Upgrade options

[EGrunt66]

It has been awhile since I upgraded/built a PC and I would like some advice.

My current build is:

CPU: Intel E6850 overclocked to 3.6
Video: BFG GTX 295
MB: Abit IP35 Pro
Ram: 4 GB Corsair XMS DDR2
Hard drives: 2 X 1 TB Western Digital black series
OS: Vista 32 bit
PSU Cool Master 850 watt

I am thinking about upgrading to the I7 950 since it is on sale and purchasing a X58 mother board(EVGA, Gigabyte, MSI, or Asus) along with DDR ram. I will keep my GTX 295 since my research has showed little improvement upgrading to the GTX 480.

Any and all comments are welcomed.

 

[darkewaffle]

I'm inclined to ask "Why?" since if all you do is internet and youtube it's unnecessary of course, but with a 295 I assume you're a gamer, so what you have planned is fine.

However an i5's (750) gaming performance is almost identical to the i7's (950) all while spending less on the ram and mobo (and cpu) if budget is a concern.

 

[Davidh373]

The 9xx series will be a waste for you. I would recommend an i5 over an i7 as well (even the 8xx i7). With the money you save you can put toward a 60GB SSD which would be a pretty good boost in performance (Get the Corsair Force or the OCZ Agility 2)

 

[EGrunt66]

I use my PC for gaming and the internet. I also have a 24" monitor (1920 X 1200 resolution). So the new PC will be built around gaming. I use to rely on Sharkey Extreme web site for the gaming rigs that they use to build but it appears they no longer do that. So I guess the real question is, how much of difference will I see going to the I7 950 and DDR3 ram compared to my current. The reason why I am considering the I7 950 is that Fry's has it on sale for $259.00.

 

[Davidh373]

That Processor is pretty old school. You'll see a lot of difference.

 

[mfenn]

I use my PC for gaming and the internet. I also have a 24" monitor (1920 X 1200 resolution). So the new PC will be built around gaming. I use to rely on Sharkey Extreme web site for the gaming rigs that they use to build but it appears they no longer do that. So I guess the real question is, how much of difference will I see going to the I7 950 and DDR3 ram compared to my current. The reason why I am considering the I7 950 is that Fry's has it on sale for $259.00.

The 760 is $210 all day every day (less if you live near a MicroCenter). P55 mobo's like the GA-P55A-UD3 are also much cheaper than X58 mobos. Both platforms use the same DDR3, but the recommended config for X58 is sets of 3 DIMMS whereas the recommended config for P55 is sets of two, so you can also save some money there.