Decent upgrade?!!

[Ahmed Adel]

Hello everybody,

So, I bought my PC years years ago.. its specs are the following:

P31 Chipset Mobo (GB) .. PCI Express v1.1 !!
ATI Radeon 5850 HD 1GB GDDR5
Quad Core Q9550 @ 2.83Ghz
WD 500GB @7200rpm
4GB DDR2 @800MHz
550W PSU

So, I run most of the games at 1680x1050 with High/Ultra specs and they do me just fine.. but now I've bought a FULL HD monitor so my resolution got pumped to 1920x1080 and the GPU started to lag in most games..

I don't have that money to upgrade everything but I was considering the following:
Buying
- GTX670 2GB
- OCZ Vertex 4 128GB for OS and some Games

now I know that my mobo is Sata2 (3gb/s) and this SSD is Sata3 (6gb/s), and I understand there would be a bottleneck in my SSD performance but it will do just great anyway right? upgrading from a normal HDD !!!

Regarding the GPU, 5850HD to GTX670 .. decent upgrade and well do just fine, right?

I might think of upgrading the whole chipset later but not now coz I don't have money for that and I'm upgrading just for the sake of Games, I don't work 3D software or such..

Would my upgrades make a day-night difference for me or what!?? will the lags @ full resolution dissolve or not!?

I need your advice guys.. Thanks

 

[o1die]

I would upgrade just the video card first. Wait and get your ssd when it's 50 cents per gb; you should see this during the holiday season.

 

[Ahmed Adel]

OK I might postpone this if this news is correct, seems like a bargain!

But anyway, in spite of that, if I upgrade my GPU only there will be huge difference right? I just wanna make sure that my CPU ain't a bottleneck for the games!!

I mainly play Battlefield 3 MAXED !

 

[daswilhelm]

depends on if your psu can handle the 670, what make and model is it?

 

[Proximon]

GTX 670 will only draw about 25W more than the 5850. You do want to make sure you have a quality PSU as a priority though.

 

[Ahmed Adel]

It's Gigabyte Superb 550P .. don't know pretty much about its efficiency but it never caused stuttering / power failure on my current setup.

As far as I know, the reference card of GTX670 needs a minimum of 500W PSU
http://www.geforce.com/hardware/desktop-gpus/geforce-gtx-670/specifications

My PSU says 550W on the cover (blah blah) but it's peak is 450W. But as far as I know there're no PSUs with 100% effeciency right?

 

[MotherFerJones]

You could bump your card choice down to a 7950, newer one, for not too much performance loss for saving 150, If you do go with the 7950 you could get an SSD now with the savings, i recommend samsung 830, rock solid SSD's, 109 for 128GB now on NE.

 

[Ahmed Adel]

You could bump your card choice down to a 7950, newer one, for not too much performance loss for saving 150, If you do go with the 7950 you could get an SSD now with the savings, i recommend samsung 830, rock solid SSD's, 109 for 128GB now on NE.

I appreciate your offer! but I'm sticking to nVIDIA GTX670 .. Wanna take advantage of future PhysX-enabled games and honestly I'm tired of the Radeons.
Btw, price difference isn't 150$, it's ~ 50$.

For SSDs, I think I'm going to postpone buying them till their prices go lower!

Thanks anyway.

 

[Proximon]

It's Gigabyte Superb 550P

It's not the worst PSU but it really is a below average 450W. You need to upgrade that as a priority.

I like the 7950 idea, just get a good PSU along with it.

Corsair 650TX V2
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817139020

 

[Ahmed Adel]

It's not the worst PSU but it really is a below average 450W. You need to upgrade that as a priority.

I like the 7950 idea, just get a good PSU along with it.

Corsair 650TX V2
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817139020

Mmmmh!! .. I thought it's a time for some change!! I will give it another thought regarding the GPU.

http://tpucdn.com/reviews/Gigabyte/GeForce_GTX_670_Windforce/images/bf3_1920_1200.gif

OK, so in your opinion you're saying that my PSU cannot handle the GTX670 ? Replacement is a must?

I get your point, it ain't the best out there, but will I really REALLY need to replace it ?

 

[Ahmed Adel]

I hate buying another PSU :|

 

[daswilhelm]

so next time buy a decent supply, and it will last for a few upgrades.

