13 replies to this topic

[Blackfoot]

So I was thinking the other day about how I got a buddy to help me put my Mechwarrior machine together way back in closed Beta. And how that was five years ago, and it is now a dinosaur. I'm thinking about adding some memory from 8gigs to 16gigs and upgrading my graphics card. Wondering if I should get a new processor too? I am not too knowledgeable about these things so any advice on how to proceed with upgrading would be greatly appreciated and I know this community is knowledgeable enough on the subject. I would like to get something put together that can play modern games on decent graphics settings and not break the bank too much.

This is what I have been running since 2012.

CPU: AMD 4core FX-4100 3.66 8MR.

Graphics card: VGA EVGA 01G-P3-1556-KR GTX550 TIR

Flash card: flash 4G GSKILL FF-TSDG4GA-C4R

Power Supply: Raidmax Hybrid 2 RX-630ss 630W

Memory: 4Gx2 GSKILL F3-14900CL90-8GBXL

Motherboard: GA-970A-D3 AM3+970R

[xWiredx]

Hello thar. Without a budget specified, I am simply guessing, but this is a decent mid-range build that will play most current games on high settings without much of a fuss at 1080p.

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i5-6600K 3.5GHz Quad-Core Processor ($229.99 @ SuperBiiz)
CPU Cooler: Corsair H60 54.0 CFM Liquid CPU Cooler ($59.99 @ Newegg)
Motherboard: Asus Z170-P ATX LGA1151 Motherboard ($109.88 @ OutletPC)
Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws V Series 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR4-3200 Memory ($89.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Western Digital BLACK SERIES 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($69.00 @ Jet)
Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 1060 6GB 6GB GAMING Video Card ($249.99 @ B&H)
Case: Corsair SPEC-01 ATX Mid Tower Case ($54.46 @ Amazon)
Power Supply: SeaSonic G 550W 80+ Gold Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply ($64.99 @ Newegg)
Total: $928.29
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2017-01-07 13:49 EST-0500

[Dragoon20005]

Blackfoot, on 07 January 2017 - 03:53 AM, said:

So I was thinking the other day about how I got a buddy to help me put my Mechwarrior machine together way back in closed Beta. And how that was five years ago, and it is now a dinosaur. I'm thinking about adding some memory from 8gigs to 16gigs and upgrading my graphics card. Wondering if I should get a new processor too? I am not too knowledgeable about these things so any advice on how to proceed with upgrading would be greatly appreciated and I know this community is knowledgeable enough on the subject. I would like to get something put together that can play modern games on decent graphics settings and not break the bank too much.

This is what I have been running since 2012.

CPU: AMD 4core FX-4100 3.66 8MR.

Graphics card: VGA EVGA 01G-P3-1556-KR GTX550 TIR

Flash card: flash 4G GSKILL FF-TSDG4GA-C4R

Power Supply: Raidmax Hybrid 2 RX-630ss 630W

Memory: 4Gx2 GSKILL F3-14900CL90-8GBXL

Motherboard: GA-970A-D3 AM3+970R

a lot have change since the Beta but the game still runs like sh*t even with a supposedly high end machine

looking at your system

a lot of parts will need to be upgrade and most likely you will have to junk almost all the parts as the AMD FX CPU is outdated with Ryzen CPUs coming really soon prob in Feb/March launch dates

Also you will need a new mobo and RAM as the new Ryzen Platform is AM4 based and uses DDR4 instead of DDR3

also a good mid range GPU like the AMD RX 470/480 or the GTX 1050/Ti and GTX1060 3/6GB are the sweet spot for GPU that allows you to play most games at 1080P High to Ultra.

what is you max budget for the system?

[Blackfoot]

Hey fellas, thanks for the replies, I have about 400 bucks to spend, sorry I did'nt clarify that earlier. I have a decent case and hard drive but from what you both are saying looks like just a new motherboard and CPU wont cut it.

[xWiredx]

Now that you've given a budget, and we can axe out needing a case and HDD, that helps. You could start with the CPU+mobo now and carry over your GPU until you have some extra budget for it.

Realistically, the PSU may still be usable, too, but based on age if I were going to carry that over I'd try to keep load off of it so I'd look at a GTX 1050 Ti for the GPU. They're only like $135-ish and they perform pretty well. Equivalently-priced Radeons perform a bit better, but I think they also use more energy.

