Upgrading Mobo and CPU?

[falcon409]

This is only a what if scenario right now because I know it will be expensive and I'm not into "expensive" right now. I just want some opinions on what will work within my current tower.

My current Motherboard is an MSI760G-E51
My current CPU is a 3.90Ghz FX-4300 Quad-Core

I'm currently running 16Gig of Memory.

For those who remember, this is the Computer that was built with donations from everyone here at SOH after my previous system was fried. . .hook, line and sinker. I don't even remember how long ago that was but it has been many, many years ago now. It has been a great system, but P3D_V4 has shown it to be lacking and if I intend to continue at all I'll have to bite the bullet and improve on what I have or go back to FSX and be content with that.

So any opinions will be appreciated.

[hairyspin]

Look at the setup recommended by LM in their system requirements. You don't mention your graphics card and since P3D v4 really uses the GPU I'll guess an upgrade there might be the difference between a whole new rig and just an upgrade. You are, as you say, already running a speedy processor and lots of RAM.

[Naismith]

For my last build I used this site to assist in what goes with what etc. Most helpful


https://pcpartpicker.com/

[StormILM]

My 2013 Dell XPS 8500 will run it. Specs are i7-3770 @ 3.4ghz (turbo boost takes it up to 3.9 or so), 16gb memory, my GPU is a Nvidia GTX 960 @ 2gb which is bare minimum. What I am planning to build will look something like this: i7-7770K which is 4.2ghz base with TB up to 4.5ghz w/o OCing. 32gb memory, GTX 1080, multiple SSD's. I'm going buy the parts here & there and then put it all together. It will be VR ready from day one.

[wombat666]

I'd go with hairy's suggestion as a guideline, my only caveat would be to avoid an MSI mobo, I'm really disappointed in mine.
P3D4 runs like a train on my system but it should given the wretched excess I have to use.

[falcon409]

Look at the setup recommended by LM in their system requirements. You don't mention your graphics card and since P3D v4 really uses the GPU I'll guess an upgrade there might be the difference between a whole new rig and just an upgrade. You are, as you say, already running a speedy processor and lots of RAM.

My GPU is an NVidia GTX 970 w/4Gig

[falcon409]

I'd go with hairy's suggestion as a guideline, my only caveat would be to avoid an MSI mobo, I'm really disappointed in mine.
P3D4 runs like a train on my system but it should given the wretched excess I have to use.

You may have noticed that mine is also an MSI Mobo, but I honestly wouldn't know how to tell if it's a disappointment or not, lol

[falcon409]

Look at the setup recommended by LM in their system requirements. You don't mention your graphics card and since P3D v4 really uses the GPU I'll guess an upgrade there might be the difference between a whole new rig and just an upgrade. You are, as you say, already running a speedy processor and lots of RAM.

Oddly enough, my system lacks only two things that would make it their "Recommended" requirements (Win10 and an 8Gig GPU rather than the 4Gig I have on the 970). Just judging from what I have experienced in the two OS's, Win10 has the edge when it comes to P3D_V4. I was having a very smooth experience while running Win10. . .Win7, at least coupled with my current PC setup, doesn't hold a candle to it. Figures!!

[DagR]

Whatever you decide to do, do not buy an AMD CPU.
Ideally an Intel i7-6700 will give you great performance.
An SSD drive is also great to have for the OS and sim.

[Butcherbird17]

What is your budget for the cpu and mobo? Is your memory DDR3 or DDR4?

Joe

[txnetcop]

Ed what do you mainly use your system for? I should add do you intend to use the 64 bit applications in the near future such as DoveTail games new FSW, PSd4, or X-Plane11?
Ted

[falcon409]

What is your budget for the cpu and mobo? Is your memory DDR3 or DDR4?
Joe

Currently I have no budget, I'm simply testing the waters. . .The memory is DDR4.

[falcon409]

Ed what do you mainly use your system for? I should add do you intend to use the 64 bit applications in the near future such as DoveTail games new FSW, PSd4, or X-Plane11?
Ted

Other than surfing the Web, the main use of my system Is for Flight Sim and only FSX and P3D_V4. Not interested in Dovetail at all or X-Plane.

[txnetcop]

I remember you are not into overclocking but you need reliability with a little future-proofing. You choose where to buy them but these are fairly good prices. Since you live in Sherman it isn't that far to go to Dallas. Frys Electronics and Microcenter have some great deals that beat even the internet prices.

Motherboard:
https://www.amazon.com/GIGABYTE-LGA1...dp_ob_title_ce

CPU (cheap but fast) Intel Core i5 6600K 3.50 GHz Quad Core Skylake Desktop Processor, Socket LGA 1151, 6MB Cache

https://www.amazon.com/Intel-Skylake...C7JMWSH4J69J05

CPU not so cheap but fast and future-proof:Intel Core i7 6700K 4.00 GHz Unlocked Quad Core Skylake Desktop Processor, Socket LGA 1151


https://www.amazon.com/Intel-Unlocke...HS3NEAFGGRV2MM

DDR 4 Memoryworks great with either CPU)Ballistix Sport LT 16GB Kit (8GBx2) DDR4 2400 MT/s (PC4-19200) DIMM 288-Pin - BLS2K8G4D240FSE (Red)

https://www.amazon.com/Ballistix-Spo...C7JMWSH4J69J05

I still use air cooling at 4.4GHz to save money...no problems as of 2013.
Ted

If you want to stick with AMD I would not upgrade to anything but the new RYZEN 1700 or 1800. Flight simulation really requires a lot of CPU interaction. I still choose Intel over AMD but Ryzen has potential in the near future. Note: Kabylake is the latest Intel CPU in this price range but Skylake processors will still be around for a long time to come. They play all the latest games very well.

