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Hardware Upgrade - Need some advice.


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Hey there!, I'm planning to upgrade the hardware to my desktop PC, I want to upgrade just the GPU but my CPU is too old and it will be a bottleneck so I'll have to buy a new one, these are my current specs:

CPU

Intel Core i3 2100 @ 3.10GHz 56 °C

Sandy Bridge 32nm Technology

RAM

12,0GB Dual-Channel DDR3 @ 532MHz (7-7-7-18)

Motherboard

ASRock H61M-HVS (Socket 1155)

Graphics

1024MB NVIDIA GeForce 9400 GT (XFX Pine Group)

For the CPU I'm between these two:

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00CO8TBQ0/ref=wl_it_dp_o_pC_nS_ttl?_encoding=UTF8&colid=2M1IJJOHVJPDC&coliid=I1OX2JLQEO9LZP

Amazon.com: Intel Core i7-4790K Processor (8M Cache, up to 4.40 GHz) (BX80646I74790K): Computers & Accessories

But the i7-4790K needs a new motherboard and I'm not sure if it's worth 27$ more and a new motherboard for that extra performance, I don't want to spend that much on the CPU.

As for the GPU I wanted to buy this one:

Amazon.com: EVGA GeForce GTX 750Ti Superclock w/G-SYNC Support 2GB GDDR5 128bit, Dual-Link DVI-I, HDMI, DP 1.2 Graphics Card (02G-P4-3753-KR): Computers & Accessories

But it seems "cheap" and with not enough power, also doesn't support SLI to upgrade in the future.

So I think I'll go for this one:

Amazon.com: EVGA GeForce GTX760 SuperClocked w/EVGA ACX Cooler 2GB GDDR5 256bit, Dual-Link DVI-I, DVI-D, HDMI,DP, SLI Ready Graphics Card (02G-P4-2765-KR) Graphics Cards 02G-P4-2765-KR: Computers & Accessories

It supports up to 3-way SLI.

What do you guys think? :59:

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For the CPU I'm between these two:

Amazon.com: Intel Core i7-4790K Processor (8M Cache, up to 4.40 GHz) (BX80646I74790K): Computers & Accessories

Amazon.com: Intel Core i7-4790K Processor (8M Cache, up to 4.40 GHz) (BX80646I74790K): Computers & Accessories

But the i7-4790K needs a new motherboard and I'm not sure if it's worth 27$ more and a new motherboard for that extra performance, I don't want to spend that much on the CPU.

:confused: Did you mean an i7-2600K instead of an i7-4790K?

GPU choice :):

If you go for one of the two options that you have listed above, then definitely take the GTX760, because it's much more powerful than a GTX750Ti and has as mentioned SLI support.

On the other maybe you have the time to wait a little bit longer, it's rumored that AMD is unleashing the "new" Tonga-based R9 285 by the end of August, this may lead to price adjustments for both manufacturers, Nvidia and AMD. ;)

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Oh I paste the same link twice, these two are the correct ones:

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00CO8TBQ0/ref=wl_it_dp_o_pC_nS_ttl?_encoding=UTF8&colid=2M1IJJOHVJPDC&coliid=I1OX2JLQEO9LZP

Amazon.com: Intel Core i7-4790K Processor (8M Cache, up to 4.40 GHz) (BX80646I74790K): Computers & Accessories

I've never used AMD CPU's or GPU's, also I want to use the Shadow Play feature from NVIDIA.

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Oh I paste the same link twice, these two are the correct ones:

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00CO8TBQ0/ref=wl_it_dp_o_pC_nS_ttl?_encoding=UTF8&colid=2M1IJJOHVJPDC&coliid=I1OX2JLQEO9LZP

Amazon.com: Intel Core i7-4790K Processor (8M Cache, up to 4.40 GHz) (BX80646I74790K): Computers & Accessories

I've never used AMD CPU's or GPU's, also I want to use the Shadow Play feature from NVIDIA.

o.O :confused: Okay... :confused::confused: In this case you'll have to buy a new motherboard anyway, because neither the i7-4770K nor the i7-4790K will work on a SandyBridge motherboard.

Take the i7-4790K, it has better thermal compound and (possibly) better overclocking results.

ShadowPlay...:hopelessness:...okay, the choice is up to you :encouragement:;)...I have to say, Nvidia's marketing department has struck again :rolleyes::hopelessness:...

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Awwwww, any suggestion for the motherboard? any cheap mobo it's OK for me, I mean, I don't see too much difference in a 30$ motherboard and another one for 200$.

