Build Advice Upgrade long in tooth frankenstein again or rebuild?

[HikingHusk]

Hello! I DIY'd a PC about 10 years ago and over the years have upgraded it several times RAM, GPU, power supply, etc. but I am at a place now where many of the newer games, even MMO's i want to play are 100% pegging the CPU (with very low fps) and I suspect the GPU is bottled necked. So I am looking for advice on the next steps. I'd be okay spending $1500 bucks or so but would like to keep costs as low as possible. I am willing to build a new PC and maybe part out the old one/sell off the components or upgrade it or whatever other thoughts of collective wisdom this forum may bring me Really just looking if there is a feasible upgrade path or given the age and specs is it simply more cost effective to rebuild or buy a prebuilt. Thanks in advance.

Current Specs are:

CPU: Intel i5 4690k
GPU: Nvidia Gforce GTX 1080
MB: Gigabyte Z87X-UD3H
RAM: 32GB of Gskill ripjaw DDR4
OS running on 500GB Samsumg SSD, storage: Seagate BarraCuda ST6000DM003 6TB 5400 RPM 256MB Cache SATA 6.0Gb/s
PSU: EVGA SuperNOVA 850 GT 850 Watt 80 Plus Gold ATX Fully Modular Power Supply
Win10

 

[JohnBonhamsGhost]

any significant CPU upgrade is going to require a new motherboard so you may as well start a whole new build based on the newer better options available.

i would try selling the current build as a whole custom used system, but i doubt anyone out there would be willing to offer much for it.
what case and what sort of system-wide cooling setup does it include?

another option for the old system would be to just downsize it to an mITX build and use it for a sort of media center / Windows TV setup.

 

[logainofhades]

Do you happen to live near a microcenter? If so, a 7800x3d bundle would be a nice upgrade that would give you future CPU support. Ryzen 9000 is coming in July, so that might shake up pricing. If you want something now, Intel 12th gen are some rock solid deals, if you do not care about upgrade path.

 

[Hellfire13]

Although a newer platform will be way better, you can maybe add another 4 threads to the existing build with a new/used 4770/4790/k and use it for some more time. Doubling the thread count will give you a sizeable boost in performance on a budget. OCing it might help even further.

 

[punkncat]

12th gen Intel is the sweet spot for value right this moment for Team Blue, and Team Red is running great deals on 7xxx since 9 is about to release. I am of the opinion that you could build a complete new mid-high end system for $1500. If you wish to stay lower the GTX 1080 graphics card is still quite viable for 1080p gaming. This consideration is weighted as to whether you wish to consider a monitor upgrade, if needed, or not.

I think my own money would be on a good motherboard and a Ryzen 5-ish level 7xxx CPU with DDR5, a new power supply, and wait for 9xxx release to consider what level you wish to land on for a Ryzen 7, or 9, and a new graphics card. According to age I would at least factor in a new fast NVMe drive for OS.

 

[HikingHusk]

Thanks each of you for taking a few moments to provide insight. It was super helpful. I am going to do a rebuild and put some further thought into it.

 

[Hellfire13]

Thanks each of you for taking a few moments to provide insight. It was super helpful. I am going to do a rebuild and put some further thought into it.

Something like this...

PCPartPicker Part List

CPU: Intel Core i5-13600KF 3.5 GHz 14-Core Processor ($234.98 @ Amazon)
CPU Cooler: Thermalright Frost Commander 140 BLACK 95.5 CFM CPU Cooler ($39.90 @ Amazon)
Motherboard: MSI MAG B760 TOMAHAWK WIFI ATX LGA1700 Motherboard ($148.74 @ Amazon)
Memory: Silicon Power Value Gaming 32 GB (2 x 16 GB) DDR5-6000 CL30 Memory ($94.97 @ Amazon)
Storage: Samsung 990 Pro 1 TB M.2-2280 PCIe 4.0 X4 NVME Solid State Drive ($89.99 @ Newegg)
Case: Phanteks XT PRO ATX Mid Tower Case ($55.98 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: Thermaltake Toughpower GF1 (2024) 850 W 80+ Gold Certified Fully Modular ATX Power Supply ($94.99 @ Amazon)
Total: $759.55
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2024-06-19 20:56 EDT-0400

You can perhaps reuse some of your storage and GPU for now.

 

[Lucky_SLS]

for 1500 USD:

upgradable platform
case with type C
ATX 3.0 PSU

PCPartPicker Part List

CPU: AMD Ryzen 7 7800X3D 4.2 GHz 8-Core Processor ($339.99 @ Amazon)
CPU Cooler: Thermalright Phantom Spirit 66.17 CFM CPU Cooler ($35.99 @ Amazon)
Motherboard: Gigabyte B650 AORUS ELITE AX ATX AM5 Motherboard ($177.99 @ Amazon)
Memory: TEAMGROUP T-Create Expert 32 GB (2 x 16 GB) DDR5-6000 CL30 Memory ($97.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Solidigm P44 Pro 2 TB M.2-2280 PCIe 4.0 X4 NVME Solid State Drive ($134.99 @ Newegg)
Video Card: Gigabyte GAMING OC Radeon RX 7900 GRE 16 GB Video Card ($529.99 @ Newegg)
Case: Phanteks XT PRO ULTRA ATX Mid Tower Case ($69.99 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: SeaSonic FOCUS GX-850 ATX 3.0 850 W 80+ Gold Certified Fully Modular ATX Power Supply ($109.99 @ Amazon)
Total: $1496.92
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2024-06-20 08:28 EDT-0400

 

[logainofhades]

Set it and forget it build.

