Help to get a good motherboard and CPU

[bonuspoints1120]

So, I want to upgrade to a better mother board and processor for games coming out soon and the future. I already have a Asus M4A785T-M and AMD Athlon II x 3 Quad core. I already bought a Geforce 2gb 550 TI. This is going to be an upgrade from a Geforce 280 GT.

Any advice will be appreciated.

I'm thinking about getting one of those Z77 models, but I'm not sure if I need it. I do want my RAM to be about 8 - 16 gbs. I'm also looking at a I5 intel core processor, and again, I'm not sure if I need it. I know I don't want a I7 intel core processor, because its probably too powerful for what I need. Also, I just want longevity for these products. I haven't upgraded anything for 5 years, so I'd like to do that again. Anyway, I just want to be able to play a plethora of games with awesome graphics and good FPS.

Like I said, any advice will be appreciated. Thanks.

 

[sarinaide]

In the absence of a budget I am assuming you are looking at spending a reasonable about of cash on the setup so let me go out on the fly;

INTEL I5 SETUP:

i5 3570k
Gigabyte Z77X-UD5H
G.Skill Ares(pick a color) DDR3 12800/1600 8GB kit
XFX Core Edition Pro 650w
CASE: User preference.

AMD FX SETUP:

FX 6300
MSI 990FX-GD80
Crucial Ballistix Tracers DDR3 1600 8GB kit
XFX Core Edition Pro 650w
CASE: User preference

The AMD setup will probably cost you around $100 less.

Also that GPU is a no no, its weaker than a HD6850 and 7770/7750. You can pick up a HD7850 OC for $180, very potent card.

 

[bonuspoints1120]

In the absence of a budget I am assuming you are looking at spending a reasonable about of cash on the setup so let me go out on the fly;

INTEL I5 SETUP:

i5 3570k
Gigabyte Z77X-UD5H
G.Skill Ares(pick a color) DDR3 12800/1600 8GB kit
XFX Core Edition Pro 650w
CASE: User preference.

AMD FX SETUP:

FX 6300
MSI 990FX-GD80
Crucial Ballistix Tracers DDR3 1600 8GB kit
XFX Core Edition Pro 650w
CASE: User preference

The AMD setup will probably cost you around $100 less.

Also that GPU is a no no, its weaker than a HD6850 and 7770/7750. You can pick up a HD7850 OC for $180, very potent card.

Cool. Thanks, dude.

I honestly don't want to spend a lot of money on all of these things. Like you said, I want to spend a reasonable amount of money. When I bought my parts in 2008, everything cost about 800-900 dollars and I thought it wasn't bad. I mean, everything was paid for itself by about 5 years. I figure $800 is enough for what I want to do with it, ie. watch movies, play games. Know what I mean?

Secondly, my bad. I bought the GTX 650 TI 2GB. Oops. I was probably looking at something else when I wrote the other thing down.

Anyway, I want to have a reasonable price for the parts I want to put in. Do you think that i5 processor and Z77 platforms are worth the money? Just curious. I'm definitely eyeing those 2 right now. The reviews are great for the processor on newegg, but the gigabyte you mentioned seems to upset a lot of people on start-up. Also, if you don't mind me asking, what's your set-up like? Maybe I can emulate your rig a little.

 

[sarinaide]

That setup was a old HTPC setup, its a ITX form factor, the 3570T is a 2.2ghz-2.8ghz boost low power i5 and the Z77E is a ITX board, you can use the GPU on it though so not all is lost.

If you want small form factor then I would consider it, a few suggestions I would make though;

1) use a 3570k.
2) use a H80i cooler
3) for cases the Bitfenix Prodigy is a nice case but you can look at a coolermaster Elite 120 or Silverstone Sugo 5 or 7.

The UD5H won motherboard of 2012 so it aint that bad, just gigabyte have reliability issues. You can downscale to a Gigabyte Z77 UD3P or ASRock Pro 3 or ASRock Extreme 4 (both Z77)

What PSU you got and what cooling you got?

 

[bonuspoints1120]

That setup was a old HTPC setup, its a ITX form factor, the 3570T is a 2.2ghz-2.8ghz boost low power i5 and the Z77E is a ITX board, you can use the GPU on it though so not all is lost.

If you want small form factor then I would consider it, a few suggestions I would make though;

1) use a 3570k.
2) use a H80i cooler
3) for cases the Bitfenix Prodigy is a nice case but you can look at a coolermaster Elite 120 or Silverstone Sugo 5 or 7.

The UD5H won motherboard of 2012 so it aint that bad, just gigabyte have reliability issues. You can downscale to a Gigabyte Z77 UD3P or ASRock Pro 3 or ASRock Extreme 4 (both Z77)

What PSU you got and what cooling you got?

ITX? Form factor? I'm confused. I'm somewhat new to the computer world, so yeah, I don't know what that means. I have have a ATX 800 watt corsair gaming series. I don't have a cooling system per se, I just have a couple fans, stock and some extra. I believe I have about 4 or 5 fans in there. I'd have to check again for that.

 

[sarinaide]

ITX? Form factor? I'm confused. I'm somewhat new to the computer world, so yeah, I don't know what that means. I have have a ATX 800 watt corsair gaming series. I don't have a cooling system per se, I just have a couple fans, stock and some extra. I believe I have about 4 or 5 fans in there. I'd have to check again for that.

Form Factor refers to motherboard size;

Extended ATX being the biggest of form factor, will mini ITX being the smallest form factor.

http://www.asrock.com/mb/Intel/Z77E-ITX/

That is the ITX board I have in the Intel HTPC I have, as you can see its a very small motherboard.

If I where you I would go with the UD5H + 3570K + H80i cooler.

 

[bonuspoints1120]

Form Factor refers to motherboard size;

Extended ATX being the biggest of form factor, will mini ITX being the smallest form factor.

http://www.asrock.com/mb/Intel/Z77E-ITX/

That is the ITX board I have in the Intel HTPC I have, as you can see its a very small motherboard.

If I where you I would go with the UD5H + 3570K + H80i cooler.

Alright, sounds good to me. Do you think all that could fit in a mid-tower? I don't feel like buying a full one. I'll probably buy everything within next month and let you know how it goes. Thanks again.

 

[sarinaide]

The UD5H will go into any mid tower case as its standard ATX form factor.