Advice on correct upgrade path

[stormofswords]

Hello,

I currently am using this setup for gaming and general computing:

G.SKILL Ripjaws Series 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1333
XFX HD-577A-ZHFC Radeon HD 5770 1GB 128-bit
CORSAIR CMPSU-450VX 450W
AMD Athlon II X4 620
ASUS M4A77TD Pro AM3 AMD 770 ATX AMD Motherboard
1TB Western Digital Caviar Black HDD
42" 1080p LCD TV.

I recently got a new job and over the next 3 months or so I will be upgrading to this setup:

http://pcpartpicker.com/p/j3w5

My plan is to upgrade in 3 stages over the next 3 months instead of saving up all the money and then upgrading. My plan is as follows:

1. Buy a gtx 670 this week and put it into my current rig.
2. Next month buy case/PSU/mobo/ram/cpu, take the HDD/GTX 670 out of my current rig, and continue using my 42" 1080p LCD TV.
3. With tax returns, buy new monitor, SSD, and new keyboard/mouse.

My question is whether this is the most appropriate upgrade path. I have enough money now to upgrade either to the GTX670 or upgrade my rig and keep the 5770 until next month. I understand that the GTX 670 is going to be considerably bottlenecked by my current rig, but I also know that if I steer away from CPU intensive games like Starcraft, I should be ok playing GPU intensive games like BF/Skyrim for the next month or so until I upgrade everything else. So does this sound like the best way to go or should I upgrade my rig first and then the GPU?

Thanks for the input!

 

[Zap]

A few thoughts.

You can try buying based on sales. For instance I picked up the RAM a couple weeks ago after the THIRD time it was on sale (usually around $36-40). The only things that need to be purchased together are the CPU+motherboard, since everything else can work with either old or new parts. This also goes for the graphics card and SSD. Heck, even the CPU cooler can work, though in this instance it is a hassle that I wouldn't put myself through. Other things commonly on sale are the graphics card and the SSD.

Why can't you continue to use your existing PSU? It is sufficient for your proposed rig.

Don't "marry" yourself to exact parts because not only can deals change, but so can availability. For instance one brand/model GTX 670 pretty much performs like any other, within a percentage point or two depending on factory overclock. Besides graphics card, SSD is also something worth considering alternatives. For instance the Crucial M4 is considered to be one of the oldest and slowest of the "not crappy" SATA 6G SSDs. However, you probably won't notice much difference in performance between it and the Samsung 830 (which will be superseded by the Samsung 840 and 840 Pro really soon), but you may notice a big price difference.

Speaking of PSUs and SSDs, how about keeping your existing PSU and using the $90 saved on the SSD? That would put your SSD budget at $200, enough to buy a 256GB model. Heck, the Samsung 830 256GB was recently at $168 and the Crucial M4 256GB at $150 on hot deals. Can't go wrong with either of those. Don't forget Intel 330 240GB, which was around $140.

 

[stormofswords]

A few thoughts.

You can try buying based on sales. For instance I picked up the RAM a couple weeks ago after the THIRD time it was on sale (usually around $36-40). The only things that need to be purchased together are the CPU+motherboard, since everything else can work with either old or new parts. This also goes for the graphics card and SSD. Heck, even the CPU cooler can work, though in this instance it is a hassle that I wouldn't put myself through. Other things commonly on sale are the graphics card and the SSD.

Why can't you continue to use your existing PSU? It is sufficient for your proposed rig.

Don't "marry" yourself to exact parts because not only can deals change, but so can availability. For instance one brand/model GTX 670 pretty much performs like any other, within a percentage point or two depending on factory overclock. Besides graphics card, SSD is also something worth considering alternatives. For instance the Crucial M4 is considered to be one of the oldest and slowest of the "not crappy" SATA 6G SSDs. However, you probably won't notice much difference in performance between it and the Samsung 830 (which will be superseded by the Samsung 840 and 840 Pro really soon), but you may notice a big price difference.

