Upgrading - A little help please!

[ElGuappo]

I currently have...

CPU – Athlon II X4 640
MoBo – Asus M4A87TD/USB3
RAM – 2 x 4GB DDR3-1333
GPU – Radeon HD6850
PSU - Cheap and nasty 650W
O/S - Win 7 64
HD - Hitachi HDS721010CLA332
OD LG CD/DVD
CASE - Enermax Hoplite (I like the pretty lights!)

Use it for gaming, which it's done pretty well but it needs a freshen up.

So my question is, what do I keep (if anything) and what do I replace?

Was looking at a 4460 or 4690 with a suitable board, keeping the ram and trying for a gtx770. But then I saw that while the 770 is 5 or 6 levels above the HD6850 in the hierarchy list, the i5 is only 2 above the AMD. So now I'm all confused and need some advice.

Not particularly fussed about an SSD (I'm old and afraid of change). I use a second 1TB for storing media on and don't have any issue with waiting times for that so happy to continue with old tech.

Basically, my budget is somewhere around $700 and I just want to get the best I can for the money. Any advice appreciated!

 

[delaro]

Athlon II X4 640 vs any Sandy Bridge and above I5, what do you get? Far less spiky FPS at any setting and resolution plus the ability to make use of much higher end GPUS to their full potential. You will notice a nice difference moving up to a current I5 everything is just so much more smooth. Not sure why you would consider a 770 GTX when at the moment you can get a R9 290, R9 290X for the same price or cheaper as well as spending a little more on a 970 GTX.

Intel Core i5-4690K $204.90 cheaper than a non K at the moment
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00KPRWB9G/?tag=pcpapi-20



ASUS DirectCU II OC R9-290 4gb $249 770GTX price starts here and goes way up.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814121842&nm_mc=AFC-C8Junction&cm_mmc=AFC-C8Junction-_-na-_-na-_-na&cm_sp=&AID=10446076&PID=3938566&SID=

MSI Radeon R9 290X GAMING 4GB $299
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814127773&nm_mc=AFC-C8Junction&cm_mmc=AFC-C8Junction-_-na-_-na-_-na&cm_sp=&AID=10446076&PID=3938566&SID=

EVGA GeForce GTX970 ACX 2.0 4GB $329
http://www.ncixus.com/products/?usaffiliateid=1000031504&sku=102482&vpn=04G-P4-2972-KR&manufacture=eVGA&promoid=1449

 

[Kohwali]

if you're not overclocking the CPU, get a i5-4460 and use it with stock cooler. If you are overclocking, get an i5-4690K and get an aftermarket cooler. As for the, I believe R9 290s are on sale somewhere for $250, so you should get that.

For the board if you're looking at overclocking + CrossFire in the future, get an ASUS Z97-A. If you're only looking at CrossFire, get an ASRock Z97 Extreme3/4 (whichever one is cheaper).

That should all total under $700.
PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i5-4690K 3.5GHz Quad-Core Processor ($204.90 @ Amazon)
CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler ($29.98 @ OutletPC)
Motherboard: Asus Z97-A ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($129.99 @ Amazon)
Video Card: Asus Radeon R9 290 4GB DirectCU II Video Card ($249.70 @ Newegg)
Total: $614.57
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2014-11-22 17:58 EST-0500

For CrossFire + overclocking, you'll need to switch out the PSU for...at least 750W(?)...I'd just say 850W to be really really safe. Make sure its a good quality one too like EVGA G2 or some Seasonic/XFX PSU.

 

[synphul]

If you're going with an i5 4690k, at that price on amazon i'd jump on it. Literally. Prices have been all over the place and that's the lowest I've seen it. One minute it was $214 on amazon, 10min later I went to buy and it literally jumped back to $242. Make sure and refresh the sale page just to be sure.

 

[Kohwali]

If you're going with an i5 4690k, at that price on amazon i'd jump on it.

Agreed. I bought my i5-4670 for $210. An i5-4690K for $210 is a steal.

 

[ElGuappo]

Thanks very much for the answers so far!

Not planning on overclocking.

Is my RAM ok to keep? Also, my psu will need replacing as it's as cheap and nasty as you can get. Any suggestions?

Also, not worth upgrading to Win 8.1? Was told there was a significant performance increase overall for gaming between 8.1 and 7.

