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Need help upgrading my PC

S

Spintix

Junior Member
Here are my specs. I wanted to get whatever is the best motherboard possible right now and direction in what kind of ram I should buy (or just leave the ram I have now). I want to make my computer so it will be able to play most of the games that are out right now at full settings. The main game I am waiting for is Planetside 2.


(Studio 540 PC from Best Buy) with graphics card and PSU upgraded so far.

Windows 7 professional
Intel(R) Core(TM)2 Quad CPU Q8200 @ 2.33 Ghz 2.34 ghz
6.00 GB Ram
64 bit operating system
Radeon Sapphire HD 6950 2GB GDDR5 Overclock Edition
PSU: Antec Basiq Plus 550 WATT ATX12 V2.3
Sounds card: Sound Blaster 24-Bit advanced HD
 
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A board for your current CPU? Or a new system? There aren't much in the way of good LGA775 boards these days unless you buy a used one.
 
Spintix said:
If I can get a list of things to buy I can probably use youtube and learn how to build the computer myself. Iv'e never done it before though. Here is a list of the predicted system requirements for Planetside 2.

Pentium Dual Core E6600 3.06GHz
Phenom II X2 560
GeForce GT 140
Radeon HD 3870
Ram 2GB
Win Xp 32
DX 9
HDD space 9 GB
Click to expand...

From what I can tell, if planet side 2 will actually hit up the 1000s of players advertising, then CPU speed will make the biggest difference.

I always turn down graphics to minimum for ONLINE play, because that's when I play to WIN. 😀
 
Spintix said:
If I can get a list of things to buy I can probably use youtube and learn how to build the computer myself. Iv'e never done it before though. Here is a list of the predicted system requirements for Planetside 2.

Pentium Dual Core E6600 3.06GHz
Phenom II X2 560
GeForce GT 140
Radeon HD 3870
Ram 2GB
Win Xp 32
DX 9
HDD space 9 GB
Click to expand...


Whatever you do, DO NOT buy an AMD CPU, they under perform compared to equivalent priced INTEL cpu by a factor of 2 to 1 in computer games. D:
 
Your current system isn't exactly horrible. Does it not handle your games well? What you have is WELL above those system requirements.
 
IMO it's time to get a new motherboard and cpu. Well, you can go used too if you want. I prefer to buy motherboards new but used CPUs are quite alright.

ah~~~ I see you have a boxed computer. In that case, upgrading your CPU will get you something, but you'll have to pay out the butt to get it. Let's see, it looks like the board has a G45 chipset so you should be good to go for CPU support as long as the motherboard was designed to handle the wattage.
costs:

you have a Q8200(2.33ghz, 4mb cache), which looks to be going for 70-80 used.
You could upgrade to a Q9400(2.66ghz, 6mb cache) which can be had for about 120 used.
One up from that, you can get a Q9500(2.83, 6mb) for about 160 used.

However, you can probably also get a i5 2500k(which will wipe the floor with both of those) for about 160-170 used and it will wipe the floor with both of those CPUs rather handily, however you'll need to upgrade your motherboard and RAM(if you have ddr2 or slow ddr3) as well.

alternatively, you could probably get an i3 2100 for about 90 used and it would also likely be faster than the Q9500 and the Q9400 for most everything, but you won't be able to overclock it.

Upgrading older intel platforms tends to be expensive...

As for AMD, their current lineup just isn't as good for gaming(except for light gaming on laptops). Bulldozer didn't turn out that great and while going to something like a PII 965($80-90 ish and usually better than the 9550) would be an upgrade, it just wouldn't quite be like a 2500k. For the extra money, it'd be worth it.
 
I would wait for the game to be released, then read a couple of reviews and then decide what upgrade you need.
 
Your cpu might very well play it flawlessly if it's well threaded, so I'd recommend waiting to see too. If you do choose to upgrade, it depends on if you want to overclock or not. The i5 2500k and the more recent i5 3570k seem to be great cpus for gaming and should last you a long time if you do choose to upgrade.
 
AtenRa said:
I would wait for the game to be released, then read a couple of reviews and then decide what upgrade you need.
Click to expand...

+1

Wait till the game is launched, try it out on your system as it is.

If not fast/smooth enough, choose what to upgrade at that point when you know what you're lacking rather than guessing about it now.

By the way, what resolution screen do you use?
 
