Making the Jump to 1600p

[Rob47]

Sorry if this is in the wrong thread

I'm looking at upgrading my computer and making the jump to glorious 1600p, are the below upgrades OK? will I see a big change? and is my PSU capable of running 2 cards?

Current Rig

• Current Rig 2500k (stock)
• 8gb ram
• Asus 7970 ghz matrix platinum (Can't CF as it is a beast of a card)
• Asus P8p68 mb
• Cooler master 212 evo
• Corsair Tx750w psu
• 2 hdds
• 2 ssds
• Haf x

Looking to get

• 4690k (slightly overclocked)
• Asus Strix or MSI gtx 970 x2
• Asus z97 pro (wifi)
• Haf XB Evo
• Keep cooler and current PSU

 

[el etro]

if you want value on upgrade, you can go only with the pair of 770s, and swift the processor for an i7 3770(you can get a non-k version) to get better minimums and scaling on your SLI.

 

[Rob47]

if you want value on upgrade, you can go only with the pair of 770s, and swift the processor for an i7 3770(you can get a non-k version) to get better minimums and scaling on your SLI.

I have a budget that can stretch to the upgrades above but I would like to keep what I can.

 

[el etro]

Only pick a i7 and two 970s then.

 

[Pariah]

There's no reason to upgrade any of that except your video card. If you want to upgrade your CPU, you can spend 0 dollars by overclocking you 2500k to 4Ghz, which is a very conservative OC for that chip. Why pay for a K if you aren't going to OC it?

You don't need a 970 SLI setup for 1600p. A single 780Ti will be enough, and quite a bit cheaper than the SLI setup.

 

[dave_the_nerd]

Why pay for a K if you aren't going to OC it?

No idea if this applies to the OP, but Microcenter does motherboard bundles and uses enthusiast CPUs sales as a loss leader. So it's entirely possible the -K was cheaper than the vanilla 2500, and probably the same price as a 2400 anywhere else.

 

[RussianSensation]

After-market cooler --> ocerclock thr 2500K to 4.5Ghz. Then sell 7970 and get 970, 780Ti or 290. End of next year you can get Skylake if you want and a faster GPU. No point in getting Z97 now especially i5. That's not an upgrade. Skylake brings 14nm, PCIe 4, DDR4, AVX 3.2. For your next upgrade get an i7.

 

[Yuriman]

Depending on your expectations, you might be fine with your current card at your new resolution, which would pretty much eliminate all of your upgrade needs. A 4690K isn't going to be much, if any faster than an overclocked 2500K, but if you're going to change motherboards to add a second card it probably doesn't make sense to stay on 1155 unless you find a screaming deal. I always buy boards with two slots, even if I don't plan at the time to run two cards.

One possibility is to get a new board (and CPU, if you'd like, but it's probably not going to be noticeably faster) and grab a long crossfire bridge for $5, and then throw in a second 7970 or R280(X). Put your current card on the bottom. Your current power supply should be plenty. If you do find a screaming deal on a Z87, you can probably get a very healthy overclock from your chip and toss in a second 7970, and get the most bang for your buck.

 

[Pariah]

No idea if this applies to the OP, but Microcenter does motherboard bundles and uses enthusiast CPUs sales as a loss leader. So it's entirely possible the -K was cheaper than the vanilla 2500, and probably the same price as a 2400 anywhere else.

Even if that is the case, he stated he planned to OC the i5 4690k. Why not just OC the 2500k? What kind of performance increase are you going to see for games at 1600p going from an OC'd 2500k to an OC'd 4690k? That's an awful lot of money (new CPU and MB) to pay for no perceptible performance increase.

 

[Grooveriding]

There's no reason to upgrade any of that except your video card. If you want to upgrade your CPU, you can spend 0 dollars by overclocking you 2500k to 4Ghz, which is a very conservative OC for that chip. Why pay for a K if you aren't going to OC it?

You don't need a 970 SLI setup for 1600p. A single 780Ti will be enough, and quite a bit cheaper than the SLI setup.

@OP. This is not correct in my experience. Too many FPS and graphics settings compromises with a single card at that resolution.

Your choices are great, just order it and enjoy.

 

[Rob47]

There's no reason to upgrade any of that except your video card. If you want to upgrade your CPU, you can spend 0 dollars by overclocking you 2500k to 4Ghz, which is a very conservative OC for that chip. Why pay for a K if you aren't going to OC it?

You don't need a 970 SLI setup for 1600p. A single 780Ti will be enough, and quite a bit cheaper than the SLI setup.

I lucked out and got a 2500k that doesn't overclock either that or I damaged it when I first built the machine as I didn't seat the cooler properly (took a week before I realised)

Will a single TI really have enough grunt for that with effects turned up?

 

[Z15CAM]

In my opinion, keep what you have especially the i7 2500k and that ASUS P68Z MB for the time being.

Invest in spending more on H2O.

