[advice]Choose Minor/Major Upgrade or New Upgrade? CPU or GPU first?

[zipper17]

hi guys, im first in this forum, so im gonna need some advice but a little bit complicated..
<btw im not native english >

This is My Current RIG:
-ECS a785gm-a AM2+
-Athlon 2 x2 245
-2 GB ddr2 pc 5300
-Power Color HD 4650 1 gb ddr3
-Enlight Sniper Power 500 watt

ok, to the point, what u guys think the best Should i Upgrade between A, B, or C? :

A. Minor Upgrade <use current AMD DDR2 Platform>:
1. CPU+RAM+PSU

CPU: AMD PHENOM II X4 945 3,0Ghz
RAM: add 2 GB more
PSU: Muscle Power Ares 650W

2. GPU+PSU
GPU<choose the best>:
-Calibre Geforce GTX560 Ti Lite 1024MB DDR5 256 Bit
-Gigabyte Geforce GTX560 Ti 1024MB DDR5 - GV-N560SO-1GI-950
-MSI Geforce GTX 460 1GB DDR5 Hawk Talon

PSU: Muscle Power Ares 650W

<if u choose minor upgrade, choose what would be upgrade first, number 1 or 2?>

B. Major Upgrade to AMD DDR3 platform

1. CPU+RAM+BOARD
-CPU: AMD PHENOM II X4 955be 3,2Ghz
-Board: Biostar TA880GB+
-RAM: any 4 GB dual Channel ddr3?

2. GPU+PSU
GPU<choose the best>:
-Calibre Geforce GTX560 Ti Lite 1024MB DDR5 256 Bit
-Gigabyte Geforce GTX560 Ti 1024MB DDR5 - GV-N560SO-1GI-950
-MSI Geforce GTX 460 1GB DDR5 Hawk Talon

PSU: Muscle Power Ares 650W

<if u choose upgrade to DDR3 platform, choose what would be upgrade first, number 1 or 2?>

C. New upgrade to INTEL SB Platform:
<im not planning to OC ,so i choose SB non-k series, and H61 chipset>
1. Upgrade CPU+RAM+BOARD

CPU<choose the best>:
-i5 2400 3.1Ghz
-i5 2500 3.3Ghz

Board<choose the best>:
-MSI H61M-E33 B3
-ASRock H61M-U3S3

RAM:
G.skill DDR3 PC10666 4GB XM Dual Channel F3-10666CL8D-4GBXM / 8-8-8-24

2. GPU+PSU

GPU <choose the best>:
-Calibre Geforce GTX560 Ti Lite 1024MB DDR5 256 Bit
-Gigabyte Geforce GTX560 Ti 1024MB DDR5 - GV-N560SO-1GI-950
-MSI Geforce GTX 460 1GB DDR5 Hawk Talon

PSU: Muscle Power Ares 650W

<if u choose new upgrade, choose what would be upgrade first, number 1 or 2?>

Note:
-my current mobo not support cpu with 125 watt TDP, so i cannot upgrade above phenom 945..
-PSU 'Muscle Power' is local product from my country and its OEM from Seasonic & its Pure PSU ..
-most game i play is: GTA 4/EFLC, BFBC2, L4d2, Crysis Series, AC series,etc but i think all games nowadays i play..
-I need physX for game, so i choose nvidia..
-MAx resolution i can play 1280x1024..im gonna upgrade to LCD/LED, but i think this will be the last Final upgrade...

THX b4 guys ...

 

[Fourstaff]

Option D: Wait for Bulldozer and see how it goes. DDR3 is now cheaper than DDR2, so its unwise to stick with DDR3. Also, take a look at the Sandy i3 2100, it packs a mean punch when it comes to gaming.

 

[zipper17]

Option D: Wait for Bulldozer and see how it goes. DDR3 is now cheaper than DDR2, so its unwise to stick with DDR3. Also, take a look at the Sandy i3 2100, it packs a mean punch when it comes to gaming.

ok thx for quickreply ,

btw what about GPU ?? gpu is important too for gaming right?

and what u think gpu first or cpu first for gaming?

could u choose the best for gaming from a, b, or c?

 

[Fourstaff]

btw what about GPU ?? gpu is important too for gaming right?

and what u think gpu first or cpu first for gaming?

could u choose the best for gaming from a, b, or c?

GTX460/GTX560Ti are very powerful, but I would choose the 560Ti because I like newer things. Better thermal characteristics too, iirc. Hope that answers your GPU questions.

