DIY PC (upgrading)

[Alternative X]

Thanks for the guide. Btw do you think I should upgrade my CPU/Mobo if I don't intend to overclock?

No point. Haswell CPUs are only around 5% faster than the Sandy Bridge equivalent CPU. Pointless to pay so much $$$ for so little gains.

 

[zenniz]

The i5 2500k is equivalent to i5 4670K but less power efficient.

Even if you change to a better one, the only option is i7 processor but pointless since gaming doesn't need i7.

If you say you want a more power efficient processor, also pointless cause the turnover rate from the electric bill you save will take more than 5 years. By the time 2 newer generation of more power efficient Intel cpu will be released.

 

[user14]

Hi all, I haven't been keeping up with the latest hardware trends and I'm looking to upgrade my PC. Here are my specs. PSU is a Corsair HX620.

Looking for upgrades with the most bang for my buck. Thanks in advance.

CPU: Intel Core i5-3570K (Ivy Bridge-DT, E1)
3400 MHz (34.00x100.0) @ 1604 MHz (16.00x100.3)
Motherboard: ASUS P8Z77-V LX
Chipset: Intel Z77 (Panther Point DH)
Memory: 16384 MBytes @ 668 MHz, 9.0-9-9-24
- 8192 MB PC10600 DDR3 SDRAM - G Skill F3-10666CL9-8GBXL
- 4096 MB PC10600 DDR3 SDRAM - G Skill F3-10666CL9-4GBNT
- 4096 MB PC10600 DDR3 SDRAM - G Skill F3-10666CL9-4GBNT
Graphics: XFX Radeon HD 5850
ATI/AMD Radeon HD 5850, 1024 MB GDDR5 SDRAM
Drive: M4-CT128M4SSD2, 125.0 GB, Serial ATA 6Gb/s @ 6Gb/s
Drive: WDC WD2002FAEX-007BA0, 1953.5 GB, Serial ATA 6Gb/s @ 3Gb/s
Drive: TSSTcorp CDDVDW SH-S223B, DVD+R DL
Sound: Intel Panther Point PCH - High Definition Audio Controller [C1]
Sound: ATI/AMD Cypress - High Definition Audio Controller
Network: RealTek Semiconductor RTL8168/8111 PCI-E Gigabit Ethernet NIC
Network: RealTek Semiconductor RTL8169 Gigabit Ethernet Adapter
OS: Microsoft Windows 8.1 Professional (x64) Build 9600

 

[zenniz]

Hi all, I haven't been keeping up with the latest hardware trends and I'm looking to upgrade my PC. Here are my specs. PSU is a Corsair HX620.

Looking for upgrades with the most bang for my buck. Thanks in advance.

CPU: Intel Core i5-3570K (Ivy Bridge-DT, E1)
3400 MHz (34.00x100.0) @ 1604 MHz (16.00x100.3)
Motherboard: ASUS P8Z77-V LX
Chipset: Intel Z77 (Panther Point DH)
Memory: 16384 MBytes @ 668 MHz, 9.0-9-9-24
- 8192 MB PC10600 DDR3 SDRAM - G Skill F3-10666CL9-8GBXL
- 4096 MB PC10600 DDR3 SDRAM - G Skill F3-10666CL9-4GBNT
- 4096 MB PC10600 DDR3 SDRAM - G Skill F3-10666CL9-4GBNT
Graphics: XFX Radeon HD 5850
ATI/AMD Radeon HD 5850, 1024 MB GDDR5 SDRAM
Drive: M4-CT128M4SSD2, 125.0 GB, Serial ATA 6Gb/s @ 6Gb/s
Drive: WDC WD2002FAEX-007BA0, 1953.5 GB, Serial ATA 6Gb/s @ 3Gb/s
Drive: TSSTcorp CDDVDW SH-S223B, DVD+R DL
Sound: Intel Panther Point PCH - High Definition Audio Controller [C1]
Sound: ATI/AMD Cypress - High Definition Audio Controller
Network: RealTek Semiconductor RTL8168/8111 PCI-E Gigabit Ethernet NIC
Network: RealTek Semiconductor RTL8169 Gigabit Ethernet Adapter
OS: Microsoft Windows 8.1 Professional (x64) Build 9600

The only bang for buck upgrade is to change your graphic card to a better one. What is your budget?

