Small PC upgrade

Hey everyone 👋
I've been working hard lately, and since the money has finally piled up, I figured it was about time to spend some of it.
Here is what my current specs look like:
CPU: i5 2500k 3.3 Ghz
MBO: ASrock p67 Pro3 B3
GPU: MSI GTX 560TI TwinFrozr II
HDD: Seagate 500 GB CASE
CASE: Coolermaster Elite 335
RAM: Kingston HyperX Blue 2x4gb 1600mhz
PSU: Seasonic 520w SS-520GB
Cooler: Noctua NH-U12S

Now, since those 800 series graphics cards haven't hit the market yet, I won't be touching the GPU or PSU just yet. Instead, I want to focus on aesthetics. I'm looking for a new case—ideally one with a side window. It needs to be quiet, have good airflow, and be easy to clean and maintain. Most importantly, I want it to look sharp inside with decent cable management. I also need some liquid cooling that is equally quiet and capable of keeping this Sandy Bridge chip at 4GHz with solid temps until the day it finally dies. I'm also planning to grab a 120-250GB SSD and a 1TB Western Digital Black. I am willing to drop $2,000 to $3,000 on this depending on how much I like the setup. Alright people, let's hear your ideas.

James Fisher11 said:Hey everyone 👋
I've been working hard while money was piling up this season, so I figured it's about time to spend a little.
Here are my current specs:
CPU: i5 2500k 3.3 Ghz
MB: ASrock p67 Pro3 B3
GPU: MSI GTX 560TI TwinFrozr II
HDD: Seagate 500 GB CASE
CASE: Coolermaster Elite 335
RAM: Kingston HyperX Blue 2x4gb 1600mhz
PSU: Seasonic 520w SS-520GB
Cooler: Noctua NH-U12S

Since the 800 series graphics cards haven't dropped yet, I'm holding off on the GPU and PSU for now. Instead, I want to focus on aesthetics. I'm looking for a new case—ideally one with a side window, quiet operation, good airflow, and something easy to clean. I also want it to look sleek inside with solid cable management. For cooling, I'd love some liquid cooling that stays quiet enough to keep this Sandy Bridge chip at 4GHz with decent temps until it finally dies. I also need an SSD (120-250GB) and a 1TB Western Digital Black drive. I'm ready to drop $200-$300 depending on what looks good. Let's hear your ideas!

Regarding cooling, I honestly don't think you need liquid to hit 4 GHz; the 2500K is still an overclocking legend, and I bet you could hit 4 GHz easily with a single Cooler Master Hyper 212. You can find the Western Digital Black at Best Buy, and for the SSD, the Intel 520 SSD is currently the best value, or if you want 250 GB, you can grab a Samsung EVO for just under a grand. 🙂 With all that, plus whatever case someone smarter than me suggests, I think you'll still stay under $2,000.

I suppose people only pick up the Caviar Black because of that 5-year warranty. Other than that, it doesn't seem to differ much from any other 1TB model out there, yet it carries a pretty hefty price tag compared to the rest.

1 x Fractal design Define R4 Arctic White + window, Mid Tower, ATX
1 x ATX 1 x Corsair Hydro Series H90, liquid CPU cooling
1 x Samsung SSD 250 GB 840 evo Basic, Capacity 250 GB, 2.5", SATA 3
1 x HDD Western Digital Blue 1TB, 1003FZEX , SATA 6 Gb/s, 64MB Cache, WD Caviar Black

$1001
adm.com

Ryan Hayes82 said:I'd only grab the Caviar Black for that 5-year warranty. Honestly, it’s pretty much the same as any other 1TB drive, just way more expensive.

1 x Fractal design Define R4 Arctic White + window, Mid Tower, ATX
1 x ATX 1 x Corsair Hydro Series H90, liquid CPU cooling
1 x Samsung SSD 250 GB 840 evo Basic, Capacity 250 GB, 2.5", SATA 3
1 x HDD Western Digital Blue 1TB, 1003FZEX , SATA 6 Gb/s, 64MB Cache, WD Caviar Black

$1001
techcrunch.com

Does he really need $233 cooling just to keep a 2500K at 4 GHz? If he isn't planning on some extreme overclock, I don't think there's even a reason for something like that. 🤷

I’d much rather go with this route since it takes up way less desk space than those massive towers from Cooler Master. Plus, let's be honest, it actually looks decent. :d Besides, I'm picking up parts now that I plan on reusing in future builds, so I view this more as an investment than just a purchase.

James Fisher11 said:I'd prefer this since it takes up way less space than those massive Cooler Master towers, plus it looks better :d. Besides, I plan on using these parts in my future builds too, so I'm looking at it more like an investment

Well, if that's your main priority, then it definitely makes sense. 🙂

Looks like a total waste of money to me $333 but whatever

Robert Rodriguez2 said:I see that as at least $333 being a total waste, but hey...

I agree. I get that people look at things like "future-proofing" and all that, but honestly, spending $1000 on an upgrade where you don't actually gain anything substantial besides a flashy case and liquid cooling? I don't know. If I were in your shoes, I’d just grab a standard Western Digital Blue and a CM 212 EVO. Here is a specific build idea:

1 x Cooler Master Hyper 212 Evo, 2011, 1366/1156/775/AM3/ 626g, 13-32dB
1 x HDD WD 1TB, Caviar Blue 10EZEX, 1000 GB, SATA3, 64 MB, 3.5", 24mo
1 x Samsung 120 GB 840 evo Basic, SSD disk, Capacity 120 GB, 2.5"
1 x Zalman Z12 Plus mid tower case. 215(W) x 470(H) x 480(D)mm.

