[SOLVED] Need an upgrade at some point, but dont know how soon

[ij666665]

So I was planning on upgrading my cpu first when Intel 12th gen comes out in a couple years since i thought it would be cool to go from a 2nd gen i3 to a 12th gen i3, but i think the whole combination of parts is beginning to show its age and I don't know whether to just upgrade sooner.
parts list:

• i3-2120 (oldest part of the build)
• Asus p8h61 i rm/si (came from an old school computer. doesnt have usb 3)
• 12gb ram @ 1066mhz
• Gigabyte gtx 1060 6gb (newest part of the build)
• Evga 750b3 psu
• Antec 900 case

I know it's really unbalanced but I bought the i3 when I was 14 with an 8800 GT, and I just bought the 1060 later when I had enough money
I'll have a budget of around £150 saved by later this year

 

[velocityg4]

What I would do.

• Get a used i7-2600 off eBay with heatsink. There is no point in spending extra on the 2600K with that mobo. I'm not certain if the default heatsink for the i3 is sufficient. It's probably cheaper to get a 2600 with heatsink than buying it separately. Don't forget thermal paste. Arctic Silver 5 is decent budget paste. Unless you buy a new heatsink. The new heatsink will likely include paste.
• Bump the RAM up to a matching used 2x8GB 1333Mhz set for dual channel. Make sure the RAM is 240pin, non-ECC and not registered. As it can't run ECC/Registered/Server memory. There's no reason to get some fancy OC brand of RAM. Just some basic Toshiba, Samsung, SK Hynix or Micron (Crucial). 1600Mhz RAM should work too. It'll just downclock to 1333 Mhz.
• Sell off your current CPU and RAM.

 

[ij666665]

Thanks, I'll probably end up doing something similar to this.
thankfully ive already got a hyper tx3 evo since the i3 was 2nd hand to begin with.
i just checked the pricing of a 2600 at cex and they're only £45 so i will have enough left to get a different motherboard if i need usb 3 or sata 3

 

[velocityg4]

Thanks, I'll probably end up doing something similar to this.
thankfully ive already got a hyper tx3 evo since the i3 was 2nd hand to begin with.
i just checked the pricing of a 2600 at cex and they're only £45 so i will have enough left to get a different motherboard if i need usb 3 or sata 3

USB and SATA cards are cheap.