Best bang fot the buck!

[nanottaja]

Im updating my computer and the current setup is following:

PSU: Antec Earthwatts 500

MB: ASUS P5Q-E

CPU: Intel Core 2 Quad 8400 @ 2,66ghz

GPU: 4890 1gb

Memory: 2 x 2gb Kingston HyperX DDR2

The computer is only for gaming

So first i was thinking of buying a ASUS P6T mobo and a Intel i7 950 now that the price has gone down, and new DDR3 memories, alltogether about 650 €

Then i read that both Intel and AMD are going to have new sockets next year so is it worth to upgrade to the 1366 socket right now?

The other option would probably be to buy a new PSU and another 4890 for Crossfire, costing about 300 €, or then buying just one newer GPU for example HD 5870, costing about 400 €, and then theres also the 6xxx series coming so is a 5870 also a bad purchase right now?

Please tell me your opinion about what upgrade would be the best bang for the buck right now

Thank you

 

[alienware]

Well from the € sign it's hard to tell where you are, but 300 of them for a 4890 and a psu seems a tad extortionate.

If I were you I would go with the 4890 Crossfire setup though. It's the cheapest option and will give you the most notable performance gain. In gaming your CPU is more than adequate enough, adding an I7 will not make an enormous difference and in some games the I7 can be a real bugger. That's probably been sorted now though !

But yeah, think about how a 75-80% performance boost over one graphics card will dish out. Nothing you can do for €300 will even come close.

Just be sure to use a phat PSU. 4890s are greedy sonbiyatches so you'll need a good 750w min.

If I knew where you were I could so some digging for you.

Edit - example.

http://videocardshop.co.uk/viewproduct.aspx?part=HD-489X-ZSFR

so about 150 euro. I can't for the life of me see why a 750-800w psu could possibly cost the same again. Usually a good PSU at those figures will run you about a hundred euros. Oh, and don't forget the cooler and an overclock too !

 

[tinytomlogan]

`1366 socket isnt on the plans to be replaced for a while so that is fairly safe for a while fella

 

[killablade]

I'd wait for the Radeon 6xxx cards and upgrade to an i7 (I'd go i7-950), but it all depends on your budget mate.

If you'd go down that route you might have to get a new PSU aswell, depending on the power consumption of the graphics card and the quality of your current PSU.

 

[nanottaja]

The computer is used ONLY FOR GAMING

So, should i upgrade to the i7 950 (read that the 920, 930 and 950 are best for gaming)

and later on get a 5000 or 6000 series GPU ?

or just get a 5870 or a 5970 right now and get the mb and prosessor later?

What do you think about the 5970 bang/ buck ? and is the Core 2 Quad 8400 way too slow for it?

Oh and AlienALX my country is Finland

 

[alienware]

Ah OK that explains the prices.

A friend of mine has a 5850 with a 7750 Athlon. An old, terrible Athlon. He plays all the games he wants to and it copes surprisingly well. I couldn't believe it tbh.

However, take note that your 4890 is probably on par with a 5850 in speed terms. The only thing you will get is DX11 and titles are thin on the ground with most of them not offering differences big enough to even see without sitting and staring at the screen. It doesn't change gameplay, basically.

I'm all for a nice fast CPU but I just feel that yours is more than adequate TBH. Most games don't even see four cores and the ones that do are all limited to 60FPS cap with Vsync on. Therefore buying a CPU that is capable of pushing the game over 60FPS is kinda silly.

For example here.. I currently run two rigs. Rig one consists of -

Phenom 2 940 @ 3.4ghz

Corsair Dominator PC6400 (4gb)

Radeon 5770 in Crossfire.

Corsair Extreme SSD

Rig two consists of

Phenom 1 9950 (2.6ghz)

3gb DDR2 PC6400 (2x512mb 2x1gb)

Radeon 3870x2 1gb total (512mb per GPU).

And, in all of the games I have cross compared apart from Crysis (yuck) they both 'feel' the same when gaming. Sure I can fire up FRAPS and see more FPS on my 5770 Crossfire machine, but the fact is that both machines can run Fallout 3, Mirror's Edge, Batman and so on and do exactly the same job.

If your machine is struggling with games? Feel free to spend money keeping it up to date. But there are very few titles that need much more than you have IMO. Dirt 2 is serious eye candy, but is coded absolutely immaculately. Therefore it goes like stink even on lower range computers.

It's a shame you don't have a more manly PSU, as adding the second Radeon as cheaply as humanly possible would offer excellent boosts in games.

Sorry if this sounds a bit confusing dude.. I mean, it is confusing.

 

[killablade]

Upgrading to an i7 will definitely improve your frame rates, although how much improvement you will see will depend on the game you're running.