UPGRADES

[copelander]

So I built my rig in 2012. It has had no problems whatsoever; my most solid build yet. Right now I'm thinking my bottleneck is the VC, so I'm considering a GTX 1070. Can I get by with that for a year until I can upgrade the entire rig or are my other components too old to get enough out of the 1070?
Just have a LAN party in Dec. and want to kickstart this pig a little. Thanks.

 

[DaveB]

Kickstart what?

You need to identify the details of your configuration in order to get any meaningful advice.

 

[copelander]

What exactly do you mean details? If you're talking about my rig components they're listed under my profile. Wasn't sure to list them in the thread or assume someone would just check profile. If you're talking something more detailed, let me know. Thanks in advance.

 

[Lochekey]

Here is a copy and paste from his profile.

About copelander
Your System:
CASE: Raidmax Smilodon Extreme ATX-621WEB
MOBO: Gigabyte z-77x-UD3
RAM: G.Skill Ripjaws DDR3 1600 x 16GB
VID: EVGA GTX 480
CPU: i5 3570k 3.4 (4.2oc)
PSU: Antec TPQ 850w.
HD: OCZ Vertex 120GB SATA III x 2 (no RAID)
HD: Seagate Barracuda 1TB
MON: HANS-G HG-281DPG 28" 3ms HDMI LCD
OS: Windows 7 Ultra 64bit

@ copelander, it is generally good practice to post your system specs on the first post of a thread so that everyone has quick access to it. The other option is to have it included in your signature.


Too your question, your system should be fine with an upgrade to a 1070 and should hold up for another 2-3 years as long as you are not trying to push 4k resolutions or ultra settings on all the new games.

 

[copelander]

I haven't been on the board in a while and wasn't sure whether it was automatically part of my signature. I will tweak that now. TY for that.

And, I have no plans on 4k as long as this Hanns-G holds out. It was my 2009 LAN party expense so I could have the biggest monitor since I couldn't upgrade my computer at the time.

Also, would I get ANY benefit adding RAM since it's just DDR3?

 

[Lochekey]

It appears you are already running 16gb of ram I'm assuming in a 2x8gb or 4x4gb setup. In either case more than 16gb of ram will not benefit you.

 

[copelander]

Okay, fixed avatar. Let's see whether I fixed signature. I figured as much on the 16vs 32 gb or RAM. I just haven't paid much attention to what's out there since this build. Watched all my friends upgrade to catch up and finally pass performance wide, mostly VC updates. Thought about adding a WC to the CPU to squeeze more juice out of it, but figured my next build will be DDR5 with another OC'd CPU. Just can't afford it now. My 480 has been great, but hits a wall now and again. Thanks for all the help, both on etiquette and the rig.

 

[Dlaw]

Yessir, that core configuration is still plenty for gaming currently. GPU upgrades are all but inevitable, unfortunately, but like Lochekey said, with the 1070 you should be set for at least a couple more years. I know someone who still games on an overclocked 2500K, and he has no problems maxing the games he plays out at 1080p.

 

[trents]

Your biggest need by far presently is to upgrade the GPU. The rest of the hardware looks pretty relevant.

What are you cooling the CPU with? I'm wondering if you could get a better overclock on the CPU.