Question about HD 3000 and future video card upgrade

[yupitsmeha]

Hello,
I am upgrading in about 2 weeks and thought id ask here first if i am making a smart decison.
My new system will be 2600k, 8 gb 1600 ram (corsair), GA-Z68X-UD3H-B3, 550 PSU (Corsair). Heres my question, i can't really buy my video card until my next pay day. Is the graphics on the cpu (HD 3000) sufficient enough for say everyday browsing, watching HD movies, youtube? Will it slow down my computer or give me really laggy performance? I know i won't be able to play games that are heavy in gpu but would i be able to play games that use shockwave and such?
The video im thinking of buying is 560 ti 448 (evga), which goes for $294. <---is this a good videocard with the above system?
Im going to have to upgrade my psu most likely but i have 2 psus already one a650W and another one is 800W.

ANd in case if anyone was wondering my current system is a amd x2 250 3.8 ghz, 4 gb ram,230W psu, win7, a very crappy and horrendous motherboard

PS i am building my new system to play mostly games and watch HD movies and some photoshop but mostly gaming. My resolution im currently using is 1600*1200. However , iam thinking of adding one more monitor or perhaps buy a monitor that can suport 1900 resolution.

Hopefully that has covered everything, if not feel free to ask me and i shall get back to ye!

 

[joeblogs]

HD graphis will be fine for everyday eve light gaming its ok . And yes teh 560Ti is a good card, however consider spending and 20-50 dollars and get yourself and AMD 6970 which would really kick ass as to say with your system . Just a though anyway, hope this is what u where looking for

 

[jaguarskx]

Since it is mainly a gaming PC you are better off with the i5-2500k. Games do not take advantage of Hyper Threading so the is no real need to spend an extra ~$100 for the i7-2600k. You may see up to a 15% - 20% performance increase for PhotoShop though.

The Intel HD 3000 will be fine for everyday use. It is basically as powerful as the Radeon HD 5450.

The 560 TI 448 basically competes against the Radeon HD 6950; it wins some, it loses some. You can check out benchmarks in the following review:

http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/MSI/GTX_560_Ti_448_Cores_Twin_Frozr_III/6.html

You can get a Radeon HD 6950 for $220 after rebate w/ Dirt 3:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814150524

For $300 you can get the more powerful Radeon HD 6970, but that is with a rebate that will expire very soon. But perhaps by your next paycheck there will be another rebate or sale for the Radeon HD 6970. Otherwise it is $350:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814102957

 

[zhihao50]

more then enough

 

[joeblogs]

Ohh and your 800w psu will be fine for those graphics cards

 

[yupitsmeha]

thanks for the answers however i have another question. If i were to say buya 3850 Llano instead and pair it with another video card using xfire would that be a better deal then going with the 15/17 1156 sandy bridge build? The reason i am thinking about this change is that the 6550D graphics is better then the HD 3000 and if i were to pair it with another graphics card wouldnt that be faster and less expensive?

 

[joeblogs]

I personaly think that you should stick with the intell 1155 socket. It performs extremly well, and has a future upgrade to support ivy bridge in the future along with PCI 3.0 with the ivy bridge CPUS. I think u should stick with intel. The HD3000 grapgics will be fine for everday web browsing and watching HD movies.

So to sum it up: Stick with the intel design u already have and get a Dedicated GPU when u get your next pay.

 

[lunyone]

Intel HD 3000 is good for basic stuff including low end gaming needs.

Depending on your budget requirements, the 2500k w/good GPU is hard to beat when it comes to gaming on a decent budget. If you need to curb your spending a bit, AMD's Phenom II x4/x6 with a higher end GPU will do really well for the $. Where AMD makes more sense is if your budget can't afford an Intel build. Most AMD based mobo's have better options for less than Intel based ones. Compound this with CPU price difference and you can save $40-60 just between CPU and mobo prices, which could be used for a GPU upgrade. It's totally up to you, but depending on your budget AMD has some good options too. Intel is a bit more, but is worth it if you can afford it.

 

[k1114]

Llano's integrated can only hybrid cf with up to a 6670, low end cards, if that is what you meant by xfire them. The hd 3000 is plenty for any browser game and even photoshop. It also supports 2 monitors at up to 2560x1600 each. You don't need 800w for any of those cards, a 550w would be fine. The 560ti 448 is not far from the 6970. Make sure to look at all benchmarks, not just the game that was made for amd. http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/MSI/GTX_560_Ti_448_Cores_Twin_Frozr_III/27.html

Go with the i5-2500k to save some money.

 

[yupitsmeha]

hm wow thanks for the quick and very informative replies guys! I will stick with my intel build but heres the question, is there much difference between 2500k and 2600K? I know there is a 2700K as well now. If i could say afford 2600K would it still be wise to spend the $100 more then going with 2500k? I am torn between the 2500k and 2600k tbh. Lets say if i wanted to buy this setup for atleast a year would it still be wise to go with 2500k? Im worried that if i paried it up with higher end graphics card (the newwer ones coming all next year) woudl it bottleneck my cpu?

 

[joeblogs]

Nah the 2500K will be mor than enough for what u need. The only difference between the two is the 2600K has hyperthreading, which u wont make use of unless u do lots of encoding. Go with the 2500K and spend the money u save on your graphics card. Try and get a 6970 and depending on your mobo you might be able to CF another one inlater on for ever greater performance.