Deciding on what items to upgrade

[ssmith232]

First off, this computer was built a little while back. I am trying to determine what upgrades would be best to increase gaming performance. Ex. BF3, Guild Wars 2, and Skyrim. Also, I run two 23" Samsung Monitors 1920x1080.

Current Setup:

Antec 1200 case
Intel I5-2500K - stock
Mobo: ASUS P8Z68-V LX
Corsair Vengeance CMZ8GX3M2A1600C9
EVGA 560 Ti 448 - stock
WD 500GB / OCZ 250GB SSD
Cooler Master 650W PS

My upgrade thoughts:

New graphics card: gtx680 maybe
Additional Memory: another 8gb
Should I purchase a cooler and OC the CPU?

I would like to stay under 800.00 on total upgrades. Thank you all in advance for the help.

SS

 

[Durvelle27]

Hyper 212 + EVO
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16835103099

Sapphire HD 7970 OC
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16814102982

Corsair Vengeance 8GB(2x4GB)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16820233144

$545 Total

 

[ssmith232]

You think 7970 would be better than the 680? I have been growing more partial to nVidia over the last few years.

 

[Durvelle27]

a OCed HD 7970 would beat a GTX 680 ? and if you want nvidia then a GTX 670 would be a way better buy than a GTX 680 as it is only about 7% slower so when oced it will beat an GTX 680

 

[ssmith232]

Would it be worth gettin the larger 4gb card on the 670 from EVGA or just pick up the 2gb in your opinion?

 

[Durvelle27]

this is the best GTX 670 with great cooling

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16814125423

but if run multiple monitors a HD 7970 would be a way better buy ?

 

[krnmastersgt]

I really don't get why you do these comparisons Durvelle.

Yes a high enough OC on a 670 will have it beat out a STOCK 680, but if you OC the 680 then the 670 can't match/keep up. Don't compare the performance of a component based on you HAVING to OC it and then not do the same comparison for the rival.

That aside, the EVO would be a good cooler to grab for a moderate overclock (up to around 4.4~4.5), anything above that would probably require a stronger cooler.

If you already have 8 GB of RAM, and primarily use this system to game, then just stick to the 8 GB you have, you won't benefit from 16 GB of RAM. Also not sure why you'd suggest those gaudy Vengence units Durvelle, the heatspreaders are so tall it wouldn't fit with the EVO installed and they don't even realistically give any more performance than the $40 G.SKILL set.

As for the video card, I was going to link the $310 7950 3GB however they seem to have sold out on Newegg, the 7870's are reaching a decent price point and while not the strongest cards around they are still pretty potent. If you're unsatisfied with the performance of your 560 Ti I'd suggest this Gigabyte GTX 670 for $400. The 7970 and the 680 are slightly more powerful but not enough to really justify the cost increase unless you game beyond 1920x1080, the 670 should just about max out everything out today.

 

[krnmastersgt]

Actually I'm confused, do you game on both 23" at the same time or do you just have 2 set-up and only game on 1? If you're gaming on both the effective resolution for your set-up is actually 3840x1080 and that'd probably require an SLI or CF configuration for fully maxing out the titles you listed (mainly BF3).

If you're fine with turning down settings but want more power than the 560 Ti, I stand by the 670.

 

[ssmith232]

Sorry, I have been out of system building for a while. What's the benefit or the 7970's with two screens?

 

[ssmith232]

I only game on one screen. The other is for browsing the web and mumble... Etc.

 

[Durvelle27]

I really don't get why you do these comparisons Durvelle.

Yes a high enough OC on a 670 will have it beat out a STOCK 680, but if you OC the 680 then the 670 can't match/keep up. Don't compare the performance of a component based on you HAVING to OC it and then not do the same comparison for the rival.

That aside, the EVO would be a good cooler to grab for a moderate overclock (up to around 4.4~4.5), anything above that would probably require a stronger cooler.

If you already have 8 GB of RAM, and primarily use this system to game, then just stick to the 8 GB you have, you won't benefit from 16 GB of RAM. Also not sure why you'd suggest those gaudy Vengence units Durvelle, the heatspreaders are so tall it wouldn't fit with the EVO installed and they don't even realistically give any more performance than the $40 G.SKILL set.

As for the video card, I was going to link the $310 7950 3GB however they seem to have sold out on Newegg, the 7870's are reaching a decent price point and while not the strongest cards around they are still pretty potent. If you're unsatisfied with the performance of your 560 Ti I'd suggest this Gigabyte GTX 670 for $400. The 7970 and the 680 are slightly more powerful but not enough to really justify the cost increase unless you game beyond 1920x1080, the 670 should just about max out everything out today.

true but he all ready has vengeance memory so he might have heatsink problems

 

[ssmith232]

It looks like the cooler can be mounted either way to avoid the memory sticks.

 

[krnmastersgt]

The additional VRAM would be helpful for such a large resolution, but if you only game on 1 it's a rather moot point.

Yes you can mount the fan on the opposing side to pull the air, but I believe it's more effective when in the "push" position if you're only running 1 fan though I haven't tested that yet.

 

[mfenn]

I guess I am a little confused as to the motivation for upgrading. The GTX 560 Ti 448 is certainly not a slow card, especially at 1080P. Do you feel like you're experiencing performance problems in the games you mentioned?