What would you upgrade?

[rivethead]

See specs in my signature.

I posted here a few days ago about bulding my son's first system. Well we're leaning towards building and not buying a ready-made system (even though that's a cheaper route). The only way we can meet his budget is if I "donate" something from my system.

Well I've had the itch to upgrade anyway. I was just going to upgrade my PSU this year and call it done. But I got such a good deal on the Corsair CX430 ($18 after rebate) that I sold it to my son (again to help him build within his limited budget).

So I need to upgrade something from my current system. I'm thinking one or several of these:

1) SSD (my 40GB is awesome, but I'd like a bigger one)
2) VC (I'm usually 2-3 years behind today's games. In 2012 I'll be playing: The Witcher, Assassins Creed, Orcs Must Die!, Hard Reset, and hopefully an older FPS like CoD2). Yeah, I realize OMD and Hard Reset are 2011 games, but my current VC hasn't had problems running them.
3) PSU (still need a more efficient one)
4) Case (my current case doesn't have audio connectors on the front...that would be a luxury).

If you had $150 to spend on and upgrade an had my system, what would you spend it on and why?

Thanks for the input!

 

[monkeydelmagico]

Going to need PSU for/then GPU upgrade. My vote in that order.

 

[lehtv]

I would not spend $150 on that system. Upgrade when you have enough money for

1) Intel i5 and an LGA1155 mobo. $250 to $350 for 100% more CPU performance. (Or more with Ivy Bridge).
or
2) HD7850 when it's released ($200?). I don't think a new PSU will be needed, it's a <100W TDP card if I'm not mistaken. It'll probably be about 150% faster than a 5750 and a bit bottlenecked by your Athlon. EDIT: but if it's priced higher than that then a 6850 makes more sense.

The PSU is pointless to upgrade for efficiency's sake. It will take way too long for it pay itself back. Also the case is secondary, your system isn't fast enough for the case to be a major concern.

 

[nickb64]

I would recommend video card, but if you're not having problems with what you have now, why change it? You could get a 6850 for ~$150 looking at Newegg, but if you're not having problems with your games on your current card, I don't know if that's really a great upgrade.


Looking at Newegg, it seems like you could get double, maybe triple (older drives) the size on your SSD in your budget. That's not terrible, but I'm still not sure it's worth it.

You could get a new case and PSU in that price range probably. You could get a Corsair CX500 and a ~$90 case inside of $150, before tax and rebate with Newegg's prices. You could get the same PSU and the $100 Arc Midi if you factor in the rebate.

I honestly don't know if any of those upgrades are worth it, you'd have to decide.

 

[rivethead]

I would not spend $150 on that system.

I definitely understand this opinion.

Normally I would just hold off. But in order for him to build his system, I've got to donate something. I think just giving him the cash he needs sends the wrong message. Kid is already spoiled by his grandparents........

I'm leaning towards the SSD. I think it's win-win.

I win by: getting a bigger capacity, which is something I want.
He wins by: getting my old SSD which is one less component to buy. That should get him over the hump and make his budget work. Maybe.

I also win by getting him off my system and onto his own!

 

[lehtv]

He's building a budget system so he doesn't really need an SSD. 40GB isn't enough without a separate HDD, but in a budget system you'd normally install the OS on the HDD. In addition, your system can't take advantage of SATA III and SATA II SSD's aren't really cheaper.

What does he use the system for? If he doesn't use it for gaming, then not much point upgrading your GPU just so he could get yours. Because new CPUs, even low end ones, have integrated graphics that are sufficient for everyday tasks. On the flipside that applies to the CPU as well, because if you ugpraded your CPU/mobo and handed him your old ones, he'd need to spend extra on a GPU.

So... since he will need some sort of case anyway, I'm going to go with that. Upgrade your case to something affordable but good, e.g. Antec 300 or CM HAF 912, and give him your old Antec. Save the $100 you have left for your own upgrades down the road or donate it to his system

 

[Belegost]

My suggestion, video card. It will be one of the most expensive items in your sons gaming build and a place you can use the upgrade. Looking around, 6850s fit your budget, and are close to twice the performance of a stock 5750.

I was going to comment on the other thread but I'll put it here, keep an eye on neweggs morning shell shocker combos. Today, for example, they have a package with an HEC case and PSU, gigabyte h61 board, i3-2100, 4GB ram, 500GB HDD for 300. Add 100 for win7, a free video card from dad, and there is 150 or so to put into a monitor keyboard/mouse and taxes/shipping.

