Haha, if you're looking at the used market, it doesn't really matter—just don't go overboard and blow too much cash on it. You're looking at the $800-$333 range for stuff like an i5 2300, 2400, 3350P, or 2310, all of which are going to feel way faster than that Pentium you're running now.
After that, you might want to look into upgrading your RAM or maybe selling off your current GPU to squeeze out some extra cash for something like an HD 7870 or whatever.
If you decide to just head down to Best Buy and buy everything brand new, most of your budget is honestly just gonna get eaten up by the cpu alone.
One quick heads-up though: before you ditch the Pentium, make sure you flash the BIOS so you actually have full support for all those Sandy and Ivy Bridge processors.
Your CPU is definitely gonna bottleneck that GPU. What else are you running in this build? Like, what kind of case are you rocking, what’s the motherboard, and how old is that chieftec 450 w power supply?
The AK-47 isn't even working for a month now... man, you really shouldn't try to cram all that into a Core i7 - Arc Mini. That case just isn't built for a combo like that—plus, your processor is basically useless if you're trying to run a decent GPU. Honestly, if you're looking at $3167, an IPS monitor is pretty much non-negotiable 😉
AMD FX 8320 ENERMAX ETS T40 WHITE CLUSTER ASUS M5A97 R2.0 EVO PATRIOT VIPER 2X4 GB 1600 MHZ (8GB) Kingston Technology SSDNow V300 120GB WD BLUE 1TB SATA 3 XFX R9 280X 3GB BOOST LG GH24NS95 SATA FORTRON AURUM 500W 80+ GOLD FRACTAL DESIGN DEFINE R4 WHITE PLEXY
LG 24-inch Monitor IPS FHD
$3178 - free assembly and shipping - Best Buy
Everything looks solid—really top-tier stuff here. These parts have great quality and solid warranties. Honestly, you don't even need a beefier graphics card since you're just sticking to FHD resolution.
If you aren't feeling that white case look, they also have the Titanium version available.
Go with the 8GB dual channel setup like they suggested—it's a solid move. If you eventually realize you're actually hitting a wall, you've still got two slots left to play with, so you can always grab more RAM later. Honestly, though, like I mentioned before, I don't think you really need more than 8GB unless you're doing some pretty heavy lifting with your memory usage. But hey, if you're feeling adventurous and want to bump it up, just grab 1x8GB plus 1x4GB.
Honestly, based on what you're looking for—I don't even know what else to tell you—your RAM usage isn't going to be sitting at 5GB every single second unless you've got a million tabs open at once or your system is just totally unoptimized, where random background programs and services are basically just eating up your memory for no reason.
Honestly, you don't really need 12GB of RAM for a gaming rig. 4GB still gets the job done most of the time—though 8GB is definitely the sweet spot if you want some peace of mind for future titles.
Honestly, you don't even need extra cooling. That 3350P keeps its temps pretty solid—the stock cooler is actually decent enough and quiet enough to handle the job just fine. Plus, you've got a case with killer airflow thanks to the design and those four built-in fans.
As for monitors, here's what I'd suggest looking at:
BenQ 22" VA LED, AOC 22" IPS, or Acer 23" IPS.
Also, maybe swap out that HDD for a Toshiba drive—they usually come with a better warranty.
I actually went ahead and asked about it, but no luck—it's just not available. Honestly, there were hardly any of those models to begin with, so they pretty much flew off the shelves immediately.
Honestly, it doesn't matter—both systems are basically identical when it comes to performance right now, so there’s zero real difference. Windows 8 has full support for DirectX 11.1, but at the end of the day, it all comes down to whether game developers actually decide to push those features hard enough for us to notice it in the future.
FX 8320- ENERMAX ETS-T40 BLACK TWISTER - ASUS M5A97 R2.0 EVO - TRANSCEND 2X4 GB 1600 MHZ (8GB) - SEAGATE 3,5 1TB SATA 3 SSHD - MSI GTX 760 2GB TF IV GAMING OC - LG GH24NS95 SATA - FORTRON FSP 550W 80+ SILVER - ZALMAN Z3 PLUS
$2180 - Futura IT (free assembly and shipping)
It’s a pretty similar suggestion to what the other guys posted, just with some better perks—like an upgraded motherboard, a nicer cooler, and a faster primary drive (sadly they don't have the 500GB SSHD available right now), plus you get better warranties on the PSU and the hard drive.
Honestly, this hits everything you were looking for... the only thing left to do down the road would be swapping in a beefier GPU.
What guy? He isn't even complaining about using legal software.
I'm talking about Windows 8, which is what's actually being recommended here—Windows 7 is a whole different story since it’s been around for so long now. Once he makes up his mind, it’s all good; he’s already seen suggestions for both options, so there's really no issue.
It definitely matters—especially when you're messing around with pirated versions of Windows 8.1, and let's be real, if you aren't super deep into OS optimization, things can get messy fast.
You’ve got a solid enough budget and a decent setup, so honestly, just buying a legitimate copy of Windows isn't going to break the bank for you.
This isn't really following my first suggestion—the motherboard is weaker, the PSU is a bit light, and honestly, skip the case. Since you aren't planning on slapping a liquid cooler in there right away, some of the newer Zalman cases have popped up lately that offer way better airflow.
What’s wrong with the build I suggested on the previous page? You’ve got everything you need in there. If the price tag feels a little steep, you could always swap in a Z3 Plus and grab a WD BLUE if you don't need an SSHD.
Look, you've put two different setups on the table where the price gap is basically nothing—like, what, twenty bucks? Just pick your max budget, decide how you're actually going to pay for it, and then people can give you a much better recommendation.