Would I need to upgrade everything if I upgrade my GPU Majorly?

[SheriffJester]

Hey everybody... so I was curious if I needed to upgrade some stuff for my PC If I decide to buy a new GPU since mine is apparently "The bare minimum" which I kinda agree on sadly. I've seen some videos of people using my same CPU & The GPU I want but their CPU is overclocked largely... Would I need to do that? Would I need to upgrade my power supply? What would I need to do? Or would I be able to keep everything the same? P.S. I also plan on buying 4 more GB of ram (I currently have 4GB of ram so that would make 8)

My PC Specs
AMD FX 6300 (3.5GHZ, Using the cooling fan that came with it)
GTX 750ti EVGA (One fan, 2GB of VRAM)
4GB of corsaire ram or whatever
CS450M power supply from corsair

The GPU I plan on wanting to buy is a GTX 970
I mainly just buy GTAIV & some other games, though I plan on wanting to play GTAV, Arma 2 & 3 and some other high end games that my PC can't truly run at the moment.
Thanks, Jester

 

[greens]

Your rig can saturate any single GPU solution without modification.

 

[SheriffJester]

Your rig can saturate any single GPU solution without modification.

Seriously? I don't have to update/upgrade anything except for the GPU?! 😀

 

[a39232]

that cpu will be fine for the most part it may have difficult in some demanding title and large multiplayer battles. The psu should be ok but i do reccomend one like this you would be safe for any future upgrades. http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817151119 it is also a tier two psu while yours is a tier 3.

 

[Ecky]

Your CPU will cause reduced framerates in some games, but an FX-6300 isn't all that bad. I'd probably get the GPU and see if your performance is still too low.

 

[faalin]

Things you should look at upgrading.

get a 2x4gb kit for a total of 8gb, don't try and add another stick to what you have it will most likely cause issues.
If your looking at getting a gtx 970 then you will need a new PSU, I would recommend this for the 970 http://pcpartpicker.com/part/evga-power-supply-220g20550y1 or this if you plan on getting anything above a 970/1070 http://pcpartpicker.com/part/evga-power-supply-220g20650y1

 

[boosted1g]

Your CPU will bottleneck a 970. You would need an overclocked 8350 to not bottleneck.
Your PSU is also a little weak for a 970.

Here is what I would do:
Option 1: Wait for GTX 1070 which will run on lower powered PSU, then deal with the bottlenecking and save for 6th gen intel upgrade
Option 2: Get a GTX 960.

At this point it is a stupid waste to buy an 8350.

 

[SheriffJester]

that cpu will be fine for the most part it may have difficult in some demanding title and large multiplayer battles. The psu should be ok but i do reccomend one like this you would be safe for any future upgrades. http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817151119 it is also a tier two psu while yours is a tier 3.

Thanks but I think I should be fine. I checked on pcpartlister and used all the parts I currently have, and then all the parts I have except with a GTX 970 and I still have alittle room for my PSU (It all uses 370W with the 970. Estimated)

 

[a39232]

That doesn't leave a lot of head room, its best for 50-60% ofg the capacity to be used so you get the best efficiency depending on the psu it may not last very long Corsair is a good company that psu is good.

 

[SheriffJester]

Things you should look at upgrading.

get a 2x4gb kit for a total of 8gb, don't try and add another stick to what you have it will most likely cause issues.
If your looking at getting a gtx 970 then you will need a new PSU, I would recommend this for the 970 http://pcpartpicker.com/part/evga-power-supply-220g20550y1 or this if you plan on getting anything above a 970/1070 http://pcpartpicker.com/part/evga-power-supply-220g20650y1

Hopefully this works, but I put a list together with the parts I have, including the GTX 970 I'm wanting. https://pcpartpicker.com/user/JesterActual/saved/8bMBD3
It says 323W while I have a 450W powersupply... You think it'd be good? Keep in mind, I'm still on a budget... I have other things I have to pay first. Bills included.

 

[SheriffJester]

Your CPU will bottleneck a 970. You would need an overclocked 8350 to not bottleneck.
Your PSU is also a little weak for a 970.

Here is what I would do:
Option 1: Wait for GTX 1070 which will run on lower powered PSU, then deal with the bottlenecking and save for 6th gen intel upgrade
Option 2: Get a GTX 960.

At this point it is a stupid waste to buy an 8350.