 

[user14]

The only bang for buck upgrade is to change your graphic card to a better one. What is your budget?

Only my graphics card? That's good to know

My budget is around $300

 

[zenniz]

Only my graphics card? That's good to know

My budget is around $300

Powercolor R9 280 turboduo @ $285

 

[Aviendar]

1) Fastest way to prove that your GPU is dying is to just pull out your GPU, connect monitor to mobo and see if you still got blank screen bootup or not. Might not be able to game for a while, but still can use the rig to DL and watch videos for the time being.

2) Download and run Memtest 86+ to test your RAMs and see if there are any issues with your RAMs. 8GB RAMs are good enough for gaming, don't need until 16GB RAMs.

3) The GTX 760 is good for max settings in Shadows of Mordor and Skyrim but can only play COD at max settings if you turn the AA off. Why not consider AMD? AMD's GPUs are pretty cheap right now and a Powercolor R9 280 can be had for $285 while the Gigabyte GTX 760 costs $379. The Powercolor R9 280 is slightly more powerful than the GTX 760 and is going for a cheaper price, thus the R9 280 is a better deal than the Gigabyte GTX 760.

Alternatively, it might be a better idea to top up a bit more and get a far more powerful Zotac GTX 970 Twin Fan for $448 and be able to play the latest games at max settings.

Hi,

I've manages to run memtest for one of my rams with 100% pass and no issues. The 2nd piece is currently being tested at 98% pass (which I assume should be no issues). Question is why do I occasionally get start up failure (cpu powers up, led/fan turn on but blank screen) Which I can only resolve by reseating the ram.

I don't think its a mobo or gpu issue as pc might not start even if I reseat the ram. I noticed however in the bios setup that dimm voltage was set at 1.59 when the ram I use states 1.5v, not sure if that will cause any issue but I changed it to 1.5v anyway.

Any idea what is causing this start up failure? I can't be reseating the ram all the time and not sure if buying new Rams will solve this problem.

 

[Alternative X]

Hi,

I've manages to run memtest for one of my rams with 100% pass and no issues. The 2nd piece is currently being tested at 98% pass (which I assume should be no issues). Question is why do I occasionally get start up failure (cpu powers up, led/fan turn on but blank screen) Which I can only resolve by reseating the ram.

I don't think its a mobo or gpu issue as pc might not start even if I reseat the ram. I noticed however in the bios setup that dimm voltage was set at 1.59 when the ram I use states 1.5v, not sure if that will cause any issue but I changed it to 1.5v anyway.

Any idea what is causing this start up failure? I can't be reseating the ram all the time and not sure if buying new Rams will solve this problem.

So, you will still get a startup with a blank screen at times even after you reseated your RAMs, right? Do you get a blank screen startup with the iGPU?

 

[Aviendar]

So, you will still get a startup with a blank screen at times even after you reseated your RAMs, right? Do you get a blank screen startup with the iGPU?

Yes, it has been occurring quite frequently recently. I would have reseated the RAMs the night before to resolve the startup issue and the next day it happens again. I have not tried resolving this issue with just the IGPU as reseating the RAMs always resolved the issue.

 

[Alternative X]

Yes, it has been occurring quite frequently recently. I would have reseated the RAMs the night before to resolve the startup issue and the next day it happens again. I have not tried resolving this issue with just the IGPU as reseating the RAMs always resolved the issue.

It is then most likely a dying GPU and not a fault with the RAM since reseating the RAM does not help solve your problem. The Memtest did not show any issue with your RAMs, did it?

 

[Aviendar]

It is then most likely a dying GPU and not a fault with the RAM since reseating the RAM does not help solve your problem. The Memtest did not show any issue with your RAMs, did it?

Just curious, If it's a dying gpu, why did reseating the ram temporary resolved the problem? Because of that it made me think it's a RAM problem but the memtest showed no issues. If so, there is no need for me to buy new Rams right?

 

[Alternative X]

Just curious, If it's a dying gpu, why did reseating the ram temporary resolved the problem? Because of that it made me think it's a RAM problem but the memtest showed no issues. If so, there is no need for me to buy new Rams right?

Not very sure why reseating the RAM helps, but dying GPUs can occasionally be unable to display images and this symptom will increase in frequency until the GPU fails to display images permanantly. Could be a coincidence since a restart can initially also allow a dying GPU to display images again.

Your RAMs are fine, just get a new GPU.