Of course ;)

I don't know how much money you want to spend overall for your CPU, GPU and motherboard upgrade, so I'll list some options below: :D

Top class:

EVGA Z97 Classified

Asus Maximus VII Formula

MSI Z97 Gaming 9 AC

MSI Z97 XPowerAC

Generously equipped motherboards with special features like SataExpress (Asus Maximus VII Formula), AC Wifi (both MSI boards and Asus Maximus VII Formula), Dual Ethernet (EVGA Z97 Classified). Ready for Quad-SLI/Crossfire setups. Possibly delivering the best CPU overclocking capabilities. They're the flagships so they're quite expensive.

Good Price/Performance class:

EVGA Z97 FTW

Asus Maximus VII Hero

MSI Z97 Gaming 7

I think one can say these are motherboards optimized for gaming oriented people. These motherboards still offer a lot of features, like mSata, SLI/Crossfire (2GPUs), nice onboard audio,...

other options:

Asus Sabertooth Z97 Mark2

Asus Z97 Pro WifiAC

Asus Z97-A

MSI Z97 MPower

MSI Z97 Gaming 5

These are some options that I can recommend, especially if you buy an i7-4790K processor. ;) Every motherboard has its advantages and disadvantages compared to another motherboard. In the end the decision is yours. Hope I helped you a bit and feel free to ask further questions. :encouragement:

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Hehe :D

Nice, don’t forget to give us an update once you upgraded your rig. ;)

Don’t forget to buy an appropriate CPU cooling solution for the i7-4790K :encouragement:

I would recommend a closed waterloop cooler like Corsair H-series, CoolerMaster Nepton-series or a good air cooler like the Noctua NH-D15,... ;)

Which case and powersupply do you have? :confused:

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Maybe I can be a bit more specific which cooler you could buy, that's why I asked you for the case model. ;D Can you be a bit more specific or maybe you can attach a picture of your current setup? :joyous:

The powersupply should be sufficient. :) But...it has only one 8pin EPS connector (CPU power) and two 6+2pin PCIe connectors...depending on which motherboard you choose it may be required to have two EPS connectors (Asus Maximus VII Formula for example 8+4pin EPS)...the EVGA GTX760 Superclocked needs 8+6pin PCIe connection, this means that if you're going to add a second GPU you will need another powersupply or you use your Molex to PCIe connectors (which are usually in the GPU box)...keep that in mind :encouragement:

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The case is just a generic case, I don't want to spend too much more than 470$, I just want to play FFXIV at constant 60fps, I'm not planing to overclock the CPU or the GPU either.

It's a hard decicion because seems that I have to buy a new motherboard compatible with the latest socket, so I can upgrade it later.

About the power supply, I'm not sure if you mean that I can't use it with GTX 760 SLI if I don't choose the correct motherboard?, because as you say I can use 8+6pin for one and Molex to PCIe connector for the other, I've never used a motherboard that uses any extra connectors for power.

Which motherboard should I choose if I want to keep my current power supply and use GTX 760 SLI? (the cheapest one).

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The case is just a generic case, I don't want to spend too much more than 470$, I just want to play FFXIV at constant 60fps, I'm not planing to overclock the CPU or the GPU either.

It's a hard decicion because seems that I have to buy a new motherboard compatible with the latest socket, so I can upgrade it later.

About the power supply, I'm not sure if you mean that I can't use it with GTX 760 SLI if I don't choose the correct motherboard?, because as you say I can use 8+6pin for one and Molex to PCIe connector for the other, I've never used a motherboard that uses any extra connectors for power.

Which motherboard should I choose if I want to keep my current power supply and use GTX 760 SLI? (the cheapest one).

It's possible to have SLI with your current powersupply, but you will have to use one of these MolexTo8pin or MolexTo6pin adapters, these are usually contained with the graphicscard.

470$ overall...hmmm...

I would buy an Intel i5-4590K instead of an i7-4790K, further I would choose the Asus Maximus VII Hero and GPU-wise I would take the EVGA GTX760 Superclocked, which you have listed.

This calculates to a total of about 665$, including a cooler like the Noctua NH-D15 or the Corsair H80i, we have an overall total of ~760$

It's your money, your decision... ;)

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  • 2 months later...

Has been a while since I open this thread but I've decided to wait and get better components, I made the purchase some days ago but it may take up to one month to arrive (international shipment).