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i3-7320 4.1GHz Dual-Core Processor ($169.99 @ Newegg)
CPU Cooler: Corsair H60 54.0 CFM Liquid CPU Cooler ($59.99 @ Newegg)
Motherboard: MSI Z270-A PRO ATX LGA1151 Motherboard ($114.99 @ B&H)
Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws V Series 8GB (1 x 8GB) DDR4-2666 Memory ($50.98 @ Newegg)
Total: $395.95
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2017-01-09 08:52 EST-0500

Edited by xWiredx, 09 January 2017 - 05:58 AM.

[Flapdrol]

I hear Kaby lake pentiums have hyperthreading. Might be a great option, should be available very soon.

[xWiredx]

Flapdrol, on 09 January 2017 - 09:34 AM, said:

I hear Kaby lake pentiums have hyperthreading. Might be a great option, should be available very soon.

Well, the top-end Pentium with HT will still have a 400MhZ deficit and 1MB less cache (25%) compared to the top locked i3. This puts the Pentium at about a 10-15% disadvantage. There is also the unlocked i3 to consider, which I just didn't see on pcpartpicker but is only $8 more. That means the Pentium, while definitely an awesome value for the cost, wouldn't be the best choice to utilize OP's budget since a decent GPU is still going to cost more than the ~$100 he would save by going that route. It would put him closer to also getting a newer GPU sooner, which might be a decent trade-off, but the way MWO eats up CPU cycles always makes me go with the strongest CPU option I can find within a budget.

[Tarl Cabot]

Blackfoot, on 09 January 2017 - 03:16 AM, said:

Hey fellas, thanks for the replies, I have about 400 bucks to spend, sorry I did'nt clarify that earlier. I have a decent case and hard drive but from what you both are saying looks like just a new motherboard and CPU wont cut it.

Keep saving and build up on the $400. You want a system that will not need a total upgrade for some time.

[AdeptusMechanicus]

I would start with the videocard,
Go with the 1060 route if your system can handle it, this will give you a marked improvement, and with most of the games demands being put onto the card, it will help ram wise and processing wise as well just through that upgrade.

[Blackfoot]

The 1060 looks like the best bet for a video card. The mobo CPU combo looks pretty sweet too. Thanks for the replies and info everyone it will be fun to piss off the ol lady by spending money on my gaming rig lol

[Dragoon20005]

Blackfoot, on 12 January 2017 - 05:03 AM, said:

The 1060 looks like the best bet for a video card. The mobo CPU combo looks pretty sweet too. Thanks for the replies and info everyone it will be fun to piss off the ol lady by spending money on my gaming rig lol

no secret stash of cash under the bed

[darqsyde]

xWiredx's build is good, but I would try to scrape up an extra $20 and get an i3-7350K, so that you can overclock.

[I_AM_ZUUL]

Blackfoot, on 09 January 2017 - 03:16 AM, said:

Hey fellas, thanks for the replies, I have about 400 bucks to spend, sorry I did'nt clarify that earlier. I have a decent case and hard drive but from what you both are saying looks like just a new motherboard and CPU wont cut it.

http://www.ebay.com/...L4AAOSw5cNYbI1W

take a look at something like this... I looked for 3770k and found this as the top option on Sort by Lowest Price, which is actually what I have myself. If all you are going to be doing is gaming then 3770k is about where Gaming performance stops improving by anything less than very marginal increments. Maybe some day years down the road when DX12 is a fully matured platform and games have been designed from the ground up to use then that will change... but that day is not today and not in really the next 2 years even.

That will get you up to an I7, 16g of DDR3 ram (DDR2 is about where Gaming caps out), on a board that has good features for under $400 bucks. Then you can justify buying a new (to you) GPU.... like a used 980 for under $200. It is better than a 1060 with the option to upgrade to SLI that 1060 does not have.

http://www.ebay.com/...E0AAOSwa~BYcrS6


Or a 980ti for $300 that blows them both out of the water... if you are staying at 1080p then this is all you need, and that is including 1080p at 120hz monitors.

http://www.ebay.com/...H8AAOSw44BYXIra

Edited by I_AM_ZUUL, 12 January 2017 - 08:56 PM.

[Galaxie 500]

AdeptusMechanicus, on 09 January 2017 - 07:29 PM, said:

I would start with the videocard,
Go with the 1060 route if your system can handle it, this will give you a marked improvement, and with most of the games demands being put onto the card, it will help ram wise and processing wise as well just through that upgrade.

MWO is cpu-bound... the video card is the last thing to upgrade. Throwing a 10-series NVidia in there is only going to save some watts through the GPU, won't actually produce higher frame rates since it's the CPU that can't keep up. Just a result of the way the game is written. Same thing has dogged WoW players for the lifetime of that game.