Upgrade for BF3. Currently have an E6750

[AlucardX]

i'll be upgrading as well for BF3. I'm similar the OP, E6850 @ 3.6GHz, 4GB, and a 5770 I put in last year when BC2 came out. Looking forward to October

Will probably go with a 2500K, not quite sure yet on what vid card to get, might go back to nV, we'll see.

 

[innociv]

I think you best option would be go to AMD. Phenom II X4 955 BE + 6870 + Mobo + memory.

CPU: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...-808-_-Product

GFX: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...6&Tpk=m3a770de

Video: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...-349-_-Product

RAM: http://www.newegg.com/Special/ShellS...1-_-06132011_1

There's currently a $10 off promo code for the CPU, and the RAM is on a shell shocker deal (8GB for $60).

I don't see why upgrading my motherboard to a chipset that's being phased out is a good idea..

It sounds like a Q9xxx processor and a new graphics card would give me the performance I need.

Though, I also discount that a 6750 crossfired would be bad. If it's a 50% boost in performance, that brings it to 6870ish levels for cheaper. But.. yeah it's a waist when it comes time to upgrades and would waste a lot of power(watts).

I saw a Sapphire 6950 1gb for $222. But, getting that end of a card and not getting a 2gb one seems like a waste especially in a potential crossfire.

 

[Termie]

I keep checking andandtech benchmarks now and then. If I don't see an E6750 or so on there, there usually is a Q6600, which is pretty comparable.

BTW, AnandTech Bench does have your processor on it: http://www.anandtech.com/bench/Product/60?vs=51. Scroll down to see the difference between it and the q9450 in Far Cry 2, a somewhat core-limited game. The q9450 is 50% faster, despite having exactly the same clockspeed.

I don't see why upgrading my motherboard to a chipset that's being phased out is a good idea..

It sounds like a Q9xxx processor and a new graphics card would give me the performance I need.

Though, I also discount that a 6750 crossfired would be bad. If it's a 50% boost in performance, that brings it to 6870ish levels for cheaper. But.. yeah it's a waist when it comes time to upgrades and would waste a lot of power(watts).

I saw a Sapphire 6950 1gb for $222. But, getting that end of a card and not getting a 2gb one seems like a waste especially in a potential crossfire.

I don't think you should worry about your GPU upgrade until you complete your CPU upgrade. A stock q9450 would probably be barely enough to warrant the purchase of an HD6950, so just focus on the CPU for now and then come back for ideas on the GPU.

 

[innociv]

http://www.anandtech.com/show/2754/14 It doesn't look like the Q9550 is worth the double the cost over a Q6600 to me.

Seems like a 20-30% increased performance.

There's also the 6700, and others in between.

On top of that, it seems an overclocked Q6600 performs the same as an Overclocked Q9xxx.

 

[Termie]

The i5 2500k does look nice, but with that, motherboard, and ram is it worth $550?
I would get a SSHD for that.

Actually, it's more like $400 w/ 4GB ram.

http://www.anandtech.com/show/2754/14 It doesn't look like the Q9550 is worth the double the cost over a Q6600 to me.

Seems like a 20-30% increased performance.

There's also the 6700, and others in between.

On top of that, it seems an overclocked Q6600 performs the same as an Overclocked Q9xxx.

Why are you even considering upgrading to a processor that's 4 years old, while you're also talking about upgrading to $200+ video cards? You're not going to get good value for the money with a q6600.

You haven't mentioned wanting to overclock, so let's just skip the 2500k and go for the 2400, which is still much, much better than a q6600.

This 2400/H67 combo would be $300: http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboDealDetails.aspx?ItemList=Combo.660656

Just ~$65 more will get you 8GB ram, by the way: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16820231311.

Now you're talking about $375 shipped, and you have a brand-new system, which won't bottleneck any modern single-GPU graphics cards.

 

[innociv]

Well a Q9550 seems to be nearly as good as an i7-920.

And I don't see how you get $400.

$240 processor, $150 motherboard is $390 just for the processor and motherboard.
I want some actual decent ram, not just the cheapest I find, so that's probably another $100-$120. I'm not going to get 4gb if I get a new board.

So, for the price of a motherboard and cpu, I could get a Q9550 and high end graphics card..

 

[innociv]

It looks like an i3 2100 will perform as well as a Q9550 and keep me in budget.

 

[betasub]

^ Yes, forget LGA1366 (even more so because you are on a budget) & look at i3/i5 Sandybridge processors on LGA1155 (H61/H67 boards are reasonably cheap).

 

[Termie]

Well a Q9550 seems to be nearly as good as an i7-920.

And I don't see how you get $400.

$240 processor, $150 motherboard is $390 just for the processor and motherboard.
I want some actual decent ram, not just the cheapest I find, so that's probably another $100-$120. I'm not going to get 4gb if I get a new board.

So, for the price of a motherboard and cpu, I could get a Q9550 and high end graphics card..

You haven't said anything about what you plan on doing with the system, most importantly, whether you plan to overclock. Your current 4-year-old processor doesn't sound like it's overclocked, so I figure you don't have an interest in that. You can easily get a non-overclocking system with a 2400, an H67 motherboard, and 8GB of decent ram for under $400, and this will run circles around your system, a q9550, and even a 2100.

