looking to upgrade an old rig

[pak]

The rig in my signature has been running strong for years. I quit play WoW a few years ago, so it has been mainly used for just for browsing the web. Occasionally I would fire up CSsource. Well my kids are a bit older now and have shown some interests in a few PC games.

Before I build a completely new rig, I figure I'd maximize the potential of this rig. So I am looking to possibly upgrade the following items.

SSD HD thinking samsung 850 pro
Sound card, mine just quit working a few years ago and I have been using the on board
Memory-open to suggestions
Video Card-I'd like to use the potential of what is available to this mobo
80mm fans. Looking for some silent ones. Mine are very loud when set to high. I have them on a controller and turned down a lot.

TIA

 

[bob4933]

With the proliferation of SSD's recently, there are more decent options than just the samsung's now. For gaming and office use, pretty much any SSD with a proper NAND will be quite exceptional.

Sound cards "typically" aren't worth it. Most motherboards have decent audio codec's now.

Memory is a tough one. Your motherboard only supports ddr2 memory, which is gonna be tougher to find. 8gb will be PLENTY.

80mm fans are rarely quiet due to their size. Larger the fans the more quiet the performance (typically speaking).


For a GPU, you can still run modern graphics cards on that setup. I wouldn't go super ham, but an r9 380 or gtx 960 would go well there I would believe.

 

[Nebulous]

I would agree with bob, but me thinks a newer video card will be bottlenecked by the current cpu. You're better off using those funds for a complete overhaul. Not to jump to the latest and greatest, but a Z77 board, a 2500k chip and DDR3 will be a great upgrade. You can then take advantage of the SSD speed and a newer video card like 380/390 or a 960/970.

As was mentioned; DDR2 is hard to come by nowadays, and the price you're going to pay for it is better spent on DDR3. Just my .02

 

[bob4933]

I would agree with bob, but me thinks a newer video card will be bottlenecked by the current cpu. You're better off using those funds for a complete overhaul. Not to jump to the latest and greatest, but a Z77 board, a 2500k chip and DDR3 will be a great upgrade. You can then take advantage of the SSD speed and a newer video card like 380/390 or a 960/970.

As was mentioned; DDR2 is hard to come by nowadays, and the price you're going to pay for it is better spent on DDR3. Just my .02

Im not entirely in a disagreement with you here. HOWEVER, an SSD and GPU can be transposed to a new system at any time. Not "wasted" money so to speak. Budget is obviously important here.

 

[Nebulous]

Thus is true, however given the age of the current setup the OP has, the money being thrown into an old rig is not really beneficial.

That's like using Premium gasoline in an old VW. Sure you get a little pep, but is it really worth it?

 

[pak]

Thus is true, however given the age of the current setup the OP has, the money being thrown into an old rig is not really beneficial.

That's like using Premium gasoline in an old VW. Sure you get a little pep, but is it really worth it?

So is it your opinion that I should just leave this rig alone?

I'm just looking to maximize this CPU and mobo. I'm not looking to bench. If I can spice this one up a bit, great. If not, it is what it is. I'm likely to put another one together here in the next few months, but we'll see how that goes. If I do, I'm likely to put something nice together like I did with this one it it's time. I spent a little money on this one but I've had it so long and it's ran so well that I have no problem doing it again hoping it will last me as long.

 

[trents]

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Intel-Core-...419317?hash=item28144f16b5:g:2~gAAOSwvFZW7NPi if compatible with mobo.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/XFX-Radeon-...037465?hash=item25b89c3f19:g:V-UAAOSwoudW7EpF

These upgrades would give you lots of bang for the buck.

 

[wingman99]

I would purchase parts a little at a time, first GTX 970 then Samsung 850 EVO 500GB, then install those in your PC, then save for motherboard, CPU, memory, OS.

 

[Dlaw]

I would purchase parts a little at a time, first GTX 970 then Samsung 850 EVO 500GB, then install those in your PC, then save for motherboard, CPU, memory, OS.

That's how I would go about it as well, though I would keep a little conservative and go GTX 960. If a new rig is in the future, one should look for a current generation GPU then. The 900 series is over a year old now, and new cards will be coming soon.

 

[wingman99]

The GTX 970 does much better than the GTX 960 http://www.anandtech.com/bench/product/1596?vs=1595

 

[Dlaw]

The GTX 970 does much better than the GTX 960 http://www.anandtech.com/bench/product/1596?vs=1595

True, but a 960 will still be fine for what he needs, and will save ~$100 to be put toward the other components. Then, the 960 could be transferred to the new components, or can be upgraded to a then-current gen. GPU. Meanwhile, the old parts can still be used as a secondary rig, which the 960 would still serve well if the new build gets a new GPU.

Honestly, just about any current GPU will outperform that 8800GTS, and with a Core 2 system, I don't see the need to drop $300+ on a new GPU.

 

[trents]

True, but a 960 will still be fine for what he needs, and will save ~$100 to be put toward the other components. Then, the 960 could be transferred to the new components, or can be upgraded to a then-current gen. GPU. Meanwhile, the old parts can still be used as a secondary rig, which the 960 would still serve well if the new build gets a new GPU.

Honestly, just about any current GPU will outperform that 8800GTS, and with a Core 2 system, I don't see the need to drop $300+ on a new GPU.

Agree!

 

[Joe88]

+1, see no reason for a 970 just to play simulation games

 

[pak]

The components I put in this current rig won't leave it. I just want to maximize this mobo and cpu. I'll leave it from there.

So for me the question is will the 970 be considerably better than a 960 in this current setup

 

[wingman99]

Depends if your game is CPU dependent or GPU dependent, What games are you going to play in the future?

 

[pak]

Nothing really in particular. I know my older son still plays wow and I heard them talking about some new street fighter game.

 

[Dlaw]

The 960 should be fine for you.

 

[wingman99]

You don't need to upgrade now you can wait till you have a game that needs more power.

 

[pak]

Ended up getting the 970. Games run much better on max settings! I'll probably pick up the SSD in the next week or two and do a fresh install.

 

[wingman99]

Wow that is great glad you like it, I also like my GTX 970 , you can purchase some demanding games now.