I'm feeling the upgrade itch again...

[Kursah]

I've been fighting it a looooong time, I've had my rig pretty much as-is since around August 2008. It's treated me amazingly well, very stable, well performing, and I've been very content. Sure many times I've considered upgrading, and some hard times in the last few months has meant I have less money to stash for upgrades helped keep me at bay.

But after helping a friend upgrade his rig, I've regained an itch to upgrade my rig. Not sure which route I wanna take, MB/DDR3/CPU first or GPU.

After doing some research on the new intel stuff, and working with Fits to get a good setup in my budget, we came to this upgrade path on the system side:

MB: EVGA P55 FTW - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813188056
Ram: Mushkin Enhanced Blackline 1600 - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820226103
CPU: Intel Core i5-750 - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819115215

Those 3 items will run me around $500-550 shipped from the 'egg right now, which right now I don't have that kinda cash yet...eagerly awaiting my tax return and hoping there's enough left of it after one more bill.

I'm also tossing around grabbing an HD5850, dunno if the GTX4xx series will be released next month, but from what I've heard they're gonna be outta my price-range. I kinda hope they're released so the HD5xxx series can go down to or below original release msrp.

I'm open to suggestions at this point, as much as I wanna buy something now, really I can't quite yet, so I have some time to research some more, and see if prices drop. Hell I might have to buy one piece at a time to even get this upgrade rollin'.

A few questions, is it worth going to i5/ddr3/p55 from my oc'd q6600 c2q/ddr2 1000/p45 setup? I know power consumption-wise and efficiency-wise it's a decent choice, but as-far-as performance, primarily media conversion and even more-so gaming. Sure I know a GPU would probably be a more noticable route, but I just cannot justify overspending now on an HD5850...and odds are I'll donate my cpu/mb/ddr2 to my father's rig (ancient s423/ddr/agp setup that's horridly slow). So some input from you folks would be apprciated, especially if you took a similar upgrade path. If I go the system upgrade route, I'll keep the 260 a good while longer, it's a great card, the ac gtx cooler keeps it sub-50C in most games, and it OC's well for a 65nm/216core version...but I've had it since July 2008 so I know it's days are numbered with some newer titles I plan to play in the future.

Thanks for your time! Looking forward to some input!

 

[brandonwh64]

That looks like a nice upgrade!

 

[blkhogan]

Thats going to be a nice little arse kicker

 

[Reefer86]

i get the itch every time i log on to TPU! lol, i have a pc for gaming and spend most of my time looking and finding out what my next upgrade will be.

 

[blkhogan]

i get the itch every time i log on to TPU! lol, i have a pc for gaming and spend most of my time looking and finding out what my next upgrade will be.

Hahahahaha.... me too. I try to stay away so I can get my NewEgg bill caught back up. Then its right back to it. Its TPU fever! Its real, I know its real.

 

[Reefer86]

my wallet knows its real ...lol

 

[blkhogan]

my wallet knows its real ...lol

It sux when NewEgg keeps uping my credit limit Must resist building more crunchers.

 

[Kursah]

It sux when NewEgg keeps uping my credit limit Must resist building more crunchers.

You use that BillMeLater deal? I'm considering it, just don't like the sound of the 19.9% interest rate. Though if I ordered it'd be over the 6mo $500 limit...I'd have that payed off easy in 6 months...just not able to do it asap...hmm.

After some more reading, might hold off on the vid card upgrade and just go for the system upgrade, and might keep an eye out for an haf922 and sell off this big ass 932. I don't need a full tower, but damn is it a sweet case...just so effing massive. Not sure what I wanna do yet, but I'm pretty certain on the components of the system upgrade...the GPU upgrade is a slight in a few directions, stay, maybe grab another 260 for sli..though I don't prefer more than 1 gpu/1card, that's when I upgrade, when 1 card can't do it, get one that can. Keep it simple, less messing around, more gaming, I could care less on benches, and I only run 1920x1080.

So far it sounds like I have some good stuff picked out? Gotta thank Fits again for leading me in the right direction after some research and about 8 Mb choices and too many ram choices from inexperience.

