PC Upgrade

[gazzaridis]

Hey,

I am currently looking around for an upgrade for my system and am stuck as to where the money needs to be spent although I would prefer not spending any money on a CPU or GPU as they are fairly new anyway

Asus M3A
AMD Phenom II x4 3.35Ghz OC
HD 5850
4GB 800 mhz DDR2

I am hoping to find a board with AM2+/AM3 compatability to avoid having to buy a whole new CPU, my budget is flexible but dont want to be spending something overly priced something around the £75 - £125 but if the upgrade would be worth it then willing to spend more

Thanks for your time

Gazzaridis

 

[MadAdmiral]

It helps to know what you're doing with the machine. Also, providing more specific details would also be good. It's helpful to know the exact models of the board, RAM, CPU, PSU and such.

I can say that judging by the few details you provided, your build should handle itself fine already. A quad core at 3.35 GHz and a 5850 are fairly high powered. Also, upgrading the motherboard will do nothing in terms of acutal performance. Besides, I wouldn't sink any more money into a DDR2 board or DDR2 RAM.

 

[jasonw223]

Is that the x4 940 Phenom II? If yes, don't upgrade your motherboard for sure. If it's the 945, 955 or something like that, then you could possibly upgrade to an AM3 DDR3 motherboard. However, you will spend some money and get next to no difference in performance. I had a Phenom II B50 (550 running as quad) and did that same upgrade - went to a new motherboard and DDR3 RAM, and it was the most useless upgrade ever.

If you want to upgrade, sell your CPU/mobo /RAM and start over, or get a crossfire board and a second 5850 or something like that.

 

[MadAdmiral]

^Look at the budget again. I don't think a new board and DDR3 is going to fit in it. Especially not if the OP has to buy a new copy of the OS because of the new board.

I really don't think there is anything you can buy with your budget that would show a performance increase right now. A second 5850 would be the best bet, but it's out of budget and the board may not support it.

 

[jasonw223]

^Look at the budget again. "If the upgrade would be worth it then willing to spend more."
Also, no, you don't need a new copy of the OS with a new motherboard.
MadAdmiral likes to argue with me lately for some reason.

But yes, the point we are both trying to make is that you shouldn't upgrade that system.

However, if you really want a faster computer, selling everything and starting new would be my recommendation.

 

[MadAdmiral]

You need a new copy if you have an OEM version, which is pretty common in homebuilts. Oh wait, that's only if you don't want to techincally do something illegal...

Regardless, it's definitely not worth spending any money at this point.

 

[jasonw223]

You don't need a new copy with an OEM version. You will have to activate via telephone, and tell them that it is installed on only one PC (i.e. that you just replaced the motherboard). Not illegal at all.

 

[MadAdmiral]

Except that the according to the OEM policy, the only time you would be allowed to reactivate it is in the case of the board failing and being replaced by the same model. While you can get it reactivated, it's definitely shady to go about getting a free copy for an upgrade this way. I like my money, but I like my integrity more.

 

[jasonw223]

"as long as the replacement motherboard is the same make/model or the same manufacturer's replacement/equivalent, as defined by the manufacturer's warranty"
-Microsoft OEM FAQ

Now who 'manufactures' a custom built PC? That would be us. According to my own personal warranty, whatever board I want is the 'manufacturer's replacement.'

 

[MadAdmiral]

That refers to the motherboard's manufacturer. It's based on what they would send you as a warranty replacement. It doesn't refer to the computer's manufacturer.

 

[jasonw223]

What does the M stand for in OEM? Is Gigabyte the OEM? Anyway, we can change motherboards, or whatever other component we want. The actual OEM policy and OEM FAQ are different things...

 

[gazzaridis]

I use it mainly for LAN pc gaming,

The recurring theme seems to be not worth a major upgrade right now, wait until its time to build a whole new system

 

[MadAdmiral]

That's pretty much it.

 

[gazzaridis]

thanks for every1's help