[Butcherbird17]

You can look at Newegg for some bundled hardware. I found this one which is just under 500 bucks,
but it does come with 16 gb of DDR4 Corsair memory. You could always sell your current hardware
and put that towards upgrading your GPU.

https://www.newegg.com/Product/Combo...=Combo.3518107

And as Ted posted going with a Ryzen setup would be a good thing. Ryzen is pretty good at gaming
but even better at productivity. Being you like making scenery and painting a Ryzen system with it's
higher core count will let you have P3D running and your tools for scenery creation running at the
same time. Just something to think about.

Joe

[falcon409]

I remember you are not into overclocking but you need reliability with a little future-proofing. You choose where to buy them but these are fairly good prices. Since you live in Sherman it isn't that far to go to Dallas. Frys Electronics and Microcenter have some great deals that beat even the internet prices.

Thanks Ted. . .Fryes is where I went to put my current system together. Takes about 40 minutes to get there and it's right off Hwy 75, so it's easy off and then back on and home.

[Dangerousdave26]

For my last build I used this site to assist in what goes with what etc. Most helpful


https://pcpartpicker.com/

Nice

[hairyspin]

Should you go for a new cpu/mobo pair, you should know the newest stuff is likely to be Windows 10 only, no previous OSes supported. I'm waiting for bits to build a new rig and noticed this while doing the homework. It's not a problem to me but YMMV.

[Stefano Zibell]

First of all, your graphics card being a 970, what you have there is a severe CPU bottleneck. This means it is not fast enough to send in all the frames your graphics card could chew up and spit into your monitor.

Second, I'm pretty sure your memory is DDR3, because as far as I know, AMD's FX line does not support DDR4.

So that being the case, you're stuck with gen 4 or 5 core i5 or i7, which is not bad at all given you could find a suitable motherboard. I will recommend you getting a motherboard with the Z97 chipset so you can overclock, but that will be a little more expensive. An i5 4690k would be a good pairing and a considerable
upgrade from what you currently have. (if you get another 9 (H97) series chipset and don't plan on overclocking, then just drop the k, and get the 4690 or the i7 4790).

Cheers and tailwinds for you.

[hairyspin]

My GPU is an NVidia GTX 970 w/4Gig

Oof! Tell you what, I'll swap your GTX 970 for my GTX 1050 ... ... no, really, you're going to need a stack of cash to improve significantly on that GPU.

Looks like the CPU/mobo route with new DDR4 RAM would be the way forward, unless you're running 5 socking big monitors in parallel. The improvements would be due to the faster bus & memory speeds and an SSD is strongly recommended by LM as well as quad-core 3.5MHz cpu, 16 GB of 2666MHz DDR4 memory. The latest Intel have faster base clock speeds, so Kaby Lake 7th generation rather than Skylake 6th gen. They use a bit less power too.

I'm building a new rig as soon as all the bits get delivered, but it's a little more modest and I haven't got P3D of any version yet. As far as future-proofing goes, a future-proof rig for me is one which keeps working: almost 9 years on the present box!

[Stefano Zibell]

Of course, if you plan on switching to DDR4 memory, then kaby lake i5 7600, or even AMD Ryzen 5 1600 are even better.

[falcon409]

First of all, your graphics card being a 970, what you have there is a severe CPU bottleneck. This means it is not fast enough to send in all the frames your graphics card could chew up and spit into your monitor.
Cheers and tailwinds for you.

It would seem then that the pairing I have currently (better than average GPU, mismatched CPU and Win7 OS) is the reason for the current poor performance. As I've mentioned several times before, this pairing plus Win10 was perfect. V4 ran smooth as silk with autogen as far as the eye could see and seldom did I ever detect even the slightest stutter. With Win7. . .the Sim actually stops for as much as 3 or 4 seconds then continues the flight and scattered in between are constant stutters. Something has to give, lol

[txnetcop]

Ed, there is nothing wrong with your GTX 970 as long as you don't upgrade too far. It is a 256 bit card and will do just fine with what I recommended even DDR memory or Butcherbird's RYZEN suggestion since you are a scenery developer. Should you move to a Kabylake processor you would be better off with a GTX 1080 Ti but that is ridiculously expensive right now. I live on small pension and SS too now. If it weren't for the gamer system I build I would probably go under but I've been doing this for 18 years.

[falcon409]

Ed, there is nothing wrong with your GTX 970 as long as you don't upgrade too far. It is a 256 bit card and will do just fine with what I recommended even DDR memory or Butcherbird's RYZEN suggestion since you are a scenery developer. Should you move to a Kabylake processor you would be better off with a GTX 1080 Ti but that is ridiculously expensive right now. I live on small pension and SS too now. If it weren't for the gamer system I build I would probably go under but I've been doing this for 18 years.

With Fryes as close as it is. . .their parts (motherboard and CPU) would run $418. I would need a better cooling fan also so that would up it a bit. Not bad I guess.

[Penzoil3]

I don't understand your problem with Windows 7. I'm running P3D 4 on my Win 7 64bit system with no problems at all. I have this-