Need Advice: PC upgrade question

[pipsta]

Okay, I have a slightly upgraded Cyberpower PC (power supply, ram, extra fan) I have never built a PC but know some of the concepts. I'm wondering if it's worth the trouble to buy a new motherboard and CPU and salvage the rest or just buy a new mac... jk . If so what is compatible/recommended/awesome/cheap. (please be specific about compatibility I intend on shopping around and i'm not sure what will work)

I'm looking to play the latest games (I don't mind low settings) also as a media center. I'm upgrading because its doing some weird things at start up, and a bit of lag in intervals. I just purchased the RAM and PSU I guess I don't want to squander that.

Newegg: Original PC
Budget Max $400. OS Activation not an issue
Ram: 2x G.SKILL Ripjaws X Series 4GB(8gb) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600
Processor: AMD Athlon II X2 255(3.1GHz) 2 x 1MB L2 Cache
Hard Drive: 500GB SATA-II 3.0Gb/s 7200RPM HDD
Graphics: ATI Radeon HD 5450 512MB PCI
Power Supply: Antec HCG-400 400W ATX12V v2.3 / EPS12V v2.91 80 PLUS
Motherboard: ASUS M4N68T-M V2 AM3 NVIDIA Geforce 7025/nForce 630a Micro ATX

 

[anhikilator]

The setup you have is a bit old. You could salvage the case, hard drive and memory. Depending on your objectives, the powersupply could be a bit short. What do you use the computer for?

If you aren't sure about compatibility, pcpartpicker will help you a lot.

 

[Knufire]

+1 to anhikilator.

What's your budget for the upgrade?

 

[pipsta]

What are your thoughts on this upgrade? pcpartpicker.com says its 361W

CPU:AMD Phenom II X4 965 Black 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor $85
GPU: Sapphire Radeon HD 6850 1GB Video Card $176
HDD: Seagate Barracuda 2TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive $88
=$349

 

[Knufire]

IMO...that's not enough of an upgrade to be worth the money.

I'd start with this GPU: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814131487

And maybe save up for a used 3570K and Z77 motherboard or 2500K and Z68 motherboard.

 

[anhikilator]

Agreed with Knu. I know we are in a tough economy, but in your situation, try to hold a bit more and get something it will last and also, will satisfy you.

I've done it in the past, throwing money for small, almost side upgrades and makes you feel sad and angry. Check in craiglist, with the Intel series out, many ppl will try to sell their old stuff just to get the latest gen, you can take advantage of that.

An example in my area:
http://miami.craigslist.org/brw/sys/3824703039.html

and remember that in CL you can always lower the price a bit more!