$580 Admin

You've got a best-buy cooler that'll handle that i5 at 4 GHz without breaking a sweat, a cheaper terabyte drive, and a solid case. If you really want a bigger SSD, just jump up to the 250 GB option and call it a day. You'll stay under $2k and can put the leftover cash toward a better GPU. That's a much more realistic and smart way to upgrade.

James Fisher11 said:I’m not looking to swap parts just yet; I think I'd rather focus on something more aesthetic for now.

And this is exactly why we wonder why women are always swapping out their clothes...
Just strip the whole rig down to the last screw, give everything a deep clean, and put it all back together. Then, just do it all over again whenever you get that sudden itch to upgrade.

Why swap out the Noctua NH-U12S? 😕
I mean, you can definitely push past 4 GHz with that thing. What's the point of changing it if you haven't even tried yet?

And honestly, if you were going to upgrade, why settle for a small liquid setup when you could grab an NH-D14 for roughly the same price?

http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/...0,3434-14.html

But seriously, if I were in your shoes, I wouldn't bother swapping the cooler at all. It sounds to me like you've just got a bad case of the upgrade itch.

Timothy Kim60 said:why swap out the Noctua NH-U12S😕
--I mean, you can definitely push past 4 GHz with that thing—what's the point in changing it if you haven't even tried yet?

If you’ve got a decent enough processor, you could probably even hit 5 GHz. 🙂

Just grab the GPU, the SSD, and 8 GB of RAM. You don't need a case or a hard drive—unless your current drive is actually dying on you. Anything else is just throwing money down the drain.

@Chris Robinson25/">@@Chris Robinson25, why on earth would he need 16GB of RAM just for gaming? Honestly, 8GB is total overkill for 99.9% of titles out there. And as for that tiny 0.1% that actually demands more? Not a single one even comes close to touching 8GB. It's just throwing money down the drain.

Look, honestly, he’s running a Noctua NH-U12S 🤣 I didn't even notice. 😲 The only thing here that actually makes sense is the HDD; if you need more storage, getting an SSD is a must—you'll definitely feel the difference. Everything else is just throwing money away.

Alright, I think I'll stick with the Noctua NH-U12S for a little while longer. For now, I'm just going to pick up a hard drive and an ssd. As for the case... honestly, I am completely fed up with this CM 335 Elite. It's just bad. The ventilation is terrible, the whole thing vibrates and makes these annoying noises, and the cable management? Non-existent. Once you actually open it up, everything is crammed together so tightly it looks like a total disaster 🙂. I figured after three years, it was about time to drop some real cash on something high-quality—something that actually looks premium for the price I'm paying (like that NZXT H440 I've had my eye on). But, knowing me, I'll probably just hold off on the case too until graphics cards finally get cheaper, then I'll just upgrade everything at once ☕
.

Man, I’m telling you straight up, you’re just throwing money down the drain here, seriously. (Look, I don't care if it hurts your feelings, I'm just being real),
It's better to just hold off until those next-gen components actually drop and offer a massive leap in performance.
Right now, maybe look into an SSD or a beefier HDD if you're constantly moving huge files.
Upgrade that Noctua NH-U12S if you're actually worried about it handling an overclock.

PS: That hard drive of yours is freaking loud, so why even bother with Black? Is it just so you can flex on people? If you're running an SSD, you really don't need anything more than a Green. Or even if you stick with a 7200rpm drive, go with THIS. It's literally half the price, does the exact same job, and I've got a Winse in mine that runs perfectly fine. You could take that extra cash and grab a killer cooler instead, or just save up a bit more and get something top-tier. (Though honestly, I don't even see why you'd swap it out right now)

It’s honestly wild how many irrational people like you hang out on this forum.

I’d suggest prioritizing a faster SSD (like a Samsung evo), or if you're eyeing that 5-year warranty, grab a new SanDisk X300s alongside a standard hard drive from $133 (since you just need it for bulk storage anyway). That setup makes much more sense, and honestly, it'll save you some cash...

As for the case, yours is pretty mediocre; upgrading will give you a visible difference, plus you'll get better airflow and easier cable management. Check out the Fractal design Arc Midi R2 or the Fractal design Define R4 (available in black, white, or titanium)—those are high-quality, serious cases.

So, we’re going with the Samsung EVO instead of the Intel? And what about these two drives? Seagate Barracuda 1TB and Western Digital Blue? How noisy are they actually going to be?

Honestly, you can just take either one of them...

Timothy Kim60 said:Chris Robinson25, what's the point of 16GB of RAM for gaming? Even 8GB is total overkill for 99.9% of games out there. And as for that tiny 0.1%, none of them even come close to needing 8GB. It's just throwing money away.

Maybe in a year or two, though.
He’s already got a killer GPU and a solid CPU.
But looking ahead at more demanding titles, I’ve got a hunch 16GB will become the bare minimum before we even start worrying about CPUs or graphics cards.
If he grabs a Radeon R9 280 now and sticks with his quad-core 3.0, he should be set for quite a while.
Even if a quad-core 2.5 is the standard right now, I honestly think things might stay at that level for a bit—games might not jump forward as fast as we think.