Upgrade or entire new build?

I built my PC in 2009, with only an upgrade to my SSD in 2011. I'm currently playing Dayz (Arma2 mod) but often getting very low FPS. I also have low FPS and issues with GW2 and gave up on that game. I have high hopes for TES online and want a PC that game play it flawlessly on the highest setting. (I know the req specs aren't set in stone yet)

I recently did a benchmark via PerformanceTest 8.0 and everything is low in general now. My CPU is running much much lower than it should compared to other exact models. My specs are listed below.

CPU: Intel core i7 920 @ 2.67GHz
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819115202

GPU: ATI Radeon HD 5770
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814150447

MOBO: Evga http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813188049

RAM: 6gig
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820227365

SSD:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820227714

PSU: Can't remember model but it's 1000w

I've googled that the i7 920 should still be good for gaming, but I believe that and the GPU are the main problems. I feel that the CPU is losing it's lifetime and is being worn out. (Not sure if that's possible)

SSD note: I did 1 (one) defrag on it about a month after I got it before I found out you weren't suppose to.

Suggestions? I'm thinking about getting an entire new build to have fresh parts, because of time, lack of Overclocking knowledge, and needing an upgrade.



I'm not leaving a budget just to see what people recommend. If a $600 GPU is worth it, then I'll get it. But if a $250 GPU is marginally worse than the hypothetical $600, then I'll go with the 250. Etc, etc

Thanks!

Definitely upgrade. Probably your first upgrade would be the RAM, as it's cheap and SSDs aren't too good with swap. (You can skip it if it never runs low.) Next up would be the video card, and it's going to be the one that determines most of the performance. Something like a 680 would be good, but I'm not familiar with that game so I'm not sure how much it really needs. (Also note that your screen resolution has a big effect on how much video card you need.) Your CPU and motherboard are good so keep them. You'll probably want to add a USB 3 card if you regularly use external drives. If the PSU is a good brand, it's definitely a keeper.

Your cpu is still pretty beast imo. Overclock that puppy and your only bottleneck in gaming will be your gpu. Just pop in a GeForce GTX 680 and you are good to go.

Your system is still very competitive. I see no reason to replace anything besides your gpu, unless you are having issues running out of RAM.

Get a 7950 for under $300. All you need for now. Then start considering a major upgrade for everything but the GPU in 4-6 months.

Conumdrum said:

Get a 7950 for under $300. All you need for now. Then start considering a major upgrade for everything but the GPU in 4-6 months.

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^Pretty much this.

I would bet, with a 7950 you will be happy for sometime to come. The 5770 was a low end card to start with.

Put a decent cooler on the CPU (if you don't already have one) and overclock it a bit.

I would only touch your RAM if you were running out of it. ( I doubt you are)

Your SSD will be fine.

I third the gpu upgrade only. 6gb of ram should easily be fine for most users. Give the scene a couple months to settle post haswell and see at that point about an upgrade of the CPU/mono/ram.

6GB was PLENTY for me when I was running my X58 build. And that's with some media work (rendering and what not). Agreed wait for Haswell should you want to swap platforms; but do it in another half year or so when prices have regulated, any potential bugs are ironed out, boards are more widely available etc etc.

GPU upgrade go! . And perhaps grab a cheap CPU cooler Hyper 212 Evo. ANd try your hand at basic overclocking. You should be able to reach 3.4-3.6ghz fairly easily with basically just a few dial changed on blck/multi. (166blckx21 multi, gets you just short of 3.5ghz); plus a basic voltage jump (mind you, read up on some guides first); and that way you also have a new CPU cooler for your next build ready.

Your 5770 would easily be the part where you're getting bad frames from.

Mjolnir said:

6GB was PLENTY for me when I was running my X58 build.

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SSDs can't (or at least shouldn't) swap, so you need more RAM to make up for that. (It's a different matter if there's still a HDD.)

NiHaoMike said:

SSDs can't (or at least shouldn't) swap, so you need more RAM to make up for that. (It's a different matter if there's still a HDD.)

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Do you mean a pagefile? Honestly even when you MAY have wanted to be a little concered a few years ago about excessive writes from paging on an ssd, it still wasn't a significant concern. Now, it shouldn't even be a thought to disable your swap file for SSD reasons (space, sure). Frankly not even at all, IMO. It doesn't show much if any difference for me, especially when its located on an ssd and some programs, though not many, won't work without one.

I run manually set 2gb on all my ssds from 4gb if ram on up.

I 4th the Gpu upgrade. every thing else is fine.(some stuff is overkill but hey you already have it so no changeing that)

EarthDog said:

Do you mean a pagefile? Honestly even when you MAY have wanted to be a little concered a few years ago about excessive writes from paging on an ssd, it still wasn't a significant concern. Now, it shouldn't even be a thought to disable your swap file for SSD reasons (space, sure). Frankly not even at all, IMO. It doesn't show much if any difference for me, especially when its located on an ssd and some programs, though not many, won't work without one.

I run manually set 2gb on all my ssds from 4gb if ram on up.

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+1 ^^

I would suggest two things. Definitely get a better GPU, but also get a good cooler for your CPU so you can overclock it. It's not hard to get those to 4Ghz. You just need a big cooler to get there. If you're interested, somebody who's up to date on what the best coolers are right now can chime in and recommend one.

Theocnoob said:

I would suggest two things. Definitely get a better GPU, but also get a good cooler for your CPU so you can overclock it. It's not hard to get those to 4Ghz. You just need a big cooler to get there. If you're interested, somebody who's up to date on what the best coolers are right now can chime in and recommend one.

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Depending on the stepping. If he's running a C0 stepping model it might take a bit more to get it to 4ghz. If he's running a D0 sure. But he stated he got it in 2009; which I believe is when C0's were still roaming around. (Whereby C0's generally take more voltage to hit the same clock speed as a D0)

Someone on here is selling a 990X for $500... Id get thaymt and a GPU and you'd have an amazing machine that will last for another few years..

Ummmm. Thor, he has a Intel CPU Mobo..... Not everyone, actually few use AMD CPUs. Pay attention.

Your right, sorry. His CPU is fine for gaming. What does that CPU cost, the 990x? And a mobo to run it right?

Core i7 990X Extreme Edition....
Definitely not an AMD CPU

http://www.overclockers.com/forums/showthread.php?p=7457913#post7457913

His i7 920 is plenty as it is. 500 would get him an i7 3770k and Z77 extreme 4; which'll net him better overall performance to be honest. The 990x gains a little in highly threaded tasks; but is a little harder to OC as well. So take that into account; and he could manage a full platform swap for the price of that 990x on a dead socket. (I love X58 don't get me wrong; but there's no point spending that much on a CPU alone like that)

Mjolnir said:

His i7 920 is plenty as it is. 500 would get him an i7 3770k and Z77 extreme 4; which'll net him better overall performance to be honest. The 990x gains a little in highly threaded tasks; but is a little harder to OC as well. So take that into account; and he could manage a full platform swap for the price of that 990x on a dead socket. (I love X58 don't get me wrong; but there's no point spending that much on a CPU alone like that)

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True... I hope its a D0 stepping though because I bought a C0 stepping and couldn't oc it very well but when I my buddy had a D0 he got 4.2GHz on a CoolerMaster 212

I further support the bid to OC the CPU and buy a new GPU if you'd like.
Here's a link on how to OC the CPU: http://www.overclockers.com/updated-intel-overclocking-guides/

+4 Overclock the CPU and purchase a new HD 7970 GPU.