If you watch, newegg posts combos like this frequently, giving a price closer to the pre-built bargain, but the fun of assembling yourself.

- I happened to notice you have a rather anemic PSU, which won't hold up to a significant video card, I suggest a trade with your son, he buys the better PSU and trades it for your video card.

 

[rivethead]

He's building a budget system so he doesn't really need an SSD. 40GB isn't enough without a separate HDD, but in a budget system you'd normally install the OS on the HDD. In addition, your system can't take advantage of SATA III and SATA II SSD's aren't really cheaper.

What does he use the system for? If he doesn't use it for gaming, then not much point upgrading your GPU just so he could get yours. Because new CPUs, even low end ones, have integrated graphics that are sufficient for everyday tasks. On the flipside that applies to the CPU as well, because if you ugpraded your CPU/mobo and handed him your old ones, he'd need to spend extra on a GPU.

So... since he will need some sort of case anyway, I'm going to go with that. Upgrade your case to something affordable but good, e.g. Antec 300 or CM HAF 912, and give him your old Antec. Save the $100 you have left for your own upgrades down the road or donate it to his system

He wants to game. He understands he will not be able to set all the eye candy on the highest settings, especailly early on. But right now his old laptop can barely run Defense Grid (and can't run anything else in his Steam library like CoH, Sniper Ghost Warrior, SPAZ).

I like the case idea. I'm going to swing buy Frys tonight (ugh...I don't like that place) and see if they have any of those CM HAF 912s onsite.

 

[rivethead]

I was going to comment on the other thread but I'll put it here, keep an eye on neweggs morning shell shocker combos. Today, for example, they have a package with an HEC case and PSU, gigabyte h61 board, i3-2100, 4GB ram, 500GB HDD for 300. Add 100 for win7, a free video card from dad, and there is 150 or so to put into a monitor keyboard/mouse and taxes/shipping.

If you watch, newegg posts combos like this frequently, giving a price closer to the pre-built bargain, but the fun of assembling yourself.

- I happened to notice you have a rather anemic PSU, which won't hold up to a significant video card, I suggest a trade with your son, he buys the better PSU and trades it for your video card.

Darn. That would have been perfect. Was that in their daily email? I did scan that, but I may have overlooked it. I don't always click on the links in those emails.

I agree on the PSU. Regardless of any move I make, I'm getting a new one. Just waiting for another awesome sale on 400-500W quality unit. My current Antec has served me well. And while I've never worried about 350W being enough, I do worry about the fact it's been in service 7 years now. I don't know the life expectancy of a PSU but I can't see this one lasting much longer.

Hey thanks everyone for responding in this thread! You've giving me a lot of good things to think about.

 

[nickb64]

Darn. That would have been perfect. Was that in their daily email? I did scan that, but I may have overlooked it. I don't always click on the links in those emails.

It still shows in the Shell Shockers for me, I was able to add it to the cart and it shows as totalling to ~$325 with the tax rate in my area (SoCal).

You may still be able to jump on the deal.

You also seem to get a Trackmania 2: Canyon code and Trend Micro Titanium AntiVirus, not that that's really important.

 

[Belegost]

Yea the daily shell shockers are available that day until they run out of stock. They don't come up in emails, (maybe in RSS?) so I check the site in the morning. But shows still available if you want to jump on it, just check the front page, and under the current deal is a slider you can move back to the morning combo.

 

[lehtv]

Oh you've had the PSU for seven years? I can understand being tempted to upgrade but... if it still works fine, I don't see any reason to upgrade. A power supply can last a lot longer than 7 years.

 

[nickb64]

Yea the daily shell shockers are available that day until they run out of stock. They don't come up in emails, (maybe in RSS?) so I check the site in the morning.

There is an email newsletter for Shell Shockers. I don't remember how to sign up for it, but I did at some point, evidently.

 

[rivethead]

Well I ended up getting a Cooler Master HAF 912 tonight at Frys for $59 including tax.

So my son gets the old case. I also found an old keyboard for him at work. Bottom line, with the case contribution he'll be able to build the i3 system he wants within his budget but without a VC. He'll have to use the onboard graphics on the i3 until he can afford a "real" VC.

I'll still keep looking for a PSU deal.

Thanks again everyone for the input and advice. I found the daily deals on neweggs and I will now regularly browse them for some type of i3/mobo combo. Hopefully see one soon.

 

[mfenn]

Thanks again everyone for the input and advice. I found the daily deals on neweggs and I will now regularly browse them for some type of i3/mobo combo. Hopefully see one soon.

Get your son to do that for you, free labor!