Time To Upgrade, Part 2: Picking The Parts To Replace

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After looking at whether or not it makes sense to replace a PC built back in 2007 with a more modern machine, we decided to examine three component upgrade options—graphics, storage, and the motherboard/CPU/RAM platform—separately.

Test Systems And Benchmarks

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System HardwareHeader Cell - Column 1
HardwareDetails
Performance Benchmarks
Base System
Motherboard (Socket LGA 775)MSI P35 Platinum (Rev. 1.0), Chipset: Intel P35, BIOS: 1.C (30/12/2009)
CPU IntelIntel Core 2 Extreme QX6700 (65 nm, 2.66 GHz, 8 MB L2 Cache, TDP 130 W)
RAM DDR2 (dual)4 x 1 GB DDR2-800 (Corsair CM2C1024-6400C4 5-5-5-15)
GraphicsZotac GeForce 8800 GTS, GPU: G80, Graphics RAM: 320 MB GDDR3 (900 MHz), Stream Processors: 96
Hard DriveWestern Digital Raptor, 150 GB (WD1500ADFD), 10 000 RPM, SATA 3Gb/s, 16 MB Cache
Power SupplyPC Power & Cooling, Silencer 750EPS12V 750 W
Upgrades
Upgrade I: Platform
Motherboard (Socket LGA 1156)MSI P55A Fuzion (Rev. 1.0), Chipset: Intel P55, BIOS: 1.0 (07/12/2010)
CPU IntelIntel Core i7-870 (45 nm, 2.93 GHz, 4 x 256 KB L2 and 8 MB L3 Cache, TDP 95 W, Rev. B1)
RAM DDR3 (dual)2 x 2 GB DDR-1333 (OCZ3G2000LV4GK)
Upgrade II: Graphics
Graphics CardMSI R5870 Lightning TwinFrozr II, GPU: Cypress (900 MHz), Graphics RAM: 1024 MB GDDR5 (2400 MHz), Stream Processors: 1600
Upgrade III: Hard Drive/SSD
SSDG.Skill Phoenix 100 GB SSD (FM-25S2S-100GBP1), SandForce SF-1200, SATA 3 Gb/s
System Software & Drivers
Operating SystemWindows 7 Ultimate x64 Updated on 2010-07-29
Drivers and Settings
ATI Radeon DriverATI Catalyst 10.7 Suite for Windows 7
Nvidia GeForce DriverGeForce Driver Release 256 258.96
Intel Chipset DriversChipset Installation Utility Ver. 9.1.1.1025
Intel Storage DriversMatrix Storage Drivers Ver. 8.​9.​0.​1023
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3D Games Benchmarks and Settings
BenchmarkDetails
Grand Theft Auto IVVersion: 1.0.3 Video Mode: - 1680x1050, - Aspect Ratio: Auto, - All options: Low, - View Distance: 10, - Detail Distance: 100, - Vehicle Density: 100, - Shadow Density: 16, - Definition: On, - Vsync: Off, In-game Benchmark
Left 4 DeadVersion: 1.0.0.5 Video Mode: 1680x1050 Game Settings - Anti Aliasing: None - Filtering: Trilinear - Wait for vertical sync: Disabled - Shader Detail: Medium - Effect Detail: Medium - Model/Texture Detail: Medium Demo: THG Demo 1
Left 4 Dead High Qualtity SettingsVersion: 1.0.0.5 Video Mode: 1680x1050 Game Settings - Anti Aliasing: 8x - Filtering: Anisotropic 16x - Wait for vertical sync: Disabled - Shader Detail: Very High - Effect Detail: High - Model/Texture Detail: High Demo: THG Demo 1
Left 4 Dead 2Version: 1.0.0.5 Video Mode: 1680x1050 Game Settings - Anti Aliasing: 4x MSAA - Filtering: Anisotropic 8x - Wait for vertical sync: Disabled - Shader Detail: High - Effect Detail: High - Model/Texture Detail: High Demo: THG Demo 1
Audio Benchmarks and Settings
BenchmarkDetails
iTunesVersion: 9.0.3.15 Audio CD ("Terminator II" SE), 53 min. Convert to AAC audio format
Lame MP3Version 3.98.3 Audio CD "Terminator II SE", 53 min. Convert WAV to MP3 audio format Command: -b 160 --nores (160 Kbps)
Video Benchmarks and Settings
BenchmarkDetails
HandBrake CLIVersion: 0.94 Video: Big Buck Bunny (720x480, 23.972 frames) 5 Min. Audio: Dolby Digital, 48000 Hz, 6-Channel, English to Video: AVC1 Audio1: AC3 Audio2: AAC (High Profile)
MainConcept Reference v2Version: 2.0.0.1555 MPEG-2 to H.264 MainConcept H.264/AVC Codec 28 sec. HDTV 1920x1080 (MPEG-2) Audio: MPEG-2 (44.1 kHz, 2-Channel, 16-Bit, 224 Kbps) Codec: H.264 Pro Mode: PAL 50i (25 FPS) Profile: H.264 BD HDMV
Application Benchmarks and Settings
BenchmarkDetails
7-ZipVersion 9.1 beta LZMA2 Syntax "a -t7z -r -m0=LZMA2 -mx=5" Benchmark: 2010-THG-Workload
WinRARVersion 3.92 RAR Syntax "winrar a -r -m3" Benchmark: 2010-THG-Workload
WinZip 14Version 14.0 Pro (8652) WinZIP Commandline Version 3 ZIPX Syntax "-a -ez -p -r" Benchmark: 2010-THG-Workload
Autodesk 3ds Max 2010Version: 10 x64 Rendering Space Flyby Mentalray (SPECapc_3dsmax9) Frame: 248 Resolution: 1440 x 1080
CineBench 11.5Version 11.5 Build CB25720DEMO CPU Test single- and multi-threaded
Adobe Photoshop CS 4 (64-Bit)Version: 11 Filtering a 16 MB TIF (15000x7266) Filters: Radial Blur (Amount: 10; Method: zoom; Quality: good) Shape Blur (Radius: 46 px; custom shape: Trademark sysmbol) Median (Radius: 1px) Polar Coordinates (Rectangular to Polar)
Adobe Acrobat 9 ProfessionalVersion: 9.0.0 (Extended) == Printing Preferenced Menu == Default Settings: Standard == Adobe PDF Security - Edit Menu == Encrypt all documents (128-bit RC4) Open Password: 123 Permissions Password: 321
Microsoft PowerPoint 2007Version: 2007 SP2 PPT to PDF Powerpoint Document (115 Pages) Adobe PDF-Printer
FritzFritz Chess Benchmark Version 4.3.2
Synthetic Benchmarks and Settings
BenchmarkDetails
3DMark VantageVersion: 1.02 Patch 1901 Options: Performance Graphics Test 1 Graphics Test 2 CPU Test 1 CPU Test 2
PCMark VantageVersion: 1.0.2.0 Patch 1901 PCMark Benchmark Memories Benchmark
SYSmark 2007 PreviewVersion 1.05
SiSoftware Sandra 2010Version: 2010.1.16.10 Processor Arithmetic, Cryptography, Memory Bandwith