PCPartPicker Part List

CPU: Intel Core i7-12700K 3.6 GHz 12-Core Processor ($209.99 @ Newegg)
CPU Cooler: Thermalright Peerless Assassin 120 SE ARGB 66.17 CFM CPU Cooler ($33.90 @ Amazon)
Motherboard: ASRock Z790 PG Lightning/D4 ATX LGA1700 Motherboard ($139.99 @ Newegg)
Memory: TEAMGROUP T-Create Expert 32 GB (2 x 16 GB) DDR4-3200 CL16 Memory ($50.99 @ Amazon)
Storage: SK Hynix Platinum P41 2 TB M.2-2280 PCIe 4.0 X4 NVME Solid State Drive ($139.99 @ Amazon)
Video Card: ASRock Phantom Gaming OC Radeon RX 7900 XT 20 GB Video Card ($699.99 @ Amazon)
Case: Montech AIR 903 MAX ATX Mid Tower Case ($75.00 @ B&H)
Power Supply: Thermaltake Toughpower GF1 (2024) 850 W 80+ Gold Certified Fully Modular ATX Power Supply ($94.99 @ Amazon)
Total: $1444.84
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2024-06-20 11:21 EDT-0400

 

[John Chesterfield]

Although a newer platform will be way better, you can maybe add another 4 threads to the existing build with a new/used 4770/4790/k and use it for some more time. Doubling the thread count will give you a sizeable boost in performance on a budget. OCing it might help even further.

Although I do like doing things like this, I had a 4690k and upgraded it to a 4790k, I think the system is too old in 2024 to be doing that unless you can get the i7 for free and already have a good cooler. I did this upgrade about 5 years ago, but I don't think it'd be anywhere near as effective an upgrade nowadays.

OP, look to build a new system. No point sinking any money, time and effort into your current system.

 

[Hellfire13]

Although I do like doing things like this, I had a 4690k and upgraded it to a 4790k, I think the system is too old in 2024 to be doing that unless you can get the i7 for free and already have a good cooler. I did this upgrade about 5 years ago, but I don't think it'd be anywhere near as effective an upgrade nowadays.

OP, look to build a new system. No point sinking any money, time and effort into your current system.

I did say a newer platform would be way better and this is the cheapest solution, not that it is going to give beastly performance but will better the current one quite a bit, since the GPU is still good enough..

 

[BrickStation]

I would consider a new build, and part out your old PC or keep it around if you want. I would also strongly suggest at least using a 1 TB SSD for games, either Sata or NVME depending on which form factor you'd like to use.

If you want to save some cash, you could keep using your GTX 1080 in your new build. It's still a reasonably powerful card, which you can upgrade later when you need to. I'm not sure what games you like to play or at what settings are good for you but burning $700 on a card and not using it all of it seems like a waste of money to me.

 

[John Chesterfield]

I did say a newer platform would be way better and this is the cheapest solution, not that it is going to give beastly performance but will better the current one quite a bit, since the GPU is still good enough..

If the OP can get the chip for free, then yes. But no point spending any kind of money doing it.

 

[John Chesterfield]

And the performance uplift adding an i7 would be far less than for me 5 years ago, games are more CPU intensive than back then.

 

[JohnBonhamsGhost]

you could keep using your GTX 1080 in your new build...not sure what games you like to play

the games in question is definitely a big deciding factor in this regard.

the old GTX 1080 can not handle a lot of the newer more demanding games well at all.
unless the user doesn't care about frame rates, higher graphics settings, or newer graphics options that is.

 

[Hellfire13]

If the OP can get the chip for free, then yes. But no point spending any kind of money doing it.

Nothing is free in this world if its beneficial for you. Even if it is available for a little, the price to performance ratio should justify.
Anyways it was just another suggestion and OP has since made it clear that he will build a new machine so thats the end of it.

 

[stonecarver]

https://www.ebay.com/itm/3154513352...XeCBsB70BNwVHcsKka9NBPuw==|tkp:Bk9SR6a4ovKGZA

For $32.00 bucks get an i7 4770 and call it good with that computer. Plan for a new build and when your ready to bite the bullet keep the old rig as a spare.

 

[John Chesterfield]

Nothing is free in this world if its beneficial for you. Even if it is available for a little, the price to performance ratio should justify.
Anyways it was just another suggestion and OP has since made it clear that he will build a new machine so thats the end of it.

Yeah it is. Chill.

 

[BrickStation]

the games in question is definitely a big deciding factor in this regard.

the old GTX 1080 can not handle a lot of the newer more demanding games well at all.
unless the user doesn't care about frame rates, higher graphics settings, or newer graphics options that is.

Yes, indeed. Whatever games the author plays and how well they run using the 1080 should give a definitive answer as to whether to upgrade now or later. It seems like they may not be fully utilizing the card with their current system so I suggest they use it on the new build before upgrading if they need to.

Now I use a GTX 1070 myself and it performs good enough for a near 10-year-old card at 1080p. My most demanding games are Fallout 4 with close to 800 mods, Cyperpunk 2077, and Witcher 3. I typically have settings on high with a goal of 60 fps, although performance varies depending on the area the game loads. This suits me fine and it is a large improvement over a 2GB graphics card I used before.