Upgrade GPU, Give Life

[harobikes333]

Here's my setup:

ASUS P5Q Pro LGA 775 Intel P45 ATX Intel Motherboard

CORSAIR TX Series CMPSU-650TX 650W ATX12V / EPS12V SLI Ready CrossFire Ready 80 PLUS BRONZE

G.SKILL 4GB (2 x 2GB) x2 (8 GB )

Intel Core 2 Duo E8400 Wolfdale Dual-Core 3.0 GHz LGA 775 65W BX80570E8400 Processor
I would like to upgrade the GPU to do some decent gaming. What would you suggest at the ~$100 range? or.... what GPU do you suggest upgrading to before it doesn't make sense...?
The Mobo has the following slots:
2 x PCI Express 2.0 x16 slots, support ATI CrossFireX technology at x8 link
(black at max. x8 link)
Current GPU is:
HIS Radeon HD 4870 DirectX 10.1 H487F512P 512MB 256-Bit GDDR5 PCI Express 2.0 x16

Your advice is appreciated!

 

[Silverforce11]

Get a 750Ti or 950. Your CPU is going to bottleneck the heck out of any GPU more powerful.

 

[harobikes333]

I have a SSD & 10K HDD in computer now... how far up the GPU / CPU upgrade should I go? CPU with upgrading...?

 

[escrow4]

You need a new system. The slowest celeron from Intel these days for $50 is faster than your E8400 and draws way less juice.

 

[harobikes333]

Roger that. I'm waiting to see what AMD comes up with Polaris / Zen.
Would like to at least use this PC until then seems like a waste otherwise?

 

[R0H1T]

Roger that. I'm waiting to see what AMD comes up with Polaris / Zen.
Would like to at least use this PC until then seems like a waste otherwise?

Why not upgrade to a second hand core2 Quad 9xxx provided your mobo supports it? You can then choose a Polaris or the GTX 950/750Ti successor, depending on your budget.

 

[IllogicalGlory]

A 950 with a Q6600 or similar would be a pretty decent system. Should run you about $150 total.

 

[VirtualLarry]

I would get a Q9400 or Q9500 / Q9500, overclock it to as near to 4Ghz as you can get (you've got a decent board for doing that), and add a GTX950 on sale somewhere for $120.

 

[Magic Carpet]

I would like to upgrade the GPU to do some decent gaming. What would you suggest at the ~$100 range? or.... what GPU do you suggest upgrading to before it doesn't make sense...?

This.

 

[SPBHM]

the 950 on paper is the best choice, because it's fast enough for most current games but also with the best video acceleration available.

still e8400 is no longer usable for newer games I would think.
you might have a chance with a fast C2Q.

 

[poofyhairguy]

According to the doc that mobo can take a 771 chip:

https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1DFbKf9ZqpdXjgDgf8UiG4y28D2rGOxwErBe2T8kuKcM/edit?pli=1#gid=0

I would do that, the x5460 I bought last year can game pretty decently with a 750 ti. WAY WAY better than my overclocked G3258 can.

Just get a conversion sticker off ebay.

 

[Headfoot]

According to the doc that mobo can take a 771 chip:

https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1DFbKf9ZqpdXjgDgf8UiG4y28D2rGOxwErBe2T8kuKcM/edit?pli=1#gid=0

I would do that, the x5460 I bought last year can game pretty decently with a 750 ti. WAY WAY better than my overclocked G3258 can.

Just get a conversion sticker off ebay.

id vote this, an e8400 is going to struggle badly in modern games. Also OP, overclock the x5460 to 3.6+, 4.0 if you can. This plus the lowest tier Polaris/Pascal chip in June will be the best bet. Either that or just grab a used GTX 660 ti, GTX 760, GTX 670, GTX 780, whichever you can afford with the cards going from slowest to fastest in that list. I dont mention used AMD cards because coin miners are nabbing them all up so the used market is expensive for AMD right now.

That x5460 + a used GTX 760 for example would be a solid gaming machine for very cheap, though it wont be spectacular.

 

[IronWing]

This.

With the new Doom coming out soon, I am also interested in upgrading my video card. I would like to maintain a quiet system. My current system:

Puget Serenity
Motherboard: Asus P7P55D-E PRO
Core i7 860 @2.80GHz
8GB DDR3
2 x PCI Express 2.0 x16
Power supply: Antec CP-850

Current Video Card: HD 6750 w/ 1GB GDDR5 PCIe 2 x16

As you can see, my motherboard is PCI Express 2.0 and the GTX 950 card you linked to is PCI Express 3.0. Will the GTX 950 card work with my motherboard? If not, does anyone have any recommendations for a good upgrade that will work with my motherboard and maintain a quiet system? Thanks.

Edit: Also, a more obvious question to ask, "Would the GTX 950 provide a significant performance boost over my current HD 6750?"

 

[nenforcer]

With the new Doom coming out soon, I am also interested in upgrading my video card. I would like to maintain a quiet system. My current system:

Puget Serenity
Motherboard: Asus P7P55D-E PRO
Core i7 860 @2.80GHz
8GB DDR3
2 x PCI Express 2.0 x16
Power supply: Antec CP-850

Current Video Card: HD 6750 w/ 1GB GDDR5 PCIe 2 x16

As you can see, my motherboard is PCI Express 2.0 and the GTX 950 card you linked to is PCI Express 3.0. Will the GTX 950 card work with my motherboard? If not, does anyone have any recommendations for a good upgrade that will work with my motherboard and maintain a quiet system? Thanks.