CPU: Intel Core i7-4790K 4.0GHz Quad-Core Processor [$360.58]

CPU Cooler: Corsair H110 94.0 CFM Liquid CPU Cooler [$119.08]

Motherboard: Asus MAXIMUS VII HERO ATX LGA1150 Motherboard [$219.34]

SSD: OCZ Vertex 460 120GB 2.5" Solid State Drive [$85.28]

GPU: EVGA GeForce GTX 970 4GB Video Card [$374.49]

Case: Corsair C70 Military Green (Green) ATX Mid Tower Case [$139.09]

Case Fans: Corsair Air Series AF120 Performance Edition (2-Pack) 63.5 CFM 120mm Fans [$34.97]

Thermal Compound: Arctic Silver 5 Thermal Compound 3.5 Grams [$8.33]

[Excluding Mouse, Keyboard and Headsets]

Also these parts that I already have:

PSU: Corsair CX 600W 80+ Bronze Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply

HDD: 1TB Hitachi Hard Drive

RAM1: Corsair Vengeance 8GB (1 x 8GB) DDR3-1600 Memory

RAm2: Unknown 4GB Memmory :D

As far as I know with this config I can play games like Battlefield 4 at 1080p in Ultra quality at 60-80fps, which is enough, and for now I just want to play mostly Final Fantasy XIV: ARR at Maximum on 1680x1050p but I may upgrade my screen to a 1080p later.

I've decided to spend a lot (maybe too much) in cooling because is VERY hot where I live and right now my air conditioner is broken so... more heat :[.

Thanks again for you help Conker, you where really helpfull, I'll update this thread again when I get the parts and build the PC ;).

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  • 3 weeks later...
  • 5 months later...
  • 3 months later...

If all you want is gaming, you definitely don't need the 4790, it's overkill.

Anything above a 4440 (!!!) has returns diminishing VERY rapidly for the $$$ spent.

I'd go for a Broadwell (5th gen) if I can get a good deal, and get an i7 with overclockable headroom.

The motherboard upgrade would be also important for overclocking potential, don't skimp on that.

Get an all-in-one liquid closed cooling solution for your CPU alone and sail away. From that, 760 would be the very minimum I'd go for a GPU.

Currently I'd consider the new Radeon video cards with HBM. I am very curious as to what kind of power that huge memory bandwidth can unleash, it might be a game changer.

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Well the 4790k is a little more future proof than the 4770k and has a little better voltage management which can be beneficial for overclocking, but your cpu will be over kill if your really looking at getting a 750ti your better off getting a gtx 960 for $172 from Newegg MSI GTX 960 2GD5T OC GeForce GTX 960 2GB 128-Bit GDDR5 HDCP Ready SLI Support ATX Video Card - Newegg.com

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4th Gen will be plenty like jtoman said the 4790 will be plenty for just gaming and putzing around the interwebs. After that you get into 6 core with hyperthreading and virtualization support all stuff that's unneeded for a 95% gaming rig.

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  • 3 weeks later...
Hey there!, I'm planning to upgrade the hardware to my desktop PC, I want to upgrade just the GPU but my CPU is too old and it will be a bottleneck so I'll have to buy a new one, these are my current specs:

CPU

Intel Core i3 2100 @ 3.10GHz 56 °C

Sandy Bridge 32nm Technology

RAM

12,0GB Dual-Channel DDR3 @ 532MHz (7-7-7-18)

Motherboard

ASRock H61M-HVS (Socket 1155)

Graphics

1024MB NVIDIA GeForce 9400 GT (XFX Pine Group)

For the CPU I'm between these two:

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00CO8TBQ0/ref=wl_it_dp_o_pC_nS_ttl?_encoding=UTF8&colid=2M1IJJOHVJPDC&coliid=I1OX2JLQEO9LZP

Amazon.com: Intel Core i7-4790K Processor (8M Cache, up to 4.40 GHz) (BX80646I74790K): Computers & Accessories

But the i7-4790K needs a new motherboard and I'm not sure if it's worth 27$ more and a new motherboard for that extra performance, I don't want to spend that much on the CPU.

As for the GPU I wanted to buy this one:

Amazon.com: EVGA GeForce GTX 750Ti Superclock w/G-SYNC Support 2GB GDDR5 128bit, Dual-Link DVI-I, HDMI, DP 1.2 Graphics Card (02G-P4-3753-KR): Computers & Accessories

But it seems "cheap" and with not enough power, also doesn't support SLI to upgrade in the future.

So I think I'll go for this one:

Amazon.com: EVGA GeForce GTX760 SuperClocked w/EVGA ACX Cooler 2GB GDDR5 256bit, Dual-Link DVI-I, DVI-D, HDMI,DP, SLI Ready Graphics Card (02G-P4-2765-KR) Graphics Cards 02G-P4-2765-KR: Computers & Accessories

It supports up to 3-way SLI.

What do you guys think? :59:

go buy a new graphic card? 980Ti maybe HAHAHA

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At this point just build a new system. Make something budget a i5 quad core will do more then what you need it to do. Pick up a quality asus or gigabyte motherboard, slap in 16GB ram, and a 960 or 970GTX and you are looking at a great sub $800 build.

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  • 7 months later...

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