Gaming Build Upgrade for Under $900

ecole9

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Oct 31, 2009
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APPROXIMATE PURCHASE DATE: Between now and third week of December
BUDGET RANGE: 900 After Rebates, S/H and Tax which applies to me since I live in TN

SYSTEM USAGE FROM MOST TO LEAST IMPORTANT: Gaming, surfing the internet, watching movies, and creating word documents.

PARTS NOT REQUIRED: I will list at the end my current parts and what my wants/needs are.

PREFERRED WEBSITE(S) FOR PARTS: Newegg is most preferred, though, I'll consider others.

COUNTRY OF ORIGIN: Tennessee USA is where I'm located.

PARTS PREFERENCES: No preferences currently for video cards, though, ATI's new cards are the most tempting. As far as monitor's go, I'm prone to go with Samsung, Dell, ASUS, or possibly Hanns-G.

OVERCLOCKING: Yes, CPU only.

SLI OR CROSSFIRE: Maybe eventually.

MONITOR RESOLUTION: Would like to upgrade to 1920x1200 res.

ADDITIONAL COMMENTS: I have Windows 7 64bit installed.

I CURRENTLY HAVE:

20" Acer 5ms 1680x1050 res
Q6600 OC'd to 3.2 Ghz
4 GB DDR2 1066 RAM clocked at 800
750 Watt Corsair PSU
HD 4890 1GB GPU
GIGABYTE GA-EP45-UD3P LGA 775 Intel P45 Mobo
APEVIA X-JUPITER-JR G-Type X-JPJGT-BK Black SECC Steel ATX Mid Tower
250 GB HD

I'M WANTING: To upgrade some parts to get a better view when playing the most high demanding games. I'd like to know the best way to spend my budget. I've considered going with a HD 5870 and new monitor, but maybe you all will think it wiser to upgrade the CPU too. Or maybe spend the whole wad on only a monitor. Or crossfire two 4890's and upgrade monitor....etc etc.

Thanks for any help you can give. Ask me anything and I will answer ASAP.
 

ecole9

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Do you think the 2nd 4890 is worth it more than selling my current 4890 and getting the HD 5870? I just don't want to spend alot on another 4890 and then some cool DX 11 games come out.

Also, I've looked real hard at that Hanns-G monitor, a Samsung T240HD 24", and a ASUS 25.5" at Newegg. I know that the Hanns-G is the biggest but will I see a noticeable difference between these monitors? I was thinking the Samsung or Asus would have better quality, but not sure. There is no where I can think of around town to look at monitors to compare :(

I was also considering really going all out and buying a Dell Ultrasharp so it wouldn't be TN monitor. Is that 599 dollar premium worth it for high end gaming?
 

jbakerlent

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ecole9

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Oct 31, 2009
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From the benchmarks I have seen, I've noticed that two 4890's would give better frames than a single 5870. However, two 4890s produce alot of heat and leave no room for upgrade later. They also lack DX11 support. Not to mention that the 5870 is not too far behind.

I like the screens you chose except they are not 1920 x 1200. Can anyone comment on the three monitors I mentioned in my last post? Also, is my cpu still good enough or does it need an upgrade?

Thanks.