 

[MotherFerJones]

7950
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814150588

670's
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814125423
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814121659

idk they look 100-150 more for not much more performance, but hey, your rig do what ya feel playa. And i would really consider upgrading the PSU its the lifeblood of the PC, you dont want your system having bad blood do you.

 

[Ahmed Adel]

7950
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814150588

670's
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814125423
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814121659

idk they look 100-150 more for not much more performance, but hey, your rig do what ya feel playa. And i would really consider upgrading the PSU its the lifeblood of the PC, you dont want your system having bad blood do you.

Radeon 7950:
http://www.amazon.com/Gigabyte-Mini-Displayport-PCI-Express-Graphic-GV-R795WF3-3GD/dp/B007581QHG/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1349224643&sr=8-1&keywords=7950

GTX670:
http://www.amazon.com/EVGA-GeForce-Dual-Link-Graphics-02G-P4-2670-KR/dp/B007Z3HZIA/ref=sr_1_3?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1349224671&sr=1-3&keywords=gtx670

~ 60$ difference!! .. yup your NE links are fine but I looked at Amazon xD .. my bad xD

I will give it another deep thought .. thanks!

 

[Ahmed Adel]

Thanks you all guys for your feedback .. you were great & I'm so happy to be in this wonderful community

 

[Proximon]

I get your point, it ain't the best out there, but will I really REALLY need to replace it ?

You decide.

Your PSU reviewed by a competent source:
http://www.hardwaresecrets.com/article/Gigabyte-Superb-550P-Power-Supply-Review/968/1

The 760TX V2 reviewed by the same source, as the 650TX V2 was never reviewed:
http://www.hardwaresecrets.com/article/Corsair-TX750-V2-Power-Supply-Review/1227

Actual loads in a comparable system:
http://www.hardocp.com/article/2012/07/25/gigabyte_geforce_gtx_670_oc_video_card_review/10

 

[Ahmed Adel]

You decide.

Your PSU reviewed by a competent source:
http://www.hardwaresecrets.com/article/Gigabyte-Superb-550P-Power-Supply-Review/968/1

The 760TX V2 reviewed by the same source, as the 650TX V2 was never reviewed:
http://www.hardwaresecrets.com/article/Corsair-TX750-V2-Power-Supply-Review/1227

Actual loads in a comparable system:
http://www.hardocp.com/article/2012/07/25/gigabyte_geforce_gtx_670_oc_video_card_review/10

@Proximon

I appreciate all your research concerning my thread, but I have some points to explain!

1. I live in IRAQ !! so grabbing those items ain't easy as it seems, I have to get them through a shipping company that would cost me 9$ per pound of weight. The PSU you suggested weights with shipping 7 pounds, that's 62$ just for shipping!! doesn't make sense!! while the GPU's shipping cost is 27$ !!

2. I've read that review regarding the PSU before, but from what I understood is that my PSU can handle up to 450watts no more. It passed the test

http://www.hardwaresecrets.com/article/Gigabyte-Superb-550P-Power-Supply-Review/968/7

However, I'm not quite familiar with the Efficiency and it's exact meaning here!

Please help me with this one.. at Test 5 it says AC Drawn Power is 625.0 W .. Efficiency is 71.7% .. and the total output of the PSU is 448.4 W. Now I understand that this is far from economic regarding the electricity bill and there're better PSUs with better Efficiency ( >= 80 ) !! but I can handle this issue at the moment and buy the better PSU later when I have better circumstances. But my question is:

@ Test5: It says total PSU output is 448.4 W .. and the link you've provided me ( if we assume I'm taking the OCed GPU ) says the maximum power consumption including the GPU and the whole system is 325watts .. so from what I understand, my PSU can handle that right?

 

[Proximon]

These guys carry some parts it seems
http://www.al-nabaa.com/it/index.php/brands/gigabyte/index.1.html

As long as your PSU hasn't been run extensively at very high temps, it may survive a few more years. As the review says, voltage regulation and ripple are good. That poor efficiency at max load translates into heat generated, so avoid max load.

 

[Ahmed Adel]

These guys carry some parts it seems
http://www.al-nabaa.com/it/index.php/brands/gigabyte/index.1.html

As long as your PSU hasn't been run extensively at very high temps, it may survive a few more years. As the review says, voltage regulation and ripple are good. That poor efficiency at max load translates into heat generated, so avoid max load.

Thanks man! you've been more than helpful.