$400 Gaming Upgrade

[Transmaniacon]

Hey guys,

I built my first rig in 2008 and my C2D is starting to show it's age. I would like to upgrade this winter, likely just the guts, and give myself some future-proofing.

Approximate Purchase Date: Within 2 weeks

Budget Range: ~$400

System Usage from Most to Least Important: Gaming, movies

Parts Not Required:

PSU: Corsair 650TX
HDD: Western Digital Caviar Black 500GB*
Case: Antec 300
GPU: ATI HD4870**
Mouse/keyboard/optical/monitor/speakers

Preferred Website(s) for Parts: www.newegg.com

Country: USA

Parts Preferences: Partial to Gigabyte, but am open to suggestions. I would prefer to spend a little more on a quality item however.

* It would be nice to have a new HDD, but I might wait until prices aren't so high and just reformat my current one.
** Right now my CPU is my bottleneck, and I can max my games at my resolution, so I may hold off on a new GPU for now unless you see a way to squeeze one in without killing the budget.

Overclocking: Maybe

SLI or Crossfire: No

Monitor Resolution: 1440x900

Let me know what you guys think, it seems the i5-2500k is the king in this price range, but I am not against saving a little money with a comparable AMD setup.

 

[ringzero]

cpu 195 This really is a SUPER cpu.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819115073
mobo 115 This might even be more than you need, but it's nice to have the flexibility later.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813128502
ssd 90 As your boot drive and maybe a couple games. Loads SUPER fast. Put your movies on your Caviar Black.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820167047


exactly $400

 

[Transmaniacon]

Thanks for the response, have a couple questions.

What's the difference between the 2500k and 2500?
I would also need to add RAM to this, but that's only like $40.
Why the SSD recommendation? I havent considered one, is it something I would benefit a lot from?

 

[raptorxrx]

Thanks for the response, have a couple questions.

What's the difference between the 2500k and 2500?
I would also need to add RAM to this, but that's only like $40.
Why the SSD recommendation? I havent considered one, is it something I would benefit a lot from?

Boot times and responsiveness gain a ton! Gaming? Besides load times no. On the k question the k is oc'able as the non k isn't.

 

[ringzero]

Thanks for the response, have a couple questions.

What's the difference between the 2500k and 2500?
I would also need to add RAM to this, but that's only like $40.
Why the SSD recommendation? I havent considered one, is it something I would benefit a lot from?

An SSD is a beautiful upgrade and causes Windows to load extremely fast, as well as load levels in games much faster. I personally love having one and if you talk to anyone who uses one, I can almost guarantee they'll say they're never going back to a traditional HDD.

Yes, try this for RAM:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231314

The 2500k is unlockable, I believe, and much more capable of overclocking. But I picked the other one because it's slightly less expensive ;-)

 

[Transmaniacon]

Thanks, I would probably get the k, just to give me that option. I know there was some issues with TRIM regarding the SSDs, are there any glaring issues right now, or requirements for using them? Last time I was keeping up with hardware, they weren't much faster than the platter drives.

 

[raptorxrx]

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820233186

I'm no SSD expert, just know what they benefit. For the RAM try the one I linked, it's low profile so if you install an aftermarket heatsink, you'll have less troubles. I have the one the other guy linked though and it's great.

 

[ringzero]

Thanks, I would probably get the k, just to give me that option. I know there was some issues with TRIM regarding the SSDs, are there any glaring issues right now, or requirements for using them? Last time I was keeping up with hardware, they weren't much faster than the platter drives.

I have a 160GB Intel SSD and have had no problems with it. SSDs have come a long way and as soon as they come down in price, HDDs will be obsolete because the only thing keeping them afloat lately is that they cost less.

That said, you DO have to be careful with what SSD you get, just like with any component, including HDDs. Intel is probably the most reliable brand, along with Crucial. But the newer generation SSDs coming out from the other brands seem to be doing really well. Just stay away from SATA II SSDs that use the Sandforce controller. Major problems with that. Word is a firmware update fixed it, but I'd still be wary.

 

[Transmaniacon]

Best answer selected by Transmaniacon.

 

[Transmaniacon]

Thanks for the help guys. I might look into an 80gb intel sad, and then put the difference into the RAM.

 

[dalauder]

Going back to your original issue of your CPU being outdated. What's your current CPU?

Do you have a Micro Center nearby? Do you want to leave future room for upgrades?

If this is purely for gaming and you want the most you can get out of $400, sell your GPU for $90, spend $200 on a new GPU, $130 on an SSD, and OC your current CPU if it's good enough. Then migrate the GPU & SSD when you do a new build.

Make sure to enable AHCI and Trim with an SSD and update the firmware.

 

[dalauder]

Thanks for the help guys. I might look into an 80gb intel sad, and then put the difference into the RAM.

You picked a Best Answer too quickly. You need more feedback to make a better choice. Notice that's a SATA II SSD linked for you? You want SATA III.

 

[raptorxrx]

You made a poor choice of picking a best answer so quickly. You need more feedback to make a better choice. Notice that's a SATA II SSD linked for you? You want SATA III.

I would agree on the quickness part. But there is no trouble with SATA II. The difference is negligible visibly. If you want sata 111 get a crucial M4, but than you won't get as good of price/gb. Intel has had some good rebates recently.

 

[Transmaniacon]

Going back to your original issue of your CPU being outdated. What's your current CPU?

Do you have a Micro Center nearby? Do you want to leave future room for upgrades?

If this is purely for gaming and you want the most you can get out of $400, sell your GPU for $90, spend $200 on a new GPU, $130 on an SSD, and OC your current CPU if it's good enough. Then migrate the GPU & SSD when you do a new build.

Make sure to enable AHCI and Trim with an SSD and update the firmware.

My current CPU is a E7300, even with over clocking I don't see this providing much more performance. I do not have a micro center nearby and would like to leave room for future upgrades as noted in my original post.
My understanding is that the board recommended with a BIOS upgrade will be compatible with ivy bridge. Thanks for the SSD tip.

In regards to the quickness of selecting an answer, ringzero provided me with a build that I like and offers me good bang for my buck. I am still on the fence about the SSD, I might just hold off and let the prices drop some more. I doubt I could sell my gpu for $50, let alone $90, and I would rather get a good CPU and keep my current GPU. Until I upgrade my resolution, I won't get as much out of a new gpu seeing as my CPU is the current bottleneck.

 

[Transmaniacon]

Hey guys, so I am pretty set on my parts, just wanted to check clearances on things, to make sure I am not walking into problems.

I will be using my Antec 300 case.

Motherboard:
GIGABYTE GA-Z68A-D3H-B3 LGA 1155 Intel Z68 HDMI SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 ATX Intel Motherboard
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813128502

Memory:
CORSAIR Vengeance 8GB (2 x 4GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Desktop Memory Model CML8GX3M2A1600C9B
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820233196

Fan/Heatsink:
COOLER MASTER Hyper 212 EVO RR-212E-20PK-R1 Continuous Direct Contact 120mm Sleeve CPU Cooler Compatible with latest Intel 1366/1155 and AMD FM1/AM3+
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835103099

I know the CM 212 is a big heatsink, so I chose some low-profile memory. Do you think I will have any clearance issues installing this? Ideally I would like to have all 4 DIMM slots free for future upgrades, but as long as I can at least get 2 sticks in there, I should be good.

One other thing, I have always been weary of OC'ing, and plan on trying this time; Is there any specific orientation for the heatsink? I would imagine the fan on the heatsink would pull cool air from the case and blow hot air from the heatsink out to the rear exhaust fan, correct me if I am wrong.

Thanks,

Trans