Again, thanks for your replies. Will go and start pricing in AUS Dollars. Said $700 because, though my budget's a bit (emphasis - a bit !) higher, so are parts costs over here.

 

[Kohwali]

The RAM will be okay. 1600/1866 mhz is ideal for gaming, but the upgrade isn't worth it when the money can be better spent elsewhere. It's only a couple FPS boost.

Go with this

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i5-4460 3.2GHz Quad-Core Processor ($219.00 @ CPL Online)
Motherboard: Asus Z87-C ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($99.00 @ CPL Online)
Video Card: Asus Radeon R9 290 4GB DirectCU II Video Card ($439.00 @ PCCaseGear)
Power Supply: EVGA 750W 80+ Gold Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply ($145.00 @ CPL Online)
Total: $902.00
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2014-11-23 17:30 EST+1100

Is your budget AUD $700 or USD $700 but you'd like the prices in AUD?

EVGA G2 750W review by JonnyGURU: http://www.jonnyguru.com/modules.php?name=NDReviews&op=Story&reid=380
No, you won't come anywhere near 750W right now, but that's enough power for a second GPU in there.

If your budget is AUD $700, go with this:

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i5-4460 3.2GHz Quad-Core Processor ($219.00 @ CPL Online)
Motherboard: Asus Z87-C ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($99.00 @ CPL Online)
Video Card: XFX Radeon R9 280 3GB Black Edition Double Dissipation Video Card ($249.00 @ PCCaseGear)
Power Supply: EVGA 750W 80+ Gold Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply ($145.00 @ CPL Online)
Total: $712.00
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2014-11-23 17:34 EST+1100

Gigabyte and XFX R9 280s in Australia are actually at a REALLY good price. The AUD to USD conversion pricing is almost spot on as it is here in the US!

 

[ElGuappo]

My budget's AUD, but seeing as I'm picking people's brains for free it seemed a bit much to say 'oh and Aussie prices only'. With exchange rate and price difference though, it does add up! Just the graphic card is $100AUD difference. I was aiming for $750 in my budget so I guess I've wasted everyone's time by trying not to waste everyone's time. I hate rebuilding my PC which is why I only do it every couple of years lol

And then someone mentioned SSD and now that seems like a must have. Aye, aye, aye.

Thanks again for all your help folks. Appreciated. Sorry for wasting your time

 

[Kohwali]

My budget's AUD, but seeing as I'm picking people's brains for free it seemed a bit much to say 'oh and Aussie prices only'. With exchange rate and price difference though, it does add up! Just the graphic card is $100AUD difference. I was aiming for $750 in my budget so I guess I've wasted everyone's time by trying not to waste everyone's time. I hate rebuilding my PC which is why I only do it every couple of years lol

And then someone mentioned SSD and now that seems like a must have. Aye, aye, aye.

Thanks again for all your help folks. Appreciated. Sorry for wasting your time

I updated my previous post to include an Aussie priced budget!

A SSD is definitely not a must-have, it'll increase your PC boot up time and load your games and applications that you install onto it quicker, but there is no FPS boost in games. It's not worth it if you want the most of what you can get out of your budget.

I hate rebuilding my PC which is why I only do it every couple of years lol

Heh, I'd do it for $5. Too bad you don't live in the States haha

 

[ElGuappo]

Thank you for fixing that for me.

When I said I hate the rebuild, I actually meant just choosing the parts, which just drives me to distraction. Actually assembling everything is kind of Zen for me - I usually break my pc down for cleaning every couple of months.

 

[Kohwali]

Thank you for fixing that for me.

When I said I hate the rebuild, I actually meant just choosing the parts, which just drives me to distraction. Actually assembling everything is kind of Zen for me - I usually break my pc down for cleaning every couple of months.

Heh, no problem!

 

[ElGuappo]

Can someone tell me if this is ok? Been prevaricating for days and tried to get all parts from one supplier (PCCG). There's so many options every time I think about actually parting with my hard-earned I wonder what I'm missing. I have no idea why I changed things (like cpu) but as long as I'm not robbing myself I'm just going to buy today.

Reusing ram and case from 1st post.

http://au.pcpartpicker.com/p/r3KGHx

 

[Kohwali]

I think that looks fine! Nothing is obviously wrong about it.

 

[ElGuappo]

Thanks again Kohwali. You're a patient man!

 

[Kohwali]

Thanks again Kohwali. You're a patient man!

You're welcome