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Upgrading GPU and CPU, need some help

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  • Graphics Cards
  • GPUs
  • CPUs
  • Graphics
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Last response: in Graphics & Displays
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April 28, 2012 2:43:35 AM

Edit: forum title fail. I am only upgrading the PSU and the GPU.

I am wondering whether or not a new graphics card and psu will even fit in the case. I'm thinking of getting a 560ti but there are so many different models, I'm not not to sure which one to get. Also, is it a good idea to wait for the mid range 600 series cards? Will they be around the $250 price point? Will i see a big increase in performance from a 560ti to one of the mid range 600 series cards? Will the cpu be a bottleneck in some way? I'm looking to play diablo 3, guild wars 2, bf3, and many more games at the best possible settings or just under on a 1080p resolution screen.

I'm also thinking of getting this PSU

http://www.bestbuy.com/site/Corsair+-+Gaming+Series+600...

I work at Best Buy so i can get a decent discount on the PSU as well as the GPU but its no problem for me if i have to go to newegg to get a better deal on the price and quality. I just need some assurance whether to pull the trigger now or wait till the mid range 600 series cards come out and hopefully they around the same price as the 560ti.

PC specs

http://h10025.www1.hp.com/ewfrf/wc/document?docname=c01...

More about : upgrading gpu cpu

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April 28, 2012 2:53:15 AM

Well, this may disappoint you. You're gonna play at 1080P, this resolution requires a decent CPU to render and produce a good amount of FPS so that CPU with the L2 cache is a major bottleneck.

Unfortunately your OEM MOBO doesn't support the high end AMD CPUs and have DDR2 memory controller. You'll have to change that OEM machine.
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April 28, 2012 2:59:09 AM

The 560 ti should be good for another two years. The 660 ti is going to be more than $250.00. You might get lucky and get the 650 ti around that price. Right now the 560 ti at newegg is EVGA going for $199.99.

If you can wait and are willing to spend more money on the 660 then I would wait. If you are not set on nVidia cards you could look into the 7xxx series of cards from AMD. Good luck on your quest.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E168...
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April 28, 2012 3:53:28 AM

IMO hold out another month or two and see how much the prices drop and what becomes available.
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Best solution

April 28, 2012 4:09:04 AM

Here is a similar thread I created a few weeks ago: http://www.tomshardware.com/forum/345865-33-athlon

I have a similar system to you (same CPU but better memory). Mine has PCI Express 2.0 - I'm not sure if your does.

I settled on the Corsair TX650 and the EVGA GTX 560 TI. I have been happy with it though I'm sure if I get a better CPU I would unlock more of the graphics card's potential.

With EVGA you can always "step-up" to a new card 90 days after purchase. I would try and hold out as long as you can for the GTX 6xx series but the step up program may provide a decent alternative: http://www.evga.com/support/stepup/
http://www.evga.com/support/warranty/

I don't know much about that Corsair GS series PSU you posted. Check out the following page about PSU's: http://www.eggxpert.com/forums/thread/323050.aspx
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April 28, 2012 4:50:50 AM

geogolem said:
Here is a similar thread I created a few weeks ago: http://www.tomshardware.com/forum/345865-33-athlon

I have a similar system to you (same CPU but better memory). Mine has PCI Express 2.0 - I'm not sure if your does.

I settled on the Corsair TX650 and the EVGA GTX 560 TI. I have been happy with it though I'm sure if I get a better CPU I would unlock more of the graphics card's potential.

With EVGA you can always "step-up" to a new card 90 days after purchase. I would try and hold out as long as you can for the GTX 6xx series but the step up program may provide a decent alternative: http://www.evga.com/support/stepup/
http://www.evga.com/support/warranty/

I don't know much about that Corsair GS series PSU you posted. Check out the following page about PSU's: http://www.eggxpert.com/forums/thread/323050.aspx



What games are you playing and at what resolution? What is the average fps you are getting in those games and at what settings?

