My PC Now - What to upgrade

[tzuridis]

I have an old pc now here are the specs ~

Operating System: Windows XP Professional x64 Service Pack 2

Motherboard: Gigabyte Technology Co., Ltd. Model GA-M55SLI-S4

Processor: AMD Athlon 64 X2 Dual Core Processor 4600+ (2 CPUs), ~2.4GHz

Memory: 5120MB RAM DDR2

Video Adapter NVIDIA GeForce GTS 450

Power Supply: 450 Watts


I want to upgrade mostly everything except my video card, I just go that and would like to keep it. I want to get extremely fast processors (quad core definitely or 6 or if they make it now 8 :P) this time. I obviously have to upgrade my motherboard, get Windows 7 64bit and probably get 5-6 gigs of ram.
What kind of power supply should I get? 750+ or something higher like 950? What do you think a the price would be at 1000ish? The cheaper the better but most importantly are strong and fast processors.

[ShyguyXPC]

Just a quick list thrown together, under $1000.

Its an SLI based rig, so you could add in a 2nd GTS 450 later for Dual Card SLI.


Its also an Intel Rig since they are the best Performing CPU's for gaming and what not currently.


Newegg.com - Diablotek CPA-0390 Black SGCC Steel Legend ATX Mid Tower Computer Case

Newegg.com - Western Digital Caviar Black WD1002FAEX 1TB 7200 RPM 64MB Cache SATA 6.0Gb/s 3.5" Internal Hard Drive -Bare Drive

Newegg.com - OCZ Solid 3 SLD3-25SAT3-60G 2.5" 60GB SATA III MLC

Newegg.com - SeaSonic S12II 620 Bronze 620W ATX12V V2.3 / EPS 12V V2.91 80 PLUS BRONZE Certified Active PFC Power Supply

Newegg.com - GIGABYTE GA-Z68A-D3H-B3 LGA 1155 Intel Z68 HDMI SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 ATX Intel Motherboard

Newegg.com - Intel Core i5-2320 Sandy Bridge 3.0GHz (3.3GHz Turbo Boost) 4 x 256KB L2 Cache 6MB L3 Cache LGA 1155 95W Quad-Core Desktop Processor BX80623I52320

Newegg.com - G.SKILL Ripjaws Series 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Desktop Memory Model F3-12800CL9D-4GBRL

Newegg.com - SAMSUNG Black 12X BD-ROM 16X DVD-/+R 48X CD-ROM SATA Internal Blu-ray Combo Model SH-B123L/RSBP LightScribe Support

Newegg.com - CORSAIR CWCH60 Hydro Series H60 High Performance Liquid CPU Cooler

Newegg.com - Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium SP1 64-bit - Operating Systems


4GB RAM is plenty for gaming, really don't need more than that.

60GB Solid State Drive for Windows, frequent use Apps, and maybe one or two games that read from Hard drive a lot. 1TB Regular drive, WD Black series is some of the fastest 7200RPM drives, plenty for other games, backing up data, etc.

Corsair Water cooling kit, in case you wanted to try some overclocking down the road. 1600MHz DDR3, also for OCing. RAM also runs at stock 1.5V voltage at 1600MHz as well, shouldn't need to mess with overvolting to run at faster 1600 speeds like some kits.

Really need to get an i5 or i7 "K" Series to make the OCing worthwhile, as it allows for unlocked Multipliers for easier/more OCing options.

(otherwise, the i5 2500K is the best bang for buck, but costs a bit more: Newegg.com - Intel Core i5-2500K Sandy Bridge 3.3GHz (3.7GHz Turbo Boost) 4 x 256KB L2 Cache 6MB L3 Cache LGA 1155 95W Quad-Core Desktop Processor BX80623I52500K )

Blu Ray Reader/DVD Burner combo drive.

620W PSU is more than enough for that system, and even two GTS 450's with power to spare, its from Seasonic, one of the Premiere names in PSU's. I just went through the free shipping list, and that kind of stuck out as I was looking at the 550-600W range.

Decent case for the price, decent cooling options (Fan sizes, ventilation)

Windows 7 64-bit.

Total with the i5 2320: $871.65