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What should I upgrade, or is it even worth upgrading on my current platform?

P

paulgyro

Junior Member
Hi all. My current system is getting long in the tooth and in need of an upgrade so I’m trying to figure out the best bang for my buck as I’m on a limited budget.
My current specs are:
Motherboard: BIOSTAR TA-790GX A3+
CPU: AMD Athlon II X4 630 (stock speed 2.8 Ghz , overclocked to 3.08 Ghz. Can’t seem to get it any higher. Should I be happy with a 10% overclock?)
Memory: 4 GB (2 GB x 2) of OCZ3G1600LV2G
Graphics: SAPPHIRE VAPOR-X HD5770 1GB GDDR5 (not overclocked but will be soon to try and get the most out of it I can).
Harddrive: WD 1 TB drive, nothing special. I recently bought a 64 GB Crucial SSD I will be installing for OS.
CPU Cooler: Corsair Hydro H50
Current Hardware Considerations:
Upgrade CPU to AMD Phenom II X4 955 Black Edition (~$110) and overclock it as far as I can.
Or
Upgrade Graphics card by either adding a second HD5770 (~$110) and run in CrossFire or replace my HD5770 with a Radeon HD 6850 (~$150)

Note primary usage is gaming at 1920x1080 with AA x2 or x4 and moderate to high game settings.
Other questions, can I run a HD5770 and HD6850 in CrossFire together? If so would everything slow down to the 5770 level of performance?

Thanks in advance for any feedback!
Paul
 
paulgyro said:
I’m trying to figure out the best bang for my buck
Click to expand...
To do what? Gaming, Photoshop, Video encoding/editing, or other?

paulgyro said:
Upgrade CPU to AMD Phenom II X4 955 Black Edition (~$110) and overclock it as far as I can.
Click to expand...
Don't bother. You have an AM3+ board, so wait for Bulldozer. And then only if doing Photoshop/video encoding/editing.

paulgyro said:
Upgrade Graphics card by either adding a second HD5770 (~$110) and run in CrossFire or replace my HD5770 with a Radeon HD 6850 (~$150)
Click to expand...
paulgyro said:
can I run a HD5770 and HD6850 in CrossFire together?
Click to expand...
No. You can crossfire with a 6770. However, I'd wait for the 7XXX series.
 
paulgyro said:
Max is $250, I would preferr around $200 thou.
Click to expand...

The best you can do with that money right now is not alot. Upgrading to 955BE + overclock would increase overall performance by around 30% or so. Upgrading to 5770 crossfire or a 560 Ti OC'd would increase fps in games somewhat.

I don't think it's worth it though. You're better if you start saving money now for a complete rehash of your PC in early-mid 2012. An Ivy Bridge CPU and 28nm graphics will be much much better value for money than whatever you could do with $200 now. Or if you can gather $400 now you could get 2500K@4.5GHz, new mobo and 8GB RAM. That would be a huge increase in all areas, including gaming. Then you could start saving money for 28nm graphics. Either way, no point upgrading your current platform
 
lehtv said:
I don't think it's worth it though. You're better if you start saving money now for a complete rehash of your PC in early-mid 2012. An Ivy Bridge CPU and 28nm graphics will be much much better value for money than whatever you could do with $200 now. Or if you can gather $400 now you could get 2500K@4.5GHz, new mobo and 8GB RAM. That would be a huge increase in all areas, including gaming. Then you could start saving money for 28nm graphics. Either way, no point upgrading your current platform
Click to expand...
:thumbsup::thumbsup:
 
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