 

[shevanel]

going from a q6600 to an i5 750 you will notice imediate and somewhat drastic gains. trust me on this, I had a q9550 and the i7 920 blew it away, the 750 performs really close to a 920 aside from video encoding stuff. you will love it.

if you can score a 1366/i7 combo for a good deal Id go that route TBH, nothing wrong with i5 but you seem like the kinda guy that will use a system for a couple years.. in a couple years i9 might be cheaper and if youre on 1366 your board and mem can hang around during a future cpu upgrade.

you seem patient enough to wait out March and see what NV does, whatever they do will have a reaction from ATI and maybe the money you save on a 5850 can be applied to an i7 build

if your deadset on i5 then a 750 is a sweet cpu, i have one and i cannot complain at all.

keep your haf 932, not worth selling when shipping is 50% the equity of the case just to downsize a few inches here or there

just my $0.02

 

[arroyo]

Since when I have a wife...upgrade itch is somehow gone. If want to have a warm lunch, unfortunately the computer must remain not modernized. My wife is jealous of my "Złotko" (nick for my computer).

 

[Hayder_Master]

nice move, but for me i see more bucks for core i7 860 will be great, impressive overclocking with hayper-thridding technology give you extreme system

 

[blkhogan]

You use that BillMeLater deal?

I have used it a lot actually. I usually pay it off within a few months, so its like getting the stuff before even paying for it. They just upped my limit to $3,000 :shadedshu They know what they are doing, up it so he will buy more while hes in the "spending" mood. I am just getting the bill payed from my last "little" spending spree with them.

 

[Kursah]

Well I'm gonna do my best to wait a few more weeks, 'till around the middle of March. But I could easily pay off a $500-800 debt in a few months before the interest rate bs kicks in. Any more info you can provide on the Bill-Me-Later program? I'm the kinda guy that prefers to be able to buy something with cash in hand, I have good credit, but not from credit cards...I've steered clear of em' and gotten by just fine. I just hate paying more for something that I already am, but I suppose that's the cost of being impatient...which I'm getting every time I think about upgrading.

I am reading A LOT of claims of increases in gaming FPS from rigs like mine to builds like I plan to do, many claiming 10, 15 even 20FPS increases...that's GPU upgrade style increases...dunno if I buy it, but I might have to keep a closer eye on games I play now so I can see for myself. The Mushkin memory is outta stock atm, but eta is 2/16, so I'm still not in a huge hurry, but that billmelater has me definitely tossing around ordering up some goodies asap lol! If I could find a new lifetime warrantied hd5850 for $250msrp I'd be even more inclined to toss a GPU upgrade too..but if the increases from just going to i5 hold true, I definitely won't need it yet.

 

[roast]

If I were you, I'd get the MB,CPU + RAM right now, and hold off on a video card until Fermi's released. Even if you do end up getting a 5xxx card, thier price will probably drop when nVidia release the elusive fermi.

 

[werez]

there is no cure for "THE ITCH" )
The motherboard has the right specs on paper , looks good , but there are many bad reviews on newegg about the actual product . A few issues here and there . I don`t get it ... this board should be FTW .( top class right ? ) . This board is too overpriced around here so i just skipped it . I am not interesting in upgrading my system , but i won an i5 processor a few weeks ago , and i just have to put it to good use .


http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produ...31601&cm_re=sabretooth-_-13-131-601-_-Product - is on the way , probably i will get my hands on it by the end of the week .

 

[TVman]

there is no point upgrading the mb/ram/cpu but gpu upgrade would be the way to go(if you are a gamer)drop in a new shiny HD5800 or if you manage to keep it in your pants(money i mean) the badass FERMI! yea there is no point swaping out you Q6600 just yet

 

[afw]

If you have a bit more money to spend .. why not go with this ... its an awesome combo ...

http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboBundleDetails.aspx?ItemList=Combo.335221

better processor , motherboard ... plus you get a 1.5TB hard disk ... i know u dont need a hard disk .. but you can always sell it ... you'll be spending almost the same amount if you sell the hard disk ...

or you can consider this combo from microcenter if you are near any of the stores ...
http://www.microcenter.com/specials...dium=theme_banner&utm_campaign=ad_vehicle_472

if you are not near any of the stores you can ask on of the members here to get them for you ... check this.. http://forums.techpowerup.com/showthread.php?t=108825

 

[Kursah]

No microcenters even close to a bordering state lol!

