Been out of the game, looking to go from DDR2 to DDR3 with $300?

[Diamons]

So basically I have about $300 budget and I have the following:

500GB Harddrive
Mouse, keyboard, dual monitor
SAPPHIRE Radeon 4850
Some 600W PSU
4GB (DDR3!!!!!!!!!) RAM that I accidentally bought


Right now I'm running an AMD Phenom II X4 9950 system so I have an AMD motherboard.

I will be using this computer for playing League of Legends, Photoshop, movie editing, Skyrim, mostly browsing the web and watching netflix. I want to be able to play new games such as Skyrim and stuff without having the FPS issues I'm having now.

 

[jbakerlent]

I hate to say it, but you most likely will need to upgrade that HDD and GPU, and dispose of the PSU. I'm a bit confused though, are you trying to upgrade your 9950 build or start fresh? What motherboard do you have? Maybe fill out this advice form
http://www.tomshardware.com/forum/261222-31-build-advice

 

[AdrianPerry]

I hate to say it, but you most likely will need to upgrade that HDD and GPU, and dispose of the PSU. I'm a bit confused though, are you trying to upgrade your 9950 build or start fresh? What motherboard do you have? Maybe fill out this advice form
http://www.tomshardware.com/forum/261222-31-build-advice

There's no reason to upgrade the HDD? Especially with current HDD prices, that's going to eat up 1/3 of the budget on something not even required....?

GPU upgrade I agree with, this will show the biggest FPS gains. Basically just work out your budget, and spend as much as you can afford to on the best single card you can. Based on your budget something like a 6850 or 6870 should be on the cards.

PSU: Depending on the model/reliability of your current PSU, you may want to invest a little more here, especially when buying higher end GPU's. Recommended PSU brands include: Corsair, XFX, Antec, SeaSonic. Always look for an 80PLUS rating.

DDR3 RAM: To make the move to DDR3 RAM you would need a new CPU and Motherboard I believe? 9950BE CPU is socket AM2+ and all AM2+ motherboards support DDR2 (even the ones that support AM3 CPU's too).

Making the move the Intel is a popular choice for many:
i3-2100: $124 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819115078
H61 motherboard (MSI): $60 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813130603

Which leaves $120 out of the initial $300 to spend on a GPU.
$115 (after rebate) HIS 6770 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814161383
Although I'm not sure this would provide much more performance than your current 4850....

 

[DelroyMonjo]

That's not a Phenom II X4, simply a Phenom II 9950 so it only works with DDR2 RAM.
You need a new CPU and MB.
AMD Phenom II X4 975 Black Edition Deneb 3.6GHz Socket AM3 125W Quad-Core Desktop Processor HDZ975FBGMBOX $159.99 free shipping
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819103923
ASUS M4A87T AM3 AMD 870 SATA 6Gb/s ATX AMD Motherboard $94.99 $7.56 shipping
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813131699&SortField=0&SummaryType=0&PageSize=10&SelectedRating=-1&VideoOnlyMark=False&IsFeedbackTab=true#scrollFullInfo

There are cheaper alternatives.

AMD Phenom II X4 955 Black Edition Deneb 3.2GHz Socket AM3 125W Quad-Core Processor HDZ955FBGMBOX $124.99 free shipping
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819103808
ASRock M3A770DE AM3 AMD 770 ATX AMD Motherboard $59.99 $4.99 shipping

Leaves $110 for a video card.

XFX Double D HD-679X-ZDFC Radeon HD 6790 1GB 256-bit GDDR5 PCI Express 2.1 x16 HDCP Ready CrossFireX Support Video Card
$139.99 $119.99 after mail-in rebate card
$7.56 Shipping

 

[ultimabeam]

How much DDR2 RAM do you have in your current system?

I'd almost recommend spending ~$200 on an HD 6950 or GTX 560 and waiting until later to update to a DDR3 platform. Especially with dual displays, you are almost certainly hamstrung by your GPU.