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Christmas Upgrade Advice

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Ok , I know my specs are in the drop-down but i am right now working with:

i7 920
Asus Rampage Extreme II
ATi 5850 1GB

Power supply is no problem, either are the hard drives. I don't see the ram being an issue either @ 12gb.

So in my mind the motherboard, cpu, & gpu are where the potential upgrades are. I have a budget of around $750usd. So is this something i should be thinking of now? I was gonna hold off for new GPUs but im still in the 5 series and i don't see 8 coming in the next few months. Plus i can always buy one now and XFire later.

I am willing to go nvidia this time around if the price/performance is good.
 

JrRacinFan

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Too early an upgrade for you on the cpu/board end of things. Pickup a 2nd 5850 or go up to maybe a 7950.
 
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i was leading toward the gpu - this 920 is a C0 i think, so it overclocks REALLY well. if taken care of and using some minor ocing that should last a few more years, no?
the gpu though, can handle all current games but i can't max em all out. I do have a second 5850 but they're both limited to 1gb ram, and i'd like 2gb.

does this make sense at all? should i just keep waiting? I told my bosses i needed new parts so they are going half with, so i can likely spend about $750-$1000. i've got 3 ssds.... maybe a bigger one but that seems a waste. i could use another 2-3tb storage, but that's nothing afa costs go.
advice please!! :)

Too early an upgrade for you on the cpu/board end of things

really? rampage iv is out now isn't it... the benefit for me just wouldn't be there you think? i do basic design/coding work and play games, that's it.
I thought my board was getting old but i'd definitely take your word for it... still good?
 
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Really no need to upgrade at this time.
 
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Really no need to upgrade at this time.

i know i'm a bit before the curve, but the fact is the money is there to spend and it may not be later on. I want to get some parts while i can.

how long until a worthy gpu comes out? worthy mobo/cpu?

thanks for all your help guys.
 
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i know i'm a bit before the curve, but the fact is the money is there to spend and it may not be later on. I want to get some parts while i can.

how long until a worthy gpu comes out? worthy mobo/cpu?

thanks for all your help guys.

I suppose it needs to be asked, what do you use your rig for? Even though it's an x58 rig, and the platform is going on 4 years old, it's still very powerful. My old x58 rig (920, Evga 3x SLI mobo, 6GB, 2x 560Ti's,) could easily max any game out there at the 920's stock speed and utilize the 560Ti's to their max. Never once was I feeling like "Oh man, this rig doesn't have enough power to run x."

The only thing that you may want to consider is a new GPU or two. Although, two 5850's are powerful enough to run most anything. However, with only 1GB of available memory, it may be lacking in more demanding games and eyefinity.

And hell, with $750, you could easily build yourself an Ivybridge rig with lots of cash to spare. Especially if you have a MicroCenter nearby.
 
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If your gonna run eyefinity get a couple of 7970's or 50's
 
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i do (did) run eyefinity but fps lag was a b!*ch
 
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Keep the i7. Since you have some money and it's burning your pocket I'd say get a HD7970. Great value, I think the games bundle is still valid, 3GB and very good overclocking potential, all under 400$.
 

JrRacinFan

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If you're REALLY into things and the H50 is getting old, do a watercooled setup on the cpu, but get a block that has s2011/1156 compatibility, just in case you ever do wish to move to a different platform.

How much do you use the AMD 940 rig? Yeah the more I think about it, get a 79xx series and move 1 of the 5800's to the AMD.
 

MxPhenom 216

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Upgrade the video card. Either GTX680 of HD7970.
 

lyndonguitar

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Replace the 5850 with a 79xx series card (two if you can) and keep the MB and CPU.

It would cost you more with little performance gain if wanna go Ivy/Sandy Bridge now. as most games are really GPU intensive. and If it is CPU intensive, your CPU can handle it anyway. so yeah, GPU
 
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thanks for the advice guys, new gpu it'll be :)
 
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