most games don't make full use of a quad. Might want to check your PSU though, 520 might be a bit low for SLI. Or you might even want to just wait. That's a decent rig right now, but to be honest nothing really stands out as amazing on it (no offense) so I might just hold off before going with a new build in a year or so.

 

[ltrambo85]

Well thanx guys! PSU is fine though I have SLI 2 8800GTS G80 with it. CorsairHX 520w is a beast with lots of amps and 3 rails.

Well I guess im going to go with the 2nd 8800GT. Thanx alot guys!
Oh and to Zenthar there is only on core for the 8800GT and its G92

 

[Zenthar]

Might want to check your PSU though, 520 might be a bit low for SLI.

The 520HX has a 40A 12V rail based on their spec and EVGA (used as reference only) suggest 28A for 8800GT in SLI so I think he has more than enough headroom.

 

[4745454b]

Hallubalooza, why should he get a second card? Do you really think getting 150FPS instead of 100 FPS is going to matter on a 60HZ LCD? 1440x900 is basically 1280 x 1024, which a single 8800GT can do without problems. Read this reviw.

http://www.hardocp.com/article.html?art=MTQzMCw2LCxoZW50aHVzaWFzdA==

As long as he has a 512MB 8800GT (he didn't say) most games are fine/playable at 1280x1024 or 1440x900. To buy a video card now is also a bad idea with the refresh coming soon. (new cards are supposed to be here in either June or July. Unless you are getting an eVGA card to use the step up program, anything you buy now would be cheaper to buy in two months.)

I agree with the CPU choice to. Quite frankly, there isn't much your system needs right now. Take the money you were going to get on a new video card and get a bigger monitor. Sell your current one to make up any difference. If you don't want the big monitor yet, perhaps you could spend your money on a new desk or chair. (I'm serious, get something comfy.) Maybe a new mouse or keyboard is in order. For where you are right now, no new parts are really needed, unless you do have a 256MB 8800GT.

 

[Oh Snap]

The 520HX has a 40A 12V rail based on their spec and EVGA (used as reference only) suggest 28A for 8800GT in SLI so I think he has more than enough headroom.

Fair enough, but it is wise to check for PSU's certified with your vid card setup: http://www.slizone.com/object/slizone_build_psu.html
That PSU would be certified for "all other SLI PC configurations", but it's not in the list of certified for Dual 8800GT's. Having plenty of power when you do the math is great, but I was underpowered with an 800W PSU running 2x8800GTX's on a psu that was "sli ready" but not certified for my setup. Just tryin to help

 

[4745454b]

Forgot to add, I could have sworn 28A was required for one 8800GT. SLI probably requires 35-40A.

 

[monst0r]

Hallubalooza, why should he get a second card? Do you really think getting 150FPS instead of 100 FPS is going to matter on a 60HZ LCD? 1440x900 is basically 1280 x 1024, which a single 8800GT can do without problems. Read this reviw.

http://www.hardocp.com/article.html?art=MTQzMCw2LCxoZW50aHVzaWFzdA==

As long as he has a 512MB 8800GT (he didn't say) most games are fine/playable at 1280x1024 or 1440x900. To buy a video card now is also a bad idea with the refresh coming soon. (new cards are supposed to be here in either June or July. Unless you are getting an eVGA card to use the step up program, anything you buy now would be cheaper to buy in two months.)

I agree with the CPU choice to. Quite frankly, there isn't much your system needs right now. Take the money you were going to get on a new video card and get a bigger monitor. Sell your current one to make up any difference. If you don't want the big monitor yet, perhaps you could spend your money on a new desk or chair. (I'm serious, get something comfy.) Maybe a new mouse or keyboard is in order. For where you are right now, no new parts are really needed, unless you do have a 256MB 8800GT.

I would say the same thing. You already have a C2D, a slightly better one won't make that big of a difference in games and whatnot...just be happy with what you have for now, new cards are on the horizon. What games/apps are you struggling in that make you feel the need to upgrade? Please don't say crysis.

 

[ltrambo85]

Fair enough, but it is wise to check for PSU's certified with your vid card setup: http://www.slizone.com/object/slizone_build_psu.html
That PSU would be certified for "all other SLI PC configurations", but it's not in the list of certified for Dual 8800GT's. Having plenty of power when you do the math is great, but I was underpowered with an 800W PSU running 2x8800GTX's on a psu that was "sli ready" but not certified for my setup. Just tryin to help

Thanks for the help much appreciated

And fore everyone else Im just a enthusiast and Im getting bored with my system plus my FPS could be higher on R6V2 and Quakewars. So I have the board now and I just ordered this case and GPU.

I love the case it comes with 6 fans 4x120mm and 2x140mm
Great options on it.
http://www.slashgear.com/nzxt-tempest-gaming-chasis-is-the-airflow-king-2010822.php

The video cards is a EVGA 8800GT

 

[Zenthar]

Forgot to add, I could have sworn 28A was required for one 8800GT. SLI probably requires 35-40A.

