$300 for CPU/GPU/RAM Upgrade

[that1guy1818]

hello toms hardware,

I have a very tight $300 budget to upgrade my pc to get me by gaming till im done with school in abolut a year and im wondering if this is the most i can get out of my money right now

I have done a few upgrades in the past and its just not enough but here are my specs then ill tell you what id like to upgrade


**CURRENT SPECS**
CPU- AMD A6-6400k @4.1
GPU- EVGA 550ti FPB 1gb
RAM- 4GB 1600Mhz
PSU- Corssair CX750M Bronze
HDD- WD 320GB 5400rpm (from old PC, mainly used for usles storage and i will get a 1 TB soon anyway)
SSD- Sandisk 128gb for OS
SSD- Samsung 840 evo 250GB
External HDD- 1TB
Motherboard- MSI A55e-33M
Case- Enermax Ostrog




I have done some minor reasearch and Im thinking of upgrading my CPU, GPU, and RAM and wondering if these upgrades would be sufficent for 1080p gaming for the next year or so playing watch dogs, BF4, skyrim, the crew, GTA 4 and 5, probably not far cry but maybe assasins creed black flag and maybe unity. and possibly a prodicted fps or better upgrade solutions for the money

UPGRADE SPECS
CPU- AMD Athlon x4 760k ~$80
GPU- MSI R7 265 2GB ~$150 before Rebate
RAM- 8gb of G. Skill Ripjaws dual channel on sale for $55
and Artic silver 5 thermal compund

Thank you for your time

 

[baniDJ]

Get an R9 270 and some RAM if you can. Don't upgrade the CPU on that board. Save a little bit more money and the also get an i5 and a Z97 board.

 

[Computer Blackwidow]

hello toms hardware,

UPGRADE SPECS
CPU- AMD Athlon x4 760k ~$80
GPU- MSI R7 265 2GB ~$150 before Rebate
RAM- 8gb of G. Skill Ripjaws dual channel on sale for $55
and Artic silver 5 thermal compund

Thank you for your time

Your CPU, RAM choice is good. But not the GPU. I will recommend to get r9 280 or r9 285 whichever cheap available. Get a cheap aftermarket CPU cooler like Hyper 212 Evo and if you are on really tight budget then Hyper TX3 will also be fine. No need to get the thermal paste seperately. The coolers comes with a thermal paste and they are good.
See Here:
PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: AMD Athlon X4 760K 3.8GHz Quad-Core Processor ($77.89 @ OutletPC)
CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper TX3 54.8 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler ($17.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($54.99 @ Newegg)
Video Card: XFX Radeon R9 280 3GB Black Edition Double Dissipation Video Card ($170.99 @ NCIX US)
Total: $321.86
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2015-02-22 13:07 EST-0500
Just 20$ more and you have a better gaming PC. But dont overclock with this built. If you want to overclock then you will need a good mobo and PSU. Otherwise all are great now. Best Luck.
CB

 

[that1guy1818]

its a temporary upgrade for now and with my 550 ti my dual core hits 100% usage first on BF4 and medal of Honor and a few other games, are you sure i should pass on the $80 quad core upgrade?

 

[that1guy1818]

hello toms hardware,

UPGRADE SPECS
CPU- AMD Athlon x4 760k ~$80
GPU- MSI R7 265 2GB ~$150 before Rebate
RAM- 8gb of G. Skill Ripjaws dual channel on sale for $55
and Artic silver 5 thermal compund

Thank you for your time

Your CPU, RAM choice is good. But not the GPU. I will recommend to get r9 280 or r9 285 whichever cheap available. Get a cheap aftermarket CPU cooler like Hyper 212 Evo and if you are on really tight budget then Hyper TX3 will also be fine. No need to get the thermal paste seperately. The coolers comes with a thermal paste and they are good.
See Here:
PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: AMD Athlon X4 760K 3.8GHz Quad-Core Processor ($77.89 @ OutletPC)
CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper TX3 54.8 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler ($17.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($54.99 @ Newegg)
Video Card: XFX Radeon R9 280 3GB Black Edition Double Dissipation Video Card ($170.99 @ NCIX US)
Total: $321.86
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2015-02-22 13:07 EST-0500
Just 20$ more and you have a better gaming PC. But dont overclock with this built. If you want to overclock then you will need a good mobo and PSU. Otherwise all are great now. Best Luck.
CB

thank you i had no clue i could squeeze a 280 in there, and yeah i was going to wait for my rebate to come in and take $20 off the 212 evo or your reccomendation the TX3, which one do you think would be better for my rig? and i dont plan on OC yet, this is only my second build/rebuild(First on my own)

also my cousin who helped me with my first build used %99 isopropyl alcohol, i only have 91, wil that be okay?

