How is my current system?

[jjj807]

So, it's close to that time of year-black friday. And I'm thinking about upgrading. I built my current system around Thanksgiving 2010. It has held up very well and am proud of this build.

My question is- is the below still sufficient for these new games coming out soon?- old republic, BF3, etc.

OS: Windows 7 Pro 64 bit
Motherboard: Asus M4A79XTD EVO AMD 790X Chipset
CPU: AMD PHENOM II X4 955 Black edition
Memory: Corsair 8GB DDR3
Video: ATI Radeon HD4890 1GB
Case:Antec 300
PSU: Antec Earthwatts 650
HDD Seagate 1GB 7200rpm


Any comments or tips on when or if I should upgrade would be greatly appreciated. I would like to get into an SSD drive for sure now. But who's the video king today? I've been out of the loop. Are quad cores finally being optimized in games? I usually like to build a whole new system instead of upgrade parts to avoid bottleneck issues. And it's always nice to have another LAN machine.

thanks!

 

[T_Yamamoto]

Well right now, Intel is having a huge advantage

that 4890 might be time to get an upgrade

maybe an SSD for OS and programs?

 

[VirtualLarry]

Overclock your X4 955 to 3.8Ghz or higher (may require aftermarket heatsink), and then upgrade the video card to something more modern, and you will probably be set for a while.

Yes, games are now using quad-cores pretty well. Rumor is that the FB2 engine in BF3 will be able to utilize up to 8 cores.

 

[mfenn]

Your build is pretty decent. An SSD like the m4 128GB would definitely give you a nice boost in general usage performance. As for gaming, depending on your budget, a 6950 2GB would be a good fit.

 

[T_Yamamoto]

Pretty much
Overclock and add aftermarket heatsink
Buy SSD
Buy a new GPU

 

[jjj807]

Yeah, I definitely agree with getting an SSD.

I would like to wait until a new game I actually play comes out until I buy a new GPU. When i was younger I would always buy a video card in anticipation and then when the game dropped, the card either was obsolete or the game sucked.

My next upgrade will probably be around christmas, in hopes of getting a nice build ready for star wars old republic. I'm sure diablo 3 won't have hardcore system requirements.

So, an SSD seems appropriate for me right now, are ssd's now used as a main drive, and no longer just a boot drive? Only problem is I have 100GB of music. I guess that can continue running off my seagate and just the OS and games run off the SSD?

Thanks

 

[Rvenger]

Pretty much
Overclock and add aftermarket heatsink
Buy SSD
Buy a new GPU

x2

 

[T_Yamamoto]

SSDs are good for OS and programs you use often
(and for impatient people)
SSD is new tech. i advise you to not get one
i mean, who cares about a 5 second windows boot time -__-

 

[mfenn]

Yeah, I definitely agree with getting an SSD.

I would like to wait until a new game I actually play comes out until I buy a new GPU. When i was younger I would always buy a video card in anticipation and then when the game dropped, the card either was obsolete or the game sucked.

My next upgrade will probably be around christmas, in hopes of getting a nice build ready for star wars old republic. I'm sure diablo 3 won't have hardcore system requirements.

A very reasonable opinion! I wish more people shared it.

So, an SSD seems appropriate for me right now, are ssd's now used as a main drive, and no longer just a boot drive? Only problem is I have 100GB of music. I guess that can continue running off my seagate and just the OS and games run off the SSD?

Thanks

What I do with my 128GB SSD is have the OS, all my programs, and games installed on it. I don't insist on having every single one of my games installed at once, so the space isn't an issue. Right now, I've got the Witcher 2 and Deus Ex: Human Revolution installed, along with a ton of random programs and still have over 40GB free. My music, videos, and such are on my HDD array.

 

[jjj807]

A very reasonable opinion! I wish more people shared it.



What I do with my 128GB SSD is have the OS, all my programs, and games installed on it. I don't insist on having every single one of my games installed at once, so the space isn't an issue. Right now, I've got the Witcher 2 and Deus Ex: Human Revolution installed, along with a ton of random programs and still have over 40GB free. My music, videos, and such are on my HDD array.

Thanks for the informative reply. And yes, I try not to buy in advance, it's very tempting though when you see trailers for new games, etc. I've found it always pays to wait.

Now for videogames, do you notice increased performance with an SSD, or just increased install times? Does an SSD actually matter when you are actually running the program?

 

[T_Yamamoto]

Increase start up time. thats all that the SSD does

i dont think its worth the cost honestly (since its new tech thats not fully mastered)

 

[mfenn]

Now for videogames, do you notice increased performance with an SSD, or just increased install times? Does an SSD actually matter when you are actually running the program?

I do load faster than my friends who have HDDs, but no it doesn't increase the in game performance at all. I mostly have them on my SSD because it's the default to install to C: and I'm lazy. :$

 

[T_Yamamoto]

I do load faster than my friends who have HDDs, but no it doesn't increase the in game performance at all. I mostly have them on my SSD because it's the default to install to C: and I'm lazy. :$

hope you have a large C:

 

[mfenn]

hope you have a large C:

That's what she said! :awe::awe:

But really, I don't keep the games that I'm not playing installed, so it doesn't matter too much to me.

 

[T_Yamamoto]

Wow. youre so childish sometimes mfenn

oh. doesnt that wear down the SSD?

 

[jjj807]

Well my brother's PC is about 4 years old now. He's been wanting to upgrade. I'll prob hand down my current rig to him and build a new one for myself sometime soon

Is it even worth it to pick up another 4890 for 50 bucks and Crossfire it?

Thanks everyone

 

[VirtualLarry]

Is it even worth it to pick up another 4890 for 50 bucks and Crossfire it?

Performance-wise, two 4890 cards Crossfired are still pretty decent, but ... they're also loud and hot.

If you can wait a few months, the new 28nm cards will be coming out.

 

[Spikesoldier]

Well my brother's PC is about 4 years old now. He's been wanting to upgrade. I'll prob hand down my current rig to him and build a new one for myself sometime soon

Is it even worth it to pick up another 4890 for 50 bucks and Crossfire it?

Thanks everyone

at this point in time, a second 4890 would only be wise if you were budget strapped and plan to go with that setup long term.

since you are obviously wanting to upgrade, i would agree with VL and wait for the 28nm release to build then.

 

[mfenn]

oh. doesnt that wear down the SSD?

Theoretically, yes. Does it actually matter? No.

Performance-wise, two 4890 cards Crossfired are still pretty decent, but ... they're also loud and hot.

If you can wait a few months, the new 28nm cards will be coming out.

Agree.