Your CPU is a dual core, and BFBC2 hates it. the 4650+245 is a good setup for budget, neither bottlenecks the other (perhaps the graphics card in non BFBC2 games), so if you want to upgrade, do it together.

I would choose a modified C, where I get the i3 2100 instead. Would consider A if you can find a DDR2 stick and a Phenom II 2nd hand for cheaps and get a graphics card to go with it.

 

[PaulieG]

I'd say option 3 is you best bet. After having a few SB setups, I've found you just can't beat the price to performance of Sandy Bridge, not to mention the solid power consumption and thermal characteristics. I say this after playing extensively with the 1366, 1156 and to a limited extent, AM3. As far as a card is concerened, I love my 560 ti. It handles everything well, and stays quite cool. I'd certainly chose it before the 460, unless there is a huge price difference, as the 560 ti is faster and stays cooler.

 

[txsouthpaw]

+1 for option 3.
*2500K (it's worth getting a K series)
*P8P67 EVO, Gigabyte UD3, MSI, or ASRock. (P67 or Z68 if you want to OC, I would avoid Hxx)
*Cheapest 560 Ti (brand you're comfortable w/)
*4 or 8gb DDR3 (i would go w/ 1600MHz G.Skill or Corsair)

 

[Zyon]

The most important factor is what you will be using your computer for? Because clearly it makes no sense to spend a lot of money for complete upgrade if all you do is light gaming and general computer use.

If you have a lot of money to burn then option 3 since you will not be using most if not all of your old parts, otherwise for better gaming upgrade I'd just get more DDR2 with better graphics and power supply. (Crysis 2 runs decent with even GTS450/HD5770 at high setting at 1400x900, check resolution that you will be playing too)

For Sandy Bridge if you're getting K then 2500K, if not then 2400 is more valued than 2500.

 

[Crap Daddy]

Definitely C. with a config for whatever budget you have especially if you play GTA4 and BFBC2 and soon BF3, the power and price point of the quads from Sandy Bridge are unmatched for these types of games which heavily relly on multi-core.

 

[isowizard12]

c
i5 2500k easy choice
as rock mb
any 560 card
as they are all reference anyways just matter of warranty and customer service here

that setup will play any game out and comming out in next 2-3 years

 

[mastrdrver]

Option D: Wait for Bulldozer and see how it goes.

2nd.

Seeing as how launch is end of this month (May) I think anyone looking to upgrade would be nuts to not wait until after launch.

Even if the OP does go Intel, if Bulldozer ends up good enough, maybe it will drive prices down a little.

 

[xenocide]

Wait for Bulldozer. It's only a month away, and AMD has a lot riding on it. If it ends up being better in terms of Costerformance than Sandy Bridge, go for that, otherwise just go for SB. Even if you jump to an i3 you'd notice a huge performance gain (even if you kept the HD4650).

You're better off doing a complete rebuild as getting a new GPU will bottleneck at the CPU and that CPU is terrible (no offense). There's also no point in getting DDR2 ever again since it is now noticably more expensive than DDR3 (unless you absolutely have to, higher end C2Q setup I guess?). If you do go through with a full rebuild, I reccomend a 560Ti, or if you want to save some money a 460 or 6850\70. Anything will be a big upgrade from what you have currently.

EDIT: Also, I reccomend a more trusted PSU than whatever Muscle Power is. They just sound like bad news (unless I missed something about them being a great sleeper company).

 

[zipper17]

btw now im already own Calibre GTX 560 ti Lite and PSU Seasonic SS-650AT
little bit bottleneck with my current system but in game increase FPS really Great ..
especially game With GPU Bound like Crysis series, Dead Space series, Farcry 2, etc..
but on GTA 4 /EFLC still have same FPS lol ..

the next think discuss is about CPU+RAM+BOARD

 

[Neuromancer]

560 and PSU would work great. I would wait for Bulldozer as well as it is less than a month away. If you have teh bug, a nice 890FX AM3+ capable board would be nice and give you more features and provide a Bulldozer upgrade path. My 240x2 OCed to 3.5 GHz on the stock cooler plays the call of duty series just fine on my 6850. At stock I would get some stutterting, but once OCed it was smooth sailing.

the only thing new CPU would give you is more background tasks running and still game smoothly. (It might give you more FPS in games, but not enough to be noticeable I would think).