Question which graphics card and will my motherbaord support it

[nickyls]

Hi I built a very low budget PC a few years ago and I am ready to make some upgrades to it. I think I am going to go with a MSI Geforce GTX 1660 ti for $269 or
is there something else in the $250 - $300 range that I should get instead?

I am also going to get the ryzen 5.

Will my old Gigabyte 970-Gaming -SLI-CF be able to handle this? I'm not really sure how important motherboards are and if mine is ok.

I also have two Ballistix Sport 8GB DDR3. Will I need DDR4? and again is DDR4 compatible with my motherboard?

What is the PSU I will need to run this?

 

[Metal Messiah.]

Yes, that GPU will work on your PC. And NO, your motherboard only supports DDR3 MEM kits. And RYZEN CPUs are hungry on the Memory frequency.

What's your budget for the PSU ?

 

[nickyls]

do I need DDR4? Will not having DDR4 effect my performance drastically? and is it worth upgrading my motherboard now to be able to support DDR4 moving forward?

 

[Metal Messiah.]

You need to change the Motherboard, if you want support for DDR4. But there is no point in this, since PCI-e is backwards-compatible. It will hardly make any huge difference in Gaming.

If you want to upgrade to the RYZEN CPU, then your motherboard needs to be changed for sure. Or else, look for some other compatible CPU.

 

[Metal Messiah.]

do I need DDR4?

Yes, if you want to use the Ryzen 5 CPU. Also, your current MOBO does not support the RYZEN series of CPUs.

 

[nickyls]

ok well then if I need DDR4 to use the Rayzen 5 CPU then I guess I need a new motherboard also so I guess I am just building a brand new computer from scratch.

 

[nickyls]

Motherboard: ASUS ROG Strix B450-F Gaming Motherboard or ASUS B450-PLUS

CPU: Ryzen 5 2600

GPU: MSI Geforce GTX 1660 ti

RAM: Corsair Vengeance 16GB 3200mhz DDR4

PSU: ?? Not sure what I need here

Case: Darkflash case

Extra Fans: 3x DarkFlash 120mm

Anything else I am missing?

 

[nickyls]

Motherboard: ASUS ROG Strix B450-F Gaming Motherboard or ASUS B450-PLUS

CPU: Ryzen 5 2600

GPU: MSI Geforce GTX 1660 ti

RAM: Corsair Vengeance 16GB 3200mhz DDR4

PSU: ?? Not sure what I need here

Case: Darkflash case

Extra Fans: 3x DarkFlash 120mm

Anything else I am missing?

I will be keeping my 1TB hard disk drive with Windows 10 loaded on it btw.

 

[Metal Messiah.]

PSU: ?? Not sure what I need here

Get any decent PSU model from reputed brands like SEASONIC, BE QUIET, Corsair, ANTEC, EVGA, FSP group.. Look for at least a min 550-650 Watts PSU, just for some extra headroom as well.

These are high quality units. Look for similar SKUs. Assuming you have budget.

SEASONIC PRIME, and Prime Ultra, or FOCUS Plus GOLD, Focus Plus Platinum.

CORSAIR AXi, RMi, RMx 550/650W, SF, HX 2017, HXi.

FSP - Hydro PTM 550/650W.

Cooler Master - MasterWatt Maker MiJ, V series 550/650W.

Antec - High Current Pro, High Current Platinum, Earthwatts Pro Gold, HCG Gold.

Super Flower - Leadex Gold II.

be Quiet! - Dark Power Pro 11, Straight Power 11, Dark Power Pro P10.

EVGA -Supernova G1+, GQ, P2, T2, G2, B2, BQ =>750

 

[USAFRet]

I will be keeping my 1TB hard disk drive with Windows 10 loaded on it btw.

You will almost certainly need to do a full wipe and reinstall of the OS.

 

[Metal Messiah.]

Yes, always do a CLEAN re-install/format of the os, when changing hardware, or otherwise.

 

[Phaaze88]

Please change your selection of case.
Closed off, or almost closed off, front panel cases make functionally no sense.
That's where the bulk of the cool intake air comes through. If you choke that off, what do you think happens to the temps inside the case?
If you don't live in a warm climate area, this won't be too serious, but do expect higher average idle and load temps which will cause your fans to run louder by default.

 

[hftvhftv]

Please change your selection of case.
Closed off, or almost closed off, front panel cases make functionally no sense.
That's where the bulk of the cool intake air comes through. If you choke that off, what do you think happens to the temps inside the case?
If you don't live in a warm climate area, this won't be too serious, but do expect higher average idle and load temps which will cause your fans to run louder by default.

Based on the components they've selected a Ryzen 5 2600 and a GTX 1660 Ti are not going to put out enough heat that they'll benefit from an open front case, that case has small inlets on the top and bottom anyways.

 

[Phaaze88]

Based on the components they've selected a Ryzen 5 2600 and a GTX 1660 Ti are not going to put out enough heat that they'll benefit from an open front case, that case has small inlets on the top and bottom anyways.

Well, if you say so.
I'm just being paranoid when it comes to those designs.