Hello!
I'm thinking of getting my PC a major upgrade.
When I bought it, I just asked for a good gaming PC.
It was good for the first 1 ~ 1.5 years but it's too old for me now
My current PC specs:
Processor: Intel Core 2 Quad Q8200 2.33GHz (Socket LGA 775)
Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-G41M-ES2L
Memory: 2x2GB sticks DDR2
Graphics: nVidia Geforce 9500 GT 1GB
(And that's basically it... except for the HD/Optical Drives which don't need an upgrade.)
I don't really know how good this system is to be honest. Obviously there are much better machines out there.
Games usually suck... I barely manage to run new games on quarter ~ half the max settings.
Also, adobe programs which I tend to work with quite frequently, are sometimes slow...
Funny, sad fact: EVEN (!!)MINECRAFT(!!) would sometimes be buggy and laggy on my system. I find this sad. So sad...
At first I just wanted to replace the GPU... so I looked for a good one using a benchmark chart.
Then, I also checked my processor compared to others, and realized mines pretty lame compared to today's standards.
AND THEN, I figured out I'd need a new motherboard as well...
... AND THEN.... I thought about the RAM... normally when I use adobe programs, the system does get all slow and memory-loaded... so I thought to myself 'Why not upgrade the RAM to 8gb as well?'
Least but not last, is the PSU. Better hardware obviously requires a better PSU. Although I didn't check the watts on my PSU yet, I did look up some recommended ones according to the results I got in outervision's PSCalculator.
Here are the replacements I decided would fit me the best:
Processor: Intel i7-3770
Motherboard: Gigabyte Z77M-D3H
Graphic Card: Gigabyte nVidia GTX 660 OC 2G (GV-N660OC-2GD)
Memory: Corsair 1x8GB DDR3 1600Mhz Vengeance CL10-10-10-27
PSU: SeaSonic 620W M12II-620 Retail
Now, I'm new to picking computer parts. I did try my best matching them all together.
However, I still have some questions left...
1. As I said above, I already own 2 memory sticks of 2GB each (4GB total). It would probably be cheaper to just get another 2 sticks of 2GB OR get 1 of 4GB. My question is, is it really necessary for me to get a completely new 8GB one? I've read there could be problems with adding another stick to the current 2, but it depends on the hardware. So I just wanna know whether it is advisable for me to get a new one or just save the money...?
2. For some reason, while looking for a PSU in a local store, I found out that the Seasonic 620W PSU I chose is cheaper than a Seasonic 550W PSU (SeaSonic G-550 550W Gold Modular G-Series Active PFC 12CM Fan PSU). Is there any reason? 550W could pretty much work on my system according to the PSCalculator on OuterVision but I went with the 620W since it looked better and cheaper. There's probably something I'm missing.
3. My main usage is: Normal activity (Watching movies, listening to music, etc...), Web developing (Some adobe programs being used + standard programs which should user MUCH less power than the adobe ones), Writing school essays (Microsoft office) and obviously (or not) games. Mostly heavy ones... Aion is a good example. I sometimes use video programs for fun or encoding videos to watch on other devices... but nothing 'professional'. Is this hardware enough / more than enough for my needs?
4. Is there anything else I need to take in mind? Could there be any compatibility issues with the HDD/Optical Drive?
I know I could've just bought a completely new PC. BUT, I can't really be bothered with backing everything up and having to completely start from 0...
PLUS, the PC is 'just' 3 years old... It's parts are overally new and buying new ones would be just a waste.
Thanks in advance!!
P.S: Sorry for being a newbie. Expect some of my questions to be stupid...
I'm thinking of getting my PC a major upgrade.
When I bought it, I just asked for a good gaming PC.
It was good for the first 1 ~ 1.5 years but it's too old for me now
My current PC specs:
Processor: Intel Core 2 Quad Q8200 2.33GHz (Socket LGA 775)
Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-G41M-ES2L
Memory: 2x2GB sticks DDR2
Graphics: nVidia Geforce 9500 GT 1GB
(And that's basically it... except for the HD/Optical Drives which don't need an upgrade.)
I don't really know how good this system is to be honest. Obviously there are much better machines out there.
Games usually suck... I barely manage to run new games on quarter ~ half the max settings.
Also, adobe programs which I tend to work with quite frequently, are sometimes slow...
Funny, sad fact: EVEN (!!)MINECRAFT(!!) would sometimes be buggy and laggy on my system. I find this sad. So sad...
At first I just wanted to replace the GPU... so I looked for a good one using a benchmark chart.
Then, I also checked my processor compared to others, and realized mines pretty lame compared to today's standards.
AND THEN, I figured out I'd need a new motherboard as well...
... AND THEN.... I thought about the RAM... normally when I use adobe programs, the system does get all slow and memory-loaded... so I thought to myself 'Why not upgrade the RAM to 8gb as well?'
Least but not last, is the PSU. Better hardware obviously requires a better PSU. Although I didn't check the watts on my PSU yet, I did look up some recommended ones according to the results I got in outervision's PSCalculator.
Here are the replacements I decided would fit me the best:
Processor: Intel i7-3770
Motherboard: Gigabyte Z77M-D3H
Graphic Card: Gigabyte nVidia GTX 660 OC 2G (GV-N660OC-2GD)
Memory: Corsair 1x8GB DDR3 1600Mhz Vengeance CL10-10-10-27
PSU: SeaSonic 620W M12II-620 Retail
Now, I'm new to picking computer parts. I did try my best matching them all together.
However, I still have some questions left...
1. As I said above, I already own 2 memory sticks of 2GB each (4GB total). It would probably be cheaper to just get another 2 sticks of 2GB OR get 1 of 4GB. My question is, is it really necessary for me to get a completely new 8GB one? I've read there could be problems with adding another stick to the current 2, but it depends on the hardware. So I just wanna know whether it is advisable for me to get a new one or just save the money...?
2. For some reason, while looking for a PSU in a local store, I found out that the Seasonic 620W PSU I chose is cheaper than a Seasonic 550W PSU (SeaSonic G-550 550W Gold Modular G-Series Active PFC 12CM Fan PSU). Is there any reason? 550W could pretty much work on my system according to the PSCalculator on OuterVision but I went with the 620W since it looked better and cheaper. There's probably something I'm missing.
3. My main usage is: Normal activity (Watching movies, listening to music, etc...), Web developing (Some adobe programs being used + standard programs which should user MUCH less power than the adobe ones), Writing school essays (Microsoft office) and obviously (or not) games. Mostly heavy ones... Aion is a good example. I sometimes use video programs for fun or encoding videos to watch on other devices... but nothing 'professional'. Is this hardware enough / more than enough for my needs?
4. Is there anything else I need to take in mind? Could there be any compatibility issues with the HDD/Optical Drive?
I know I could've just bought a completely new PC. BUT, I can't really be bothered with backing everything up and having to completely start from 0...
PLUS, the PC is 'just' 3 years old... It's parts are overally new and buying new ones would be just a waste.
Thanks in advance!!
P.S: Sorry for being a newbie. Expect some of my questions to be stupid...
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