I don't have much money to begin with... I'm not gonna be able to buy a 1070, and I could care less about it being bottlenecked as long as I can play my games at decent FPS... I mean, would it be able to? I'm mainly just wanting to play Arma 3 & GTAV at decent settings, and anything about 30FPS. (I can settle with medium settings on both)

 

[Ecky]

Your CPU will bottleneck a 970. You would need an overclocked 8350 to not bottleneck.
Your PSU is also a little weak for a 970.

Here is what I would do:
Option 1: Wait for GTX 1070 which will run on lower powered PSU, then deal with the bottlenecking and save for 6th gen intel upgrade
Option 2: Get a GTX 960.

At this point it is a stupid waste to buy an 8350.

The GTX 1080 is more power hungry (slightly) than the 980, so I would also expect the 1070 to be more power hungry (though faster) than the 970, though only by 10-30w.

 

[a39232]

Things you should look at upgrading.

get a 2x4gb kit for a total of 8gb, don't try and add another stick to what you have it will most likely cause issues.
If your looking at getting a gtx 970 then you will need a new PSU, I would recommend this for the 970 http://pcpartpicker.com/part/evga-power-supply-220g20550y1 or this if you plan on getting anything above a 970/1070 http://pcpartpicker.com/part/evga-power-supply-220g20650y1

Hopefully this works, but I put a list together with the parts I have, including the GTX 970 I'm wanting. https://pcpartpicker.com/user/JesterActual/saved/8bMBD3
It says 323W while I have a 450W powersupply... You think it'd be good? Keep in mind, I'm still on a budget... I have other things I have to pay first. Bills included.

it SHOULD be fine but i wouldnt want to risk blowing out my new $370 gpu that and im very picky about my psu's.

 

[boosted1g]

that cpu will be fine for the most part it may have difficult in some demanding title and large multiplayer battles. The psu should be ok but i do reccomend one like this you would be safe for any future upgrades. http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817151119 it is also a tier two psu while yours is a tier 3.

Thanks but I think I should be fine. I checked on pcpartlister and used all the parts I currently have, and then all the parts I have except with a GTX 970 and I still have alittle room for my PSU (It all uses 370W with the 970. Estimated)

I love it when people ask for advice and then ignore that advice because it is not complete approval of what they have already decided on doing.

 

[Ecky]

Your CPU will bottleneck a 970. You would need an overclocked 8350 to not bottleneck.
Your PSU is also a little weak for a 970.

Here is what I would do:
Option 1: Wait for GTX 1070 which will run on lower powered PSU, then deal with the bottlenecking and save for 6th gen intel upgrade
Option 2: Get a GTX 960.

At this point it is a stupid waste to buy an 8350.

I don't have much money to begin with... I'm not gonna be able to buy a 1070, and I could care less about it being bottlenecked as long as I can play my games at decent FPS... I mean, would it be able to? I'm mainly just wanting to play Arma 3 & GTAV at decent settings, and anything about 30FPS. (I can settle with medium settings on both)

I expect the 1070 to replace the 970 at around the same price, though there will be some gouging initially due to constrained supply.

An FX-6300 should provide you averages above 30FPS in the vast majority of games, though expect dips in some below that due to CPU bottlenecking.

 

[SheriffJester]

that cpu will be fine for the most part it may have difficult in some demanding title and large multiplayer battles. The psu should be ok but i do reccomend one like this you would be safe for any future upgrades. http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817151119 it is also a tier two psu while yours is a tier 3.

Thanks but I think I should be fine. I checked on pcpartlister and used all the parts I currently have, and then all the parts I have except with a GTX 970 and I still have alittle room for my PSU (It all uses 370W with the 970. Estimated)

I love it when people ask for advice and then ignore that advice because it is not complete approval of what they have already decided on doing.

I'm asking for, and open to advice... However I'm not an ATM. I can't just spit out money that I don't have man. I'd love advice and this is mainly just asking to make sure of things. My current price range I can spend on everything this summer is probably 500 At most cause I'm also trying to save money for a new car, while still having to pay bills and shit from what ya'll are telling me I'll probably end up buying a new PSU... but buying a brand-new CPU & GPU is wayyy out of the question. (I think someone else recommended having to buy both.)

 

[boosted1g]

In that case just go with a gtx 960.

The performance difference between a 960 and what your CPU will limit you to on a 970 is minimal.

This should also save you from needing a bigger power supply

 

[Ecky]

970 is only a 145w TDP card, and FX 6300 is a 95w CPU. Admittedly, both of these exceed their TDP at times even at stock, but I'd expect a *quality* 450w unit to be plenty for the pair.

