Budget 21-30k Need advice on CPU Upgrade

P

paglababa

Recruit
Hi Guys,

Questions

  • What is your budget?
    • 30K (for CPU, MB,RAM, SSD)
  • What is your existing hardware configuration (component name - component brand and model)
    • CPU – AMD Athlon 4600 2.4 GHz
    • Motherboard - Asus M2A MX
    • GPU - ATI Radeon 4850
    • RAM - Kingston 2X2GB DDR 2
    • Monitor – LG19” (also connect to Lg 42” TV for 1080P HD Movies)
    • PSU - Corsair VS550
    • HDD – 500 GB x1, 160 GB x1, 80GB x1
    • DVD Writer – LG
    • Cabinet – Antec GX700
  • Which hardware will you be keeping (component name - component brand and model)
    • GPU – ATI Radeon 4850
    • Monitor – LG19”
    • PSU - Corsair VS550
    • HDD – 500 GB x1, 160 GB x1, 80GB x1
    • DVD Writer – LG
    • o Cabinet – Antec GX700 (this has USB 3.0 ports in the front)
  • Which hardware component are you looking to buy (component name). If you have already decided on a configuration then please mention the (component brand and model) as well, this will help us in fine tuning your requirement.
    • CPU – AMD FX6300 (have used AMD for last 2 comps, open to Intel)
    • Motherboard – M5A99FX PRO R2.0 (I need cross fire options for future, also front USB 3.0 headers) 6GB/s Sata ports (minimum 6)
    • RAM – 8GB x 1
    • SSD – Samsung 850 EVO 120 GB SSD
  • Is this going to be your final configuration or you would be adding/upgrading a component in near future. If yes then please mention when and which component
    • Yes, will upgrade the following within 12 months
    • Monitor – Full HD 24” Monitor
    • GPU- Not yet decided on make – Will also like to Crossfire / SLI
    • RAM - 1X8GB
    • HDD – 3 or 4 TB HDD
  • Where will you buy this hardware? (Online/City/TE Dealer)
    • Kolkata
    • Open to online purchase (Would prefer Online)
  • Would you consider buying a second hand hardware from the TE market
    • Yes
  • What is your intended use for this PC/hardware
    • Gaming
    • Browsing
    • Watching HD movies
  • Do you have any brand preference or dislike? Please name them and the reason for your preference/dislike.
    • Don’t want MSI MB since iv had a bad experience with warranty
  • If you will be playing games then which type of games will you be playing?
    • FPS – COD, BF4 (Whatever resolution my current GPU can take)
    • Racing - Grid at medium to high settings
    • Assasins Creed
    • GTA V
  • What is your preferred monitor resolution for gaming and normal usage
    1. Gaming – 1440x900
    2. Desktop - 1440x900
  • Are you looking to overclock?
    • Yes
  • Which operating system do you intend to use with this configuration?
    • Windows 7 64 bit
Long time lurker, signed up for some advise that i need in upgrading my existing system. This system has been my download rig come workhorse for the past 7 years and now i need some more firepower to enjoy the recent games.

This would be a phase wise build, and i would like your advice on the choices that i have narrowed down to. My last 2 systems were AMD, and hence my choice has been to that, however i am open to intel as well.

I may overclock to 4 Ghz (only to be able to play some games that require that), other than that, my only requirements are to have a system which is reliable and long lasting. I would be upgrading the GPU (maybe SLI/Crossfire) later so would like a MB which has that option. Would also like the MB to have a header for a front USB 3.0 port that i have in my case.

Thanks in advance.
Paglababa
 
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  • CPU – Intel Core i5 4440 -11000,
  • Motherboard – MSI H97-PC Mate -6900,
  • RAM – Kingston HyperX Fury 8GB 1866Mhz -4400,
  • SSD – Samsung 850 EVO 120GB -5400.
  • TOTAL -27,700.
All prices are sourced from snapdeal as it is offering 7% discount.
 
bssunil said:
  • CPU – Intel Core i5 4440 -11000,
  • Motherboard – MSI H97-PC Mate -6900,
Click to expand...
Thanks for the reply. Is there any particular benefit for going for this processor as against the FX 6300 ? This is just 3.1GHz as against the 3.5GHz stock for the AMD at a much lesser price.

