Will this combination of MB and CPU work?

[Medicius]

So, 2 years or so ago I thought I was getting something that would last me a few years. Hey, I was only off by 1. Now it's time to upgrade my LGA1156 MB and CPU. 1155 seems like the right choice at this time so I've been reviewing forum posts, articles, and reviews (at two online retailers and one on/off-line retailer).

This is what I believe a good option to be for me and my budget. Some key notes about me on the off chance anyone wants to help make me feel better about my intended purchase (please?):
- I don't overclock
- I use a single 27" 1080 screen
- I primarily do FPS games online
- Otherwise I'm emptying the dishwasher listening to iTunes on the wireless headset
- Performance out of the box is the primary concern, but aesthetics also play a small part

Motherboard:
- ASUS Sabertooth

CPU:
- Intel 3770K


As far as I can tell, the 3770K is the best option sub .5-1k. But the motherboard was chosen based on reviews, articles, and aesthetics. So if anyone has an opinion on a better option for a non-overclocker looking for 2-3 years of solid gaming and listening performance I'd appreciate hearing it.

P.S. I'm behind the curve on graphics cards, and will be throwing my 5770 out for a 660. I realize it's not near the top in performance, but it's gotta be better than the 5770 (or 5770's crossfired).

Thanks,

Medicius

 

[satyamdubey]

Dear Medicius we would all like to know the hardware that your are rocking right now. 1156 is a great hardware and considering your current cpu and mobo choice and the fact that mobo aesthetics matter to you, it can be assumed that you have an otherwise solid build probably bottlenecked by the gpu alone.

maybe rather than doing a new sandy/ivy build right now, you can allocate more $ to your gpu budget and hold a complete upgrade till haswell comes in around mid 2013.

as far as cpu's go this chart may help: http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/gaming-cpu-overclocking,3077-5.html

an upgrade to sandy/ivy would only make sense if your cpu is not in the top two tiers.

good luck
-satyam

 

[Medicius]

Satyam,

Thank you for the link to the hierarchy chart. I used Tom's GPU chart earlier but didn't know there was one for CPUs. My CPU is the lowest of the second tier i7s (i7-860) and it's used in conjunction with a Gigabyte GA-P55-UD4P. Is it a better recommendation to stay with the current MB/CPU and spend the extra allotted dollars on a better GPU (670, 680)? Or just hold off on upgrading at all (stick with the 5770's crossfired or a single GTX 660)?

For the last year, due to my focus on finishing off the basement (and in turn, my loss of space to setup my desktop), I've been gaming on my ASUS ROG laptop with an nVidia GTX 560M and 8G of RAM. I figured my MB/CPU combination were probably out of date and in need of an update. But based on the Hierarchy chart, it looks like I should probably hold off a bit.

Thank you for the advice, link, and thoughts. If you think I should be ok to hold off on upgrading at all, or just upgrading the GPU, please let me know.

Thank you,

Medicius


Edit:

Desktop:
Antec 1200 Case
Antec 850 PSU
i7-860 CPU
Gigabyte GA-P55-UD4P MB
Crossfired HIS HD5770 GPUs
Corsair M4 SSD OS Drive (being installed tomorrow)
Two 1 TB WD HDDs
8 Gigs of RAM (Can't remember the brand PC3 12800)

 

[satyamdubey]

okay, that is a great cpu. i think you should hold off an upgrade for now but do invest on a PCIE 3 ready card. it will run fin on a 2.0 interface and you would definitely see a performance boost.
with ivy, the integrated nothbridge supports PCIE 3.0 and its a sure thing for haswell as well .

Important thing is that Haswell socket will almost surely support one die shrink and therefore a cpu upgrade path will be available at least the way it was with sandy/ivy.

 

[Hazle]

yeah, that's still quite a capable CPU. go with a GPU upgrade instead. that should hopefully give you another year or two. by then, i reckon you saved up a bit for an Intel Broadwell cpu+mobo combo.

 

[Medicius]

Satyam/Hazle,

Thank you for the responses. I didn't realize my CPU was still decent. I appreciate the feedback and my wallet appreciates the savings. I'll start shopping for the PCIE 3.0 GPUs.

Thanks again!

Medicius

 

[satyamdubey]

you are welcome...glad to help

 

[Medicius]

Best answer selected by Medicius.