I have a 24 in LG screen at 1680x1050. The only recent game I have bought was Total War Shogun 2 and it plays really well on max settings. However, it is a little glitchy and in extremely large battles it runs very glitchy on high settings. So it looks like as far as upgrades for the long run I should go with a CPU, motherboard, and ram? or would it be easier to just take out my graphics card and PSU and pay someone to build me a whole new unit?
 
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You need to sell that system (keep the video card). Build yourself a new i3 system from scratch and throw your gpu in it. Net cost under $200. I dont see any better way to effectively upgrade it. No socket 775 solution is going to get you better than what a $100 ivy bridge pentium will get you. You'd have to wait a little while longer though....
 
sm625 said:
You need to sell that system (keep the video card). Build yourself a new i3 system from scratch and throw your gpu in it. Net cost under $200. I dont see any better way to effectively upgrade it. No socket 775 solution is going to get you better than what a $100 ivy bridge pentium will get you. You'd have to wait a little while longer though....
Click to expand...

Wow really under $200? that would be great. I am guessing I would have to buy new ram and a new shell for the computer as well
 
I did something similar for a coworker's son several months ago. He wanted a gaming computer but was on very limited budget. I picked up a refurbished Dell box from eBay that had an i5 2320 with 4GB RAM/1TB HDD/DVDRW/Win7 for around $300. Replaced the crappy PSU and dropped in a GTX 560 Ti. Total cost was under $550 for a solid gaming rig.

These days I have a really hard time recommending anyone buy a dual core CPU for gaming. More and more games are supporting quads (especially in multiplayer mode) and it's only going to accelerate with the release of the next generation consoles in the next year or so.
 
What I think I will do is use this computer for the beta (since I have a beta key) and then when the game launches I will buy a whole new top of the line computer. If anyone knows of a person in the Los Angeles area that would be willing to build it for me I would greatly appreciate it.
 
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WTF..........


If you live in the US, you're good to go with only $400, motherboard, cpu, ram

Time tested buy, easy overclock

2500k
z68 generation 3
DDR 2133mhz 1.5v ~$60
CPU cooler, Either 212+, 212+ evo, or thermaltake Frio.

New Kids Build, runs hot, long-term effect of heat TBD

$450

3570k
Z77
DDR3 2600mhz 1.65v ~$60
CPU cooler, Either 212+, 212+ evo, or thermaltake Frio.
 
borisvodofsky said:
WTF..........


If you live in the US, you're good to go with only $400, motherboard, cpu, ram

Time tested buy, easy overclock

2500k
z68 generation 3
DDR 2133mhz 1.5v ~$60
CPU cooler, Either 212+, 212+ evo, or thermaltake Frio.

New Kids Build, runs hot, long-term effect of heat TBD

$450

3570k
Z77
DDR3 2600mhz 1.65v ~$60
CPU cooler, Either 212+, 212+ evo, or thermaltake Frio.
Click to expand...

That sounds like it will work. If you have a chance would you be able to post all the links of the items that are sold on newegg so I know exactly what to buy.
 
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sorry just looked your psu should be fine if its 550w and about craigslist don't really know ppl sale for different prices ?
 
Spintix said:
Perfect, thank you. I will order those things asap. Do you know what I could get for the old parts I am swapping out if I sold them on craigslist? Also do I really need to upgrade my PSU? Also could you recommend a case?
Click to expand...

Wo wo wo.. SLOW down bro... you can get better prices if you shop around.

Where do you live, so we could point to places to dodge taxes. :thumbsup:

Also do you live near microcenter, if so, which one.
 
borisvodofsky said:
Wo wo wo.. SLOW down bro... you can get better prices if you shop around.

Where do you live, so we could point to places to dodge taxes. :thumbsup:

Also do you live near microcenter, if so, which one.
Click to expand...

Haha ok, the more money I save the better but I for sure want my computer to be able to handle planetside 2 at max settings flawlessly with the 1000 player cap. I live in Santa Clarita, CA which is about 30 min north of downtown Los Angeles.
 
Spintix said:
Haha ok, the more money I save the better but I for sure want my computer to be able to handle planetside 2 at max settings flawlessly with the 1000 player cap. I live in Santa Clarita, CA which is about 30 min north of downtown Los Angeles.
Click to expand...

Awesome, they have a microcenter in orange county, which is 1.5 hours away from Santa Clarita.

Would you be willing to make "the pilgrimage" 😀
 
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