What should I upgrade in order?

[Manicslayer]

Hello Tom's,

I have a gaming computer that, at the moment, has satisfied my needs. Unfortunately, I know in the near future I will need to step up some components, which is why I have some decent space to upgrade my grade. My budget it really undecided, but as a college student it's far from unlimited. I'll list the specs and you guys can tell me what will be the first to get a boost.

MB:Gigabyte GA-MA790XT-UD4P
CPU: AMD Phenom IIx3 720BE (Easily OC'D)
Ram: 2x2GB A-Data DDR3 1333Mhz
GPU: XFX HD 5770 (9600GT as backup, I want to Xfire in the future)
PSU: 700W Zion Dual 12V Rail SLI/CFX Certified. (I know it's a bad brand, but it's done fine so far..)
Case: PSI Cyclone X

My thinking was:
1st. 2 more Gbs of Ram, same brand and timings obviously
2nd PSU to 750W Corsair TX (or similar)
3nd Another XFX HD 5770
4th 2 more GBs of Ram again (totals 8GB)
5th Case to Thermaltake of my choice

 

[JE_D]

your computer looks pretty well rounded
What do you want to do with it, that needs it to be upgraded?

 

[Manicslayer]

Well. I've slowly evolved from a console gamer, to PC Gamer, to finally a PC Enthusiast now.
I've recently started benchmarking using 3DMark Vantage Professional and I've had great success overclocking my system so far. Gaming is still huge to me, but I can run any game out right now. I'm just worried about what these Dx11 games will bring and how hard it will be on my system.
At any rate, I like having the best PC out of all my friends, who are also techies
Basically, I want to put out better benches then my friends, be able to game at 60fps at 1980x1080, and not worry about not being able to play the next big game.

Edit: Having the best PC isn't as important as future proofing. If there is no need to upgrade yet, I'm fine keeping it where it is.

 

[tecmo34]

My recommendations....
1st: PSU... this is one of the most important components in your PC and should be one of the best. I would go with either the SeaSonic X 750 or Corsair HX/TX depending on your budget.

2nd: Case... you need to make sure you case has adequete space and cooling before you add more components. I would go with Cooler Master 922 or Antec 902 but if Thermaltake is your brand, pick a good Mid to Full size case.

3rd: HSF... Purchase yourself the Cooler Master Hyper 212 Plus and overclock the Phenom II X3 720BE for "FREE" additional power.

4th: GPU... Add an additional XFX 5770 will increase your gaming power.

5th: RAM... I would add an additional 2GB of RAM to go along with your current make, brand, timings... etc. There is no need in a gaming build to have more than 4GB of RAM.

 

[JE_D]

If you want to upgrade do it.


I would upgrade in this order

1.Processor http://www.newegg.com/Product/Productcompare.aspx?Submit=ENE&N=2010340343%2050001028%204017&bop=And&ActiveSearchResult=True&CompareItemList=N82E16819103702%2CN82E16819103704

the next two could be upgraded vice versa depending if you think you realy need a new PSU or Not

2.Video card (XFX HD 5770 Crossfire)
3.Good Case With New PSU

And last but not least
4.More RAM

 

[Manicslayer]

My recommendations....
1st: PSU... this is one of the most important components in your PC and should be one of the best. I would go with either the SeaSonic X 750 or Corsair HX/TX depending on your budget.

2nd: Case... you need to make sure you case has adequete space and cooling before you add more components. I would go with Cooler Master 922 or Antec 902 but if Thermaltake is your brand, pick a good Mid to Full size case.

3rd: HSF... Purchase yourself the Cooler Master Hyper 212 Plus and overclock the Phenom II X3 720BE for "FREE" additional power.

4th: GPU... Add an additional XFX 5770 will increase your gaming power.

5th: RAM... I would add an additional 2GB of RAM to go along with your current make, brand, timings... etc. There is no need in a gaming build to have more than 4GB of RAM.

