Which of these is the better option ??

[MentalIlness]

Ok, I am just about to complete my new build. See sig.

However, I have a few questions on my current rig.

Now here is my problem. I am giving this setup to my wife. But I would like to upgrade it "just a little"

Which of these idea's is better.....

Keep the current setup and just replace the video card with something like a GTX460 1Gig....

Upgrade to a Core i5 750.....purchase new motherboard and memory, and keep the current 9800GTX.

Option A:

E7200 @ 4.0
4 Gig G.Skill
GTX460 256-Bit

Option B:

Core i5 750
4 Gig G.Skill
EVGA 9800 GTX 855/2200/2550

Which of these two options would provide the best performance upgrade for this rig. Rig is current in sig.

Here are scores as it sits now....

 

[darkewaffle]

Depends what you want to do and what resolution you're working with. Are you gaming? Working? Audio? Video? Photo?

 

[MentalIlness]

Depends what you want to do and what resolution you're working with. Are you gaming? Working? Audio? Video? Photo?

Well, the PC is to be for my wife. She will do some gaming...not "intense" gaming as an enthusiast would do. But some gaming nonetheless. I'd venture a guess and say, maybe 40 hours of gaming a month for her. And she does like shooters

Watching videos / internet / some compression / basically anything a female would do.

No working on it though, but yes some photos as well.

EDIT: I forgot, the resolution for her is 1440*900 "for now" which within a few months, will increase to 1920*1080.

 

[jchu14]

I voted for the 460 because gaming is likely the most intense task the computer will do. The e7200 at 4ghz can do everyday tasks easily already. Though it was a hard choice because a 9800 gtx is not bad for casual gaming.

Thought about upgrading her to a SSD? That will give you better 'snappiness' in everyday tasks than a CPU upgrade. A nicer speaker, monitor, or kb/mouse may be good too.

 

[mfenn]

I voted A, but depending on what she's going to do, "neither" may in fact be the best option.

 

[darkewaffle]

As long as she's not hellbent on every setting turned all the way up, I think she'd be fine with the E7200 and the 9800. When you up it to a bigger monitor, you could probably justify the GPU upgrade though; but it will depend on the games of choice.

 

[MentalIlness]

There will be some shooters....COD / BC2

And will be playing a good bit of LAN games as well. These are shooters / RTS games.

 

[MentalIlness]

Would the Core i5 option make it any more plausible to go with depending on how it overclocks ? Which I do OC when possible. And I know the i5 does overclock really well.

So with that said, that seems to be the only real reason to go with Option B.

And if the OC'ing potential of the i5 isnt enough to offer a recommendation on Option B the I will go with Option A.

 

[Davidh373]

I would commit to making both upgrades eventually, but the E7200 @ 4Ghz should have a little life in it. Get the 460 now and get the Processor/ Motherboard upgrade a little later.

 

[mfenn]

Would the Core i5 option make it any more plausible to go with depending on how it overclocks ? Which I do OC when possible. And I know the i5 does overclock really well.

So with that said, that seems to be the only real reason to go with Option B.

And if the OC'ing potential of the i5 isnt enough to offer a recommendation on Option B the I will go with Option A.

A will make a far bigger difference in gaming performance than B.

 

[MentalIlness]

Yea, after some further researching, it appears that you all are correct.

My E7200 clocked at 4.0 in tests I have seen, even outruns a E8500 @ 3.6 so I figure there is still a lot of life left in it. Honestly, I dont think my wife would do enough on the computer to even require a quad.

So yea, thanks for all your opinions.

It just hit me, is there any other card that would be faster than the 9800GTX but cheaper than the GTX460 ? It would have to be faster than the 9800GTX as well...If not, ill just go with the EVGA GTX460 256-bit.

 

[Davidh373]

NVidia doesn't with enough of a gap to make the performance gain or loss worth it that I know of. You might consider a Radeon HD 5770? That's $150, so it's in between the 9800 and 460 in price and performance. As long as you don't mind the brand change that should do well.

 

[darkewaffle]

A 5770 at the right price point falls at good place between the two. That could keep you a bit closer to $100 than $200.

 

[MentalIlness]

Hmm...now that is interesting.

Anyone know of a review comparing the HD 5770 and the 9800GTX in the same review ?

I have looked with no success.

 

[darkewaffle]

A 9800GTX is almost a GTS 250 which is probably a like a bit more than half of 5770. GTS 250s in SLI edge out the 5770 fairly well in most cases, so I'm estimating here.

 

[Davidh373]

-Comparison between the two-
http://www.hwcompare.com/graphics/compare.php?c=GeForce-9800-GTX--vs-Radeon-HD-5770

-General G-card bench-
http://www.videocardbenchmark.net/high_end_gpus.html

 

[Blain]

Option D. Ban all members that name systems. :sneaky:

 

[mfenn]

Option D. Ban all members that name systems. :sneaky:

D:
:hmm:
:thumbsup:

 

[Davidh373]

D:
:hmm:
:thumbsup:

but I love my Veronica... she makes up for me not having a girlfriend!