PC Upgrade Ideas

Hey, I’ve got an old rig that needs some love if I want to play games like Call of Duty or League properly. I also really want to give that new GTA a shot, but my current setup struggles with CS:

Intel Core i5-3570
Corsair 4GB 800MHz
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 460 MSI B75 Motherboard
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 460 MSI B75 Motherboard

I was thinking about just grabbing some more RAM and a decent GPU. The CPU feels okay for now and the motherboard isn't anything special, but maybe it can hold out? Just figured I'd ask you guys before I pull the trigger. If anyone can help me out, I've got about $833

Exactly—prioritize the GPU and RAM first. Just one thing though: what specific power supply model are you running right now?

edit

And what kind of case are you using?

James Gomez80 said:Hey everyone, I'm running an old rig and looking for an upgrade to get back into gaming (Call of Duty, LoL), plus I really want to try out the new GTA... CoD runs a bit rough on my current setup:

Intel Core i5-3570
Corsair 4GB 800MHz
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 460 MSI B75 Motherboard
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 460 MSI B75 Motherboard

I was thinking about picking up some more RAM and a new GPU. The CPU is decent enough for now, and while the motherboard isn't much, it should hold up... but I figured I'd ask you guys first. If anyone can help me out, I'd appreciate it. My budget is around $833

What kind of DDR3 Corsair RAM is 800 MHz? You must have misread something there. 🙂 Anyway, your processor is actually alright, so I'd leave that alone for now. Just add another 4GB of RAM and grab something like an R9 270. There aren't any worthwhile upgrades left for this specific platform, so if you're sticking with what you've got (which you basically have to with a budget of $833), changing the GPU and adding that extra 4GB of RAM is your best bet. Nothing smarter can be done here. At least you can carry the GPU over to your next build. Just let us know what kind of power supply you're running so we can be sure.

It’s 1600 MHz, that's for sure—he was looking at CPU-Z or some similar utility.

Not sure, honestly. I don't know where to find those specs, but it isn't some big name like Corsair or anything. All I know is it's 500W.

Open up the case panel (on your left) and snap a photo or just type out the power supply model number found on the label (that metal box where the power cord plugs in)

Adam Moore3 said:There’s no way you have 800 MHz DDR3 Corsair RAM—you definitely misread that spec somewhere. 🙂 Look, your CPU is actually decent enough to hold onto for now. I’d just toss in another 4GB of RAM and grab an AMD Radeon R9 270. There aren't many smart moves left on this old platform, so if you're sticking with what you've got given that $833 budget, upgrading the GPU and adding more memory is pretty much your only play. You can always carry the card over to your next build later. Just let me know what kind of power supply you're running so we don't blow anything up.

I figured as much. Thanks for catching that, haha. Every site I checked online said 800MHz, and since my motherboard supports dual channel, I've been hunting for that specific RAM everywhere and coming up totally empty.

Yeah, it’s likely just an issue with whatever software you were running, but that doesn't really matter right now. Just make sure to verify exactly which power supply you're using, just like Timothy Kim60 suggested. That's the most critical part; we can't give you any solid recommendations until we know exactly what kind of PSU you've got under the hood. 🙂

Timothy Kim60 said:pop the case open (it'll be on your left) and snap a photo or just write down the model name from the PSU label (that box where the power cord plugs in)

Look, I'm not exactly clueless when it comes to what a power supply is. 😁

View on imgur

Not sure if this helps, though.

The voltage readings look decent on paper, but I can't find a model number anywhere. Is there any indication of who manufactured this? We really need to pin down the brand to figure out if these specs are actually legit or just total fiction.

Timothy Kim60 said:The voltage specs look decent on paper, but I can't find a specific model number anywhere. Does it say who actually manufactured this thing? I need to know if these numbers are legit or just made up.

The power supply is called the LOGIC 500.

CLICK Passive PFC, and no, there isn't any new component being added to it

Break it down

Try something like this and you'll be good to go:

1 x Crucial 4GB DDR3 1600 Mhz (PC3-12800) CL11
1 x AMD Radeon R9 270A 2GB 256Bit DDR5
1 x XFX TS Series 430W, 80+ Bronze

Total from: $667 Future-IT

That's some cheap Microsoft power supply; there's zero quality or reliability there. It’s crazy to pair new components with that, especially when the power draw is basically doubled.

1 x EVGA 500W Power Supply, Hyper, PPA5005003, 12cm fan
1 x DDR3 4GB (1x4GB) Kingston, 1600MHz, CL11, Value
1 x AMD Radeon R9 270A, R9-270A-CDFC, Double Dissipation Edition 925M Boost
1 x Spire Kepler Rev.2 CPU Cooler, 1156/775/FM1, 96.5×51×125 mm, 92mm fan

$718
www.newegg.com

- You could also go with an XFX 430W, but I’d suggest grabbing something with more headroom just in case you need the extra power down the road.
- Provided your case actually has enough clearance for a 152mm cooler.

+ 4GB of RAM similar to what you currently have (CL9 or CL11, matching voltage) - roughly $230-$100

First off, make sure you have Windows x64 installed if you don't already. As for the RAM, isn't 4 gigs more than enough to run CS smoothly?

goldenpanther said:First, grab Windows x64 if you haven't already. Honestly, 4 gigs is plenty for CS, right?

That feeling when you minimize it and it just reloads...

It’ll definitely give GTA V a nice boost (even though it runs just fine with 4GB)

8GB is plenty for Grand Theft Auto V, honestly. I recently ran some tests on an AMD FX-6300 paired with an AMD Radeon HD 7850 using just 4GB of RAM. With 4GB, you definitely notice those stutters whenever textures are loading, but once I bumped it up to 8GB, that issue pretty much vanished. Since I'm running an old, slow hard drive, the system has to constantly swap data into the RAM, which is probably why it hitches...