That is an awesome combo, but I've heard some dissapointing things about Asus P55 MB's, though that's a nice combo setup for sure.

I am really thinking of doing the bill me later and getting the mb/cpu/ram very soon. Might go with some G.Skill's if the Mushkins don't come back soon enough, the more I read the more I think it's a good platform to invest in. I don't mind only having 4 true cores w/o ht, because they're more efficient than what I have now. I tend to go for more mid-range stuff and push it a little bit.

Still think I'm for sure holding out on a GPU upgrade, I just cannot justify overspending on an hd5850 no matter how capable it is, it's not worth more than $230-250 to me right now...doesn't mean that I won't change my mind, but at this point, till I see prices drop or a good sale, I'm gonna keep the trusty 260 for sure. See what Fermi's about and choose later on or when I need more gpu powa for gaming.

Definitely some more food for thought! I appreciate it! I'm still looking at other options too, so please keep the suggestions coming! Thanks all!

 

[xBruce88x]

how much do you want for the old Q6600?

Is there a fry's near you? Although Newegg is usually a lot cheaper lol

holding out a little longer for a gpu upgrade isn't a bad idea, that GTX260 should last you a little longer. heck, i got a 9600GT and it seems to handle all the games i play, the biggest limit seems to be my cpu

 

[Kursah]

Dunno what I'll do with my old stuff, possibly sell it off or use it to upgrade my father's ancient rig (though he'd have to get a real PSU, he's the kinda guy that likes to run $15-30 PSU's and replace them 3 times a year lol...never learns).

Though if I do upgrade I'll have my q6600, asus p5q deluxe and 2x2gb g.skill kit sitting around...I'll letcha know if I decide to sell it!

 

[MKmods]

I hate to rain on your parade but do you really "need" to upgrade. I dont think there is a big enough diff for it to be worth it.
(since I went through like 20 different GPUs on 2009 its not like I should be talking)

I think if I had just stayed with a X2 6400 and a pair of 9600GTs in SLI I could have been just as happy and $3-4K richer...

I would wait for the next gen stuff.

 

[Kursah]

Just might do that, there are a few other things I'd like to do with that money. At this point I don't "need" to upgrade. My build is and has been solid. If anything a GPU upgrade in the future, but even at this point, my 260's cranking out pretty solid @ 1920x1080. Just been a while since I've had the upgrade bug, and even though I'm broke there's so much stuff I've gotten to play with or build, I am feeling a tug in the upgrade direction. Kinda why I'm willing to wait and see what happens, not necessarily something I need to do for sure, you're dead on correct there.

Thanks for the sobering post!

 

[3volvedcombat]

From the comments i herd, id do the processor upgrade, and if you can squeez the i7 it be really worth it. Ive herd many accounts of the smoothness, and play that even a i7 750 offers at 4.0ghz compared to my q9550 at 4.0Ghz. And thats already faster then a q6600.

I mean the i5 750 is like no other when at 4.0ghz and a i7 is just a tad better acctualy, it dosnt blow it out of the water at all and at 4.0ghz rivals the fastest stock clocked i7 or its faster then it in everything.

 

[Kursah]

What I've read, if I could gain an easy 10-15fps, save on the power bill (which is already cheap, I love living in a power providing state! but it's also a very poor paying and high cost of living state), and get more clocks, then it's a plus. At this point now I'm torn...I have a few other things I can do that I might just do instead of upgrade. Not like my rig is doing horrible in games, sure it wouldn't hurt to amplify my performance a little bit, or even a lotta bit, but I don't necessarily need it. But I'm gonna keep researching, so when I do upgrade (which could be next week, next month, next year) I get a good bang for the buck situation going on. Keep the suggestions coming..what would you do with $550 total (including shipping, cooling or cooling adapters, etc) in my situation?

 

[xBruce88x]

hmm... i'd probably go the phenom route honestly and save a little for the video card upgrade later, or you could go for the i5/i7 setup

i saw a phenom II x4 BE for $150 HERE, and you could probably get a nice board for the same price, and ram maybe around $100 (or even re-use your current ram and use the money for an aftermarket cooler, saving even more for gfx)