CPU upgrade - what to upgrade to and what else will i need

[Tapewormlondon]

Hi,

Im hoping to respec my PC to get it back up to top of the line. She has served me well and whilst my GPU is still okish (R9 270x) it will also need upgrading later down the line.

My first upgrade I think needs to be the CPU. She has served me well for quite a few years, but its an i5-2320 3.0ghz so shes getting well out of date.

What am I best to upgrade to? - and I assume I will need a new motherboard (currently Advent DT2111 which was the original with the PC).

Will i need to buy windows 10 again, as I am told upgrading the motherboard I will have to?

I am a novice at PCs themselves, I just like playing games on them - currently play a lot of strategy games, but I play all other types and want this to be a proper top gaming rig in a few months and a few upgrades. I was going to buy a brand new gaming PC - but I can do it cheaper bit by bit i'm sure.

Any advice much appreciated.

 

[clutchc]

I suspect your gfx card is still your weak link. The Sandy Bridge i5-2320 is capable of keeping up with faster cards than the R9-270X. It is still a tier two CPU for gaming: http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/cpu-hierarchy,4312.html

 

[lukyjoe]

First off, what is the budget you want to work with?

You will not have to install a new OS since you are not switching the hard-drive, you will however have to install all the new drivers for the new MOBO. Your GPU is considered mid-low tier at the moment, so if you are looking for high end games running at high specs, that is something to look into as well. If you are okay to compromise in quality for performance you should be okay for the next 3-6 months.

The problem you might run into is that you will have a computer built for high end performance but not have the muscles for it, so it could be a little disappointing. So make sure to focus on what is important for you.