Rig Upgrade Enquiry

[Providence]

Hi,

As my current rig is getting old, I am planning to upgrade it in the near future. As I am not going to overhaul the entire rig, my budget will be around $1000 at the moment. This current rig's old/re-used parts are the PSU, monitor, hard-drive and the media drive. Currently, my rig is still going strong but I think it can't play Battlefield Hardline.

So I need to ask you guys which component I need to upgrade if I want to play Witcher 3 and Battlefield Hardline smoothly?

Thanks in advance.

 

[Koenig168]

I would suggest SSD, graphics card and possibly PSU.

An SSD will make your whole system more responsive. Your HDD should be quite old and it is probably not worth risking the loss of your data should the HDD develop problems.

Graphics card since your priority is gaming.

PSU since your existing PSU is old/reused. A defective PSU can take out more expensive components when it goes so it makes sense to invest in a new PSU.

 

[mib500]

Hi,

As my current rig is getting old, I am planning to upgrade it in the near future. As I am not going to overhaul the entire rig, my budget will be around $1000 at the moment. This current rig's old/re-used parts are the PSU, monitor, hard-drive and the media drive. Currently, my rig is still going strong but I think it can't play Battlefield Hardline.

So I need to ask you guys which component I need to upgrade if I want to play Witcher 3 and Battlefield Hardline smoothly?

Thanks in advance.

well if you have 1000 budget, i suggest you upgrade GPU,SSD and Monitor... your PSU still look fine to me...

 

[Providence]

My PSU was mint in box before it was installed in my current rig. I bought it as a spare PSU four years ago.

 

[Providence]

Which graphics card will not burst my budget in this case?

 

[Koenig168]

Which graphics card will not burst my budget in this case?

A GTX 970 is the obvious choice. Save the balance for your next upgrade.

 

[Providence]

I see. My cousin also recommended me to just change the graphics card.

I thought I need to change the mainboard and processor as well but it seems that the emphasis is now on the graphics card.

 

[Maeda_Toshiie]

I would suggest SSD, graphics card and possibly PSU.

An SSD will make your whole system more responsive. Your HDD should be quite old and it is probably not worth risking the loss of your data should the HDD develop problems.

Graphics card since your priority is gaming.

PSU since your existing PSU is old/reused. A defective PSU can take out more expensive components when it goes so it makes sense to invest in a new PSU.

The PSU is a solid mid range design (with reasonable choices of caps) from Seasonic, not some $10 Walmart fire hazard. It comes with a 5 year warranty, so it can easily last long if not heavily stressed.

My PSU was mint in box before it was installed in my current rig. I bought it as a spare PSU four years ago.

http://www.jonnyguru.com/forums/showpost.php?p=78151&postcount=32

There is this "theory" that by doing "gentle" power cycling, the wet caps can be brought back up to earlier conditions. However, the aging of capacitors is disputable (PSU manufacturers have $$$ reasons to overemphasize cap aging).

That said, it has never been advised to simply buy a PSU and store it (and what for in the first place?)

*edit*
Reconditioning old caps?
http://www.vcomp.co.uk/tech_tips/reform_caps/reform_caps.htm

 

[Koenig168]

The PSU is a solid mid range design (with reasonable choices of caps) from Seasonic, not some $10 Walmart fire hazard. It comes with a 5 year warranty, so it can easily last long if not heavily stressed.

My comment with regards to the PSU was based on the OP which stated that the PSU is old/re-used. As this is evidently not the case from the subsequent posts, there is no need to change the PSU.

 

[Providence]

The PSU is a solid mid range design (with reasonable choices of caps) from Seasonic, not some $10 Walmart fire hazard. It comes with a 5 year warranty, so it can easily last long if not heavily stressed.



http://www.jonnyguru.com/forums/showpost.php?p=78151&postcount=32

There is this "theory" that by doing "gentle" power cycling, the wet caps can be brought back up to earlier conditions. However, the aging of capacitors is disputable (PSU manufacturers have $$$ reasons to overemphasize cap aging).

That said, it has never been advised to simply buy a PSU and store it (and what for in the first place?)

*edit*
Reconditioning old caps?
http://www.vcomp.co.uk/tech_tips/reform_caps/reform_caps.htm

I bought it as a spare because my Corsair PSU was giving me problems. By then, I already changed my rig and the Corsair PSU is finally dead. LOL... Good timing...

That Corsair PSU only lasted for six months. It was a modular type. I RMA it and forgot where I kept it now. LOL

 

[Providence]

My comment with regards to the PSU was based on the OP which stated that the PSU is old/re-used. As this is evidently not the case from the subsequent posts, there is no need to change the PSU.

Maybe I will just change the GPU first. Then I will do a major upgrade before moving to my new house.

 

[Koenig168]

Maybe I will just change the GPU first. Then I will do a major upgrade before moving to my new house.

Do consider getting an SSD as well. You wouldn't go back to a HDD for OS after that.

 

[Jian19]

Lite on s900 256gb ssd ~ $149
Msi gtx970 armor edition ~ $499 / leadtek gtx970 hurricane ~ $488
Dell u2414h ~ $329

$997

Good to go

Edited

 

[shadow84]

U2414H frm pct is $329..

 

[MoneyFace =p]

Give it a nice blue and black theme.

SSD: Samsung SSD 850 EVO @ $138* (Lazada Singapore)
GPU: MSI GTX 970 4GB OC @ $459* (Lazada Singapore)
CASE: Sharkoon BD28 [Blue] @ $79
DSP: Dell UltraSharp U2414H 23.8" [AH-IPS] @ $329

Total: $1005

Buy others at PC Themes, #04-15.

*Price after Lazada $50 discount coupon (TBA later)

 

[Providence]

Do consider getting an SSD as well. You wouldn't go back to a HDD for OS after that.

I am a noob on the SSD though. The OS installation process on a SSD is the same as on a HDD?

 

[Providence]

Give it a nice blue and black theme.

SSD: Samsung SSD 850 EVO @ $138* (Lazada Singapore)
GPU: MSI GTX 970 4GB OC @ $459* (Lazada Singapore)
CASE: Sharkoon BD28 [Blue] @ $79
DSP: Dell UltraSharp U2414H 23.8" [AH-IPS] @ $329

Total: $1005

Buy others at PC Themes, #04-15.

*Price after Lazada $50 discount coupon (TBA later)

The display monitor will need to wait. Now my table is full. I need to change the casing? My current one is not spacious enough?

By the way, the Dell monitor can support 4K resolution as well? Now I have been hearing people saying that 4K monitors will blow your mind away while gaming.

 

[mib500]

I am a noob on the SSD though. The OS installation process on a SSD is the same as on a HDD?

yes bro... its the same... unless you wanna transfer the os from old HDD to SSD then the process will be diff...

 

[Providence]

yes bro... its the same... unless you wanna transfer the os from old HDD to SSD then the precess will be diff...

Noted with thanks!

 

[Providence]

I still have a PSU that is mint in box after I RMA it a few years back (maybe 5 years ago). Is it recommended to be use it at this moment? The shrink-wrap is still intact around the box though.

Sorry. I remember the brand. It is OCZ 700W ModXStream Pro Power Supply. This is the one that lasted me for 6 months and forced me to buy my current Seasonic PSU instead. The RMA period lasted for 1 month.