I might go the EVGA upgrade route and hopefully the 660 will be in my price range within the 90 days. I just hope now that I can fit everything in the case without too much clutter.
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April 28, 2012 5:46:21 AM

DM186 said:
The 560 ti should be good for another two years. The 660 ti is going to be more than $250.00. You might get lucky and get the 650 ti around that price. Right now the 560 ti at newegg is EVGA going for $199.99.

If you can wait and are willing to spend more money on the 660 then I would wait. If you are not set on nVidia cards you could look into the 7xxx series of cards from AMD. Good luck on your quest.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E168...


How do the 7xxx series cards compare to the 560ti?
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April 28, 2012 12:35:19 PM

I can play Mass Effect 3, Skyrim and Starcraft 2 at 1920x1080 on virtually max settings without lag or stuttering or anything but I got really busy after I bought the card so I haven't had time to game that much to be honest.

I haven't measured any FPS specifically.

I'm hoping to do the EVGA upgrade too when a 670 TI or something comes out not that I care so much about having the 6xx series in my current system but it will matter more when I get a new mobo/cpu down the road in a year or so.
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April 28, 2012 1:24:50 PM

yes, thats what I meant by no lag or stuttering or anything ;)  Interestingly enough the CPU becomes a bigger bottleneck at lower resolutions. At lower resolutions the graphics card is putting out an extremely high framerate and the CPU can't keep up with all the frames.

If the CPU is the bottleneck, your performance will be better at higher resolutions than at lower. If the GPU is the bottleneck your performance will be better at lower resolutions than higher.
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April 28, 2012 1:36:12 PM

geogolem said:
yes, thats what I meant by no lag or stuttering or anything ;)  Interestingly enough the CPU becomes a bigger bottleneck at lower resolutions. At lower resolutions the graphics card is putting out an extremely high framerate and the CPU can't keep up with all the frames.

If the CPU is the bottleneck, your performance will be better at higher resolutions than at lower. If the GPU is the bottleneck your performance will be better at lower resolutions than higher.


Haha. That's why I deleted my reply after rereading what you said. Since we have very similar systems I should be getting the same results as you, hopefully. Also how loud is the fan and what are your temperatures?

I was reading through the post you made earlier and you were interested in ff14. How does it play for you?
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April 29, 2012 12:16:34 AM

I didn't actually take temperatures. It does run a little hotter than it did without the GTX 560TI. Its quite quiet even under load.

I didn't actually play FF14 yet. Haven't bought it. The benchmark before I got my GTX 560 TI and new PSU was 1100. Now I score over 4000.

I can tell my CPU is the bottleneck in my system because the benchmark score does not change if I run it under high or low. I get the same score. I bet if I replaced my CPU/mobo with Intel Core i5 or i7 I would be geting closer to 6000. FF14 is a more CPU intensive game then most. The reccomended cpu is a core i7 lol..

This is different than when I had my old video card (9500 GT). I got 1100 on low and 700 on high. My graphics card was the big bottleneck before. Now my CPU is. Something has always gotta be slower than the other.

http://www.finalfantasyxiv.com/media/recom/na/pc.html
http://www.finalfantasyxiv.com/media/benchmark/na/
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April 29, 2012 2:31:29 AM

NickyFierce said:
How do the 7xxx series cards compare to the 560ti?


Well let me show you then you can make up your own mind. Also bare in mind you will pay for the higher 7xxx seires cards. You will see that the three top cards will do better than the 560 ti then the last card will not do as good. Good luck to you.

7950 vs 560 ti
http://www.anandtech.com/bench/Product/550?vs=547

7950 vs 6950 the same 6xxx seires is what would be = to the 560 ti.
http://www.anandtech.com/bench/Product/550?vs=510

7870 vs 560 ti
http://www.anandtech.com/bench/Product/548?vs=547

7850 vs 560 ti
http://www.anandtech.com/bench/Product/549?vs=547

7770 vs 560 ti
http://www.anandtech.com/bench/Product/536?vs=547
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May 7, 2012 3:41:06 AM

Best answer selected by NickyFierce.
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