humphreybot

Distinguished
Jan 20, 2011
144
0
18,690
this is going to sound stupid, but i just realized that i cant go to win7 because i wont give up my trackman marble (3 buttons, no wheel) .....i hate regular mice and i can rock the marble in games. so this means no ssd for me. unless a miracle happens and vista gets trim support. so my question(s) is........where can i find improvement in my current rig?

phenom 555be, all 4 cores unlocked, no oc
asus mb M4A785-M
hd 5770
8 gigs ocz ddr2 800
antec true power 650
momentus xt 500gig (boot disk)

my first thought is micro center (where i buy my parts) has the 965be on sale for 90 bucks....but is it worth upgrading to that.

if i get a new motherboard i will have to get new ram, so i would like to avoid that option for as long as possible.

video is an obvious option, but if i go 78xx or higher, how much will the 555 hold me back.

any other thoughts are welcome
 
Here is a thought for a little bit of spending:

new mobo: ASRock 880GM-LE FX AM3+ AMD 880G $54
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813157292

CPU: buy your 965 BE $90

Cooler: COOLER MASTER Hyper 212 $19
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835103065

GPU: SAPPHIRE Vapor-X 100358VXL Radeon HD 7770 $149
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814102993

Total: $312

You can easily overclock that black edition cpu and see real nice performance gains from your current setup in games
 
Here is an upgrade to think about for a little money that will improve your performance in gaming

SAPPHIRE Vapor-X 100358VXL Radeon HD 7770 $149
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814102993

CPU: buy your posted for $90

Cooler: Hyper 212 $19 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835103065

MOBO: ASRock 880GM-LE FX AM3+ AMD 880G $54
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813157292

Total around $320

You can overclock that black edition cpu and see nice gains in performance
 

humphreybot

Distinguished
Jan 20, 2011
144
0
18,690
is the 7770 going to be any difference at all over the 5770? i thought the 7770 is just a rebranded 5770........the specs are only slightly different. 7770 has a faster clock but fewer processors
 

humphreybot

Distinguished
Jan 20, 2011
144
0
18,690
hmmmm the mobility hd 5770 is rated two levels lower on that chart, but the discrete card (the one i have) is in the same rate as the 7770, in fact you could read it as being rated slightly higher than the 7770. that is why i figured i would have to go to at least 78xx to get a significant bump.

btw i have a hyper 212 plus :) great cooler