New computer decisions

[12johnni]

Hello, my current system is consisted of some monster (crap) case, containing an Intel Core i3 530, Nvidia GeForce 9600GT, 2x KVR1333D3N9/2G and an Asus P7P55D LE. The PSU is only 430W.

My plans are basically for a GTX 580 (EVGA). If I just brought the new video card and a better PSU, would it bottleneck like hell? People in other forums agreed that an overclocked one wouldn't bottle a GTX 480, so is the small increase okay? I really want DX11 now.

If I can't, should I just buy an Intel Core i7 950 system for it, or should I buy a Sandy Bridge (I think the fastest one is almost as fast as a 980x)
http://www.cpubenchmark.net/high_end_cpus.html

The only problem with is that the EVGA X58 Micro being un-available (at least at EVGA.com) is that I either have to stay with Asus
(no thanks I want same brand MB as GPU and their GPU's suck) or I have to stay with P55. I do want an X58 Micro for Lan Parties.

And also, what would you say is the best card for
a) PhysX in a single slot and
b) Physx in dual-slot.

Thanks very much, the CPU socket stuff is annoying the hell out of me.

 

[klepto12]

why not just step up to the i5 760 and get a good heatsink and overclock the cpu to around 3.8 ghz will last you a while and no need to upgrade for a while. The GTX 580 would be bottlenecked by your current cpu i think even a 5870 would be held back so the i5 760 imo is the best route to go and the cheapest. also a gtx 570 imo would be the better buy since its almost as fast as the 580 when overclocked and uses less power.

 

[princeton]

Considering you're already on lga 1156 sandy bridge would be sort of silly. I would suggest(like the poster above me) to get an i5-760 and a good headsink/water block to overclock.

 

[DokkRokken]

If I were in your shoes, I'd just get a nice power supply, aftermarket heatsink, and clock that i3 to the sky. While the 760 can yield better scores in gaming when overclocked, the 530 isn't that far behind, and is the most cost effective route since you already own it.

 

[klepto12]

The i3 is not a gaming cpu and never will be games are becoming more and more able to use more than 2 cores and the i5 760 is just a lot better gaming cpu especially if you clock it to around 3.7 Ghz

 

[hellokitty[hk]]

You could just get a 6850 for now.
IMO having to upgrade your motherboard would suck. It might also invalidate windows.

 

[princeton]

You could just get a 6850 for now.
IMO having to upgrade your motherboard would suck. It might also invalidate windows.

Pardon? Does that only apply to OEM systems where the bios has a signature to match up with the OEM key? Or can that apply to everyone?

 

[red1776]

Pardon? Does that only apply to OEM systems where the bios has a signature to match up with the OEM key? Or can that apply to everyone?

That applies any time you make a major hardware change. there is a small chance that the installed Windows OS will boot up, but a vast majority of the time when you change out the MB you will have to re-install or a system repair to strip the hardware identifiers.

 

[princeton]

That applies any time you make a major hardware change. there is a small chance that the installed Windows OS will boot up, but a vast majority of the time when you change out the MB you will have to re-install or a system repair to strip the hardware identifiers.

Damn... I guess I should start backing up my stuff if I want that sandy bridge system.

Thanks for your help and sorry for going off topic guys.

 

[hellokitty[hk]]

Oh but if you have the retail version (AFAIK), you'll just have to call MS and you're supposed to be allowed to transfer your windows copy. If it's OEM I'm pretty sure it's glued to whatever system you installed it on. But yeah, you'll probably need a reinstall. Personally, I would just get a 6850 and hold onto that for a while.

 

[Mizzou]

Oh but if you have the retail version (AFAIK), you'll just have to call MS and you're supposed to be allowed to transfer your windows copy. If it's OEM I'm pretty sure it's glued to whatever system you installed it on ...

That's correct, I've got the retail version and after a series of motherboard upgrades (third change) had to call MS to have it activated ... wasn't a problem. Am pretty sure that an OEM version of Windows will be bound to the original motherboard it's installed on.

 

[princeton]

That's correct, I've got the retail version and after a series of motherboard upgrades (third change) had to call MS to have it activated ... wasn't a problem. Am pretty sure that an OEM version of Windows will be bound to the original motherboard it's installed on.

Screw it. I'll just use an activator as I don't feel like dealing with Microsoft CSRs. If I own it legally it isn't really illegal right?

 

[Mizzou]

Screw it. I'll just use an activator as I don't feel like dealing with Microsoft CSRs. If I own it legally it isn't really illegal right?

I understand how you feel, it does seem that once you've purchased a copy of Windows it really shouldn't matter what hardware you're running it own. That's actually the way it used to be.

 

[hellokitty[hk]]

It's still illegal (if by activator, you mean some sort of crack) because if you read the EULA (I don't expect anyone too), I'm quite sure Microsoft states that is illegal.

 

[Mizzou]

It's still illegal (if by activator, you mean some sort of crack) because if you read the EULA (I don't expect anyone too), I'm quite sure Microsoft states that is illegal.

I'm not advocating that, I own legal copies of Windows for each of my systems (WinXP, Vista, Win7 and before). In fact, a few years back one of my co-workers tried transferring an OEM copy to another machine and after a few weeks a little window popped up "offering" him the opportunity to "upgrade". These days, if you're an enthusiast and do a lot of hardware upgrades you might as well pony up for the full product retail version.