- Aug 26, 2006
- 10
- 0
- 18,510
Good day and thank you for clicking my topic!
I am planning to replace some components in my system to have a more up-to-date machine. However it's been 2.5 years since I last kept myself updated on the current generation GPUs, CPUs, MBs, Memory etc. so I am quite lost now. I tried reading some reviews around but the chipsets and CPU/GPU specifications don't say much to me anymore.
What I want to to? I play a few games, mostly Lord of the Rings Online, Warhammer Online and GTA IV. Also there's a few newer games coming out this year that I want to be able to enjoy at fairly high settings and smooth fps. I play at 1280x1024 on a Syncmaster 931BF so I guess I don't need the most high end card but good enough so I can use higher settings.
Hmm, I guess that's enough really. If it can run games well, it can also run OpenOffice, Maple, Matlab, LaTeX, DVDs and music (+ number of other utility programs) that I need for my studies.
Here's my current system, all 2y old unless stated otherwise:
Gigabyte GA-965P-DS3
Intel C2D E6300 at 1.86 GHz
Asus Radeon EAH4850 (6months old)
Corsair TwinX-6400 2x2GB
Xion XON-500F1AT 500W power supply
Samsung SP2014N 7200RPM 200GB ATA (4y old)
Samsung ST3320620AS 7200RPM 320GB SATA (holds OS on 120GB partition)
EDIT: I am willing and somewhat capable to overclock if that adds to system lifetime. Though I've had some problems getting over 2,2GHz, which should be no problem for that CPU+MB...
Now, what would most benefit me? My brief information gathering suggested that my GPU is quite fine (maybe upgrade to Crossfire?) and memory is ok too, so my biggest concern is CPU, Motherboard, PS and HDD. Would I get good results with upgrading processor and motherboard? What would you suggest, i7 or PhenomII? Though I think two cores would be enough for me.
Power supply, while enough watts, is quite old. So are my harddrives. Are my important files (music, school, research) at risk? This is pretty important, I use 6-8 programs at once usually which must put some stress on hdd. Should I construct a raid setup for backup? I actually don't need that much space anymore so a fast, reliable new hdd (SSD too expensive?) to install Vista, programs and most important stuff (60GB?) could also work.
I am happy with my monitor, keyboard, mouse etc.
My budget is "as-little-as-possible" which is a bit vague, I know, sorry. Maybe 300-600 dollars? (I live in EU so 250-450 euros)
Any advice would be most welcome!
I am planning to replace some components in my system to have a more up-to-date machine. However it's been 2.5 years since I last kept myself updated on the current generation GPUs, CPUs, MBs, Memory etc. so I am quite lost now. I tried reading some reviews around but the chipsets and CPU/GPU specifications don't say much to me anymore.
What I want to to? I play a few games, mostly Lord of the Rings Online, Warhammer Online and GTA IV. Also there's a few newer games coming out this year that I want to be able to enjoy at fairly high settings and smooth fps. I play at 1280x1024 on a Syncmaster 931BF so I guess I don't need the most high end card but good enough so I can use higher settings.
Hmm, I guess that's enough really. If it can run games well, it can also run OpenOffice, Maple, Matlab, LaTeX, DVDs and music (+ number of other utility programs) that I need for my studies.
Here's my current system, all 2y old unless stated otherwise:
Gigabyte GA-965P-DS3
Intel C2D E6300 at 1.86 GHz
Asus Radeon EAH4850 (6months old)
Corsair TwinX-6400 2x2GB
Xion XON-500F1AT 500W power supply
Samsung SP2014N 7200RPM 200GB ATA (4y old)
Samsung ST3320620AS 7200RPM 320GB SATA (holds OS on 120GB partition)
EDIT: I am willing and somewhat capable to overclock if that adds to system lifetime. Though I've had some problems getting over 2,2GHz, which should be no problem for that CPU+MB...
Now, what would most benefit me? My brief information gathering suggested that my GPU is quite fine (maybe upgrade to Crossfire?) and memory is ok too, so my biggest concern is CPU, Motherboard, PS and HDD. Would I get good results with upgrading processor and motherboard? What would you suggest, i7 or PhenomII? Though I think two cores would be enough for me.
Power supply, while enough watts, is quite old. So are my harddrives. Are my important files (music, school, research) at risk? This is pretty important, I use 6-8 programs at once usually which must put some stress on hdd. Should I construct a raid setup for backup? I actually don't need that much space anymore so a fast, reliable new hdd (SSD too expensive?) to install Vista, programs and most important stuff (60GB?) could also work.
I am happy with my monitor, keyboard, mouse etc.
My budget is "as-little-as-possible" which is a bit vague, I know, sorry. Maybe 300-600 dollars? (I live in EU so 250-450 euros)
Any advice would be most welcome!
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