Rig Upgrade Help

[hasswell]

I need your help for my rig upgrade

my current specs

CPU - AMD Athlon x2 240
MB - ASUS M2N68-AM SE2
VideoCard - Nvidia Geforce GT 220
RAM - 2GB

im planning to buy a new motherboard that has hdmi. im going to use this for gaming (Dota 2, 2k and Diablo3) and sometimes Photoshop and corel. planning also for future updgrades. thanks

 

[Videographer]

Hi

What is your budget?
Will you be overclocking?
What resolution are you gaming at?
Which components are you looking to replace (All the ones listed?)

Also, you say that you want a motherboard with HDMI? as you will be gaming you will want a discrete graphics card so it will not matter if this port is on the motherboard - you can add it with your graphics card

 

[hasswell]

Will you be overclocking? no
What resolution are you gaming at? i dont know.. but i have 22" LCD monitor and a 39" LED tv.. either of the 2 im going use...
Which components are you looking to replace? im planning to replace it one by one
1st is the motherboard and ram ($150/$85)
2nd is GPU (if its compatible with my current CPU) ($250)
3rd is CPU(fx series) or cpu coolers or fans ($200)
i guess im going all in for the GPU. i want the best possible GPU for this rig

thanks

 

[The Original Agrajag]

G'day hasswell!

On your 22" your native res is most likely 1920x1080.
If you are set on replacing your components piecemeal which can have some downsides then I would change the order a little.

1st: Grab your FX 6300 or 8320 and a compatible mid-range mobo (Include 8gb DDR3 ram)
2nd: consider a modest OC (you don't have to go crazy to get improved cpu/mobo performance and modern mobos even have OC wizards to assist you).
3rd: Save up for a decent GPU like you said (Non-reference GTX 670, 770 or radeon r9 270,280)
4th: Don't skimp on the PSU!!!!!!! (500 watts min from a good brand like EVGA or Corsair etc)

Good luck with your build!!

 

[Videographer]

Ok, you've made this much easier thanks!
This is an old machine, personally having just been upgrading my own AM3 machine, I would ditch it all and go for an i5 3rd or 4th gen, but I will answer your question. When I was upgrading my own machine I went for second hand motherboard and graphics as they are widely available at a good price - you'd get more bang for buck with such old components but the choice is yours.

Replace the motherboard with an Asus M5A series one, either the M5A97, M5A99 or if you need a micro ATX one then M5A-78L-M, there are a few varients of each of them, have a look which ones you like best. My favourite on a low budget for micro atx is the ASUS M5A-78L-M again of which there are a few with various features. I wouldn't go all out as the top boards only have things like better power for overclocking and Sli/crossfire which you dont need.

Spend what you like on RAM, I used 16GB in my board but you might be better saving money and just getting 8GB for gaming.

For the GPU then just get the top one for your budget, new that would be either a GTX760 or a R280 card, look for at least 2gb of RAM but more isnt too important for this build.

For a CPU I would get the FX6300 or FX8350 depending on budget (Im in the UK so your prices may vary to mine). If you just want a cooler the stock ones are fine, if you want quieter then the cooler master TX3 Evo and 212 EVO are both good value and perform well. The 8350 is the best for this socket (there are some silly 9xxx ones but avoid them - they are power hungry and need special motherboards) while the 6300 represents best value for money with a lower TDP

I do think though you'd be better saving up the full $500 and building a rig based on an intel h77/h87/h97 board and an i5 CPU

 

[Videographer]

Opps, I'll add, you will probably need a new PSU to power that FX CPU and GPU

 

[hasswell]

i guess i need to build a new rig

im thinking buy this

CPU AMD FX-6300 3.5Ghz
MB Gigabyte 990FXA UD3 or Gigabyte 990FX R2.0
GPU MSI GTX 760 Twin Frozr 2gb/256bit ddr5
RAM 8gb
PSU Corsair 500 watts

 

[Videographer]

That looks nice to me, just make sure those boards fit your case

 

[The Original Agrajag]

Nice choices says the fella agreeing with himself...

With that CPU it would be a really good idea to spend $20-30 on a non-stock cpu cooler. Cheap method of increasing performance and lifespan of your pc. 212 EVO is the one most people recommend.

 

[hasswell]

i dont think i can build a $500 intel i5. that's why im going with amd. its a lot cheaper....

but i really want a intel gaming rig

 

[hasswell]

BTW thank you all.. this is a big help for building/upgrading my rig

 

[The Original Agrajag]

At the risk of starting a fanboy/fangirl war over CPU manufacturers... There are advantages to both AMD and Intel. Intel overclocks with the very best of them but has design elements which reward the more "mainstream" gamer/pc user. AMD's advantages are, in some ways, more geared towards the budget conscious builder. However AMD really comes into their own when handled by an experienced overclock-er with knowledge of liquid cooling and the budget/time to tweak the system to their specific needs.

That being said the FX 6300 lives in a unique sweet spot that can be taken advantage of by the budget conscious and with a small OC can give you a pretty sweet CPU with some spare cash for a nice 760 or 270.

Good luck with your build!