Need new hardware. Advice needed.

[Focha]

Hi there guys,

 

My actual PC specs are below in my signature. I have €600 that I can spend in the new hardware, can the experts give me some advice? I would appreciate it.

 

Thank you very much.

 

Regards.

[Dusty Rhodes]

Upgrade to more RAM and if you have enuff left over a new Vid Card would certainly help. Just my two cents worth.

[Focha]

Ok, and what kind of graphics card should I went for? Thank you mate.

[jctrnacty]

If you re an nvidia fan buy gf 660. AMD go for 7850. CPU go for intel 3570 and buy a good Mobo this is very important.

Edited May 8, 2013 by jctrnacty

[Paganus]

If you can hold out until June the next Intel CPU will be released which should lower the price on the current generation.

[Haukka81]

OC your cpu and buy new GPU (7850 etc.. 660TI etc.. ) + SSD drive.

 

 

My ex E8400 was runing 3.8ghz easily.

 

 

 

-haukka81

[Focha]

Thanks for the tips guys.

 

So my CPU and MOBO is still capable, but the HD and GPU are off a bit, right? Memory is also necessary?

 

Thanks guys. Regards.

[Slayer]

Thanks for the tips guys.

 

So my CPU and MOBO is still capable, but the HD and GPU are off a bit, right? Memory is also necessary?

 

Thanks guys. Regards.

 

XP will hold back any of the above. Do not neglect your OS, get Windows 7 x 64 whatever version you can get cheapest and you'll be miles ahead. DCS has already shifted to x64 so even on your old system it's not so great to use a 32 bit OS. Windows 8 stinks, you might get it cheaper than Windows 7 but it is still too new for stable hardcore gaming like DCS.

 

Also the second most overlooked item is a good quality PSU. Do not skimp on this , I know it's hard to quantify but what good is a fast system if it dies after a month or is not stable? For your budget you should do OS first (after the above 2 items), GPU second and get the fastest used processor that will go on your board , then get some new memory cheap on New Egg. Dual channel kit and definately don't mix and match....

Edited May 9, 2013 by Slayer

[nd1312]

Windows 8 stinks, you might get it cheaper than Windows 7 but it is still too new for stable hardcore gaming like DCS.

 

Could you please explain why you think this? I recently switched from x64 Win 7 to Win 8 and haven't had a problem with it. I'm also using an old x52 and a PSEye for freetrack. (which has sketchy drivers at best) and never had stability issues.

 

What problems did you have with it?

I personally can't find any difference to Win7 other than the slightly different UI (MetroUI for example which you don't have to use) an that it's faster.

[ericoh]

Windows 7 is far better then Windows XP and Windows 8 is better then Windows 7. EVerytime Microsoft brings a new system people complain for years that it sucks. This is allready tradition!

 

Windows 8 is the SAME then Windows 7. Just that it is better crafted under hood and you can optionaly use the Metro UI (which you dont have to).

 

It is a goddamn lie. Cannot belive sso much people jump for it... Drones...

[r3m]

600 EUR or approx 790 USD can buy you a significant upgrade from what you currently have, in particular a SATA3 mobo and SSD, a 64 bit OS and 8GB of ram, and a new processor. Haswell is coming soon, along with the rebranded nvidia gpus (GTX 760,770,780) which will affect prices and availability of their entire lines. You can probably score pretty well on ebay in the coming weeks, so it's definitely something to consider.

 

Here are some ideas for parts. They would both work well the way I posted them but you could obviously take a GPU or an SSD from one to the other. If you have a good PSU you can reuse then it would change the builds, but in ways that I hope you could see yourself.

 

 

 

A8-5600K/7870 XT

 

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

 

CPU: AMD A8-5600K 3.6GHz Quad-Core Processor ($101.70 @ Amazon)

Motherboard: ASRock FM2A85X Extreme4 ATX FM2 Motherboard ($89.99 @ Newegg)

Memory: Corsair XMS3 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1333 Memory ($55.98 @ Amazon)

Storage: Samsung 840 Series 120GB 2.5" Solid State Disk ($92.99 @ NCIX US)

Video Card: Sapphire Radeon HD 7870 XT 2GB Video Card ($238.99 @ SuperBiiz)

Power Supply: Thermaltake SMART 550W 80 PLUS Bronze Certified ATX12V Power Supply ($57.99 @ NCIX US)

Operating System: Microsoft Windows 8 (OEM) (64-bit) ($89.99 @ NCIX US)

Total: $727.63

(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)

(Generated by PCPartPicker 2013-05-09 09:37 EDT-0400)

 

i3-3220/GTX 660

 

PCPartPicker part list: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/W5JA

Price breakdown by merchant: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/W5JA/by_merchant/

Benchmarks: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/W5JA/benchmarks/

 

CPU: Intel Core i3-3220 3.3GHz Dual-Core Processor ($109.99 @ Amazon)

CPU Cooler: Cooler Master RR-H101-22FK-RI 30.0 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler ($9.99 @ Newegg)

Motherboard: ASRock Z77 Extreme3 ATX LGA1155 Motherboard ($118.98 @ Newegg)

Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($59.82 @ NCIX US)

Storage: Crucial M500 120GB 2.5" Solid State Disk ($121.72 @ NCIX US)

Video Card: MSI GeForce GTX 660 2GB Video Card ($204.99 @ Amazon)

Power Supply: Thermaltake SMART 550W 80 PLUS Bronze Certified ATX12V Power Supply ($57.99 @ NCIX US)

Operating System: Microsoft Windows 8 (OEM) (64-bit) ($89.99 @ NCIX US)

Total: $778.47

(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)

(Generated by PCPartPicker 2013-05-09 09:35 EDT-0400)

 

[Slayer]

Could you please explain why you think this? I recently switched from x64 Win 7 to Win 8 and haven't had a problem with it. I'm also using an old x52 and a PSEye for freetrack. (which has sketchy drivers at best) and never had stability issues.

 

What problems did you have with it?

I personally can't find any difference to Win7 other than the slightly different UI (MetroUI for example which you don't have to use) an that it's faster.

 

Early on it had problems with TrackIR. Overall it just "seems" less stable. In FSX for instance I couldn't complete a 2 hour long flight without a crash. Same system with Windows 7 - no crash. Maybe it's immature drivers or who knows. Also it has issues with Nvidia surround...3 times it would boot to a black screen rendering the system totally unusable, I couldn't even get into safe mode to repair it. IL-2 had problems with it as well. Just lots of things like this...so yeah now I am one of the "klingons" who get stuck on an old OS and doesn't want to move on. There were other things as well.

 

It runs fine on a 3 year old notebook that I use to run FSX addons etc. but again I don't do gaming or hardcore simming on it either.

 

Honestly I don't want the hassle, I wasted weeks tinkering with it. When I get home after working all day and want to game or fly a sim I don't want to spend the first hour or 2 tweaking or searching the net for workarounds. I just want to play.

[Focha]

Sorry, those stats are off, I have windows 7 64.