Edit: Also, a more obvious question to ask, "Would the GTX 950 provide a significant performance boost over my current HD 6750?"

Your CPU is still a decent quad core for gaming. Running a PCI-E 3.0 GPU on a PCI-E 2.0 x16 slot has a negligible performance difference - maybe 3-5% at best (it's like its running at PCI-E 3.0 x8).

Here is the closest comparison I could make but the gap will be even greater since you have a Radeon HD 6750 (not 6850) and only the 750Ti is available to compare against and not the 950.

http://www.anandtech.com/bench/product/1077?vs=1130

 

[escrow4]

With the new Doom coming out soon, I am also interested in upgrading my video card. I would like to maintain a quiet system. My current system:

Puget Serenity
Motherboard: Asus P7P55D-E PRO
Core i7 860 @2.80GHz
8GB DDR3
2 x PCI Express 2.0 x16
Power supply: Antec CP-850

Current Video Card: HD 6750 w/ 1GB GDDR5 PCIe 2 x16

As you can see, my motherboard is PCI Express 2.0 and the GTX 950 card you linked to is PCI Express 3.0. Will the GTX 950 card work with my motherboard? If not, does anyone have any recommendations for a good upgrade that will work with my motherboard and maintain a quiet system? Thanks.

Edit: Also, a more obvious question to ask, "Would the GTX 950 provide a significant performance boost over my current HD 6750?"

You should probably start another thread, but yes, yes, and yes. Even a STRIX 950 shoved to the limits won't be that loud. Plus the GTX 950 has the best hardware decoder currently on the market as mentioned above.

 

[IronWing]

Thanks! This seems like a no-brainer upgrade for me then.

 

[RussianSensation]

Thanks! This seems like a no-brainer upgrade for me then.

950's performance in Doom is pretty poor as of Beta benchmarks. You are better off picking up a used HD7970Ghz for $120-130. An R9 280X = 7970Ghz is almost 50% faster than the 950 2GB in this game. Also, I'd strongly consider overclocking that CPU of yours.

Perhaps the best advice of all for you is to not buy anything until the game launches for several reasons:

1) The game could get delayed 3-4 weeks and then you are looking at launch of Polaris GPUs, or heavily discounted R9 3xx series as AMD starts clearing them out for Polaris GPU launch.

2) Let's wait for final game benchmarks and patches. This also allows us to value the true impact of 2GB vs. 3GB vs. 4GB on texture quality in this game. The last thing you want is to buy a 950 2GB and realize there is a big reduction in IQ. In general, I would advise against any 2GB GPU if you intend to game on it for 2+ years. Save up more $ for a 3-4GB GPU.

3) There is never any sense in buying a new GPU months before a game comes out. Doom comes out May 13, 2016. This is because GPUs continue to get cheaper over time in general. Given how 950 isn't even that fast for Doom in beta, there is a strong chance there could be a deal on even faster cards like the 960, R9 380, R9 380X until May 13th.

Besides, 950 for $120 isn't even a smoking deal. These types of deals pop up all the time.

Another thing to look for are deals on used R9 290 cards.

 

[MajinCry]

If you can get the Core 2 Quad for buttons (£30?), ya can nab that if you're feeling too slow.

Otherwise, just wait for Zen and see how that plays. You've been waitin' fer a long while, and a wee bit more will just give ya lower prices, in the worst case scenario.

 

[poofyhairguy]

That x5460 + a used GTX 760 for example would be a solid gaming machine for very cheap, though it wont be spectacular.

A x5460 plus a 7870 is a 1080p monster, I know from experience.

 

[IllogicalGlory]

950's performance in Doom is pretty poor as of Beta benchmarks. You are better off picking up a used HD7970Ghz for $120-130. An R9 280X = 7970Ghz is almost 50% faster than the 950 2GB in this game.

I just listed a 280X without the box for $165 and it sold within a half hour. Other sold listings are around $175. Same as I paid for it in 2014. Blame Ethereum.

 

[frozentundra123456]

If you can get the Core 2 Quad for buttons (£30?), ya can nab that if you're feeling too slow.

Otherwise, just wait for Zen and see how that plays. You've been waitin' fer a long while, and a wee bit more will just give ya lower prices, in the worst case scenario.

Not even a definite release date for zen, prices are unknown, performance is unknown, and their are plenty of excellent choices available now. Why wait?

 

[harobikes333]

id vote this, an e8400 is going to struggle badly in modern games. Also OP, overclock the x5460 to 3.6+, 4.0 if you can. This plus the lowest tier Polaris/Pascal chip in June will be the best bet. Either that or just grab a used GTX 660 ti, GTX 760, GTX 670, GTX 780, whichever you can afford with the cards going from slowest to fastest in that list. I dont mention used AMD cards because coin miners are nabbing them all up so the used market is expensive for AMD right now.

That x5460 + a used GTX 760 for example would be a solid gaming machine for very cheap, though it wont be spectacular.

When looking on ebay, I found x5460 Xeon OR Q9500 for ~$30 ...
Newegg shows my motherboard as a 775 socket..? I see you linked to a spreadsheet showing compatibility ..? Could you elaborate how they are able to run properly? Are there special firmware updates, etc...?
Please advise! Thanks!
That x5460 does look faster
UPDATE: Googling my mobo + x5460 came up with the MODDING instructions.