 

[SheriffJester]

970 is only a 145w TDP card, and FX 6300 is a 95w CPU. Admittedly, both of these exceed their TDP at times even at stock, but I'd expect a *quality* 450w unit to be plenty for the pair.

lol... I'm getting so many different answers. What do I choose?!

 

[faalin]

Things you should look at upgrading.

get a 2x4gb kit for a total of 8gb, don't try and add another stick to what you have it will most likely cause issues.
If your looking at getting a gtx 970 then you will need a new PSU, I would recommend this for the 970 http://pcpartpicker.com/part/evga-power-supply-220g20550y1 or this if you plan on getting anything above a 970/1070 http://pcpartpicker.com/part/evga-power-supply-220g20650y1

Hopefully this works, but I put a list together with the parts I have, including the GTX 970 I'm wanting. https://pcpartpicker.com/user/JesterActual/saved/8bMBD3
It says 323W while I have a 450W powersupply... You think it'd be good? Keep in mind, I'm still on a budget... I have other things I have to pay first. Bills included.

it SHOULD be fine but i wouldnt want to risk blowing out my new $370 gpu that and im very picky about my psu's.

Both PSU that I picked are tier 1 units and are top rated by jonnyguru, so not sure why your so picky about your PSU when you picked a tier 3.

Here is his review if you would like to read it. http://www.jonnyguru.com/modules.php?name=NDReviews&op=Story&reid=440

Here are the 3 parts I recommended and are under you $500 price http://pcpartpicker.com/p/Tzcwt6

 

[SheriffJester]

Things you should look at upgrading.

get a 2x4gb kit for a total of 8gb, don't try and add another stick to what you have it will most likely cause issues.
If your looking at getting a gtx 970 then you will need a new PSU, I would recommend this for the 970 http://pcpartpicker.com/part/evga-power-supply-220g20550y1 or this if you plan on getting anything above a 970/1070 http://pcpartpicker.com/part/evga-power-supply-220g20650y1

Hopefully this works, but I put a list together with the parts I have, including the GTX 970 I'm wanting. https://pcpartpicker.com/user/JesterActual/saved/8bMBD3
It says 323W while I have a 450W powersupply... You think it'd be good? Keep in mind, I'm still on a budget... I have other things I have to pay first. Bills included.

it SHOULD be fine but i wouldnt want to risk blowing out my new $370 gpu that and im very picky about my psu's.

Both PSU that I picked are tier 1 units and are top rated by jonnyguru, so not sure why your so picky about your PSU when you picked a tier 3.

Here is his review if you would like to read it. http://www.jonnyguru.com/modules.php?name=NDReviews&op=Story&reid=440

Here are the 3 parts I recommended and are under you $500 price http://pcpartpicker.com/p/Tzcwt6

If you haven't noticed, this is my first PC build, and my only actual PC I've ever had... When building my computer I didn't make the best decisions but I was also on a budget which is why it wasn't the best. I've got a case that needs to have the fan facing downwards since the PSU is on the top of the case while the GPU is more towards the lower part of it. My PSU was on sale, and looked like it'd be good. My CPU uses it's stock fan.

I'm just not entirely sure what I should do... I don't wanna waste money, that I can't afford to waste. $500 is the top. I'll look at your 3 parts and see. Thanks for the help.
P.S. I have no idea who the heck jonnyguru is

 

[faalin]

jonnyguru is well know for his PSU reviews. as for the parts I picked

the ram you have is 1x4gb 1600Mhz cl9 as I recommended 2x4gb 1600mhz cl8, being dual channel and a lower CL# will be faster they what you have now.
GPU you picked an Asus strix 1.11Ghz core clock, I recommended an EVGA SSC ACX 2.0 1.19ghz core clock, the EVGA card is slightly faster and has a higher boost speed then the asus card and are the same price. coolers on them are pretty much the same so you wont notice cooling difference.
PSU like I said above, its about the best you can get in that wattage. EVGA's G2 series is one of 3 units I would ever buy, Seasonic and XFX are the only others which XFX's PSU are made by Seasonic.

