What's a good option for me, full computer upgrade.
31 replies, posted
Hey, I'm in need of some assistance for a new upgrade.
I have £800 I'm wanting to spend on a new computer, though I haven't totally been in the loop the past few months and need some help.
My current PC is:
AMD 6400 Athlon - 3.2GHz 90nm
a generic MSI motherboard
8800GTS 320mb
2GB 800mhz RAM
which I've had for almost 4 years now.
Now lately, I've been struggling running TF2 at full settings on a res of 1680x1050 (I get 15-30fps with medium/high settings with no AA or filtering), which has stopped me from buying the latest games since I know I wont be able to play on them at the settings I would at least enjoy them on.
I also have a 1080p TV on the second port on my graphics card that I watch HD films on. Though some times I can get an awful experience with it. For some reason UP I can play smoothly at 1080 (as long as I don't skip scenes and things), however there's a lot of films that have a terrible frame rate, making it unwatchable. I don't know whether to blame my CPU or GPU for this as I hear it entirely depends on the decoder.
I'll need a CPU/mobo/GPU/RAM.
I already have my HDDs which I'm going to reuse (as they're only 2 month old now) and a corsair 800D case which I'm using.
I'd like to have room for an overclock, and I do have a spare 240mm radiator (no piping/blocks/pumps/etc though) so that is another option which I would like to take though not needed.
As said, £800 is my [B]maximum[/B] amount I'm willing to spend. cheaper is always better though if you get me.
Also on a side question. Is there any nice mini ITX cases, they seem to be limited when I've looked. Just something with quality in mind as it will sit on top of my 800D case (1HDD slot, 1 drive bay, maybe 2 expansion slots if possible).
I think a new build would be a better option.
[QUOTE=ghostofme;19510874]I think a new build would be a better option.[/QUOTE]
What else would I need? I stated in my post about a new CPU/motherboard/GPU/RAM, The case doesn't need updating, neither do my hard drives or my bluray player. I don't need new monitors.
The only thing, that I can think of that I missed out on is a new PSU, perhaps a modular one with room for crossfire/SLi as they are getting a lot more efficient now.
Please elaborate on your post.
CPU/Motherboard/GPU/RAM/PSU is what you need.
Any preferred site? Other wise I'll be using Overclockers.CO.UK or eBuyer.com.
I've always used Overclockers.co.uk or CCLonline.co.uk for my orders, though i'll go for which ever is cheaper.
I recently ordered a nice build for myself thouh Ghost's build is nice too
i5 146.24
[url]http://www.ebuyer.com/product/172755[/url]
Asus Mobo 84.31
[url]http://www.ebuyer.com/product/179794[/url]
Kingston 4gb (2x2) RAM 78.01
[url]http://www.ebuyer.com/product/158711[/url]
Corsair 650W TX Series PSU 72.98
[url]http://www.ebuyer.com/product/135514[/url]
Powercolor HD 5850 1GB 240.00
[url]http://www.ebuyer.com/product/175714[/url]
Antec 300 45.97
[url]http://www.ebuyer.com/product/143854[/url]
Artic Cooling Freezer 7 Pro Rev 2 16.87
[url]http://www.ebuyer.com/product/176157[/url]
Asonic 8C Channel Soundcard 6.63
[url]http://www.ebuyer.com/product/98073[/url]
689.89
Of course you can drop that sound card and cooler and it would go cheaper and then you could upgrade to a 5870...
Thanks for the input.
I tried doing one myself and came up with this:
[img]http://img96.imageshack.us/img96/1850/9110.png[/img]
Is there much difference from the 5850 and 5870?
[QUOTE=JSharpe;19517666]Is there much difference from the 5850 and 5870?[/QUOTE]
decent amount but not worth the extra 50% or so
You don't need a 850W. Go ahead and step it down 300-200W to save yourself some money.
[QUOTE=ghostofme;19518945]You don't need a 850W. Go ahead and step it down 300-200W to save yourself some money.[/QUOTE]
650W sounds about right for that setup
[QUOTE=JSharpe;19517666]Is there much difference from the 5850 and 5870?[/QUOTE]
Not a huge difference, and technically you could overclock the 5850 to the standards of a 5870 and get extremely close performance results. Though I don't suggest doing it with an expensive GPU since it's pretty risky.
[QUOTE=Evilan;19522002]Not a huge difference, and technically you could overclock the 5850 to the standards of a 5870 and get extremely close performance results. Though I don't suggest doing it with an expensive GPU since it's pretty risky.[/QUOTE]
It's not risky. All you need is proper airflow in your case. 5000 series cards run very cool.
[QUOTE=AugustBurnsRed;19520491][QUOTE=ghostofme;19518945]You don't need a 850W. Go ahead and step it down 300-200W to save yourself some money.[/QUOTE]
650W sounds about right for that setup[/QUOTE]
I went with that 850 as it's only £10 more as the 750, special offer too.
Sorry ghostofme, a 200-300watt PSU will not do me any good use at all. I already have 4 1TB drives in raid and I really doubt a PSU of that amount will handle the whole system, not to mention future upgrades as I want to go crossfire when the prices come down for that little, affordable, extra boost.
I didn't mean to get a 200w or 300W PSU. I meant to step it down.
So 850W minus 300W would be a 550W PSU.
Sorry for not being clear on that.
I would get 550 MAX 600/650 if you are going to crossfire in the future and upgrade parts, etc
[QUOTE=derlicious;19528652]I would get 550 MAX 600/650 if you are going to crossfire in the future and upgrade parts, etc[/QUOTE]
Only 5870s and 5970 crossfire setups take over 550W. Any 5xxx series card that is 5850 crossfire and lower takes less than 500W.
Yes, but you don't want to be pushing PSUs to their limit. It doesn't cost much to get a bit of overhead.
I like sticking safe, i recently got a 600 on mine to be safe with upgrades
Yeah, I'm using a 650 watt PSU with two hard drives, a 9800 GT, and a Q6600. It's not necessary, but I like overhead and being able to upgrade is always nice.
Ditto. I'm on a 550W with a AMD 240, two HDDs and a 4670.
On a 750w with Phenom 9500, two HDDS and a 4870 1gb.
lol 750w is a bit to far ofand overkill, unless its some generic one called "Magic Power 1234 No more woorys"
I'm on a 550Watt Hyper PSU right now, though for some reason it can't handle my system of 6HDDs, drives, 88000gts, AMD 6400+. Probably because of the make like but has held fine for 4 years for £30
750 Watt on a 5870/Phenom II X4 955/1 HD here.
[QUOTE=JSharpe;19540660]I'm on a 550Watt Hyper PSU right now, though for some reason it can't handle my system of 6HDDs, drives, 88000gts, AMD 6400+. Probably because of the make like but has held fine for 4 years for £30[/QUOTE]
PSUs loose wattage over time. It's probably over the hill.
If you havent ordered yet, take Novatech into consideration, brilliant company, bought my build with them, -sometimes- have great deals and excellent customer service
Nah dont go shop brand stuff
[QUOTE=derlicious;19594754]Nah dont go shop brand stuff[/QUOTE]
what? have you even looked at their stock and website?
Yes... Even if they are a trusted site it doesnt mean they make good products, they are FINE but you should stick to antec thermal CM etc..
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