Making an old system new!

Long story short, I'm pooling parts together to rebuild my gaming machine. Any input is greatly appreciated. I will mainly game/watch movies on this computer. I'd say my budget for the first wave of upgrades is about $400 (for case, gpu and hsf)

Here are the parts I have:
CPU -Q6600 or E7500 (I have both)
Motherboard - DFI LP LT P35 T2R
Memory - 2 x 2GB DDR2 800 (4GB total)
PSU - Seasonic 500w

Here are the parts I want to upgrade now.
GPU - GTX 560 TI http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814130610
Case - HAF922
HSF - True Spirit 140

Any suggestions or advice?

For the gpu go with the 6870 or upgrade to the 570 better value for the buck the 560 448 is just a bad 570 (correct me if i am wrong) but if you want to stay with nvidia and still go with a bank for the buck card go with the 560 ti. The HSF you can go with the regular 212 but if you want the best bang for buck go for this one this is the one that most ppl on this form recommend. Then use the Q6600( i think that that is the best out of those 2 cpus) and overclock that bad boy to 3-3.3 ghz. The case is a full tower and you don't need it i would go for a cheaper mid tower. Cases are really based on your opinion of aesthetics there are many good cases. This is a good one but again just go do some research and find one that you like the antec 300 is also a VERY nice choice. 4gb is enough so you are good there your PSU might be cutting it a little close so you might want to see what is going on and what you might want to change. Also for future you might want to get a ssd and a chepo dvd/cd drive. hope i helped.

Thank you for your comment! I made a few changes to my original post. The plan is to upgrade my psu/cpu/mobo/ram in a few months; so for now, I'm going to try to upgrade just enough to get by...

I am planning on SLI'ing 2 560's down the road, will the PSU be adequate? I'd like to get a psu that will last and cover any future upgrades.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817139012

I'm looking for something that's modular and is SLI ready.

500 watts powers a whole system so no 650 would not cut it i would suggest a 800+ watt psu this one is also modular

i'm flabbergasted that you don't include a ssd in your upgrade... that's the one biggest thing that will liven up an older machine and make it seem incredibly fast!!

imo keep your current psu. it will run whatever single video card you throw in it now, and hold off on upgrading it until you get your second card. get a ssd NOW

Horrerblade said:

500 watts powers a whole system so no 650 would not cut it i would suggest a 800+ watt psu this one is also modular

Click to expand...

You actually have no idea about power supplies and how much (or rather little) power you really require.

A GTX 560 Ti under normal gaming circumstances will never pass 150W. It would take Furmark to take it to 200W.

You can run dual on that HX 650 no problem.

Note the HX 650 is using an older platform now. It's still solid; but it's older.

Assuming he changes his CPU to a Sandy Bridge or Ivy bridge; he'll be pulling <150W on the CPU under full load at a full OC setting. With average around or less than 100 during gaming.

So; 100W CPU, 150W GPU x2 = 300 + 100 = 400W. >.>

PS: I agree with the above statement. An SSD should be the FIRST thing on your list. If you want to make an old system feel new; that's how you do it! With an SSD!

EDIT: FSP Aurum Gold 650W is another consideration for a PSU. It's probably not as strong as the HX650 in pure output; but has a better efficiency. Also modular.

Thank you again for your replies! I'm not a corsair fanboy by any means, but I am partial to their 7 year warranty; I will be upgrading cpu/mobo to sandy/ivy bridge, not real soon, but in a few months (hoping prices drop or I score a chip/mobo used deal). I think that Corsair 850 should be adequate and fit in my budget, so thank you for that!

I am looking at SSD's, but right now I'm just looking. If I upgraded to a SSD now, then I can't afford a psu/gpu/case, which I feel is where I need to upgrade the most. A GT430 just isn't cutting it anymore in my HTPC, so I'm kinda parting it out to make a gaming desktop.

I must of looked @ Newegg's listings of 560 TI's for an hour, with no real discernible way to choose which is best for me. Any suggestions? Right now, I'm planning on a MSI Hawk GeForce GTX 560 Ti, is this an appropriate choice? Will I have a hard time finding another card in say 6 months to SLI?

Mjolnir said:

You actually have no idea about power supplies and how much (or rather little) power you really require.

A GTX 560 Ti under normal gaming circumstances will never pass 150W. It would take Furmark to take it to 200W.

You can run dual on that HX 650 no problem.

Note the HX 650 is using an older platform now. It's still solid; but it's older.

Assuming he changes his CPU to a Sandy Bridge or Ivy bridge; he'll be pulling <150W on the CPU under full load at a full OC setting. With average around or less than 100 during gaming.

So; 100W CPU, 150W GPU x2 = 300 + 100 = 400W. >.>

PS: I agree with the above statement. An SSD should be the FIRST thing on your list. If you want to make an old system feel new; that's how you do it! With an SSD!

EDIT: FSP Aurum Gold 650W is another consideration for a PSU. It's probably not as strong as the HX650 in pure output; but has a better efficiency. Also modular.

Click to expand...

yea i was going on previous experience and the golden rule (better safe then sorry) i didn't find and specification on wattage so i went with with what i thought. Lol but good to see some one correcting me.