But if you actually want to overclock and run dual graphics cards, here you go:

The 2500k is $224: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...-072-_-Product

A good Z68 motherboard is $145: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16813128500

And most importantly, an excellent 8GB set of ram is $100: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...-20231468-L01D. And that's way faster than you need.

$469 total. By the way, compared to the 9550, the 2500k is 50% faster in many benchmarks: http://www.anandtech.com/bench/Product/50?vs=288.

 

[Grim281]

Talking about upgrading for BF3..anyone think a i7 920 oc'd to 3.8 will be a bottleneck at all? I am running a 6950.

 

[Spjut]

Hopefully DX11 multithreading will improve the performance in this game

The Core 2 Quads tend to cost alot, even more than their superior Core I5 successors...But I'd still keep my eyes looking for a cheap one, since they still are decent enough

 

[BonzaiDuck]

I just have to throw in on this -- whipping myself with a wire-tie because I have other things to do today.

If it were two or three years ago, I'd say look for some bargain on an E8600 and OC it. Either way -- I still say "over-clock that sucker."

But I'm going to find out myself just how much better a Sandy Bridge compares to my E8600 @ 4.1 Ghz with SLI.

Too bad the OP isn't OCing, and I don't know how to advise if he never did it before. But what does he have to lose on this old system? On the other hand, and at this stage in the LGA775 lifecycle, he could probably save up some money for a Sandy Bridge, THEN OC the old E6750, and move slowly or more quickly depending on how he screws up the old computer.

My problem: I'm building a Sandy Bridge on the Z68 chipset. I also have that E8600 @ 4.1 in SLI, and I DON'T do a LOT of gaming; I have a collection of Flight Sims, auto-racing games, etc. The Wolfdale on an (old) eVGA780i mobo with 8GB of RAM just seems to be the most perfect creation I've ever put together. I should REALLY sell it! It's hard to let go. Maybe the SB Z68 project will give me a different perspective . . . Maybe . . . it's too OLD to sell. But I vow to "take my time" on the SB Z68 project. Two more essential components, due late this week.

 

[Tripwir3]

If you can run BC2 now then you should be fine. That's what the DICE devs said...

 

[innociv]

You haven't said anything about what you plan on doing with the system, most importantly, whether you plan to overclock. Your current 4-year-old processor doesn't sound like it's overclocked, so I figure you don't have an interest in that. You can easily get a non-overclocking system with a 2400, an H67 motherboard, and 8GB of decent ram for under $400, and this will run circles around your system, a q9550, and even a 2100.

I said it's for BF3, so gaming on an engine that's highly threaded.

I also program and use photoshop. My current computer mostly runs photoshop fine.


Anyway. It seems that ivy bridge processors will be on the same chipset as the i3 2100, i5 2500, and such. So I can hold over on a 2100 for now.

It looks like I'll probably get around 100FPS on BFBC2 maxed with an i3 2100 and 5770 crossfired. Another 5770 is only $100 and will give me the performance of a $150-$250 card depending on the game. CF works great on the Frostbyte1 engine so I'm sure it'll be good on Frostbyte2

 

[goobernoodles]

Reposting my post from another thread since it's relevant:

I just upgraded from a e6750 @ 3.4Ghz to a 2500K without upgrading my GPU's.

I had recently installed a 2nd 4890 in crossfire hoping to hold me over, but it really didn't do that much. I was obviously CPU limited.

The 2500k alone made a HUGE difference, but it also let me see the increase in performance from the 2nd 4890 that I installed as well. I'm not sure how your card compares off the top of my head, but I would think that the CPU alone should give you a significant increase in performance. That's what I saw.

 

[innociv]

I'm not opposed to overclocking, I just don't think the E6750 overclocked will do much unless I'm increasing the clock speed 50%.
I've done a tiny bit of overclocking on my Athlon64 long long ago.

I'll probably get a K series ivy bridge when that time comes, but right now I want to save money. an i3 2100 is only $125.

And a 4890 is a lot faster than the 5770. But 5770 crossfire looks like they'll be as fast as a 6850-6950 depending on the game.

If the devs said it runs as well as BFBC2.. well that's good since I figure I'll get around 100FPS on BFBC2 with an i3 2100 and 5770 CF.

 

[gramboh]

For some reason, the 45nm C2Q's are still selling for a lot of money, even used. The $240 for a new unit is absurd, but used you might find them for $120-150 which is a bit easier to swallow. If you see a cheap one come along, maybe grab it and wait for Ivy Bridge (which is March 2012, long way off)?

Barring that, i3 2100 + CF is a good idea and pretty cheap. I wouldn't believe DICE claiming that BF3 will perform the same as BC2, it's a new engine with new effects, more players, more vehicles etc. I think what they are saying is that if your rig can handle BC2, you will be able to play BF3 at a reasonable frame rate, but not with the same level of detail. My rig runs BC2 maxed pretty well, but there's no way it is going to handle BF3 at max.

 

[innociv]

Maybe on low settings it'll perform as well as BFBC2 did on low settings. That sounds reasonable to me.

BFBC2 polycounts are quite high, and has quite a bit going on with effects. It just lacks on things like shaders, ambient occlusion, so on.


But yeah.. even a used Q9550 seem to be going for around $200 on ebay. But, it looks like the i3 2100 is just as fast for $125 new.

I hear that ivy bridge will be on the same chipset, so seems reasonable to go with a 2100..