Speaking of PSUs and SSDs, how about keeping your existing PSU and using the $90 saved on the SSD? That would put your SSD budget at $200, enough to buy a 256GB model. Heck, the Samsung 830 256GB was recently at $168 and the Crucial M4 256GB at $150 on hot deals. Can't go wrong with either of those. Don't forget Intel 330 240GB, which was around $140.

I'm not particularly married to the parts on my list. I use them more as a place holder. For example, I know I want a 128GB SSD because it fits in my budget, but the particular brand I buy when I pull the trigger on this build will depend on what is on sale. However, your suggestions on the SSD are helpful. Perhaps I can expand my budget to make room for a 256GB.

I'm purchasing a 750 watt PSU because I intend on buying an additional 670 for SLI. I will probably do this after the 7xx series is released and the 670 sees a price drop. That 1440p monitor requires a lot of horsepower!

Speaking of monitors, I may wait for a Catleap 120hz that will be coming up for sale soon over on 120hz.net, or an Overload OC unit. I also haven't completely ruled out a nice 1080P 120hz monitor.

Finally, although I am open to other 670s, I particularly like that Galaxy model for two reasons. 1st, it is actually one of the cheaper models out there right now. In addition to the competitive price, it comes equipped with a factory overclock and the stock 680 PCB/cooler, which is significantly better than the stock one on the 670.








So if my primary goal is immediate increase in game performance, do you recommend going with the 670 and building my new rig next month or building my new rig now and sticking with the 5770 for another month?

 

[mfenn]

I should be ok playing GPU intensive games like BF/Skyrim for the next month or so until I upgrade everything else.

While there are certainly lots of games out there that are mostly GPU intensive, these two are definitely not in that category. BF3 and Skyrim are (in)famous for their heavy CPU requirements.

Interesting enough, the other game you picked, Starcraft II, is definitely CPU intensive, but it usually runs fast enough on a relatively modern CPU and GPU combo so that the difference is largely academic.

 

[mfenn]

I'm purchasing a 750 watt PSU because I intend on buying an additional 670 for SLI. I will probably do this after the 7xx series is released and the 670 sees a price drop. That 1440p monitor requires a lot of horsepower!

That pretty much never happens, at least soon enough to make a difference. Newegg certainly isn't going to lose money on the stock that they bought, and the board maker doesn't run with enough profit margins to be able to give Newegg a break on it. The only person with enough cash on hand to do any sort of discounting is Nvidia, but why would they want to help anybody sell their old chips vs. the ones ones?

In the absence of somebody being willing to take a loss via aggressive discounting, simple supply and demand controls the price. In this case, there is no more supply, and there is some demand from people who are trying to upgrade to SLI.

Don't be that person who gets stuck paying way more that the GPU is worth. If you want SLI, get it at the same time you get your SLI capable mobo and PSU. Otherwise, don't bother.

Finally, although I am open to other 670s, I particularly like that Galaxy model for two reasons. 1st, it is actually one of the cheaper models out there right now. In addition to the competitive price, it comes equipped with a factory overclock and the stock 680 PCB/cooler, which is significantly better than the stock one on the 670.

The Galaxy is still a blower cooler, even if it is the GTX 680 blower. That means that it has to work harder (and louder) than a multi-fan card like this Gigabyte in order to achieve the same level of cooling performance. Blowers are necessary in OEM cases with poor airflow, but aren't needed in cases with good airflow.

So if my primary goal is immediate increase in game performance, do you recommend going with the 670 and building my new rig next month or building my new rig now and sticking with the 5770 for another month?

You have a pretty well balanced system right now, which means that upgrading a single component won't really give you a ton of improvement in games that have balanced requirements like the three you mentioned above. I'd honestly just save up enough money to buy it all at once so that you don't get tied to a particular part (unless you see an insane deal come along).