First upgrade since 2008

[nCred]

I've barely opened my computer case since i bought a hd4850 4 years ago.

current rig:
C2D E6750
2 gb RAM
AMD HD4850
Win XP 32 bit

I'm planning to keep my Antec sonata III case/500w psu along with the old video card since I rarely play games nowadays. I'll also keep two harddrives for storage.

I was thinking of buying these parts:

KINGSTON 8GB 1333MHZ DDR3 CL9 HYPERX BLU (2X4GB)

GIGABYTE GA-P67A-D3-B3 P67 S-1155 ATX

INTEL 330 SERIES 2.5" 120GB SSD SATA/600 MLC 25NM

Intel® Core i3-2120 Processor
Socket-LGA1155, Dual Core, 3.3Ghz, 3MB, 65W, Boxed w/fan

Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium OEM, 64bit, SP1

Does it look alright? I don't think I really need anything more than a dual core CPU since I don't game often or run any demanding applications. I will use it mostly for web browsing, playing hd video and programs like Word and Excel. I'm probably not going to upgrade again for 2-3 years.

 

[zeekr]

Maybe just get Windows 7 and the Intel SSD first and see if you are happy with the performance. They only thing that might hold back your old system in the amount of RAM.

 

[krnmastersgt]

I'd say you're overpaying for the motherboard + CPU. Mind answering the questions in the sticky?

On a side note, the Crucial M4 128 GB can be had for $105 with the promo code: EMCYTZT1866 till midnight PST of the 7th

 

[nCred]

Maybe just get Windows 7 and the Intel SSD first and see if you are happy with the performance. They only thing that might hold back your old system in the amount of RAM.

Yeah, I've thought about that too. That would be boring though, lol.

 

[nCred]

I'd say you're overpaying for the motherboard + CPU. Mind answering the questions in the sticky?

On a side note, the Crucial M4 128 GB can be had for $105 with the promo code: EMCYTZT1866 till midnight PST of the 7th

Sorry I live in Sweden so that offer is not available to me. The intel SSD is slightly cheaper than the Crucial m4 at the online shop i was planning purchasing from. I could save around $15 if I buy a more inexpensive mobo but I don't like buying the cheapest available. The CPU might be overkill for me but the Intel Pentium G8xx processors are barely faster than my E6750. I don't think I need 8 gb of RAM but it's so damn cheap.

 

[krnmastersgt]

Keep some things in mind:
The current gen Pentium's will be faster, even if not by much, than your E6750 and decently faster at some tasks as well due to their architecture. Another thing to note is that your system isn't really behind in terms of processing power but I'd say RAM and the speed of your drive for your tasks.

You could grab a cheap 4GB or 8GB set with the new CPU and just about any SSD and the system will feel a LOT faster. And in regards to the motherboard, not saying that particular model is expensive but rather the P67 chipset doesn't offer a whole lot. See if you can't find a more recent chipset to go with your purchase (like the Z75, B75, H77, H67). Not sure of pricing from your retailer (which is why you should link it) but those chipsets are typically around the same price or cheaper here in the US.

 

[lehtv]

What shop(s) in Sweden are you buying from? please link

Budget in kronor?

 

[nCred]

And in regards to the motherboard, not saying that particular model is expensive but rather the P67 chipset doesn't offer a whole lot. See if you can't find a more recent chipset to go with your purchase (like the Z75, B75, H77, H67). Not sure of pricing from your retailer (which is why you should link it) but those chipsets are typically around the same price or cheaper here in the US.

Motherboards with the B75 chipset seems to be some of the cheapest around, is it really better than the P67 chipset?

 

[nCred]

What shop(s) in Sweden are you buying from? please link

Budget in kronor?

Dustinhome and Komplett.

http://www.dustinhome.se/product/5010549698/kingston-8gb-1333mhz-ddr3-cl9-hyperx-blu-2x4gb/

http://www.dustinhome.se/product/5010609104/gigabyte-ga-p67a-d3-b3-p67-s-1155-atx/

http://www.dustinhome.se/product/50...ies-2-5-120gb-ssd-sata-600-mlc-25nm-reseller/

http://www.komplett.se/k/ki.aspx?sku=626704

http://www.komplett.se/k/ki.aspx?sku=629550

Budget: max 4300 kronor.

 

[krnmastersgt]

Better? Not especially
Worse? Not especially

The trade-offs? B75 boards only typically have 2 RAM slots, so those that want to upgrade/plan on adding in more later don't really have much freedom here. They also don't have the HDMI output for those utilizing the iGPU of Intel's CPU's. They also only have a single SATA 6Gbps port, and no support for Intel's SRT and Smart Caching.

If you can live without those options, the board is just fine (and cheaper).

 

[lehtv]

OK, so setting aside 900 kr for the OS, you've got 3400 kr left for CPU+Mobo+RAM+SSD.

Mobo Instead of the old P67 chipset, get Asus P8B75-V 789 kr (ATX, 4 RAM slots, Ivy bridge compatible, USB 3.0, 1x SATA 6gb/s, DVI-D+VGA)
CPU Since the CPU you have is already great for web/office/media, you don't need to spend much here. Intel Pentium G630 579 kr. The more important things about this build are the amount of RAM, the new OS and the SSD.
RAM Crucial 2x4GB 1600 360 kr (refurb, should work just fine)
SSD Samsung 830 128GB 1049 kr (intel 330 is sandforce, I would avoid even though intel has good rep)

= 2777 kr + OS, no need to spend more at this point

There you have very nice and smooth Windows 7 performance, with the option to upgrade to an i5 later if you decide to do something CPU intensive. The G620 will also handle a new midrange graphics card at 1080p, even though it's only a bit faster than your current CPU.

If you don't play any games at the moment, don't install your old 4850 just yet, it'll just consume waste watts. The iGPU is fine for non-gaming.

 

[nCred]

Ok, thanks for the advice. I'm considering going with the cheaper Pentium CPU now. I think I'll go ahead and trust the Intel SSD.

MSI B75A-G43

Intel Pentium G630 Dual Core 2,7GHz

Corsair 8GB (2x4096MB) CL9 1333Mhz VALUE

MICROSOFT WINDOWS 7 HOME PREM SP1 64-BIT SWE DVD#OEM

INTEL 330 SERIES 2.5" 120GB SSD SATA/600 MLC 25NM

This would be around 600 kr ($85) cheaper compared to the parts in the OP.

 

[lehtv]

I'd recommend against MSI when you can get an Asus for $6 more. Too often hear bad things about MSI mobos... don't have any hard data though and kinda feel bad spreading anti-MSI sentiment but still

That RAM should be fine.

 

[mfenn]

I would definitely pay the 7% more for the Samsung drive. It's just as fast, 6% more capacity (due to not needing RAISE), and has no reliability concerns.