To jump or not to jump

[syypher]

Should I upgrade to the parts below or jump to i5/i7? I have $550ish budget.

My current rig:

Full Tower Case by ULTRA forgot model..
XFX Nforce 680i LT Mobo
Intel Core 2 Quad Q6600 @ 2.4 ghz (stock)
6GB OCZ DDR2 800mhz Memory
Western Digital WDC 500gb HD (data/games/etc. - don't remember speed but I got it a long time ago 2-3 yrs...)
OCZ Vert 64gb SSD HD (operating system)
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 280 1gb superclocked
XIGMATEK HDT-S1283 120mm Rifle CPU Cooler
750w power supply

The parts I am looking to upgrade to:

Hard Drive (Just because I need more space) - these are the same, just different sizes right?

http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/SearchTools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=4034139&CatId=2459

or

http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/SearchTools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=4538820&CatId=2459

CPU
http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/SearchTools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=4089666&CatId=2758

(Might upgrade Mobo + RAM if will work better with this CPU choice)
Mobo
http://www.tigerdirect.com/applicat...details.asp?EdpNo=4394541&csid=ITD&body=MAIN#

RAM
http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/SearchTools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=3984931&CatId=3361

Please post any suggestions,thoughts, or advice on parts that you would suggest to use instead of these. Basically, tear my system apart and tell me the best parts I could go for with my $550-$600 budget.

Question:
-The CPU I chose, is it overclockable? (I've read a lot of bad on OC'in my current q6600, want to make sure I don't get something I can't OC if I want to)
-Does my Mobo have anything to do with how well I can OC that CPU? If yes I will probably buy that mobo I linked..
-Will upgrading to that CPU + Mobo(supports ddr3) + ddr3 memory provide enough performance increase to justify the price of upgrading to dd3 ram as well?
-Should I go to the i5/i7/ddr3 ram/new mobo or will this be the best choice of upgrades to do for a $550-600 budget?
-Will I notice substantial enough performance boost (since everyone here says my Q6600 bottlenecks my GPU hard) by switching to this CPU?

I know it's a lot to read and I have a lot of questions, but I want some knowledgeable feedback and advice before I drop this much money >_<

 

[chuck4456]

Should I upgrade to the parts below or jump to i5/i7? I have $550ish budget.

My current rig:

Full Tower Case by ULTRA forgot model..
XFX Nforce 680i LT Mobo
Intel Core 2 Quad Q6600 @ 2.4 ghz (stock)
6GB OCZ DDR2 800mhz Memory
Western Digital WDC 500gb HD (data/games/etc. - don't remember speed but I got it a long time ago 2-3 yrs...)
OCZ Vert 64gb SSD HD (operating system)
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 280 1gb superclocked
XIGMATEK HDT-S1283 120mm Rifle CPU Cooler
750w power supply

The parts I am looking to upgrade to:

Hard Drive (Just because I need more space) - these are the same, just different sizes right?

http://www.tigerdirect.com/applicati...139&CatId=2459

or

http://www.tigerdirect.com/applicati...8820&CatId=139

CPU
http://www.tigerdirect.com/applicati...y=#ReviewStart

(Might upgrade Mobo + RAM if will work better with this CPU choice)
Mobo
http://www.tigerdirect.com/applicati...IN#detailspecs

RAM
http://www.tigerdirect.com/applicati...931&CatId=3361

Please post any suggestions,thoughts, or advice on parts that you would suggest to use instead of these. Basically, tear my system apart and tell me the best parts I could go for with my $550-$600 budget.

Question:
-The CPU I chose, is it overclockable? (I've read a lot of bad on OC'in my current q6600, want to make sure I don't get something I can't OC if I want to)
-Does my Mobo have anything to do with how well I can OC that CPU? If yes I will probably buy that mobo I linked..
-Will upgrading to that CPU + Mobo(supports ddr3) + ddr3 memory provide enough performance increase to justify the price of upgrading to dd3 ram as well?
-Should I go to the i5/i7/ddr3 ram/new mobo or will this be the best choice of upgrades to do for a $550-600 budget?
-Will I notice substantial enough performance boost (since everyone here says my Q6600 bottlenecks my GPU hard) by switching to this CPU?

I know it's a lot to read and I have a lot of questions, but I want some knowledgeable feedback and advice before I drop this much money >_<

Buy your stuff from NEWEGG.
You didn't say which 750W PSU you were using.
Might end up needing one of those too.

 

[syypher]

why newegg? and what would u suggest? go i7 or processor or processor + mobo i suggested would be the best way to max out my GPU? I might get 2x 280s eventually so ic an sli them..

 

[Joeteck]

I would go i7 / 860, 4 gig of RAM, and this mobo. So you could do SLI down the road! But good luck finding another 280 by that time...

 

[syypher]

nice processor find.

that mobo..some of the reviews said GPU won't fit. My 280 is HUGE >_< lol

is that i7 overclockable really well unlike my q6600?

oh, what kind of heatsink would yall suggest for that i7 you posted?

 

[syypher]

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813128401

what about this motherboard? instead of the one you posted... really good reviews on it.

I won't ever SLI actually. I only play at 1650x 1200 and this Mobo has 1 PCI-E slot only and thats the biggest difference between those 2.