1. Yeah, the PSU really made me uneasy.

2. My case is a big mid tower with side and back fans. If needed, I might just add more case fans.

3. I haven't even thought about HSF as when I overclock the CPU the highest chage in temp is 4 degrees difference from stock while running Prime95. I should look into it, especially if I OC with +V.

4. I really don't need it, but CFXing looks and sounds so bad ass.

5. Oh okay, I'll kill it at 6GB for now.

 

[Manicslayer]

If you want to upgrade do it.


I would upgrade in this order

1.Processor http://www.newegg.com/Product/Productcompare.aspx?Submit=ENE&N=2010340343%2050001028%204017&bop=And&ActiveSearchResult=True&CompareItemList=N82E16819103702%2CN82E16819103704

the next two could be upgraded vice versa depending if you think you realy need a new PSU or Not

2.Video card (XFX HD 5770 Crossfire)
3.Good Case With New PSU

And last but not least
4.More RAM

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
1. I'm not really sure if those processors are faster, even if they are Quad Core vs my Tri. My cores can easily OC to 3.8 Ghz while the cap on those seems to be 3.5/3.6Ghz. They also lack L3 Cache. If anything I would sell my processors and get a 900 series Phenom II, but not till this baby gets obsolete. Also, I have yet to flash to the F4 bios from Gigabyte and unlock my fourth core. (But who knows how stable it will be...)

2. Agreed, it's pretty important, but I'm not sure if I should get another so soon.

3. More so the PSU than the case...but if I can find a good combo deal I'll definitely do it!

4. Yeah, after techmos comment I see that RAM isn't the most urgent upgrade for me. I agree again.

Keep them coming people, the more imput the more informed decisions I can make about these upgrades. Also, it will let me help me friends with theirs as well.

 

[tecmo34]

1. Yeah, the PSU really made me uneasy.

2. My case is a big mid tower with side and back fans. If needed, I might just add more case fans.

3. I haven't even thought about HSF as when I overclock the CPU the highest chage in temp is 4 degrees difference from stock while running Prime95. I should look into it, especially if I OC with +V.

4. I really don't need it, but CFXing looks and sounds so bad ass.

5. Oh okay, I'll kill it at 6GB for now.

2) I would make a new case your last option unless it doesn't provide proper cooling.

4) You will get a good performance boost. However if you are already getting 60FPS+ in games, it isn't required. Your monitor doesn't refresh at a faster rate so visually you won't see a difference.

5) I wouldn't add more than what you have now. 4GB is plenty for a gaming rig. I recommended 2GB of RAM because my first glance of your original post I thought you had only 2GB of RAM.

 

[Manicslayer]

2) I would make a new case your last option unless it doesn't provide proper cooling.

4) You will get a good performance boost. However if you are already getting 60FPS+ in games, it isn't required. Your monitor doesn't refresh at a faster rate so visually you won't see a difference.

5) I wouldn't add more than what you have now. 4GB is plenty for a gaming rig. I recommended 2GB of RAM because my first glance of your original post I thought you had only 2GB of RAM.

Okay, thanks for responding. My case keeps everything plenty cool and it has the fans and buzzing to prove it lol. 4GB for a gaming rig, alright. Sounds good, I'll save off on 6GB total until it becomes necessary. Yeah, I get 60FPS in just about every game with the settings cranked. CFX was really just my future proof solution or a possible step towards an Eyefinity setup.

 

[JE_D]

your computer
looks pretty well rounded
What do you want to do with it, that needs it to be upgraded?

If you want to upgrade for the sake of upgrading DO IT!

But your PC is a pretty Amazing Build so you Could hold off for a little while

 

[obsidian86]

you could look into it this way

power supply and amd 890 board

then amd 6 core and 5770

 

[Manicslayer]

you could look into it this way

power supply and amd 890 board

then amd 6 core and 5770

Ah...perhaps. Or by then the 9xxBE will drop enough where I can snag one of those.

Yeah, guess I'll be waiting. But I will get a PSU I'm thinking before anything else.

 

[Manicslayer]

Best answer selected by Manicslayer.