Also, any other MB apart from MSI, i've not had a good experience with MSI in the past.
 
it's not the core clock but the cpu architecture itself that matters (for e.g. i have a 3 ghz wolfdale cpu but it will get thrashed by a 2 ghz haswell)
Also, do you plan on xfiring your 4850? in that case, you're better off with a newer gpu unless you have an extra 4850 lying around.
Crossfire might also require a psu upgrade depending on the gpu. i would not suggest you to make xfire a part of a budget system as you will be paying quite a premium for those mobos.
Since your main aim is gaming, a core i5 will give you good headroom for a powerful gpu later on. anything faster would be a waste of money as the price rises much steeper than the performance.
if budget is a concern then i recommend you go with the fx-6300 and set more money aside for a decent gpu.
one more thing - you mentioned that you plan on oc'ing a bit - avoid doing so on that psu as it is part of corsair's budget line. (Note; the intel cpu cannot be oc'ed - you will need a k-series cpu a z97 class chipset for that. amd's cpu's however have no such requirements.)
 
I won't be xfiring the 4850. Will add on cards later. Thanks for the heads up on the PSU, will add that to the upgrade later list as well.

Could you please suggest some options on k series CPUs and x97 boards. I don't mind something slightly on the higher side iif its gonna last me for the next couple of years.

Edit : Typo
 
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well, the k-series start from ~20k+ for the cpu only. the mobos are also pricey (~10k+).
a standard core-i5 will last you well past the next 2-3 years so again, it's not really worth getting a k-series cpu. By the time you reach it's limits, newer and faster cpu's will be out.
I forgot to mention the intel g3258 - its around 4.5k and can be overclocked.
That being said, since you're main aim is gaming and 90% of a game's performance depends on the gpu i would suggest you budget accordingly.
let me give you my system as an example - it has an e5700 that's more than 3 years old (its rubbish), 4gb corsair value select ram (rubbish), a low-end mini-itx g41 based asus mobo (also rubbish) and a std. spinning drive (basically it's all rubbish), however, when i needed to upgrade on a budget last year i went a little nuts and blew it all on a mad gpu (got a 280x toxic).
the end-result is that while i don't get massive 100+ frame rates, i never EVER get less than 40 fps and i only play at 1600x900 with ultra settings. so basically i get all the max details with no stuttering/freezing.
Honestly, i feel bad when i see people blowing 50k+ on a cpu for gaming when it's influence on a game's performance is 20% at the most.
As stupid as it sounds, if i were you i would blow it all on either a gtx 970 or an r9 290 and enjoy gaming nirvana. (possibly an ssd also if your budget allows)
if a cpu+mobo upgrade is absolutely needed then the fx6300 makes sense (decent performance, cheaper than intel and over-clockable).

Don't treat sli/xfire as an upgrade path as by the time you need another gpu there are newer faster and sometimes cheaper options available. sli/xfire is aimed at the super rich consumer that wants max. performance with today's tech which is why sli/xfire boards are found with top-of-the-line mobos.
The gtx 970, 980, r9 280x and 290x are gpus that are used for sli/xfire as they have the memory, the bandwidth and the grunt to be fully utilised.
 
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That's in lines of my plan. That's why I had shortlisted the fx6300 and had thought of adding a couple of r9 270 in xfire ( or something better in the same budget of 30k). But so many people suggested the i5 so that got me thinking. I'm open to all combos currently but don't want to spend more than 25k on a CPU+mb combo.


Also, OC option I wanted to have in case I wanted to tinker with it. I don't want a situation where im unable to play some game just coz the required specs are 3.5 and I'm running a 3.1 hence my query.
 
I can understand your desire to spend well on a solid system today so that future upgrades are cheaper (or entirely not needed), however, that concept doesn't seem to work well with computers.
xfiring a 270x will cost you about 28-32k for the gpu's alone but you will get similar performance to an r9 280x which costs about 20-22k (or get a 290 for ~30k) - hence my advice against sli/xfire.
Now you might wonder "why not get one 270x today and then pick up another one a year later for much less - again economics will trip you up here as newer cards would provide similar or greater performance for same or less money (new gpu lines are being launched almost every year). And this doesnt take power consumption/per watt efficiency into account.
the lower down the gpu line-up you pick, the worse the price/performance trade-off becomes. basically relying on xfire/sli for future upgrades means your upgrade options will depend on either future unknown tech progress or on the pricing and availability of old hardware.

The i5's are great cpu's no doubt about it. it's just that i was in the same boat as you but got the desired performance with less money than i planned on spending. (bought games with the balance money :D)

Don't worry about min. specs for the cpu. the gpu is the one doing the heavy lifting.
basically 2 cores/threads and 3 ghz will be enough for all games until virtual reality goes mainstream.
 
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A 4th gen Intel i5 coupled with Asus H97 chipset mobo will easily set you back by approx 22k.

At later stage, how much you can spend for your upgrades ? Also do take a note that, VS550 is okay-ish PSU. Ideally you should upgrade that before getting a GFX card.
 
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