Upgrade my system of Gigabyte Technology GA-770T-D3L

[swimmingcow]

I want to upgrade my computer system

#Current system
Motherboard: Gigabyte Technology GA-770T-D3L
CPU: AMD Phenom II X4 945 3Ghz.
GPU: Digital Alliance GT210 1GB GDDR3 64 bit
Memory: Corsair Memory XMS3 4GB DDR 3 1333 Mhz dual channel desktop.
Drive: Seagate 500GB 7200 rpm SATA
PSU: erSys P4-LGA-500 E W
OS: Windows 7 Ultimate 64 bit.

#Note
Budget is around $500 but can be more if it does make a difference.
I just use it for Adobe Photoshop, Adobe Illustrator, Corel Draw, Google Drive, and Google Chrome, antivirus and nothing else.

#My current plan
Upgrade memory to 8GB DDR 3 1866
Upgrade drive to 256GB SSD and use the 500 GB SATA as second drive.
Upgrade GPU: NVidia GTX 960 (2 or 4 GB?)

#Question
Any recommendation especially on GPU and memory?
Does OS upgrade make a difference or is it just eating my drive and memory?

Thank you

 

[cin19]

Because you use the PC for photoshop, Adobe Illustrator, Corel Draw, so the RAM and cpu are more important then other parts. Recommend to buy the parts:
1) 16GB DDR3 (2X8GB), the speed (1600mhz or up) will depend on what cpu you will get.
2) A good brand PSU. You should get a good PSU ASAP, if the PSU fails, usually it will kill other components too.
3) Better cpu ( fast, and more cores), check your MB to see which rev. it is, according to the gigabyte, there are three version, rev1.x, rev3.1, and rev8.8. So check the MB then buy the best cpu the MB can support. https://www.gigabyte.com/Motherboard/GA-770T-D3L-rev-1x#support-cpu
4) SSD, and 4GB GPU, because you use for photoshop, Adobe Illustrator, Corel Draw, so you should get the GPU with 4GB ( best) or 2GB at least. You can use the HDD for scratch disk.
5)For photoshop, don't matter the win7, win10, but you should quit all unnecessary applications to free up more memory.

 

[swimmingcow]

Because you use the PC for photoshop, Adobe Illustrator, Corel Draw, so the RAM and cpu are more important then other parts. Recommend to buy the parts:
1) 16GB DDR3 (2X8GB), the speed (1600mhz or up) will depend on what cpu you will get.
2) A good brand PSU. You should get a good PSU ASAP, if the PSU fails, usually it will kill other components too.
3) Better cpu ( fast, and more cores), check your MB to see which rev. it is, according to the gigabyte, there are three version, rev1.x, rev3.1, and rev8.8. So check the MB then buy the best cpu the MB can support. https://www.gigabyte.com/Motherboard/GA-770T-D3L-rev-1x#support-cpu
4) SSD, and 4GB GPU, because you use for photoshop, Adobe Illustrator, Corel Draw, so you should get the GPU with 4GB ( best) or 2GB at least. You can use the HDD for scratch disk.
5)For photoshop, don't matter the win7, win10, but you should quit all unnecessary applications to free up more memory.

I previously check the thread 3-4 times and somehow did not see your quick answer. Thank you and I apologize for the late reply.
1. Unfortunately the maximum total ram allowed for my motherboard is 8GB DDR3.
2. Didn't know PSU can have such effect. Thank you.
3. My motherboard version is 1.4. Can you pick 1 or 2 CPU you think is best?
4. SSD ok. Can you pick 1 or 2 GPU which you think is best for me?
5. Great news. Thank you.

 

[cin19]

CPU: Phenom II X6 1100T BE, Phenom II X6 1090T BE, Phenom II X4 980 BE, and Phenom II X4 975 BE.

Check out something newer gen GPU, like gtx1050ti 4GB, because I don't know your budget. And I added the GPU Performance Hierarchy https://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/gpu-hierarchy,4388.html And recommend to buy new PSU too.

For the SSD, Samsung, Crucial brand.

 

[swimmingcow]

To: cin19.

Based on your recommendation, I have upgraded the following:
1. CPU AMD Phenom II X6 1100T
2. PSU 600 watt
3. SSD Samsung
4. Reinstall Windows.

The performance improve a lot.

My budget for GPU is around USD 500.
I was eyeing on AMD Radeon RX 580 8GB but bottlenecker.com said my CPU is too weak. So next best thing on the list is AMD Radeon RX 570. What do you think?

Hopefully in 7 days I will be able to upgrade the ram and GPU. Will keep you update. Thank you for the link. It helps me understand and make my decision.

 

[swimmingcow]

CPU: Phenom II X6 1100T BE, Phenom II X6 1090T BE, Phenom II X4 980 BE, and Phenom II X4 975 BE.

Check out something newer gen GPU, like gtx1050ti 4GB, because I don't know your budget. And I added the GPU Performance Hierarchy https://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/gpu-hierarchy,4388.html And recommend to buy new PSU too.

For the SSD, Samsung, Crucial brand.

@cin19
It's been a long time but I upgraded this computer again this week. This would be the last and I need your last analysis and suggestion for this computer.

1. I found a computer store that will let me try before I buy and 8GB as your suggestion and you are right, the 2x8GB works.
2. I went and bought a good brand PSU as you suggested. Seasonic X660(SS-660KM) 660W 80+Gold. Didn't know this kind of PSU existed. Thank you.
3. The best CPU available for the motherboard is AMD Phenom II X6 1100T 3300MHz already installed.
4. Upgrade the SSD from Samsung 860 to SSD Samsung 870.
5. I also has a major upgrade of the GPU to AMD Radeon R9 280X 3GB. I suppose its overkill but I got a good deal for USD75 and its very hard to find one less for cheaper price.
6. New casing with 4 fans.
7. Upgrade operating system to Windows 10 pro.

To minimized the CPU bottleneck, I think I need to overclock the CPU. Should I? Any guide to how to go about it?