- Feb 13, 2010
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Update: After reading all of the replies here, I have decided not to upgrade right now. It would be a relatively large expense, for little gain. Instead, I will be starting another thread to diagnose my computer's current issues.
My computer's chronic cooling issues are beginning to cause it to lock up when room temperature is in the 80s. At least i think that's the cause. In any case, it's about time to ditch this Phenom II. And this $30 junk case. And nab a SSD.
So, I would like to go with the Silverstone FT03 for a case. It can fit full-length video cards, and is easy to tote around and doesn't take up much space. Plus I love the styling and innovative layout. As far as CPUs go, I remember that the 2500K was very popular when Sandy Bridge was king of the hill. There's probably a similar go-to Ivy Bridge CPU for good value and performance.
1. What YOUR PC will be used for. That means what types of tasks you'll be performing.
I use my computer for gaming, programming, and artsy stuff in Adobe. And general home/office purposes, of course. I'd like to get higher framerates in CPU-intensive games like StarCraft 2. Booting up more quickly would be nice as well.
2. What YOUR budget is. A price range is acceptable as long as it's not more than a 20% spread
Roughly $500-600.
3. What country YOU will be buying YOUR parts from.
United States
4. IF YOU have a brand preference. That means, are you an Intel-Fanboy, AMD-Fanboy, ATI-Fanboy, nVidia-Fanboy, Seagate-Fanboy, WD-Fanboy, etc.
As mentioned earlier, I'd like to go with a Silverstone case (FT03). I used to buy AMD in most cases to "vote with my wallet," but that no longer makes much sense. Intel it is, then.
5. If YOU intend on using any of YOUR current parts, and if so, what those parts are.
Yes. Two monitors, a GTX480, 12GB of DDR3 1333MHz RAM, a 650W modular power supply, and a 1TB HDD.
7. IF YOU plan on overclocking or run the system at default speeds.
I am willing to overclock, but won't do it just for kicks. In other words, if buying an unlocked processor and overclocking it will legitimately give me more bang for the buck in my situation, then sure. Otherwise, I'd rather not.
8. What resolution will you be using?
Dual 1920x1080; will only be gaming on one screen in most situations.
9. WHEN do you plan to build it?
ASAP. If there are any major sales coming up that I should be waiting for, then that would be fine too.
So, here's a template build list:
PART - COST - SELECTION
Case - $165 - Silverstone FT03
MoBo -- ??? - ??? [Micro ATX Required]
CPU --- ??? - ???
SSD --- ??? - ???
DVD --- ??? - ??? [Slot-loading Required]
TOTAL = $165/$600 (4 PARTS REMAINING)
PSU -- $0 --- Rosewill Libertas 650W
RAM -- $0 --- 12GB DDR3 1333MHz
GPU -- $0 --- EVGA GTX 480
HDD -- $0 --- 1TB WD Black
My apologies for the crappy formatting. I wish we could insert tables. Also, the FT03 is mysteriously out of stock at Newegg and Amazon. Any ideas as to why?
Thanks in advance for your help!
PS. If there's an issue with fitting everything in the budget, please say so. The budget mentioned above is what I have already pretty much allocated and committed to the upgrade, but I would be willing to spend more if there's a compelling reason to.
My computer's chronic cooling issues are beginning to cause it to lock up when room temperature is in the 80s. At least i think that's the cause. In any case, it's about time to ditch this Phenom II. And this $30 junk case. And nab a SSD.
So, I would like to go with the Silverstone FT03 for a case. It can fit full-length video cards, and is easy to tote around and doesn't take up much space. Plus I love the styling and innovative layout. As far as CPUs go, I remember that the 2500K was very popular when Sandy Bridge was king of the hill. There's probably a similar go-to Ivy Bridge CPU for good value and performance.
1. What YOUR PC will be used for. That means what types of tasks you'll be performing.
I use my computer for gaming, programming, and artsy stuff in Adobe. And general home/office purposes, of course. I'd like to get higher framerates in CPU-intensive games like StarCraft 2. Booting up more quickly would be nice as well.
2. What YOUR budget is. A price range is acceptable as long as it's not more than a 20% spread
Roughly $500-600.
3. What country YOU will be buying YOUR parts from.
United States
4. IF YOU have a brand preference. That means, are you an Intel-Fanboy, AMD-Fanboy, ATI-Fanboy, nVidia-Fanboy, Seagate-Fanboy, WD-Fanboy, etc.
As mentioned earlier, I'd like to go with a Silverstone case (FT03). I used to buy AMD in most cases to "vote with my wallet," but that no longer makes much sense. Intel it is, then.
5. If YOU intend on using any of YOUR current parts, and if so, what those parts are.
Yes. Two monitors, a GTX480, 12GB of DDR3 1333MHz RAM, a 650W modular power supply, and a 1TB HDD.
7. IF YOU plan on overclocking or run the system at default speeds.
I am willing to overclock, but won't do it just for kicks. In other words, if buying an unlocked processor and overclocking it will legitimately give me more bang for the buck in my situation, then sure. Otherwise, I'd rather not.
8. What resolution will you be using?
Dual 1920x1080; will only be gaming on one screen in most situations.
9. WHEN do you plan to build it?
ASAP. If there are any major sales coming up that I should be waiting for, then that would be fine too.
So, here's a template build list:
PART - COST - SELECTION
Case - $165 - Silverstone FT03
MoBo -- ??? - ??? [Micro ATX Required]
CPU --- ??? - ???
SSD --- ??? - ???
DVD --- ??? - ??? [Slot-loading Required]
TOTAL = $165/$600 (4 PARTS REMAINING)
PSU -- $0 --- Rosewill Libertas 650W
RAM -- $0 --- 12GB DDR3 1333MHz
GPU -- $0 --- EVGA GTX 480
HDD -- $0 --- 1TB WD Black
My apologies for the crappy formatting. I wish we could insert tables. Also, the FT03 is mysteriously out of stock at Newegg and Amazon. Any ideas as to why?
Thanks in advance for your help!
PS. If there's an issue with fitting everything in the budget, please say so. The budget mentioned above is what I have already pretty much allocated and committed to the upgrade, but I would be willing to spend more if there's a compelling reason to.
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