Upgrading current system with new guts

[thenewguy123]

I built my current system many years ago and I'm looking to upgrade the MB, CPU, RAM, GPU. I think my case and PSU should be okay to re use. I also have a lot of 1TB hard drives laying around I can use.
Case - Antec Nine Hundred Black Steel ATX Mid Tower
PSU - Antec EarthWatts EA-500D Green 500W ATX12V
I'm not a hardcore gamer but do enjoy a good MMORPG from time to time. Not really into 1st person shooters. I would like to play the newer GTA series soon, yes I'm way behind. Not interested in overclocking just something I can slap together and runs very well. My budget is between $300-$500.
I have access to all windows based operating systems so I would also like to know which OS would be the best to use.
Any advice or recommendations would be greatly appreciated. Thanks.

 

[shortstuff_mt]

This would be a good upgrade setup. I would usually say to get the FX-6300 and overclock it, but I went with the FX-6200 since it runs at a higher speed out of the box.

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: AMD FX-6200 3.8GHz 6-Core Processor ($119.98 @ SuperBiiz)
Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-970A-DS3P ATX AM3+ Motherboard ($74.79 @ Newegg)
Memory: G.Skill Ares Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($77.99 @ Newegg)
Video Card: Asus GeForce GTX 760 2GB Video Card ($239.99 @ Newegg)
Total: $512.75
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2014-02-24 12:52 EST-0500)

I highly recommend Windows 8.1 for a new system.

Microsoft Windows 8.1 (OEM) (64-bit) ($89.99 @ NCIX US)

 

[thenewguy123]

Thank you for the fast response. looks nice. One more question...Back in the day when I built my last PC AMD was somewhat behind in the market compared to Intel CPU's. Have they picked up their game in the past 5 years or so?

This would be a good upgrade setup. I would usually say to get the FX-6300 and overclock it, but I went with the FX-6200 since it runs at a higher speed out of the box.

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: AMD FX-6200 3.8GHz 6-Core Processor ($119.98 @ SuperBiiz)
Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-970A-DS3P ATX AM3+ Motherboard ($74.79 @ Newegg)
Memory: G.Skill Ares Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($77.99 @ Newegg)
Video Card: Asus GeForce GTX 760 2GB Video Card ($239.99 @ Newegg)
Total: $512.75
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2014-02-24 12:52 EST-0500)

I highly recommend Windows 8.1 for a new system.

Microsoft Windows 8.1 (OEM) (64-bit) ($89.99 @ NCIX US)

 

[shortstuff_mt]

Intel CPUs are still faster per clock, but you pay for that speed. I couldn't get a decent Intel system at your budget, so I went with the AMD components.

 

[shortstuff_mt]

Here's an example of a build that uses the cheapest i5 quad-core chip and a similarly priced motherboard, but it goes quite a ways over your $500 budget. AMD chips are a better value until you get over a certain price range.

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: Intel Core i5-4430 3.0GHz Quad-Core Processor ($184.29 @ Amazon)
Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-H81.Amp-UP ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($74.98 @ SuperBiiz)
Memory: G.Skill Ares Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($77.99 @ Newegg)
Video Card: Asus GeForce GTX 760 2GB Video Card ($239.99 @ Newegg)
Total: $577.25
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2014-02-24 13:05 EST-0500)

 

[thenewguy123]

Cool definitely something for me to think about. Maybe I'll save up a little more $ and go with intel. I've always had good luck with them. Thanks again for the info.

Here's an example of a build that uses the cheapest i5 quad-core chip and a similarly priced motherboard, but it goes quite a ways over your $500 budget. AMD chips are a better value until you get over a certain price range.

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: Intel Core i5-4430 3.0GHz Quad-Core Processor ($184.29 @ Amazon)
Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-H81.Amp-UP ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($74.98 @ SuperBiiz)
Memory: G.Skill Ares Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($77.99 @ Newegg)
Video Card: Asus GeForce GTX 760 2GB Video Card ($239.99 @ Newegg)
Total: $577.25
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2014-02-24 13:05 EST-0500)

 

[thenewguy123]

okay I have decided I want to stick with intel and increase my budget. Could I bother you one last time to recommend another setup excluding AMD CPU's and around the $600-$700 range.

Here's an example of a build that uses the cheapest i5 quad-core chip and a similarly priced motherboard, but it goes quite a ways over your $500 budget. AMD chips are a better value until you get over a certain price range.

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: Intel Core i5-4430 3.0GHz Quad-Core Processor ($184.29 @ Amazon)
Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-H81.Amp-UP ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($74.98 @ SuperBiiz)
Memory: G.Skill Ares Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($77.99 @ Newegg)
Video Card: Asus GeForce GTX 760 2GB Video Card ($239.99 @ Newegg)
Total: $577.25
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2014-02-24 13:05 EST-0500)

 

[shortstuff_mt]

Sure thing. Here you go...

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: Intel Core i5-4670 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor ($207.97 @ OutletPC)
Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-H87-D3H ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($99.24 @ Amazon)
Memory: G.Skill Ares Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($77.99 @ Newegg)
Video Card: Asus GeForce GTX 760 2GB Video Card ($239.99 @ Newegg)
Total: $625.19
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2014-02-24 16:11 EST-0500)

 

[MrVic87]

I wished I found this site much sooner!! Great community!

 

[thenewguy123]

it helps to live by silicon valley stuff sure does arrive quickly.

Sure thing. Here you go...

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: Intel Core i5-4670 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor ($207.97 @ OutletPC)
Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-H87-D3H ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($99.24 @ Amazon)
Memory: G.Skill Ares Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($77.99 @ Newegg)
Video Card: Asus GeForce GTX 760 2GB Video Card ($239.99 @ Newegg)
Total: $625.19
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2014-02-24 16:11 EST-0500)

 

[shortstuff_mt]

Nice!! Happy upgrading!

Let us know how it goes and how you like it.