PC upgrade summer 2016

[Eli Stout]

Current specs:
-i7 2600k
-GTX 660
-P8 z68 V-PRO
-TR2 600w
-corsair carbide 100r
-2x500gb Wdblue
-128gb ssd.

I'm going to tell you in advance that I'm turning 15 next summer so my budget isn't large. I make around 2000$+ for a summer job. I'd like to spend around 800-900 (CANADIAN!!!!). I play at 1080p and I would like for this to be a noticeable upgrade. I'm looking for and i5 4000+ and a newer card (R9 300 or GTX 900). All I need is a list of recommended parts. When the time comes to buy it, most of them will be a lower price or I can even get some used. Thanks

 

[Eli Stout]

I will most likely be selling my current pc when I upgrade.

 

[turkey3_scratch]

No use making a build for summer 2016. New parts will be out then, most like Nvidia's Pascal graphics cards, AMD's new lineup, and Intel's Cannonlake processors.

 

[Eli Stout]

Thank you for the heads up. I'll see what those are all about when they are released.

 

[babernet_1]

No use making a build for summer 2016. New parts will be out then, most like Nvidia's Pascal graphics cards, AMD's new lineup, and Intel's Cannonlake processors.

Cannonlake has been postponed. INTEL will be refreshing Skylake with Kabylake instead. Just an architecture refresh.

 

[turkey3_scratch]

No use making a build for summer 2016. New parts will be out then, most like Nvidia's Pascal graphics cards, AMD's new lineup, and Intel's Cannonlake processors.

Cannonlake has been postponed. INTEL will be refreshing Skylake with Kabylake instead. Just an architecture refresh.

Whoops, guess I am behind on my information here. Kabylake. Sounds like Babylake.

 

[Eli Stout]

So once those are released, is it still worth it to get an i5 4590 or something like that?

 

[Eli Stout]

And the same goes for graphics cards like the new amd ones and Gtx 900 series

 

[turkey3_scratch]

So once those are released, is it still worth it to get an i5 4590 or something like that?

No, it'll be 3 gens old by then. Already is 2 now (though we don't consider the 5xxx Broadwell gen to be that vital).

 

[skitszo]

most of the value if skylake is energy efficiency... so laptops and battery devices gain the most. I'd say gen 4 CPU.s will be relevant longer then past generation intel chips.

 

[Eli Stout]

Because if I buy an i5 6600k for example, I need pay more for a motherboard and ddr4 ram right?

 

[turkey3_scratch]

By then DDR4 will probably be cheaper. As I said, no need even thinking about it now. I know it's exciting, but don't be hasty.

 

[Eli Stout]

So up top I put my current specs. Is it worth it to upgrade this summer?

 

[skitszo]

DDR4 same deal. most of its value currently is energy efficiency which usually doesn't come into play for desktops. stick with cheaper ddr3...... all the tech pages say speed and ddr3-4 all pretty much do the same work.......only relevance to speed fpr memory comes into play for APU.s and i've only seen it said for AMD only.

 

[rhysiam]

If you're on a limited budget, I'd question the merits of upgrading from a 2600K anyway. Many Sandy Bridge processors (2500K, 2600K) can get to 5Ghz, which is a good step further than you get from any gen since (on average I mean - I'm not counting cherry picked chips). Sure, later processors are faster clock for clock, but the gains have been pretty small.

You could just buy a quality aftermarket cooler and a new graphics card, then OC your CPU. If you can get it to 5Ghz, it'll probably be withing 10-15% of a stock clocked 6700k, within 20-25% of an OC'd 6700k, which is basically the fastest gaming CPU on the planet.

Given that almost all gaming scenarios are GPU bound anyway, the 20% is rarely going to make a difference and the platform cost to go Skylake, Z170 and DDR4 is massive... for 20% performance gain, that doesn't make much sense to me unless you expect to fetch a really good price for your current rig.

Of course there are other benefits with Skylake, more PCIe lanes and NVMe for ultra high speed storage. So if you want to go all out on a new rig, then Skylake is a good investment, but on a budget when your priority is gaming, it's a tough sell IMHO.

TL DR: My 2 cents worth is this, grab a good air cooler if your PC stays still, or CLC if you it to be portable, and a GTX 970, and you'll have 90-95% of the gaming performance of an expensive new rig. Those 2600k are still holding up really, really well, especially OC'd.

 

[Eli Stout]

So lets see.
-I should keep my i7.
-Upgrade my graphics card.
-Upgrade psu?

 

[rhysiam]

So lets see.
-I should keep my i7.
-Upgrade my graphics card.
-Upgrade psu?

Yeah, that's what I'm suggesting. Unless you think you can fetch a good price for your current rig, or unless you have the budget to upgrade the whole platform to make use of the additional features (like PCIe storage), I just don't think a new Skylake build offers enough of an upgrade to be justified.

Good point on the PSU. Unfortunately there are loads of "TR2"s floating around, and it's difficult to tell which is which. You'll probably never cross 400W even with an OC'd CPU and a 970, so you don't need lots of power, but there are question marks on that PSU. There are some PSU experts around who can probably help you figure out which particular unit you have and whether it's worth hanging on to, but I'm guessing it's now several years old and out of warranty anyway? I'd be upgrading it, though if money is tight you could do a bit more digging or post a new thread in the PSU section.

 

[Eli Stout]

Wow, funny coming back to this after over a year.

 

[babernet_1]

Wow, funny coming back to this after over a year.

So, what did you get?

 

[Eli Stout]

i5 6600k, gtx 960 2gb, and 16gb ddr4 all for $350CAD (265 USD). was a great deal I couldn't pass.

 

[babernet_1]

Excellent deal!