 

[baniDJ]

The athlon x4 will also be a big bottleneck in demanding games as your dual core. Sell that CPU and MOBO and get something from Intel, or get atleast an FX 6300 with an AM3+ board. About GPU get the R9 270 or 280.

 

[Computer Blackwidow]

its a temporary upgrade for now and with my 550 ti my dual core hits 100% usage first on BF4 and medal of Honor and a few other games, are you sure i should pass on the $80 quad core upgrade?

Yes, AMD Athlon x4 760k is very good CPU and can handle modern games as well. It is so good than a6-6400k. It will run fine. get that. It will work great.
CB

 

[Computer Blackwidow]

hello toms hardware,

UPGRADE SPECS
CPU- AMD Athlon x4 760k ~$80
GPU- MSI R7 265 2GB ~$150 before Rebate
RAM- 8gb of G. Skill Ripjaws dual channel on sale for $55
and Artic silver 5 thermal compund

Thank you for your time

Your CPU, RAM choice is good. But not the GPU. I will recommend to get r9 280 or r9 285 whichever cheap available. Get a cheap aftermarket CPU cooler like Hyper 212 Evo and if you are on really tight budget then Hyper TX3 will also be fine. No need to get the thermal paste seperately. The coolers comes with a thermal paste and they are good.
See Here:
PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: AMD Athlon X4 760K 3.8GHz Quad-Core Processor ($77.89 @ OutletPC)
CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper TX3 54.8 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler ($17.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($54.99 @ Newegg)
Video Card: XFX Radeon R9 280 3GB Black Edition Double Dissipation Video Card ($170.99 @ NCIX US)
Total: $321.86
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2015-02-22 13:07 EST-0500
Just 20$ more and you have a better gaming PC. But dont overclock with this built. If you want to overclock then you will need a good mobo and PSU. Otherwise all are great now. Best Luck.
CB

thank you i had no clue i could squeeze a 280 in there, and yeah i was going to wait for my rebate to come in and take $20 off the 212 evo or your reccomendation the TX3, which one do you think would be better for my rig?

Both are good. The difference is only that the 212 evo has 4 heatpipes and that of tx3 has 3. Both are almost same, just 212 evo has 3-5 degrees Celsius lesser temperature. If you have a tight budget then go for TX3.
CB

 

[that1guy1818]

hello toms hardware,

UPGRADE SPECS
CPU- AMD Athlon x4 760k ~$80
GPU- MSI R7 265 2GB ~$150 before Rebate
RAM- 8gb of G. Skill Ripjaws dual channel on sale for $55
and Artic silver 5 thermal compund

Thank you for your time

Your CPU, RAM choice is good. But not the GPU. I will recommend to get r9 280 or r9 285 whichever cheap available. Get a cheap aftermarket CPU cooler like Hyper 212 Evo and if you are on really tight budget then Hyper TX3 will also be fine. No need to get the thermal paste seperately. The coolers comes with a thermal paste and they are good.
See Here:
PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: AMD Athlon X4 760K 3.8GHz Quad-Core Processor ($77.89 @ OutletPC)
CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper TX3 54.8 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler ($17.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($54.99 @ Newegg)
Video Card: XFX Radeon R9 280 3GB Black Edition Double Dissipation Video Card ($170.99 @ NCIX US)
Total: $321.86
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2015-02-22 13:07 EST-0500
Just 20$ more and you have a better gaming PC. But dont overclock with this built. If you want to overclock then you will need a good mobo and PSU. Otherwise all are great now. Best Luck.
CB

thank you i had no clue i could squeeze a 280 in there, and yeah i was going to wait for my rebate to come in and take $20 off the 212 evo or your reccomendation the TX3, which one do you think would be better for my rig?

Both are good. The difference is only that the 212 evo has 4 heatpipes and that of tx3 has 3. Both are almost same, just 212 evo has 3-5 degrees Celsius lesser temperature. If you have a tight budget then go for TX3.
CB

okay cool, thank you for your time and advice i think ill go with the 212 just to squeeze every last bit of heat out and one last question, ill be using the stock heat sink for the first month or so, but when i upgrage to the evo, will %91 alcohol work to remove the thermal paste?

 

[Computer Blackwidow]

No need, just wipe it by a smooth cotton cloth. If any particle get stick with it, can create a lot problems. No necessary to do such things. Just wipe it by a smooth cotton cloth. Remember, throw that cloth after wiping the thermal paste, and wash you hands neatly, because the thermal paste contains some hazardous substances that can affect our Health. best Luck.
CB