If youre on the fence about a PSU take a look at ether of thesw webpages http://www.tomshardware.com/forum/id-2547993/psu-tier-list.html tier 1 is the best tier 4 is the worst, or search for it on Jonnyguru.com

 

[a39232]

Things you should look at upgrading.

get a 2x4gb kit for a total of 8gb, don't try and add another stick to what you have it will most likely cause issues.
If your looking at getting a gtx 970 then you will need a new PSU, I would recommend this for the 970 http://pcpartpicker.com/part/evga-power-supply-220g20550y1 or this if you plan on getting anything above a 970/1070 http://pcpartpicker.com/part/evga-power-supply-220g20650y1

Hopefully this works, but I put a list together with the parts I have, including the GTX 970 I'm wanting. https://pcpartpicker.com/user/JesterActual/saved/8bMBD3
It says 323W while I have a 450W powersupply... You think it'd be good? Keep in mind, I'm still on a budget... I have other things I have to pay first. Bills included.

it SHOULD be fine but i wouldnt want to risk blowing out my new $370 gpu that and im very picky about my psu's.

Both PSU that I picked are tier 1 units and are top rated by jonnyguru, so not sure why your so picky about your PSU when you picked a tier 3.

Here is his review if you would like to read it. http://www.jonnyguru.com/modules.php?name=NDReviews&op=Story&reid=440

Here are the 3 parts I recommended and are under you $500 price http://pcpartpicker.com/p/Tzcwt6

the one I recommended was a tier 2 psu his is a tier three that psu is fine just I believe Seasonic is better but there are nearly the same.

 

[SheriffJester]

Things you should look at upgrading.

get a 2x4gb kit for a total of 8gb, don't try and add another stick to what you have it will most likely cause issues.
If your looking at getting a gtx 970 then you will need a new PSU, I would recommend this for the 970 http://pcpartpicker.com/part/evga-power-supply-220g20550y1 or this if you plan on getting anything above a 970/1070 http://pcpartpicker.com/part/evga-power-supply-220g20650y1

Hopefully this works, but I put a list together with the parts I have, including the GTX 970 I'm wanting. https://pcpartpicker.com/user/JesterActual/saved/8bMBD3
It says 323W while I have a 450W powersupply... You think it'd be good? Keep in mind, I'm still on a budget... I have other things I have to pay first. Bills included.

it SHOULD be fine but i wouldnt want to risk blowing out my new $370 gpu that and im very picky about my psu's.

Both PSU that I picked are tier 1 units and are top rated by jonnyguru, so not sure why your so picky about your PSU when you picked a tier 3.

Here is his review if you would like to read it. http://www.jonnyguru.com/modules.php?name=NDReviews&op=Story&reid=440

Here are the 3 parts I recommended and are under you $500 price http://pcpartpicker.com/p/Tzcwt6

jonnyguru is well know for his PSU reviews. as for the parts I picked

the ram you have is 1x4gb 1600Mhz cl9 as I recommended 2x4gb 1600mhz cl8, being dual channel and a lower CL# will be faster they what you have now.
GPU you picked an Asus strix 1.11Ghz core clock, I recommended an EVGA SSC ACX 2.0 1.19ghz core clock, the EVGA card is slightly faster and has a higher boost speed then the asus card and are the same price. coolers on them are pretty much the same so you wont notice cooling difference.
PSU like I said above, its about the best you can get in that wattage. EVGA's G2 series is one of 3 units I would ever buy, Seasonic and XFX are the only others which XFX's PSU are made by Seasonic.

If youre on the fence about a PSU take a look at ether of thesw webpages http://www.tomshardware.com/forum/id-2547993/psu-tier-list.html tier 1 is the best tier 4 is the worst, or search for it on Jonnyguru.com

Roger that boss. I trust you, and definitely appreciate the help. I'll buy the stuff you recommended. Probably will take alittle more time till I can gather all the money for it but I'll get it. Thanks. And is the GPU I picked good enough? (The version/maker? I know the GPU I currently have isn't the best...) And do you know if the one I want/picked has a backplate? I heard that helps with it not slumping down due to it's weight.

 

[faalin]

the asus card comes with a backplate, the evga card comes with a stiffing frame under the cooler that acts like a backplate

all gtx 970's are the same. the evga one just comes with a higher factory overclock then the asus one. For me I have always found that evga cards overclock better then the rest of them.

Back when I was young, dumb, and had money I went through 50 gtx 580s, I think newegg loved but hated me. I bought 1 580 and would stress test it for the highest overclock and then return it. I went through 10 cards from each manufacture EVGA, MSI, Asus, Gigabyte, and Zotac. On average Evga had a better overclock and a higher score in 3d mark11, Evga also has a great RMA program as well.