Say a Corsair AIO H110 for the GPU on your i7 2500K to run at between 1600 to 4700 Mhz's and say XSPC RAZOR WB's for 2 x's AMD 290 GPU's cooled by a 5.25" Koolance 401x2 RP resovior and an Coolgate 280mmx60x140mm rad with Noctuia 140mm fans in Push/Pull.

I believe your present PSU will do it ;o)

 

[linster]

Why 1600p? If you're not going 4k, why not go for the ROG Swift at 1440p?

 

[Rob47]

Depending on your expectations, you might be fine with your current card at your new resolution, which would pretty much eliminate all of your upgrade needs. A 4690K isn't going to be much, if any faster than an overclocked 2500K, but if you're going to change motherboards to add a second card it probably doesn't make sense to stay on 1155 unless you find a screaming deal. I always buy boards with two slots, even if I don't plan at the time to run two cards.

One possibility is to get a new board (and CPU, if you'd like, but it's probably not going to be noticeably faster) and grab a long crossfire bridge for $5, and then throw in a second 7970 or R280(X). Put your current card on the bottom. Your current power supply should be plenty. If you do find a screaming deal on a Z87, you can probably get a very healthy overclock from your chip and toss in a second 7970, and get the most bang for your buck.

My current coy doesn't overclock and the first PCI slot on my board is damaged (doesn't work since I've had my 7970

 

[Rob47]

Why 1600p? If you're not going 4k, why not go for the ROG Swift at 1440p?

I prefer the aspect ratio and I prefer IPS to TN.

 

[Z15CAM]

1440p Samsung PLS LED Korean QNIX 2560x1440 Dvi-D displays are great for approx $300 and capable of doing 144Hz's.

I say go for Water Cooled AMD 290's in X-Fire if you want GOOD 4K.

Forget TN displays if you want 4K as only a PLS screens wil do it - Mostly at a 60Hz frequency.

 

[toyota]

1440p Samsung PLS LED Korean QNIX 2560x1440 displays are great for approx $300 and capable of doing 144Hz's.

I say go for Water Cooled AMD 290's in X-Fire if you want GOOD 4K.

144hz? never heard of those going reliably over 120hz and many cant even do 96 without issues.

 

[Z15CAM]

144hz? never heard of those going reliably over 120hz and many cant even do 96 without issues.

You have to be careful of what QNIX you purchase - READ My Description - NOTE the Dvi-D ONLY.

By the way what's wrong with 1440p @ 120Hz's with 4K res at 120 Fps in BF4z

I run an ASUS P68Z Pro GEN3 with an i7 2700ZK and X-Fire 290X's under water.

Just would would like 2 more Korean QNIX 2560 Dvi-D's and blow 4K away.

To the OP: What is the Model of your Mainboard?

 

[Rob47]

You have to be careful of what QNIX you purchase - READ My Description - NOTE the Dvi-D ONLY.

By the way what's wrong with 1440p @ 120Hz's with 4K res at 120 Fps in BF4z

I run an ASUS P68Z Pro GEN3 with an i7 2700ZK and X-Fire 290X's under water.

Just would would like 2 more Korean QNIX 2560 Dvi-D's and blow 4K away.

To the OP: What is the Model of your Man-board?

It is an Asus P8Z68 pro.

 

[Yuriman]

What happens if you try to overclock? Might it not be the board instead? It's extremely rare for CPUs to be defective, or even to be damaged.

Given that though, there seems plenty of reason to upgrade. You might still hold onto the 7970 though.

 

[Black Octagon]

You have to be careful of what QNIX you purchase - READ My Description - NOTE the Dvi-D ONLY.

By the way what's wrong with 1440p @ 120Hz's with 4K res at 120 Fps in BF4z

Toyota is right. 120Hz is the typical expected ballpark for overclocked IPS and PLS. Getting above 130Hz is very rare, even with artifacts

Also, your reference to'4k res' makes no sense. The resolution is 2560x1440.

 

[Rob47]

What happens if you try to overclock? Might it not be the board instead? It's extremely rare for CPUs to be defective, or even to be damaged.

Given that though, there seems plenty of reason to upgrade. You might still hold onto the 7970 though.

I try to bump it up to 3.5 and it will work for a while but it will but it will eventually blue screen.

 

[RussianSensation]

You need to adjust your VCore and PPL voltages, etc. sometimes you can't just bump clock speeds. It's possible your stock default voltage is very low. Either way you are just wasting money on the CPU upgrade. Get a new GPU for now, for example sell the 7970 and use the resale funds to get $250 290, $330 970 or $370 780Ti. Then if you want a new platform, get Skylake.

 

[Rob47]

You need to adjust your VCore and PPL voltages, etc. sometimes you can't just bump clock speeds. It's possible your stock default voltage is very low. Either way you are just wasting money on the CPU upgrade. Get a new GPU for now, for example sell the 7970 and use the resale funds to get $250 290, $330 970 or $370 780Ti. Then if you want a new platform, get Skylake.

I admit I am not 100% sure on how to overclock. I need a step by step idiots guide

Will skylake really be that good?