Hardware Upgrade

[snowbird552]

Hey guys,

Right now i'm running the following:

Intel E8500 @ 3.16 Ghz
GTX 285 1 GB
4 Gb of 1066 Ram DDR2 (I think... It's been a while)
eVGA X-58 MOBO
Windows XP Home 32 Bit (basically not allowing full memory usage)

I'm thinking of changing the following:

Intel i5 670 @ 3.46 GHz
New Mobo (Undecided on model)
Windows 7 Home (Think they're all 64 bit now?)
Memory upgrade if recommended...

So now comes the annoying question. Would this much effort produce much of a performance gain running fsx? I know the 'i' series cpu's are suppose to be quite a bit better with the "smart cache" as well as decent clock speeds. I'm also uneducated when it comes to overclocking and have never attempted to do so. Any help/insight would be greatly appreciated

[txnetcop]

The short answer is NO. The i5 650 is a dog at stock speeds (it also does not hold an overclock well). You would be better served to go to the i5 655 (unlocked CPU OC'd to 4Ghz) 860 or 870. Best budget motherboards for overclocking and stability Gigabyte GA-P55A-UD3P or ASUS P7H55D-M EVO. This is not simply an opinion these boards tested extremely well at TechCorp under some very stressful conditions. When you are ready to overclock I will be glad to help you.

Get a really low CAS dual channel memory and Windows 7 64 bit-yes they still sell Windows 7 32 bit but it is ridiculous to build a gamer with it.

One of the very best memory sets for i5 and i7 core boards
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820145263
Good luck on your new toy!
Ted

[Stratobat]

Might be better to withhold upgrading until Microsoft Flight is released. I know it seems like a long way off but 2011 is just around the corner.

Regards,
Stratobat

[snowbird552]

Thanks for the speedy and helpful reply guys! I wonder if just overclocking my current cpu (the 8500) a bit, upgrading to windows 7 and boosting the memory a bit would work as a decent stop gap for now... Maybe hold off until next years hardware is revealed. Thoughts?

[snowbird552]

Was just checking out the i7 Quads like the 950. Seems like the price has been reduced quite a lot since release.

[Stratobat]

Hey Snowbird,


I wonder if just overclocking my current cpu (the 8500) a bit, upgrading to windows 7 and boosting the memory a bit would work as a decent stop gap for now... Maybe hold off until next years hardware is revealed. Thoughts?

I was just thinking that we are in the middle of October. By the middle of November you'll start seeing the various computer shops and online retailers running Christmas specials.

Take this month to spec out a couple of upgrade options and then when the specials come along, jump on them and save some cash... You could probably get a couple of games out of the saved cash.


Was just checking out the i7 Quads like the 950. Seems like the price has been reduced quite a lot since release.

I've read nothing but good reviews on the i7 950 but just make sure you get a decent motherboard and pair it with memory certified for the motherboard/ platform - Components play nicely when they're all matched to spec.

Regards,
Stratobat