Honestly, there’s zero point in moving to a new system just to get the same performance you already have. It’s basically burning money for no progress, but hey, that's your call.
Just give me a hard number for your total upgrade budget after you factor in what you're selling.
If we're talking about those $1250, the only thing that fits your budget is that i3 8100, but honestly? That's a terrible deal given current prices. There was a time when it was under $333—it really should be under 900—but now the price has skyrocketed. It's actually costing more than a Ryzen 5 1600 x, which gives you 50% more cores and simultaneous multithreading.
In 2018, heading into 2019, trying to "upgrade" to a 4core/4thread CPU sounds insane, especially for that much cash when you barely have anything left over for a GPU.
With that budget, if you're buying new, your best bet is either a Ryzen 5 1600(X) paired with the GPU suggested, or a Ryzen 3 1200 combined with a stronger graphics card.
If you're sticking with Intel + Nvidia and buying everything brand new within that budget, then unfortunately, your options are pretty slim.
An H310 motherboard works fine for an i3, but don't expect it to handle any decent future CPU upgrades. You're basically killing your upgrade path right away (since Intel CPUs that rely on boost, like an i5 or i7, depend heavily on the motherboard's ability to actually deliver those boosts).
Prices are pretty much the same for those mainstream components. Check this thread for some deals; people here know how to order stuff from overseas too. Take this RX580, for example—the price is killer.
Cheaper than which motherboard? Not compared to the one from $150, and even that board is just entry-level.
An "upgrade" to an Intel CPU and Nvidia on your budget is barely an upgrade at all. I wouldn't waste my money on that.
Either commit to a decent upgrade—motherboard + CPU + RAM—or just grab a better GPU. You can't do both on that budget.
Honestly, that graphics card is solid enough, and driver support for that generation is still decent. What games are you actually aiming for? Which ones are giving you trouble?
P.S.
The point isn't to pick up a used card for $267 that isn't much better than what you have now; it's about finding something for $400+ that's a massive step up from your current setup.
$600For a motherboard and processor combo, you’re looking at pure entry-level junk.
Instead of an i3 with just 4 cores and 4 threads, grab an AMD Ryzen 1600 or a 1600X—you get 6 cores and 12 threads.
https://www.newegg.com/p/ryzen+1600
Pair that with a B350 or B450 motherboard for about $200.
Now that would be a real upgrade. This i3 setup isn't anything special.
Regarding the GPU, you'd get the most bang for your buck by picking up something used—at least an RX580 8GB or a GTX 1060 6GB—otherwise, just stick with what you have. Truth is, that R9 280 x isn't much weaker than the GTX 1050 you mentioned.
Yeah, if a shop pulls in over $100k in annual sales from a specific US state, they have to deal with that state's sales tax. So, you'd have to tack on an extra 6% to those German net prices—which works out to about a 5% bump on the gross total.
Now, Computer Universe has decent pricing, but it’s not "world-changing" good. The price gaps aren't massive. Honestly, prices here in the States aren't half bad either.
They’ve got decent prices, and you forgot to mention that’s a GTX1070You so it's actually half a class stronger.
So it ends up costing a bit more than what you claimed.
With the cheapest GTX1070Ti, plus DHL shipping and 25% sales tax (which gets added once you punch in your US address), you're looking at $1107 or basically $2750.
If you opt for the GTX1070 instead, it’s about $35 cheaper, which makes it roughly $2667.
Whether the assembly and the local warranty here in the States is worth that $167 difference... that's on you to decide. But it definitely isn't "just a few bucks" XD
Adam Allen said:I wouldn't recommend buying any components or peripherals here in the States. Right now, prices have zero connection to reality. You'd be better off checking out some "tried and true" shops over in the EU, like Computeruniverse. It wouldn't cost you a fortune—in fact, you'd actually save a few bucks.👍
You didn't mention aiming for a high refresh rate, so I'm assuming this budget is targeting roughly 1440p at 60Hz for gaming. The issue is simple: if you grab an Intel processor that actually outperforms the Ryzen 1600 x or 2600 x—meaning you’d need at least an 8600K to see any real difference—it’s going to cost more. That leaves you with less cash for the GPU, making a beefy CPU pointless since the graphics card won't be able to push high refresh rates even at 1080p.
To hit those higher refresh rates, you realistically need at least a GTX1080 paired with an 8600K.
With a budget under that, I'd rather aim for 1440p at 75Hz. The GTX1070 can handle that, and you won't run into a massive CPU bottleneck; a Ryzen will push that refresh rate just fine.
An i5 8400 isn't much of an alternative either. Its clock speed is lower than the 8600K, so sticking with Ryzen makes more sense for the money.
P.S.
If you're playing stuff like CS:GO or Overwatch—games a microwave could probably run at 200FPS—then honestly, it doesn't matter.
With prices for i7s going crazy lately, it’s actually a decent enough deal. Honestly, I wouldn't drop that kind of cash on a processor without AT&T.
A $30 difference—assuming that's the actual sale price—isn't much since it's the exact same chip. You won't notice any performance gap unless you're running it at stock frequencies.
Look, I’m comparing CPU bottlenecks because it actually matters. If they decide to swap out the GPU for an RTX3080 down the line, it's going to show. Or if they're aiming for 1080p high refresh gaming. Plus, VR is just more demanding than your standard gaming setup—higher refresh rates and all that.
Obviously, the 1600 or 1600X is the immediate best buy. I’d grab one myself. But that doesn't mean the 2600 x offers nothing.
Personally? I'd grab a 1600, pair it with a solid air cooler, and call it a day. At least I'd know I could eventually drop a 7nm chip onto the same motherboard later on. As for the GPU, I'd just spend whatever is left in the budget, whether that's a GTX1070Ti, 1080, 1080Ti, or an RTX2070, 2080...
Timothy Kim60 said:Honestly, even the 2600 isn't worth it if the 300-$133 price tag beats out the 1600X
For gaming, the 2600X holds its own. The boost clock stays high enough on a few cores that it actually outperforms the 1600 by about 10%—which you'll definitely notice.