From EVGA's site about the 8800GT (512-P3-N801-AR):

Minimum of a 400 Watt power supply.
(Minimum recommended power supply with +12 Volt current rating of 26 Amp Amps.)
Minimum 450 Watt for SLI mode system.
(Minimum recommended power supply with +12 Volt current rating of 28 Amp Amps.)

If you take a close look at EVGA's website, you will notice that for all of their cards, the difference in amperage requirements for going from single to dual cards is less than 25% (all the ones I checked went from 24-26A to 30A). On their web site, the only configuration requiring more than 30A is the 8800 Ultras (34A), but they don't give requirements for Ultras in SLI, neither for GX2s (28A individually).

 

[Andrius]

either go dual -> quad or get the video card. Andrius (wtf seriously)

Another rush job reading? My original advice was to go quadcore.
I guess you only read my second post (in the first I explained exactly what you said, not about the second GPU).
As he said quadcore is out of the question I explained it again (Q6600 costs the same as an E8400).
After that I offered a cheaper dualcore that overclocks to 3.8-4.0GHz without too much tinkering.

A 1GHz increase offers an improvement with multitasking (yes, small at best but increases grow with CPU heavy tasks).
The benefits from a second 8800GT at 1440x900 would also be slim. And at 24" the two 8800GT would run out of steam fast so thats a poor investment.

 

[Zenthar]

And at 24" the two 8800GT would run out of steam fast so thats a poor investment.

As poor investments goes, I still have to see an alternative that would give him a ~50% performance improvement in 1920x1200 for a ~150$ upgrade. Some older games won't really scale with SLI, but those games probably already play at 60+FPS on a single card so no noticeable difference will be seen anyway.

Moreover by the end of the year, Intel is supposed to use a new socket, therefore he might not be able to keep his CPU on his next upgrade unless he switch to Yorkfield before changing the whole MB. I have to agree with 4745454b, wait a bit before upgrading since we have no idea how the new cards comming-out this summer will do, even if they just make price drop on other cards, it would be an even cheaper upgrade.

To play at 1440x900, I suggest you just keep your system as it is until the end of the year to see new video cards and new CPUs, then you will be able to make-up your mind on an upgrade path and waste as little money as possible.

To OP: here is a review to make your own opinion.

 

[4745454b]

Odd numbers then Zenthar. Does the 8800GT really only consume 2A? I knew a system with a single card was supposed to have 26A, I would have figured the SLI setup to need a bit over 30A. Weird.

 

[Zenthar]

Odd numbers then Zenthar. Does the 8800GT really only consume 2A? I knew a system with a single card was supposed to have 26A, I would have figured the SLI setup to need a bit over 30A. Weird.

I know, I was surprised too. At first I thought it was a typo or something, but it's the same for all their cards. Either they over-spec single cards or they under-spec SLI or there is something about electricity I quite didn't understand ... Anyone with good electrical knowledge could tell me how 2x ~26A (312W) could require 30A (360W), if I remember correctly, wattage isn't exponential in progression like noise (dBa)???

Anyone ever seen any other PSU recommendations on other manufacturer's website?

 

[Andrius]

As poor investments goes, I still have to see an alternative that would give him a ~50% performance improvement in 1920x1200 for a ~150$ upgrade. Some older games won't really scale with SLI, but those games probably already play at 60+FPS on a single card so no noticeable difference will be seen anyway.

Moreover by the end of the year, Intel is supposed to use a new socket, therefore he might not be able to keep his CPU on his next upgrade unless he switch to Yorkfield before changing the whole MB. I have to agree with 4745454b, wait a bit before upgrading since we have no idea how the new cards comming-out this summer will do, even if they just make price drop on other cards, it would be an even cheaper upgrade.

To play at 1440x900, I suggest you just keep your system as it is until the end of the year to see new video cards and new CPUs, then you will be able to make-up your mind on an upgrade path and waste as little money as possible.

To OP: here is a review to make your own opinion.

I guess it sounds worse than I meant it. Most old (1 year ago or more) games run great at 1920x1200 on my single 9600GT (I guess I'm not a demanding gamer). With new demanding games (Crysis or whatever the next big thing is) two 8800GT will last longer than one. I still think it's a poor investment with HD 4870/GF9900 just around the corner. Given current options and being totaly blind to what tomorrow brings I totaly agree with you. Another $150 8800GT will offer the greatest boost in games.

 

[Andrius]

I know, I was surprised too. At first I thought it was a typo or something, but it's the same for all their cards. Either they over-spec single cards or they under-spec SLI or there is something about electricity I quite didn't understand ... Anyone with good electrical knowledge could tell me how 2x ~26A (312W) could require 30A (360W), if I remember correctly, wattage isn't exponential in progression like noise (dBa)???

An 8800GT has 1 PCI-E power connector. It also works without issues on a PCI-E v1.x slot board (provides upto 75W). So the max power draw for an 8800GT is 150W. Theoretical 300W max for SLI needs 25A at 12V. The rest is a safety margin for other components.

NVIDIA recommends a 1000W PSU for SLI (no difference if it's 8600GT SLI or 9800GX2 SLI). These are guidelines (I guess).